The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1912-11-20
THE PROSPECTS FOR
FEEDING BEEF CATTLE

VIII 1t pay to buy young steers,
weighing 400 to 600 pounds and feed
them? Would it be better to feed
cottonseed meal and hulls, or pressed
cake, and what ration would you feed?
1t is impossible for US to tell wheth-
er feeding of this sort will pay. Near
ly every year some people make mon
ey feeding beef cattle, and some years
nearly everybody makes money at it.
So much depends on how the cattle
are bought, the kind of cattle, the
manner in which they are fed and
handled and the way they are sold,
that no one can foretell the results;
certainly not without more informa-
ton than is given in the above in
quiry. Last year almost any sort Of
feeding was profitable, especially If
the cattle were not marketed too early
in the spring, but it is seldom that
the selling price is so much greater
than the buying price, and usually it
requires pretty good and careful work
to make money feeding beef cattle in
the South, on account Of the high
prices of feeds.
With the usual prices for meal and
hulls, the cattle must be bought rath-
er low and the feeding continue not
over ninety to 100 days if money is to
be made. Of course, favorable mar
ket conditions may make the feeding
profitable regardless Of other condl-
tons, but these cannot be relied upon.
Cottonseed cake, or cold pressed cake
may be used instead of meal and prove
equally satisfactory, but in either case
hulls or some sort Of roughage must
be used.
We are of the opinion that anyone
who contemplates feeding beef cattle
should provide silage as the cheapest
roughage. With silage and corn slower,
or some cheaply produced hay, or
]cottonSeed hulls,-if they a be
bought for not over Sc or 81 a ton
the cheapest roughage has been pro-
vided, and then c%ottonSeed meal or
cake must be relied upon as the cheap
est concentrate available.
With silage, some dry roughage
must be used, and corn slower or cot
tonseed hulls are about the only avail
able feeds of this sort. Hays that can
be marketed are usually too high
priced, except in sections where more
hay is produced than is consumed To-
cally, and eve hulls usually sell for
more than their value for this sort OF
feeding. Money may sometimes be
made feeding meal and bulls only
but this ration lacks variety and is
only suitable for a short feeding per
iod. If meal and hulls or ]cottonseed
meal cake and hulls are used, about
four pounds of hulls should be given
to one pound of the meal, or caked OF
broken cake, and if the c~old-pressed
cake (Which includes the whole seed
minus the oil which has been remoV'
ed) about three pounds of hulls should
be given to two pounds of the cold
pressed cake. For a short feeding per,
iod, 400 to Compound steers SHOULD
probably get from three to five pound:
of meal and twelve pounds to twenty
pounds of bulls a day, when on full
feed.
AS to prospects for feeding, it looks
as if those who have the feed and cal
get the cattle at a fair price, have al
encouraging outlook. The presen
ruling high prices for anything show
ing any finish or quality have caused
the marketing of everything available
and this, with the moderately higf
prices of feeds, should tend toward
small supply e spring, and conse
= quently continued good prices. Thu
!, difficulty of getting feeders at a fail
price is the greatest problem.-Pro
lgressive Farmer.