Chapter XII

Relation of Live Stock to Farm Management

95.  Live Stock and Soil Fertility.

The opinion commonly prevails that live stock raising helps to maintain the fertility of the soil.  This is true only under certain conditions.  An oats crop yielding 50 bushels per acre will require from the soil 50 pounds of nitrogen, 18 pounds of phosphoric acid, 45 pounds of potash, besides small amounts of numerous other elements.*  If the grain is sold and the straw is burned, the entire amount may truly be said to be removed form the soil.  If the grain is fed to cows, the milk or butter-fat sold, and the straw used for bedding, but the manure is allowed to remain in the yard or barn, just as much fertility is removed form the land as though the crop was sold and the straw burned.  However, if in feeding the grain and using the straw for bedding, care is taken to save all of the manure an dlitter, returning it to the fields from which the crop came, there will be little loss of fertility.  It is very difficult to prevent some loss through decomposition, evaporation, or leeching.  There may also be much or little loss from mechanical sources.  This will depend upon the methods employed in getting the manure to the field.  The loss from all of these sources varies from forty to sixty per cent.  About three fourths of the fertility contained in the feed is recovered in the manure as it comes from the animals.  This may all be returned to the field where leeching and mechanical losses are prevented.  On most farms, nearly half of the fertilizing value of the feed is lost before the manure is returned to the field.

The animals through which the foods pass add nothing to the fertilizing qualities of the manure.  The food stuffs if

*Snyder's "Soils and Fertilizers," page 256.

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returned directly to the field upon which they grow, would quite as well maintain the fertility of the soil.  In case of the growth of certain of the crops, as clover and alfalfa, the fertility may even be increased through the addition of nitrogen which these plants have the power to gather from the air in the soil.  The mastication and digestion of the food stuffs by animals, however, renders available more quickly the

[Fig. 50.--A farm yard well littered.  Manure wastes but little under such conditions.]

fertilizing elements of the plants.  It is this factor which is largely accountable for the belief that the process of mastication and digestion has added to the fertilizing value of the food stuffs.  Animal manures without question are one of the best possible sources for maintaining soil fertility, but the farmer should recognize the fact that to get their full value, he must prevent all mechanical and chemical losses and that they must be distributed evenly over the farm and incorporated with the soil.

96.  How to Save the Manure.

So far as possible, the best way of saving the manure and preventing loss of fertilizing elements, is to haul it from the barns as made, directly to the fields, spreading it at once and incorporating it with the soil.  Besides saving the fertilizing value of the manure, this method of application has the added advantage of economizing labor as well.  It requires no more time to throw the manure directly into a manure spreader or wagon, than to wheel it out of the door and throw it in a pile, which must later be loaded and


 hauled to the field.  Less labor is required than where the manure is loaded into a wagon and hauled to a compost heap from which it must again be loaded into a wagon or manure spreader and taken to the field.

It is not possible on many farms to haul manure from the barn directly to the fld throughout the year.  Growing crops frequently interfere during the summer season at least, and the other work of the farm often prevents.  In the North, snow and hard freezing weather make it difficult to operate

[Fig. 51.--Live stock aids but little in keeping up the production of a farm where the manure is handled in this way.  The labor also is increased and the yard is unsanitary.]

the manure spreader in the winter time.  The manure can be hauled on a wagon or sleigh and spread by hand, but it is at the expense of uniformity of application.  Manure so applied should be spread after the frost leaves in the spring.  This may be don by spreading out the thick places with a fork or by going over the field with a spring tooth or smoothing harrow.  Whenever land is available, however, upon which to spread the manure, it shoudl be taken directly from the barns or yards to the fields and spread evenly and ratherthinly as hauled.  In many places the practice prevails of hauling manure to the fields and unloading in half load to load piles.

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It is allowed to stand in these piles during the winter and is then spread by hand in the spring.  Nearly as much loss occurs from decomposition and leeching where manure is handled in this manner, as where it is allowed to lie in piles under the eaves of the barn.  The labor of applying is also increased and the fertilizing value is not uniformly distributed.  Where manure cannot be hauled directly to the fields, it should

[Fig. 52.--The fertilizing value of the manure is saved by taking it direct from the barn to the fields.  Less labor is used when loaded at once on the spreader or wagon.]

be spread out evenly over a level yard and the stock allowed to run over it, tramping it firmly.  If the yard can have a concrete bottom there will be less loss from leeching than where it lies on open ground.  In the East where the barn-yard manures are highly valued, manure pits are made and frequently covered with a roof.  If the manure from all classes of animals can be mixed together in such a yard, or pit the loss from heating and evaporation will be very much lessened.  In countries where the population is very dense and all of the


manure must be saved, cisterns are made in which the liquid excrement may be collected.  The liquid is pumped into tanks and hauled to the fields.  Cement pits are also constructed in which both solid and liquid excrement are collected for decomposition.  Such systems avoid the loss of fertilizing elements but are epensive.

