KEINDKKI! (iHAZING INVESTIGATIONS IN ALASKA 



9 



this, the ])rescnce of several tame sled reindeer in the herd is of 

 iireater value in the better domestication of tlie herd than is com- 

 monly supposed. 



REINDEER MEAT 



Manv persons still seem to be under tiie impression that the rein- 

 deer is a game animal and that the meat is venison. This is not 

 tlie case. The reindeer has l>een develoi)ed from the wild caribou 

 (d' northern Europe and Asia thi'ou<:h countless <renerations of 

 hr(H'din<i\ and as the breotlin<r uj) has been without particulai' direc- 

 tion, the present type is perhajjs not far removed from the orij^inal. 

 'Hiere is some dillerence. however, in conformatioii and jicncral 

 coh)ration- between reindeer of Siberian descent and the caribou 

 of Alaska and Canada, and considei-able difference in the tempera- 

 ment of the animals and in ran<re habits. 



Reindeer meat, when properly produced and handled, compares 

 favorably with beef. It is fine jzrained. contains a {jfood, palatable 

 fat. and when fresh is exceptionally juicy and tentler. C. F. Lang- 

 worthy, of the Bureau of Home Economics, conunents ui)on rein- 

 deer meat as a food, in a memorandum to the Biological Survey, 

 as follows : 



Many studies liave l)oeii made of the coniiiositioii of different sorts of iiiear. 

 of cookinu (lualilies. and of thoroui^liness of digestion. .liulKinj,'' by available 

 data, meat from different animals used as food is very similar in its general 

 coniiiosition. 



r.esides the considerable amount of water present, meats oontaiu protein 

 or nitrogenous material, fats in varying amounts, minute proportions of 

 glycogen or animal sugar, and some ash constituents. The percentage of fat 

 varies very greatly with feed and other matters. 



Some cuts are considered better flavored and some more tender than others, 

 hut, generally speaking, meats of different kinds and cuts are very similar in 

 their food value and digestibility, meat protein like other complete protein 

 being used for the building and repair of body tissue, and the fat of meat, 

 like other fats, as body fuel. This applies in a general way to game also. 



To understand the place of meats (including reindeer meat I and other 

 foods in the diet, one should remember that in order to l)e well balanced the 

 diet, week in and week out. should provi;!*^ : (1) Vegetables and fruit, valuable 

 for ash and vitamin constituents; (2) meat. milk. eggs. tish. and other foods 

 that sujiply " comi)lete ■■ protein: (.3) cereal grains and their products, as 

 sources of carbohydrate for energy or body fuel: (4) sugar and other sweets-, 

 as flavor foods and sources of body fuel : and (5) fat. as a source of body fuel, 

 \vhich in some cases, as in luUter and cream, is accompanied by vitamin. Rein- 

 deer meat is well fitted ti> take its place with other meats. 



Reindeer have been bred for food puri>oses for centuries in northern Asia, 

 which is clear indication of their fitness for food. The flavor is excellent, the 

 food value compares well with other meats an<l the meat is wholesome and 

 can be prepared for the table in a variety of ways. 



FEEDING EXPERIMENTS 



FEEDING PREFERENCES OF REINDEER 



Reindeer are herbivorous and ruminant animals, feeding chiefly 

 on sedges. gras.ses. and browse ]>lants in summer and on lichens in 

 winter. They are IcnoAvn at times also to eat mice, dried fish, and 

 ptarmigans and their eggs, a habit that probably may be attributed 

 to a craving for certain mineral substances. The value of the differ- 



= r. S. Dept. Agr. Bui. 1089, pp. 9 and 10. 



