West Virginia argus. [volume] (Kingwood, W. Va.) 1877-1946, 1879-01-11

Fish as FOdder.-W. O. Atwater
writes in the 1mericdn Agricuifur0list 1:
The earliest accurate experiments on
fish as food for animals that have seen
are reported by Mr.. Lawes, of Rotham-
sted, England, in 1853. Various foods
including bean, maize, and barley meals
and dried Newfoundland Goldfish. were
tested. Mr.. Lawes says: "In the two
series-where we have comparatively
small amount of non-nitrogenous matter
consumed, the food consisted, i'm large
proportion, of the highly nitrogenous
Goldfish; and in both of these cases we
had not only very good proportion of
increase To food consumed, but the pigs
IN these pens were very fat and we'll
ripened, and hence large proportion
of their increase would be real dry sub
stance. This result is, i'm itself. inter
esting; and it may perhaps point to a
comparatively greater efficiency i'm the
already animalized protein compounds
(albuminoids) supplied in the Goldfish
than in those derived, as i'm the other
cases, from the purely vegetable diets"
The high cost of grain foods i'm Europe
farmers there have to look to Russia
India, and America for their supply of
oilcake-has led the German experi
ment stations to examine the question
OF the value of animal foods scraps
dried blood, and fish as substitute
Numerous feeding trials have been made
with sheep and swine, to test the digest
Utility of dried flesh, blood, and Nor
weglan fish guano, and their nutritive
value, as compared with vegetable foods
such as pea-meal, oatmeal and potatoes
The animals were fed during different
periods OF two or three weeks each. with
different foods and mixtures. and care
ful weiehings made of both food and
eXcrements. Each series occupied sew
eral months, and was made with an
amount of labor and accuracy that
would be simply astonishing to most
farmers in this country Wolff found
sheep to digest ninety-two per cent. of
the albuminoids, and ninety-seven per
cent. of the fats of heshmeal, and CON
cluded, with Wildt, that animal albu-
minoids and fats may serve lust as well
a vegetable for fodder From several
trials with sheep, Weiske and Kellner
conclude that fsh-guano may he fed
with profit. At first the animals did
not relish the fish, but when mixed with
oatmeal they accepted and soon got to
eating It clear very grecdily. They
digested ninety per cent. of the albumi-
nOlds and sevCnty-six per cent. of the
fats Of the fish. 1t is agreed that these
animal foods are as nutritious as the
most concentrated vegetable foods. 4
large number Of farm trials i'm different
parts of Europe bring the same result
An accurate experiment Ly Professor
harrington, of the Maine State Agricul-
tural College, leads to like conclusions
On the whole, the testimony is unaui-
nous rs to the high value Of fish guano
a. food for sheep and swine There is
no reason why it should not be equally
good for neat cattle, particularly Young
stock. One important element of the
profit from such foods is the manure.
The transformation of fish by birds into
Peruvian guanO makes it more soluble
and worth more for manure. Kelluer
found that the same is true when fish is
fed TO sheep.
TO make meat-scrap, dried blood. or
fish most profitable for feeding, the first
point Is to get wholesome product
This can be done by proper preparation.
Common salt, or, perhaps better, Ger
man potash salts, would aid to this end.
and increase the value Of the manure
The next point will be 10 feed them
with poor hay, straw, and cornstalks.
and thus save the better hay for use
where 10 il most needed BY such econ
omizing of fish wastes, millions of dol.
lars may he saved to the farmer. of the
country.