97.  Live Stock Consumes Unsalable Products.

On most farms, large quantities of cheap rough foods are grown for which there is no market or which cannot be transported to

[Fig. 53.--Sheep will pasture satisfactorily on roughillsides and will in this way return profits from land that could not otherwise be used.]

market profitably.  Straw from the various grains, corn stover, corn fodder, ensilage, and grass aftermath are examples of this class of food stuffs.  Many farms contain a portion of rough land which is difficult to till.  This land often makes desirable pasture and can be made to return something of profit to the farm by the use of live stock.  The cheapest foods are those on which little labor is expended in growing.  The cheapest way to feed foods is to let the animals gather them themselves.  Pasture, even on comparatively expensive land, is one of the cheaptest animal foods that can be provided.  It is the natural food of most classes of live stock and naturally adapted to their

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needs.  As a consequence, they gain rapidly on it or yield a large amount of product, if protected from annoying storms and insects.  It rquires but little labor to provide pastures for live stock.  When a good sod has been formed all that is necessary is to maintain the fences, keep out the weeds, and dress up the thin spots.  The amount of labor is much less than would be required to grow a crop and harvest it for hay or forage.  The silo fills an important place in providing cheap forage for live stock.  Corn and other bulky, heavy yielding crops are preserved in very palatable and digestible form without waste by running them through an ensilage cutter and storing them in a silo.  Silage is especially desirable for feeding dairy cows.  It is also a valuable food for beef cattle and sheep.  It is by making use of cheap forage and pasture that the farmer can hope to support large quantities of live stock, which by being stabled and yarded in the winter, will enable him to provide manure for the land that is not pastured.

98.  Profits come from Cheap Crops.

Investigations of cost of production indicate that the greatest profit from live stock is made where the animals are fed on these cheap foods.  Where chickens, pigs, or cattle are fed on highly concentrated marketable products, it has been possible to make but very littleprofit.  Where chickens are confined in close yards they have frequently been handled at a loss.  On farms where they are allowed to run in the barnyards and through the fields, picking the larger part of their living, a flock of fifty to one hundred chickens appear to cost nothing for feed.  This is because they exist on natural foods that would otherwise be wasted.  Likewise, the farmers who have provided good grass or annual pasture for their brood sows and pigs, or who have allowed them to run in the fields gathering their own forage during the summer months, and who have finished them by turning them into a corn field allowing them to pull downa dn harvest their own feed, have made good profits at hog raising.  Those who have confined their hogs in close yards, have expended labor in mixing


farm by utilizing the cheap feeds and converting them into a concentrated salable market product.  Most of the dairy product of the United States is made by low grade cows in which little money is invested, feeding on coarse feeds from which no returns would be made otherwise.  It is the conversion of this material into a market product which makes the cows popular and profitable to the average farmer.

On a farm of 160 acres, four horses ordinarily would be required to do the work.  The time of these horses would be so fully occupied that it would not be wise to undertake to raise colts from any of them.  By adding another horse it

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would be possible to raise colts from two of them and still do the work of the farm.  The work mare will do as much work as a gelding if she does not raise a colt.  She will do nearly as much when rquired to raise a colt, but will not last so long if required to work full time.  For this reason it is good policy to allow some leisure time just previous to and shortly after foaling.  Colts raised by farm work mares offer a reasonable source of profit to most farmers.

In planning for the crops to be used as food for live stock, it is well to consider not only yields but feeding values as well.  An acre of corn will yield 12 tons of ensilage which will contain approximately 3600 pounds of digestible nutrients.  An acre of timothy yielding 2 tons would contain only 1700 pounds of digestible nutrients, of which about 110 pounds is protein.  An acre of clover yielding 2 1/2 tons of hay would contain 2300 or more pounds of digestible nutrients; 350 pounds of this would be protein.  Alfalfa yielding 4 tons per acre, would give 4100 or 4200 pounds of digestible nutrients, of which 840 pounds or more will be protein.

