Oxford Democrat. [volume] (Paris, Me.) 1833-1933, 1906-10-23
Swine Feeding Points.
CONCLUSIONS BASED ON EXHAUSTIVE
EXPERIMENT STATION RESEARCH.

Il
draws the following conclusions from
its exhaustive swine feeding expert
ments:
1t is of great importance that the
nutrients be present inthe food in that
proportion of greatest efficiency known
as the balanced ration; and when corn
is as low in value as 80 cents per bushel,
with other feeds at corresponding prices,
the balanced ration of corn and linseed
oilmeal was more profitable for dry-lOt
feeding than any other ration tested.
In addition to being balanced ration,
i, is also of prime importance that the
feed be palatable.
Nutritive ration alone does not deter
mine the economy with which the nu-
trients will be used. A ration poor in
protein but palatable, digestible and
concentrated may be more efficient and
profitable than a balanced ration not
possessing these characteristics. Palat-
ability may in measure compensate for
a lack Of protein.
Hogs fed on corn and linseed Oilmeal
ate more, made greater increase at less
expense than with any other grain ra-
ton tested in dry-lot feeding expert
ments. The quality Of the pork pro-
duced was unsurpassed and the tend
ency of these feeds to make real growth
as we'll as fat was greater than that of
any other ration tested.
Wheat middlings make profitable
supplement to corn, rank close second
to Oilmeal as to profit. The gains in
weight with corn and middlings were
considerably less, however, than with
corn and oilmeal.
Oilmeal as fed in these experiments
is a more efficient supplement than
middlings as here used. With it q
larger proportion and value of corn may
be fed and less cash outlay required.
As the money paid out for the pur-
chased supplement comes from the sale
of corn, if we feed oilmeal rather than
middlings, we have a smaller proper
ton of the corn crop to market as grain,
a larger proportion to market concen-
trated into pork, smaller weight OF
supplement to haul back to the farm,
greater manurial value of the feed pur-
chased and less cash outlay involved in
the enterprise.
Gluten feed. substituted for half of
the oilmeal of the balanced ration, re-
duced the efficiency of the ration and
the profit from its feeding. Being itself
a corn product it is not naturally adapt
cd to supplement corn, since other feeds
will add more mineral matter in which
all corn products are deficient, and for
hog feeding add greater variety and
palatability to the ration. The protein
contained can be bought cheaply along
with much more mineral matter in lin
seed oilmeal.
Oats of the grade used make an un-
profitable supplement to corn for hog
feeding. They were not relished and
made poor gains, at great expense, both
in feed and in dollars.
Bran as here fed was useful sup
plement but was less eff cient and less
profitable than the same proportion Of
middlings. If the hog needs the corn
meal ration extended or lightened by
the addition of such a feed as bran,
this need must be very slight and not
compared with the necessity for protein
or mineral supplement or palatability.
Corn-and-cob meal contains too much
indigestible and unpalatable fiber and
costs too much in the preparation.
Grinding is more efficient than soaking,
the last, however, costs much less and
is nearly as valuable; both methods are
very useful and well worth the cost,
even when corn costs as little as 80 cents
a bushel.
Straight corn feeding does not sup
port normal growth, nor produce rapid
gains; the rations in which liberal
amounts of protein were fed, produced
marketable hogs in much less time than
did corn alone. The hogs ate very much
more of the supplemented rations and
made larger and cheaper gains.