The river press. [volume] (Fort Benton, Mont.) 1880-current, 1914-02-04
few STOCK FOODS ARE
NOW ON The MARKET
Such Preparations Little Used
by FaTm,1; i Present.
INGREDIENTS C~ST LITTLE

The ''stock food question is an old
one among farmers. Although it has
been solved for some time the occa.
sioDal inquiries and requests for an
slysis of such foods at this station
show that there are yet a few who
have not abandoned the idea that it is
profitable to use such material for
their animals either as tonics, fatten-
ers, condition powders or cure-alls.
Therefore a short review should not
be unwarranted.
There used to be on the market in
every town in the state patent foods
for stock. Wether they were called
just plain stock food or f%atteners, ETC.,
makes little difference as long as they
contained about the same constituents.
The claim was made that small guam
titles would immensely invigorate and
fatten animals and that the financial
gain was very great and all IN &C
count of the scientific compromising"
of these substances. There are yet
upon the market a few such prepare
tons, but they are mostly old surplus
stock and not much is bought. The
state law enacted some four or six
years ago has a specific provision reg
ulating the sale of such substances
1t provides that every stock food OF
container must be labeled with the
names of each and every ingredient
contained therein. Amy package sold
without such q label subjects the SELL
er to q fine. In other words, the
farmer has a chance to know what he
buys.
The constituents that have always
been the makeup of these foods are
mainly as follows: Common salt
(sodium chloride), glauber salt, salt.
peter, blood root, anise seed, fuenu-
greek, cardamon, charcoal, sulphur,
copperus (iron sulphate), bran, chaff.
shorts, middlings and oil meal. The
three last mentioned are the filters
and constitute almost 100 per cent OF
the food. With the exception of one
or two of the others they are not rec
ognized as medicinal agents or foods
by veterinarians. Even in the case
of those having medicinal qualities,
such as copperus and saltpeter, their
amount in stock food is so small that
it would require a hundred pounds OF
the food to make an average medic1n-
al dose. What would then be the eff.
feet of a few Irresponsible of the food
n 1ov0 Nnnn HIT tho nrnfoin vo 1,1A nj
the oil meal, shorts and bran.
The patent foods were sold at ex.
orbitant prices. That now sold is
somewhat reduced, but still many
times too high. For instance, a TWEEN
ty-tive pound pail of patent food sells
for $3.50. 1t consists of oil meal,
common salt and f~uenugreek 1.-THE
last to give odor). The amount of
salt and fuenugreek is very small and
cheap, costing almost nothing, in fact
while the oil meal costs $40 per ton
Two thousand pounds at $3.50 per
twenty-five pounds makes 5000 a ton
for the patent food. You would there
fore be paying $3.50 too much. The real
facts are that many a farmer has paid
exactly such a price.
There has been ever the "concen'
trated type" which is the above with
out the filler. Such is even without
the protein value of the above describ
ed. It is not denied that a few of the
constituents have a certain value
when used in certain cases and ir
rather good amount.
Numerous feeding experiments Al
this and other experiment stations. as
well as many analysis and tests, show
conclusively in every instance that, i
necessary, purchase the single ingre
dent in the pure form, as this can b.
done at a comparatively small cost
Feed ordinary feeding stuffs and wher
an animal gets out of condition Of
sick call your veterinarian and lie
him prescribe. You will be the gamer
The class of substances usual,
thought of in connection with tn
above patent foods are tankage, driet
blood, ground bone and the like
These are sold according to their con
tent of protein and fat mainly, and, il
the case of ground bone, phosphate
The prices are within reasonable limi
and they cannot be classed as quacl
remedies.