These nutrients will not all be produced at the same cost, however.  An acre of hay of any kind can be produced at a much lower cost than an acre of ensilage.  The labor cost of providing the foods must be considered as well as the value of the nutrients yielded by the various crops.  It costs about $5.60 to produce an acre of timothy hay and $20.60 to produce and store an acre of ensilage.  The food nutrients in hay would, therefore, cost only 3.29 cents a pound, while the nutrient in the ensilage would cost 5.72 cents.  The succulence of the ensilage gives it a greater feeding value than is shown by the analysis, however, and it will be found a most profitable food for the classes of animals called ruminants.

It should be borne in mind that the one who feeds salable grain, such as wheat, corn, and oats, to live stock, is in competition with the farmers who raise their stock on grass, corn fodder, ensilage, and other cheap waste products of the farm.


To compete successfully with them, the quality oproduct must be higher or more must be produced for the same value in feed.  For this reason, those who feed large numbers of animals on high priced grain, usually raise pure bred stock which has a breeding value as well as a market value for product produced.  In this way a margin of profit may be secured above the cost of the feed.

99.  Live Stock Provides Employment for Cheap Labor.

On most farms there are children old enough to perform some light labor.  They can often be profitably employed in caring for the poultry, sheep or other live stock.  In many cases most

[Fig. 55.--The profits from dairying come largely from the employment of cheap labor.]

of the milking is done by the farmer's wife and children.  They are not paid wages for doing the work and the product secured from the expenditure of their labor is nearly clear gain, as they must be fed and clothed whether they work or not.  Likewise, where two or three cows apiece are milked by the hired man after a full day's work in the field, the product is secured at a low cost so far as labor is concerned.  It is because live stock raisers are thus able to give employment to otherwise nonproductive labor or to labor that is not fully employed, that they often make larger farm incomes than those who raise hay or grain only.  A small amount of live stock can be cared for without appreciably reducing the amount of labor available.

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for the field work.  Live stock raisers who have children old enough to work, are thus placed at an advantage over live stock raisers who must hire all labor used.  While farmers do not always realize the facts in the case, it is true that most of the profits from live stock raising are derived from these two sources:  (1) A conversion into concentrated marketable products of cheap bulky foods that would otherwise be wasted; (2) By the use of labor that does not have full value but which must be supported, whether employed or not.  The margin of profit is seldom large but the income on a stock and grain farm is less likely to fluctuate than where grain raising only is folowed.

100.  Kind of Live Stock to Keep.

The kind of live stock to keep depends upon several factors.  It has not yet been proven that one kind of live stock is more profitable than another.  Some men make excellent profits in raising horses while others fail.  There are many farmers who make generous labor incomes from keeping dairy cows, but the average cow barely pays for the feed consumed and the interest on the investment and the labor cost of caring for her.  (See Bulletin No. 124, Minnesota Experiment Station.)  A few farmers have become rich from raising beef cattle, or raising hogs or sheep, but in all of these cases it is the man and methods of management, not the particular kind of stock that are responsible for the profit.

The tastes of the individual farmer are an important factor in the decision.  A man who does not like cows and who "hates" to milk will do better in some other line of stock raising than dairying, though he may learn to love the cow and overcome his dislike for milking if he finds a good profit in doing it.  The man who "loves" a horse and dislikes a pig is more likely to make a profit on horse raising than on pig feeding.

The size of the farm must also be considered.  As a rule, small animals go with small farms.  A twenty-acre farm may be well adapted to poultry raising and would do fairly well for


a small number of pigs or sheep, if well farmed.  It would not be at all adapted to dairying, stock feeding, or horse raising, as too large a proportion of the feed would need to be bought.  Pasutre and rough feed could not be supplied and labor in caring for the stock would be expensive on account of close confinement.  While a few horses or cows might be kept, it would be impossible to build up a big business on so small a farm.

Surveys of typical farming areas indicate that it commonly requires three to five acres of good arable land to support a horse.  Two and on-half to three acres will be required to support a cow.  Three-fourths of an acre to one and one-fourth acres for a hog, and one-fourth to one-half acre to support a sheep.  Consequently, on a farm of 160 acres, 32 to 53 horses would be the maximum number that could be kept if all other live stock was excluded and all of the land devoted to growing horses.  Few farms are so intensively stocked.  A combination of two or more kinds of stock will usually be made.

Market demands and shipping facilities must also be considered in deciding what kind of stock to keep on a certain farm.  Live stock products are concentrated and easily shipped if transportation is rapid and frequent.  Milk and cream are perishable, however, and must be marketed daily or at least every other day.  Eggs also may deteriorate in reaching market if shipping facilities aroor.  Live animals may be shipped long distances but are subject to heavy shrinkage or loss by accident or death.  Freight charges and care while on the road must also be covered.  Short distances are most favorable for live stock shipment.  Grain and other imperishable products may more safely be shipped long distances.

