Fort Mill times. [volume] (Fort Mill, S.C.) 1892-current, 1914-01-22
WASTE FROM DISEASE
Loss In Animal Production Reach
es Large Totals.
Estimated That Fifteen Per Cent, or
$45,ooo,oco, OF Annual Value Of
Egg Crop Lost Through I'M
proper Methods Of Handling.
prepared by the United States De-
partment Of AgrlcuIture.)

partment Of AsrlcuIture.)
The amount of waste In animal pro-
duction has reached very large totals,
according to the department of agri-
culture. For example, 1t Is estimated
that 10 per cent, or $45,000,000 Of the
annual value OF our egg crop Is lost
on account OF improper methods OF
handling. or this amount. one-third,
or $15, 100000, Is due to blood rings"
Blood rings ara dead embryos, and an
embryo can only develop in a fertile
egg. Hens which do not run with male
birds do not lay fertile eggs, but they
lay Just as many eggs as II the males
were with them. The presence OF
male birds. and that alone, causes all
the blood rings In the eggs Of COM
merce. Practically all OF these eggs
are produced on farms, and farmers
can, therefore, add materially to the
national food supply by eliminating
the fertile eggs from the trade.
much more important waste is
the unnecessary loss OF young animals.
Take pigs, for example When a SOW
farrows from five to ten pigs, the own
er does not grieve IL three or four of
them die. Probably 80 per cent. of all
pigs narrowed alive die shortly after
birth from various causes. II the lit
ter does not number more than ten,
the SOW can readily raise them all.
Why, then. allow four or five pigs to
die from lack of attentiC I or suitable
quarters? Most little pigs die because
they become chilled at or soon after
birth. Sows should therefore have dry
quarters for narrowing. sheltered from
winds. with plenty of bedding This
does not mean expensive quarters, but
dry and protected ones.
Although the domestic animals of
the United States are doubtless quite
as healthy as those Of any other coun-
try, the waste from disease and para
sites is enormous. Attention has fire.
quently been directed to the condem-
nation OF carcasses and parts Of car
casses in federally inspected abat-
toirs. Large as Is this direct loss In
our meat supply, 1t Is Insignificant
when compared with the actual losses
on farms. Hog cholera, Texas fever.
tuberculosis, infectious abortion, scab-
bies and other parasites cause losses
amounting to hundreds OF millions Of
dollars annually, not only directly In
the deaths of animals, but indirectly
In diminished vitality and feeding
value or those which do not succumb.
Their prevention is a matter OF sani-
tation. largely in the hands of the
average farmer.
The use OF more economical and
rational methods OF breeding, raising
and feeding live stock Is imperative
for the maintenance OF the industry on
high-priced lands. Grain can no longer
be fed to meat animals with q lavish
hand. Hay, fodder, silage and pasture
are the cheapest feeds and will carry
animals along with a minimum Of
grain. The use OF straw and roots is
coming. The farmer who keeps the
frames OF his young animals develop
Ing or these cheap feeds. Withholding
the full-grain ration until the finishing
period arrives. will profit by such a
practice.
The education Of the farmer, to ap-
preciate duly the Importance of live
stock in the maintenance of soil fer
tility. also deserves attention. The
English and Scotch system, to feed for
the manure. is sound. II farmers In
those countries break even on their
feeding. without calculating the value
of the manure made. they rightly re-
card the feeding as profitable.