1903 
THE RURAL NEW-YORKER 
111 
COW AND PIG RATIONS. 
I notice In THE R. N.-Y., page 15, a grain 
mixture for dairy cows from the Massa¬ 
chusetts Station, which iooks very little 
for a day’s ration for a cow in full flow of 
milk. I am feeding and milking 28 cows. 
The feed is 100 pounds wheat bran (fresh 
and sweet from a nearby mill); 100 pounds 
corn-and-cob meal (ground fine); 75 pounds 
gluten; 76 pounds old process oil cake meal, 
and six pounds salt, all well mixed together. 
1 feed each cow in full flow of .milk from 
17 to 20 quarts, weighing 13 to 16 pounds per 
day in two feeds, with corn fodder twice 
and Timothy and clover hay cut early once 
a day. Am I feeding too much, and will 
you give me three properly balanced rations 
for milch cows from the feeds mentioned 
above with the following combinations of 
roughage: Fine cut corn fodder once a day 
and hay twice a day; line cut fodder twice 
a day and hay once a day; fine cut corn 
fodder three times a day all they will eat, 
and no hay. How many pounds of feed for 
l,u00-pound cow per day when in full flow 
of milk? In all cases the hay is Timothy 
and clover, cut early, and good bright corn 
fodder. We have no silage or roots. Very 
few in this section have either. 
I would also like to have two balanced 
rations for pigs, from the time they are 
six weeks old to butchering eight or 10 
months old, without milk, as we sell it all. 
First ration to consist of good sweet wheat 
bran and wheat middlings, rye and corn, 
ground; second, wheat bran and wheat mid¬ 
dlings; wheat and corn ground. Does it 
pay to cook the feeds which 1 have men¬ 
tioned for pigs and hogs? w. n. w. 
Newtown, Pa. 
Cow Pkoulkms. —In answer to the first 
proposition, 13 to 16 pounds is a very 
large grain ration and 1 should doubt 
the highest profit from such heavy feed¬ 
ing of concentrates. It is possible to 
feed Holstein cows weighing 1,400 
pounds as much grain as this, but they 
must be able to give when fresh 50 
pounds of milk per day. One of our 
herdsmen is making a test of two grade 
Holstein cows that are giving 58 to GO 
and 66 to 70 pounds each per day, and 
consuming only 12 pounds of grain a 
day; three pounds of distillers’ grains, 
three pounds cornmeal, three pounds of 
oats and three pounds of middlings. 
Every experiment that has come within 
my observation has shown that when 
we get beyond 10 pounds we have passed 
the profit line and no doubt for 75 per 
cent of cows seven to eight pounds will 
be a limit. 
Cow Rations. —The following rations 
may come fairly -within the range of 
foods mentioned: 
NO. 1. 
Corn fodder, 10 lbs 
Mixed hay, 12 lbs., 
Bran, 3 lbs. 
Gluten, 2 lbs. 
Oil meal, 1 lb.. 
Corn and cob, 3 lbs.2.67 
Total .21,25 
Nutritive ratio, 1:6.4. 
Car- 
Corn fodder, 15 lbs.8.70 
Mixed hay, 8 lbs... 
Bran, 4 lbs. 
Gluten, 2 lbs. 
Oil meal, 1 lb. 
Corn and cob, 2 lbs. 1.78 
Total .21.71 
Nutritive ratio, 1:6.5. 
Dry 
Pro- bohy- 
matter. 
tein drates 
... 5.75 
.25 3.75 
...10.44 
.74 5.52 
.36 1.36 
... 1.84 
.39 1.26 
.29 .49 
... 2.67 
.24 2.19 
...24.25 
2.27 14.57 
2. 
Car- 
Dry 
Pro- bohy- 
matter. 
tein drates 
... 8.70 
.38 6.60 
... 6.96 
.50 3.68 
.49 1.81 
... 1.84 
.39 1.26 
... .91 
.29 .49 
... 1.78 
.14 1.40 
2.19 14.24 
NO. 3. 
Car- 
Corn fodder. 
Bran, 4 Ibs... 
Gluten, 4 lbs 
Oil meal, 1 It 
Corn and cob, 
Nutritive ratio, 1:6.3. 
Dry 
Pro- bohy- 
matter. 
tein. drates. 
20 
lbs.. 
....12.00 
.34 
6.88 
.49 
1.81 
.... 3.68 
.78 
2.56 
)... 
.91 
.29 
.49 
, 1 
ib.... 
