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Cornell University Library 
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 The cattle trade of western Canada; a spe 
 
 3 1924 013 895 895 
 
^DOMINION OF, CANADA 
 
 IfMENT OF AGRICULTUEE 
 Branch of tbe live Stock CommiBBioner 
 
 E CATTLE TRADE OF 
 iTERN CANADA 
 
 
 'ECIAL KEPORT 
 
 J. G. JRUTg ERFORD. 
 nary Director General and Live Stock Commissioner. 
 
 Bction of the Hon. SYDNEY A. FISHER, Minister of Agriculture, Ottawa, Ont. 
 
 AUGUST, 1909. 
 
B Cornell University 
 ^ Library 
 
 The original of this book is in 
 the Cornell University Library. 
 
 There are no known copyright restrictions in 
 the United States on the use of the text. 
 
 http://www.archive.org/details/cu31924013895895 
 
DOMINION OF CANADA 
 
 DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE 
 
 Branch of the Live Stock Commissioner 
 
 THE CATTLE TRADE OF 
 
 ff 
 
 WESTERN CANADA 
 
 SPECIAL REPORT 
 
 BY 
 
 J. G. RUTHERFORD, 
 
 Veterinary Director General and Live Stock Gommissioner 
 
 Published by direction of the Hon. SYDNEY A. FISHER, Minister of Agriculture, Ottawa, Ont. 
 
 AUGUST, 1909. 
 
 5581—1 
 
CONTENTS. 
 
 Page. 
 
 Introduction 5 
 
 History of the Canadian Eange 6 
 
 Deterioration 7 
 
 Sales of pure-bred msiles Y 
 
 Effects of settlement 7 
 
 Winter losses 8 
 
 The Trade as now Conducted - 9 
 
 As it should be 10 
 
 Einishing Eange Cattle 10 
 
 Feeding at Brandon 12 
 
 Outside versus Inside 12 
 
 Investment and labour 13 
 
 Outdoor Eeeding by Private Owner 14 
 
 Criticisms answered 14 
 
 Business methods 15 
 
 Experiences of others 15 
 
 Mr. Phin's Methods 16 
 
 (a) Finishing on rape : 16 
 
 (6) Winter feeding outside 16 
 
 Intensive Fattening 16 
 
 Mi. Puffer's statement 16 
 
 The method ' 17 
 
 Operations of a large firm 18 
 
 Wintering Calves " 18 
 
 Experience of Mr. Tees 18 
 
 Railway Transportation 19 
 
 ', Shipping hints 20 
 
 The Dressed Meat Trade 21 
 
 Advantages of dead meat trade ' 21 
 
 Live cattle trade must be continued 23 
 
 ' 6581— li 
 
THE CATTLE TRADE OF WESTERN CANADA 
 
 Ottawa, August 1, 1909. 
 
 SiK> — ^Ever since July, 1906!, when you added to my other duties those pertain- 
 ing to the office of Live Stock Commissioner, I have been quietly investigating the 
 conditions surrounding the commercial live stock trade of Canada. To this subject 
 comparatively little attention had previously been given, my predecessor having 
 devoted more time and effort to the interests of the breeders of pure bred stock than 
 to those of the ordinary farmer and feeder. 
 
 This was doubtless both proper and necessary, the pure bred herd' or flock being 
 the fountain head of all J)rofitable stock keeping, and therefore of prime importance 
 to the whole industry. 
 
 It is nevertheless a fact that in Canada, as elsewhere, the breeders of pure bred 
 stock are more independent and less needful of government assistance than any other 
 class in the farming community, excepting perhaps the original settlers on the western 
 prairie, who., certain of a rich return, and reckless of the future, too often exploit 
 the virgin soil with a fine disregard of all the principles of husbandtry. 
 
 The breeder is independent of government aid for two reasons: firstly, because 
 he is a breeder and therefore, as a rule, a man of more enterprise, and wider knowledge 
 of business methods tlian the majority of his fellow tillers of the soil, and, secondly, 
 because, being united^ with others equally intelligent, in one or more thoroughly 
 organized and active breed associations, he is in a position to reach a definite decision 
 as to what his rights and 'requirements are, and to apply to those in authority the 
 pressure or persuasion necessary to obtain them. 
 
