316 ILLINOIS DAIRYMEN'S ASSOCIATION. 



the use to which that animal is going to put the food. A cheap 

 team may be kept through an idle time on a kind of feed that 

 would not be at all suited to the needs of a race horse during the 

 training season, or of a valuable cow yielding 100 pounds of 

 milk a day during an official test. 



In order that a cow may produce the greatest yield of which 

 she is capable she must be given the right kinds of feed and the 

 correct amount of each. There is little use in paying high prices 

 and establishing a good dairy herd unless careful attention is to 

 be given to the amount and character of the feed, for however 

 well bred and efficient the individuals they cannot give in their 

 product what they do not receive in their food. 



The nutrients contained in all feeding stuffs, as well as in 

 animal bodies and in milk, may be divided into rive classes as 

 follows : 



Water. 



Ash, (mineral compounds.) 

 Protein, (nitrogen compounds.) 

 Carbohydrates, (starches, sugar, etc.) 

 Fats, (or oils.) 



While an ample supply of pure water is one of the first re- 

 quisites of good stock feeding, it is usually supplied in abundance 

 at comparatively little cost and will not be considered further in 

 this discussion. 



Ash or mineral matter is present in all feeding stuffs in 

 sufficient quanities so that an animal properly nourished with the 

 other constituents is sure to receive enough mineral matter; we 

 will, therefore, pass this group of substances also. 



Protein. 



Protein is the name applied to the constituents of feeds 

 which contain nitrogen, and feeding stuffs which are rich in this 

 element are frequently called nitrogenous feeds. Among these 

 are : oil meal, cotton-seed meal, gluten meal, and the legumes, as 

 cowpeas, alfalfa, and clover. The white of an egg, the lean part 

 of meat, and the casein of milk are all good examples of protein. 



