The Billings gazette. [volume] (Billings, Mont.) 1896-1919, 1903-11-20

yards, thus the steers had access to
water at will. Salt was also kept on
hand.
Cost Of the Feed.
The cost of the grain and fodder
was as follows:
Glover hay, IS per ton; wheat, SS
cents per 100 pounds; oats, IS cents
per 100 pounds; barley, IS cents pc.
100 pounds; bran, IS cents per 1OU
pounds; mixed grain, 80 cents per
lvv pounds.
These prices were practically the
market prices for hay and grain on the
Bozeman market during the fall OF
1902. The clover hay was of good
quality and generally we'll cured. 1t
was a mixture of medium red and
aalsike. The grain was good market
able grain.
Lost and Gained.
All OF the lot fell off during the
| third period, or second part OF the
test period. The lots that made the
best average gain during the first IS
days of feeding made the poorest gains
for this period. IN
Considering the test period proper
of 40 days; the steers fed on the
mixed grain ration made the fastest
gain, viz: % pounds per day per
steer. The lot fed wheat is a very
close second, gaining 2.19 pounds per
day per steer, while those fed barley
gained 1856 pounds per day per steer,
and those fed the oat ration only 1.41
pounds PEI day, or the poorest returns
Of any ration.
Considering next the whole time
of feeding of sc days, the mixed grain
ration produced the fastest gain with
barley second, followed by wheat,
while the oats ration produced the
slowest gain. r
For the fourth period of rs days,
after the change of the grain ration,
the most rapid gains Of the test we're
made. Lot 4 gained 3.5 pounds per
steer per day, lot 8 gained 2.7 pounds
per steer per day, and lots l and 2,
2.6 pounds per steer per day.
For the Ill days of the feeding sea-
son, lot 4 gained 2.5 pounds per steer
per day, a very satisfactory gain con-
sidering the length of the feeding
period, lot 3 gained 2.3 pounds per
steer per day, lot i gained IL pounds
and lot 2 gained IL pounds per steer
per day.
On the average each steer gained
239 pounds in live weight, increasing
from 1,O97 pounds to 1886 pounds
each, Or Els pounds per day.
Food and Weight.
The clover eaten per day for the
first, or preliminary period, was 24.5
pounds per day per steer. For the
first period on full feed the amount OF
clover eaten per day was % pounds,
for the next period about 20 pounds
per day. Evidently the slower gains
for this period were not due to any
decrease in the hay eaten. During
the fourth period 3O.3 pounds of clover
were eaten per day per steer and fol
r the whole feeding test the average
was 27.5 pounds of clover per day.
? AS the total amount of feed eater
by the various lots is practically the
. same, the amount of food for eacI
pound of gain is in inverse relation tt
r the gains made throughout all tn
periods.
For the test period of 40 days, lot
fed on wheat and clover and lot 4, fe'
d on mixed grain and clover, require
practically the same mount of foo
e for each pound of gain, viz: $50
IS pounds. The lot fed barley require
1918 pounds of food for one poun
Ie of gain and the lot fed oats require
: 23.74 pounds, the least efficient RI
ton.
7 Considering the whole time of tn
experiment, or III days, lot 4 require
the least food for each period of gail
viz: 1875 pounds. Lot 8 require
14.13 pounds. Lot 1 required IA
!, pounds and lot 2 required 1872 pount
of food for each pound of gain in liz
weight.
i. Daily Food Cost.
BY Considering next the cost OF the r
e. tons: For the first period the dai
I'd cost was about SC per day. For tt
IS test period of 40 days the cost w,
ut between lie and 12c per day. II