The amount of capital to invest often determines the kind of stock that should be kept.  Usually a farman be more cheaply stocke with the small animals than with the large ones.  There is also need of considering, in connection with the investment, the length of time which must elapse before

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returns will come in.  In this respect the advantage lies with the cows, as the milk and butter-fat are immediately available for sale.  With sheep, the lamb or wool crop is likely to mature within six months.  The returns from hogs can rarely be realized short of six or eight months, while in horse raising, the colt crop is not mature for market inside of three years, though younger colts are often sold.  Better prices can be secured, however, when they are over, rather than under, three years of age.

101. Limitations in Stock Raising.

There are certain limitations to each kind of stock raising which should be considered also.  The number of colts raised should be determined by the number of mares that can be profitably employed on the farm.  Horses must be raised as an adjunct to other lines; unless they are, the first cost of the colts is too great.  It costs from $60 to $100 per year to keep a mare and unless she performs some labor, the colt will not be valuable enough when a year old to meet the charge for keeping the mare.  On the range or on very cheap land, the cost may be reduced and colts profitably raised, even though the mares are not worked.  On the arable farms, the first cost of a colt including stallion fees, can be reduced to $50 if the mare is required to perform a reasonable amount of work.

The number of dairy cows that can be kept is limited by the amount of pasture that can be furnished or of roughage grown.  It is not profitable to buy or ship roughage.  Milkmen located near favorable markets may be able to produce milk at a profit, even though the rough feed must be shipped, but when applied to the business as a whole, it cannot profitably be done.  Another factor which limits the number of dairy cows that can be kept is labor.  One man cannot feed and cere for more than ten to twelve cows, as not more than that number can be milked in the time usually available for miking.  Some other farm work can always be profitably combined with darirying.  It is because the labor is better distributed, that the farmer who grows


some crops and keeps some cows, makes a better profit than the one who conducts either line alone.

Beef cattle raising is limited by the amount of grazing land.  The business cannot be conducted on small areas.  Cheap pasture and forage are essential to secure profits.  Beef cattle raising must not be confused with stock feeding which can profitably be carried on, on small areas of land, provided the proper feed can be purchased.  One man can care for 50 to 60 head of beef cattle.  Large numbers must be kept together to reduce the cost of care.  They are best adapted to large farms or to the ranges.

Sheep raising cannot be conducted on low wet land.  Foot-rot and other diseases are sure to attack them on such land.  They require high land and dry quarters.  Pasture and cheap roughage are essential.

[Fig. 56.--Brood mares can very profitably do the work of the farm.  Raising colts becomes a side line in this way.  The first cost of colts may be reduced one-half by keeping the mares at work.]

They do not do well in close confinement except for short periods.  If kept in close quarters they are likely to be infested with vermin and to become infected with parasic diseases.  The best profits will be made on a few sheep kept as scavengers on a diversified farm.

It has been customary in the past to keep swine in close quarters.  They require large quantitites of concentrates, but can use profitably good clover, alfalfa, or rape pasture.  These crops are especially valuable for raising small pigs.  The number that can be kept is determined by the amount of concentrated food that can be grown and the amount of pasture furnished.  Swine are subject to cholera, swine plague, and other diseases, and should not be herded in large numbers.

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102. Pure Bred vs. Grade Stock.

Pure bred stock is often advised.  For productive purposes it is doubtful whether pedigreed animals are any better than those without pedigree.  Grades of the right conformation and descending from families of heavy producers will yield as great a profit for the market product as pure bred stock.  The great advantage of pure bred stock is the guaranty that they do come from good families.  This gives them a breeding value which can often be sold to advantage.

[Fig. 57.--A cow of great producing capacity.  The profits from such a cow are much larger than from those of low production.]
To be worth more than grade stock, they must come from highly productive families and attention should be given to keep them up to a high standard.  When one can combine good breeding value with large production of market commodities at a low cost, the profits can be greatly increased.  It is for this reason that pure bred stock raising can be made to pay large profits.  If market products alone are desired, grades may be kept quite profitably.

103. When Is a Farm Well Stocked.

It is difficult to tell when a farm is fully stocked, or to know whether one farm is carrying as much live stock as another one.  It is especially difficult to compare a farm on which horse raising is the main line of live stock, with one on which hogs and cattle may be kept.  G. F. Warren, of Cornell University, New York, offers a basis for comparing the amount of livestock kept.  This comparison is made on the basis of feed required and value of manures produced.  The figures will vary somewhat as one farmer may feed more heavily than another, but it is believed that the figures