Oxford Democrat. [volume] (Paris, Me.) 1833-1933, 1901-08-20
WHY THE CHANGE?

/ The dairyman who keeps in the cur
rent of events notes the great change
that has come in the summer feeding of
cows, change from the exclusive sum-
mer pasture-be it good or bad-to sum-
mer soiling, though it may vary from
green crops cut and fed, to an almost
absolute grain feeding. 1t is a fact that,
taking the dairies throughout the dairy
sections of New York and Ohio, fully 80
per cent of their food is supplied in some
form independent of the pastures.
The man who now opposes soiling in
some form is a rare specimen. To such
an extent has this sOiling system gone
that the sales of "mill-feed" have be-
come one of the marvels of dairy eco
nomics. Not only are thousands of
acres of land now devoted to the raising
of all sorts of crops TO be fed TO the
cows in succession, but the railroad sta
ton that does not deliver to some feed
dealer carload of bran or feed each
day is lonesome place" Feeding
grain is the general plan, and of all the
grains bran is the great want of the
dairyman, and only when this feed is all
sold out" does he consent to feed any
thing else.
One of the unexplainable things is
why the dairyman demands a proteine
food and then goes by the richest in per
cent proteine foods and buys bran at al
most parallel prices. The bran that lie
pays Sl7 to $40 for has only about Is
per cent proteine, while gluten feed at
so contains "a per cent. Oil meal,
with its IS per cent of proteine, costs $50
in retail way and SIS in large lots
only a little over half more than the
bran. If it is proteine he wants, why
not buy it in the largest amount in per-
centage? We often ask ourselves this,
and then go on and buy bran and try to
answer that the cows like it better, stay
by their food better, and we think they
milk better. We think that we find that
it takes more dollars in any other food
TO get the results we do from bran.
There is this about bran: 1t is bulky
and carries with it an undiscovered
something in its makeup of mineral
matter or ash-a something analogous
to the INDICATED nerve power of oats,
that haruronizes with the wants of the
milch COW, and so will for long time
constitute the chief proteine food of
cows, however abundantly we may pro-
duce clover, soy beans, cow-peas and
flaxseed.
With the concentrates, like gluten,
lmseed meal and the other proteines,
there is an uncertainty of the cows
by it; they soon tire and often
refuse them after while, which is never
the case with wheaton foods. Often |
hominy is doomed, and is good food,
but the fact is it can hardly be rated as
a proteine food, though it is often sold |
as such. The analysis of one of the |
most popular brands of hominy puts its
proteine content at SIS per cent, and |
this shows why cows never increase |
their milk yield when fed on hominy, |
but soon show a fat forming inclination. |
Often mixture of gluten, bran and !
hominy is satisfactory, but these will |
not equal the same dollars put in bran |
and fed correspondingly.
All of this leads to the conviction that |
a large number of the vaunted dairy
feeds, mixtures, ETC., are in the main |
lower in proteine than bran, and are |
sold often at higher prices. This par
TALLY explains why the dairyman so
often falls back upon bran.
In government analysis before me of |
twelve of the leading dairy foods, chops,
corn and oat foods, not one of them APP
proaches bran in proteine and other
food elements. A Quaker dairy food is
per cent proteine, the others
running all the way down to SIG feed /
for making milk, which has only about |
| per cent proteine and food elements |
and crude fibre about the same as wheat |
straw. In fact, it would be quite diff
cult for cow to maintain herself on
such ration if not fed other food.
Then, again, in them this ash or mineral
content of unknown influence is largely |
lacking in the mixed or concentrated
foods. Bran has SO per cent ash, gluten
feed 90 per cent and the best gluten Is
per cent, hOminy 2.3 per cent and linseed
meal-the richest of all concentrates
has only 5.4 per cent of ash, tritie less
than has bran.
This may give hint at the reason
but not an explanation-why bran holds
its own, and even more, in this great
struggle in COW feed maintenance, and
will continue to do so as long us the
millers and feed dealers will give us
bran that is fairly good and pure. True,
'ilage and new PrOteine crops are to
have an important place in the COW
food lists, and will make dairying pay
better, because it makes the home
grown ration nearer possibility, and
the farmer so much more nearly inde-
pendent. While a great change is going
on in the summer feeding of cows, bran
as chief reliance for proteine is still as
popular as ever, and will continue to be
SO for some time to come.-New York