THIRTY-EIGHTH ANNUAL CONVENTION 149 



used to form muscle, blood, connective tissue, tendon, etc., as 

 well as curd, or casein and albumen in the milk. Neither car- 

 bohydrate nor fat can be used for this purpose, because they do 

 not contain nitrogen. Protein forms nearly one- third of the 

 solid materials found in milk; therefore it must be supplied in 

 rather large quantities. Most of our common feeds do not con- 

 tain a sufficient amount; therefore, we purchase such feeds as 

 linseed meal, gluten feed, cotton-seed meal, bran and other 

 feeds rich in protein. Protein should make up about one-sixth 

 of the nutrients in the ration of a good cow when in milk, or 

 one pound of protein to about six pounds of the carbohydrate 

 and fat. It is important to remember that no other food mater- 

 ial can take its place, and that it is absolutely necessary to main- 

 tain the animal and to produce milk. It is usually the most 

 expensive part of the ration and, therefore, should not be fed 

 in larger quantities than needed. 



Carbohydrate of feeds is a nutrient which differs from pro- 

 tein in that it does not contain nitrogen, and that it is abundant 

 in our common grains. It is found in the form of starch, sugar, 

 fiber, etc., and is used by the cow to supply energy, heat and fat 

 in the body, and sugar and fat in the milk. It is the cheapest 

 nutrient in our feeds, because it is most abundant, tho it is used 

 in larger quantities by the cow than protein or fat. 



Fat, or oil, is the third nutrient in feeds, which it is neces- 

 sary to consider It is contained in all feeds, but the quantity 

 varies widely and it is never in as large quantities as the carbo- 

 hydrate. It is used by the cow for the same purposes as the car- 

 bohydrate and contains the same elements but is more concen- 

 trated. Careful experiments show that one pound of fat will 

 take the place of two and one-fourth pounds of carbohydrate, 

 and in making up rations, we consider it worth two and one- 

 fourth times as much as an equal amount of the carbohydrate. 



Since these last two nutrients (carbohydrate and fat) con- 

 tain the same elements and answer the same purpose in feeds, 

 hereafter they will be considered together. The fat will be mul- 

 tiplied by two and one-fourth and added to the carbohydrate, 

 and will be spoken of as the carbohydrate and fat. 



