The Lebanon express. (Lebanon, Linn County, Or.) 1887-1898, 1888-08-03
WHEN TO SELL STOCK :
The Losses Farmers Sustain BY kespIas
Cattle Too Long.


by keeping animals intended solely for
producing meat too long is certain
All the reports of our fat stock fairs
show that the gain in weight of cattle
il the greatest while they are young.
and the smallest after they HAYS
reached maturity. They also show
that young animals viii thrive and be-
come fat on cheaper food than old ones
will Young cattle will take on flesh
and fat if they have no other fo,,d than
grass in the summer and hay in tho
winter. Old cattle. however. must
have grain or they will not improve in
condition Their appetite is not 50
keen and their digestion is not as good
as when they were young. The like -
rue in respect to pigs. When young
hey will eat almost any thing. and
viii convert much Of It into flesh and
fat As they advance in age they take
'ess exercise. have less keen appe-
tite. and are more particular about
heir food Their digestion is not as
good. and as a consequence the food
they consume does not produce so great
gain in weight
Sheep raised chiefly for their flesh
should be prepared for market and dis
| posed of early. II they are rtsseI
| partiy for their flesh and partly for
their wool there is ordinarily no gain
| ID: keeping them over more than three
winters 1t is difficult to feed an old
/ sheep so that il will afford good Iiuf-
ton 1t may be policy to keep good
| breeding ewes as long as they viii raise
lambs. but the profit in keeping them
will be in the lambs. as the mothers
will be likely TO decrease in value after
| they are four wears old The risk of
keeping animals intended TO furnish
meat beyond the time when ey can
! Se fitted for the market should be al
ways taken into consideration Tho
risks incident to disease are very large
in the care of pigs. now that the swine
/ plague and hog cholera have become so
common and are so generally fatal A
delay of few days in fatteniIg and
selling lot of pigs may result in the
| loss of all of them The risk in keep
| ing lot of steers or sheep is not As
| great but it is considerable.
Farmers are generally anxious to
keep an anim1i till such time as it will
| bring the highest price that can be OBJ
tanned for It They like 10 obtained a
| large sum of money for an animal
raised on place. and have the credit
! of obtaining it There is some pleas
ure in having steer that wcigas a ton
and in receiving the amount of moner
il will bring in the market Ii shnuid
ne remembered. however, that the last
five hundred pounds added to its
1 ferhf fxv OH e1 49, Ices
The grain consumed in producing IL
| WAS worth more than the feed, and
could have been sold for more money.
II should also be remembered thas
there is greater risk in keeping very
heavy asimal than one of light or
medium weight Il is more liable TO
injuries on the place where it Is kept
or IN the car in which it is transported
= very heavy animal is defenseless.
and. if it receives slight injury. il
not likely te recover from It 1t can
not be driven any considerable dis
tsnee withoutsuffering from fatigue or
loss in weight lt can not endure
extremes of heat and cold as well as
smaller animal.
A few years ago there was quite an
inducement held out to farmers TO feed
steers till they weighed 900 pounds
each and to keep q lot of hogs till they
averaged 4G0 pounds. The highes.
prices in all our markets We re paid for
extra heavy-weights-" Such is not
now the casn.' A well-fattened steer
weighing from /. 500 to l. 500 pounds
will bring as much per pound as one
weighing a ton. A few very heavy
steers are wanted by city butchers for
the Christmas trade. Their meat is
desired for maxi g a display and at
tractive to customers. For ordinary
trade. however, medium-sized animals
are preferred They cut up to better
advantage. and the size of the TO sts
and steaks are nearer what most Gus
toners desire. What is true of steers
is also true of hogs At one time there
was a demand for specimens of i
mated lard weigh: nr from 400 to 600
pounds. Now that Arictlv pure kettle
rendered hogs lard is made from beef
talIow and eotton-seed OIL there is no
occasion for making pigs very fat and,
as medium-sized hams and shoulders
are more desirable than very large
ones. there is no reason for feeding
hogs till they are overgrown.
Quite likely baby beef and pig PORK
are Improbable alike to the seller and
the buyer. but mature. well-ripened
; meat can be produced without keeping
: anima till they exhibit marks of age.
Some kinds of stock can be sold when
cry young at higher pr ces than they
VII ever brin afterward. Such is the
case with lambs that are dropp d early
! n the season. A lamb which is Of
good size when the first green peas APP
pear in the marke. can o. ten bs sold
for more money than sheep that is
three or fou- years old. Spring chick
ems sell for more than fowls that have
lived long enough to eat bushels of
corn. In relation to dr. # animals it
nay be said that it never pays their
; raisers to keep them till they have be-
gan to decline in value on account Of
. Id age or intirmities. Keeping horses
! until they have ou:lived their useful
: ness may give evidence of sentiment
and of K ndly feeling. but II is losing
business so far as the pocket is con-
cerned. Old stock on a farm rarely
, ever pays, and it is about as unsala0le
as the old stock in y store. -Ghicage
: Times.