THE COMPOUNDING OF RATIONS 369 



source of early spring greenness, but it must be fed with 

 caution at first, as it frequently causes digestive disorders. 



Musty grain or tainted meat is likely to cause difficulty 

 in the alimentary tract, which in young stock may be so 

 serious as to cause heavy mortality. 



Certain materials, as grit and charcoal, are not properly 

 feeds, as they are not fed for the purpose of furnishing any of 

 the nutrients. They are spoken of as feeds, however, because 

 they are commonly fed to bring about certain nutritive 

 effects. The function of the grit is to grind the feed, thereby 

 increasing its digestion coefficient, while charcoal acts as an 

 absorbent and as a corrective of intestinal disorders. 



One of the most important feed constituents in this con- 

 nection is crude fiber. WhUe it has a very limited digestibility, 

 a certain proportion is necessary in the ration. Its function 

 is to dilute and open up the ration in the crop, gizzard, and 

 intestines so that the secretions in these respective organs 

 may have an opportunity to act. It serves to keep the intes- 

 tine properly distended and aids in preventing constipation. 

 If it was possible to feed fowls a ration that was wholly 

 digestible, they would very probably die of acute consti- 

 pation. 



Too much crude fiber in a ration is also disastrous. Gowell^ 

 reports that hens that had been bedded with oat straw, and 

 giving a 60 per cent, egg yield, were suddenly reduced to a 

 yield of less than 10 per cent, by bedding the house down with 

 oat hay cured green. The hens ate freely of the finer parts, 

 which immediately caused acute digestive disorders. The 

 hay was removed at once, but it was twenty days before the 

 birds regained their normal production. 



Cochel and Jackson^ found that rations carrying 3.5 per 

 cent, of the total weight in crude fiber gave better results 

 for laying hens than those with lower or higher percentages. 

 Fowls were kept in fairly good condition on a ration carrying 

 5 per cent, of crude fiber, but showed a decreased egg yield. 

 Serious intestinal disorders occurred when a ration carrying 

 over 5 per cent, was fed. 



' Maine Bulletin No. 144. ' Pennsylvania Bulletin, No. 120. 



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