Sharp County record., 1890-03-27
GRAIN AND HAY.

of Mixing These Articles OF Ioou ioF
Etock
have made two tests Of the economy
Of mixing grain with hay-one with
COWS and one with horses. The hrst
was not as complete as l desired to
make it. owing to limiting causes,
while the second was abruptly closed
bv the burning of the college barn. l
shall use the data partly for the purpose
of a brief consideration of the general
subject of mixing grain and hay, and IN
mart because the data have value even
though not complete,
The argument has been advanced Tor
tbe horse that grain if mixed with hay
is more economically used, inasmuch as
the hay operates as divisor of the
Grain. thereby admitting the freer ac-
cess of the gastric juices to the grain or
meal thus held asunder by the hay.
When fed alone, grain, or more s.
pecially meal, compacts, 1t IS Sald' IN
the stomach in glutinous ball or mass
that prevents the penetration OF the al-
pestiye fluids and agents to the center
of it's mass thereby not only preventing
complete digestion, but also encourag-
ING collie and other troubles of the dl-
gestive system.
The argument for cattle takes on
wider significance. The claim is that
where meal is fed alone to steers or
COWS it passes directly past the first
stomach into the second and third
stomachs to the fourth practically un-
affected This is substantially so. 1t
does not seem to pass into the first
stomach when eaten alone to any mate"
rial extent. The opening that admits
coarsely-eaten hay into the first
stomach as it passes along from the
mouth does so by virtue Of its pressure.
The passage is closed one to fine
foods where it passes the first stomach.
It is said that the meal when fed with
hay as a mixture must pass into the
first stomach along with the hay and
there receive the influences of the first
stomach or rumen on digestion. 1t re-
turns with the hay to the mouth for re-
mastication and the further influence OF
the gastric juices.
What of this logic? 1t is very doubt
full. If the slit in the gullet is closed
to fine food it is because nature so de-
signed it, and finds no need of sending
fine foods to a receptacle designed alone
to soften coarse foods for return to the
mouth for more complete mastication.
The first stomach does not perform the
functions of the true stomach. This
true stomach is the fourth stomach,
where the main work of digestion goes
on. The first stomach is not one OF
digestion, and if any digestion occurs
there it is but an incident and is not
it's true function. Nature designed it
for coarse food as noted, and where fine
foods are given it is not needed. The
hog does not have this stomach, yet it
will digest more than the steer. Nor is
it necessary to the steer for the purpose
of mixing the hay ana grain, as it will
get mixed with the coarse foods in the
second and third stomachs.
The animal alone can give final an
swer to the problem under review. My
brief appeal briefly put gave for seven
teen days As SIT lbs. of milk daily,
while the unmixed grain gave AZ 9-17
quarts. On reversing the cows-that is,
on giving the mixed ration to the lot be-
forereceiving the unmixed ration and the
unmixed ration to the one before re-
ceiving the mixed ration, the result was
4S.05 lbs. of milk and LOO lbs. re-
spectively. No material difference is
noted in the results. The leaning to
the unmixed rations is so very narrow
as to mean nothing, as variation would
have occurred had the foods been SINH
lar. A trial that was of mixed char.
acter made at the Ohio Agricultural Col
lege subsequent to the above, so far as
it bore on the factor under discussion,
gave similar results. Kuhn found that
there was no difference in the result,
whether bran was given alone, mixed
with drinks or with foods.
Until further information | shall be
forced to assume that mixing grain with
coarse foods is not a practical process.
1t involves cutting the fodder, its mix
ing, the use of water, and of course a
considerable cost. Many dairymen prac-
tice the system at much trouble, as do
some of our breeders of cattle for beef.
Further trials will be required before a
final conclusion is rawn.-Breeder' s
Gazette.
Strain Fence Post.