.07 
.70 
...21.00 
1.97 
12.44 
These rations are not narrow, and con¬ 
sequently not over stimulating. If the 
cows have the dairy type, I should ex¬ 
pect any one of these combinations to 
give good results, and at the same time 
to keep the cows in good working flesh. 
It is not the gross amount of food that 
these cows consume but the net energy 
and milk force produced. In former 
years Timothy hay was fed in very large 
quantities even in excess of these ra¬ 
tions given, considering total dry mat¬ 
ter only, but a cow could not give milk 
upon it. She could not even maintain 
her condition and health when dry. An 
excess of protein, say 2^ pounds of di¬ 
gestible per day, will stimulate a cow 
temporarily to an extra flow of milk. 
There is always a limit, however, to 
every vital force, no matter where found. 
A man may be spurred beyond his nor¬ 
mal power and accomplish great physi¬ 
cal or mental effort. All know the re¬ 
sult. The same is applicable to a dairy 
cow. It seems to me we have a greater 
necessity to-day of studying how diges¬ 
tible wo may make our foods and then 
so to adjust them that the cow will re¬ 
duce the waste in digestion to a mini¬ 
mum, than to see how many total 
pounds a day may be crowded tiirough 
the animal. The early-cut hay is com-' 
mendable. A tremendous loss of milk- 
producing force occurs annually through 
late cutting of hay. A very important 
element is necessarily left out of all of 
these rations, viz., succulence. It is im¬ 
possible for a cow to reach a maximum 
flow of milk upon a minimum amount of 
digestible nutrients unless silage or 
roots are found in the ration. They may 
carry only a small amount of dry mat¬ 
ter, and digestible dry matter is the 
great factor in producing milk, but suc¬ 
culence enables the cow to obtain maxi¬ 
mum digestion. Put up a silo and take 
care of this corn fodder in a cheap way, 
and also have a food much more diges¬ 
tible than the dry stalks. 
Pig Rations. —The foods mentioned 
are good. I should make no difference 
in the ration when substituting wheat 
for rye. They are so nearly alike in 
their feeding value that one could take 
the place of the other without noticeable 
effect I would not dare give exact 
amounts per day per animal, because the 
growing pig or calf will daily increase 
in its demand for food. We may also 
make the ration somewhat richer in pro¬ 
tein for the first six weeks after wean¬ 
ing, than during the following two 
months. If Increased fat is required, aad 
more carbohydrates. About 35 pounds 
of dry matter may safely be fed in the 
first period to each 1,000 pounds live 
weight; 28 to 30 in the second period, 
and 20 to 25 during the last or finishing 
period. I should suggest for the first 
period equal parts of bran, middlings 
and wheat, for the second equal parts 
of bran, middlings, wheat and corn; for 
the third equal parts of middlings, wheat 
and corn. The first mixture wiil have 
a nutritive ratio of 1:5; the second 1:6, 
and the third 1:7. A few cooked vege¬ 
tables or roots will serve to increase the 
efficiency of this ration in the Winter, 
and some growing succulent food, like 
Dwarf Essex rape, clover or oats and 
peas during the Summer, Make no mis¬ 
take about an insuflficient supply of pure 
water. Digestion stops unless enough 
liquid is at hand to float the food. Give 
plenty of charcoal and saic and ashes. 
If kept constantly before them they will 
not eat too much of the latter. Charcoal 
is a splendid regulator of the bowels, ab¬ 
sorbing gases and ferments. The hogs 
relish it. Experiments so far conducted 
have not given sufficient returns to war¬ 
rant cooking for hogs. Albumen or pro¬ 
tein is rather made less digestible. 
Starches are, however, made more di¬ 
gestible. I have an idea that corn may 
be made more valuable if cooked, as one 
would do in preparing for human food, 
thoroughly breaking down the starch 
grains, I have no positive proof of this 
statement. Some experiments are now 
in progress to ascertain the value of 
sprouted corn. It is a well-known fact 
that soaking the starchy grains changes 
them to sugar, and even a soaking of 
corn will increase its value. These ex¬ 
periments will prove whether a digestive 
piocess is carried on during the sprout¬ 
ing, which will relieve the animal of 
just that much effort ii. e. cook. 
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By Senator Albert J. Beveridge 
A set of brilliant personal articles X 
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Salaries and Savings 
S By Hon. Leslie M. Shaw 
i nis IS me nrst oi a series ot papers 
in which some successful business 
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Hon. Grover Cleveland will continue to 
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