| Show I 1 FARM FACTS by S R BOSWELL 1 county agent 0 0 E J maynard haynard hope for cattle feeders of utai utah the present national cattle picture as outlined by J K wallace senior marketing specialist of the bureau of markets U S department of agriculture will interest farmers and cattlemen of utah As far as feed produced on farms is concerned utah with about 90 per cent of a normal supply is at present in a favorable position as compared with the nation as a whole yet the alarming spectacle of the winter range which is in very poor condition requires that much of this feed be conserved for range livestock as practically three fourths of the livestock feed of the state is ordinarily dina rily derived from its grazing resources the caille cattle industry is going into the next eight month period with prospects of extremely diverse market conditions being witnessed within that span of time the latter end of the summer grazing season finds the western ran gemen with a large number of cows and steers to sell at an extremely unsatisfactory demand the fat cattle market is not only weighted down with a liberal supply of cattle suitable for dressed beef but there is twice as much beef pounds in storage than at this time last year total supplies of all meats are large especially considering the present volume of consumer purchasing ch asing power as hogs are also plentiful while storage of pork carried over from the summer accumulation is still heavy meat supplies are further enlarged by the heavy buling of hens from the flocks so even with the ree ream since last spring 0 of f sev eral million more wage earners only lamb is not overcrowding over crowding the present market with supplies Consume consumers is seg segregate degate into two rather selective types one section of the population is buying as liberally as they can of the beef from good and choice fed cattle due to the bargain prices at which it is selling another group including most of those recently i is buying largely medium and good grade cow beef on oil account of its price which is far below the cost of producing it oi oe of its inventory value in the economic situation surrounding cattle feeding for the ri next at several months utah occupies a very favorable and a rather unusual position the harvest of feed grains and hay in the U S was one of the lowest in the past 35 years grain is over one billion bushels short some grains being around 50 per cent of last las t years harvest hay is around so 80 per cent and fall pasturage possibly seventy per cent of the normal average for the country to offset off set this partly the cotton seed cake tonnage will be about the same as last year as a 13 bale cotton crop is in prospect sugar beet pulp will be close to normal compared with the general shortage of feed eed irrigated and dry land crops promise to total over 90 per cent of the average of recent years looking to the west instead of to the whole country nevada is short an estimated tons of hay and california ranges are still dry this latter condition could be partially corrected by immediate rains but unless they come before november 15 the early winter feed in many sections can be helped but little by rains after that date recognizing the very blue situation in which the is now involved the man who feeds cattle this winter has a directly opposite situation confronting him from all indications in evidence at the present time the millions of people on the pacific coast are going to consume a certain volume of meat which will have to be produced somewhere in the united states even with the low average purchasing power of the past year the pacific coast bought hundreds of cars of cattle from east of the rocky mountains mountain most t of these were weri tidy yearlings yearnings year lings of good grade finish which furnish fumich ed the small hilts cuts now so prevalent in consumer com sumer Bumer demand they also bought many loads of fat cowa but heavy steers last yearl year found an outlet there only at price i concessions with feed short or spotted in texas and the southwest there appear to be greater I 1 profit opportunities for cattle feeders who take advantage of the present low prices for feeder cat tle tie than for several years as a result of this situation affecting pacific coast future supplies the present outlook for heavy liquidation during the next 60 days would indicate the wisdom of holding cattle as long as possible where feed is available and the cattle will not lose in condition profits depend upon fall and winter egg production in order to make money from chickens that are kept primarily for egg production a large portion of the eggs they produce must be laid during the months of october november december and january eggs are higher in price at this time of the year and a iduria flock that has a heavy production during these months is usually more profitable than another flock with the same annual egg production but which produces most of its eggs during the spring and summer months it is true that some poultry men are unable to get their birds to lay at this season of the year but it is not difficult to obtain a good egg production if the birds have been cared for properly during the summer A lew few suggestions may be healthful first of all only those pullets and hens that are healthy and that give evidence of being efficient producers should be kept A good laying mash that contains t ins proteins carbohydrates minerals and vi timins for body maintenance and egg production should be fed it does doe s not pay to stint on feed the amount of mash consumed is regulated by the amount of gram grain fed however the heavy feeding of gram grain should be made at night 12 to 14 pounds of grain or scratch are arc usually fed per day to each hundred pullets and about 8 to LO 10 pounds for each hundred hens A good supply of fresh clean drinking water should be available also it is desirable to have a good supply of green feed in some form such as alfalfa leaves available for the birds all the time the consumption of feed can also be increased at this season of the year by using lights in the laying house to lengthen the day and enable the birds to have a longer time to eat cat A working day of 13 to 14 hours is desirable As soon as the production has been stimulated enough it is usually best to gradually discontinue the excessive amount of protein in the feed |
