Winter Hay Consumption of Breeding Females of Large, Intermediate, and Comprest Types Hereford Cattle

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Abstract
Six lots of Hereford females of two ages and three sizes—large, intermediate and comprest were wintered on hay in each of three years—1949, 1950, and 1951. The primary object of the experiment was to check the daily gains and hay consumption of these different sizes of females relative to their body weight. In 1949 three lots of large, intermediate and comprest type heifer calves and three lots of large, intermediate and small type bred yearlings were full-fed hay. In the winter of 1950 three lots of bred yearlings, full-fed, and three lots of bred two-year-olds, limited-fed, were compared and in 1951 three lots of calves, full-fed, were compared with three lots of two-year-olds, limited-fed. The classification according to type was based upon an estimation of skeletal size as measured by wither heights. The wither height measurements were highly significantly different for the different sizes within an age group. Likewise there were highly significant differences between the types for the average weight maintained within an age group, for feed eaten per day per animal, and for daily gains. There were no significant differences in size constant ratio studies. These were feed per day per 1000 pounds of animal maintained and feed eaten per unit of gain. Thus the indications were that within an age group the amount of hay eaten per 1000 pounds of body weight maintained was independent of the size of the animal. Likewise the economy of gain was independent of the size of the animal. For similar observations these hay feeding results tend to parallel those of the previous experiment in fattening steer calves of different sizes. It was also possible to compare the effect of age on winter hay consumption in Hereford females. Heifer calves, full-fed, ate less per day than did bred yearlings or bred two-year-olds; similarly, full-fed bred yearlings ate somewhat less hay per day than did limited fed bred two-year-olds. Heifer calves gained somewhat less per day than bred yearlings, but the bred yearlings on full feed gained about the same as bred two-year-olds on limited feed. Heifer calves ate significantly more hay per 1000 pounds of body weight than did the bred yearlings or the bred two-year-olds. The bred yearlings, full-fed, ate about the same amount of hay per 1000 pounds of body weight as did the limited-fed two-year-olds. There appeared to be a tendency for younger cattle to make more gain per pound of hay consumed than the older cattle. This was true in comparing calves vs. yearlings, calves vs. two-year-olds, and yearlings vs. two-year-olds. The results of this experiment indicate that, within a given age group, total hay consumption and gains increased with size, but there were no significant differences in the amount of hay consumed per 1000 pounds of body weight maintained between Hereford females of large, intermediate, and comprest (small) sizes. Copyright © . .

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