 On the other hand, the breeder or feeder of ordinary live stock pays but littl|e 
 attention to the commercial aspect of his business, and being, as a rule, without organ- 
 ization, is at the mercy, to a large extent, of the dealer, to whom he is practically 
 forced to sel] and who is generally morp than a match for him in experience and 
 acumen, and besides, often in a position to dictate his own terms as to price and 
 delivery. 
 
 In view of these facts, I deemed it my duty to endeavour to ascertain and present 
 fb you a summary of fhe facts as to the conditions under which our commercial livq 
 stock trade is being carried on, so as to enable you to take such steps as might appear 
 to be nece^ary or advisable in the interests of the producers. The present reporlj 
 is confined almost entirely to the cattle trade of the western provinces, as, of all 
 branches of the business, this appears to me to be subject to the most numerous and 
 serious disabilities and disadvantages. 
 
 You will recollect that in 1902, at your special request, I prepaiied a brief state- 
 ment regarding this trade, dealing specially with transportation, which was pub- 
 lished in your annual report for that year. Since that time conditions have been 
 somewhat bettered, but there is yet inuch room for improvement, particfularly in the 
 matters of transportation and marketing. 
 
 During the seasons of 190T and 1908 special officers were employed to investigate 
 all phases of the western cattle industry, beginning with the animal on the ranche 
 and ending with his marketing either on this continent or in Europe. 
 
 The reports of these officers, which deal very fully with the details of the trade 
 and especi^ly with its transportation features, contain much valuable information, 
 and will, I trust, be of great value in enabling the department to undertake intelli- 
 
 S 
 
gently, either by special legislation or otherwise, the improvement of existing condi- 
 tions. 
 
 As is well known the Canadian west is now experiencing the same change m 
 cattle raising methods as has already taken plaeo in much of the country south of 
 the line, formerly devoted to ranching puriwses. 
 
 The incoming of settlers, many of them from the dry belt, has transformed large 
 areas of land, formerly considered only fit lor ranching, into fertile farms growing 
 great crops of grain and fodder. While there is yet much territory untouched by 
 the settler and on which the cattle still range :as formerly, its area is being yearly 
 curtailed, and, as a natural consequence, the free, easy and somewhat wasteful methods 
 of the rancher are gradually giving place to those of the farmer and feeder. That 
 thfs change will, instead of lessening the output, eventually result in a large increase 
 in the cattle production of the transformed districts, needs no demonstration. Under 
 ranching conditions, twenty acres is the usual allowance for each head of cattle, while 
 the losses from exposure, from lack of food and from wild animals constitute a heavy 
 drain on the herd. 
 
 The farming settler raises an abundance of feed of all kinds which he cannot 
 use to better advantage than in fattening cattle. With the aid of his fences and 
 with cheap buildings, or even with none, he can keep hia cattle -under constant 
 observation and control, with the result that loss is reduced to a minimum. At the 
 same time the cattle, being at least partly domesticated, and generally to some extent 
 grain fed, handle and ship infinitely better than do the grass finished range steers 
 which often, on the long journey from their native prairie to Liverpool or London, 
 shrink the profit from their bones, and go to the butcher in such a condition as to fairly 
 justify the Scottish feeder in his persistent opinion that Canadian cattle can only 
 be fattened in his sheds and courts. 
 
 Again, the winter feeding of steers will abolish the heavy handicap which the 
 rancher, pure and simple, has always had to carry in being compelled to market his 
 cattle off the grass and before the advent of winter. Under the new order of things, 
 demand wiU, to a much greater extent, regulate supply, and the element of compulsion 
 being removed, prices will be more even, while much of th© present difficulty in trans- 
 iwrtation, dtae to the seaward rush of cattle and other produce in the fall, will also 
 disappear. 
 
 The close farmers are, as yet, however, in the minority in the less thickly settled 
 portions of Alberta and Saskatchewan. There is still much open grazing land available 
 and many settlers let their cattle ran at largie during the summer, thus, for the pre- 
 sent as it were, combining ranching with farming. As' time goes on and the land 
 becomes more generally taken up, this condition will disappear, as it has already done 
 in many districts in Manitoba, as well as in the newer west, and the farmer will have 
 to depend for his feed on the output of his own acres. 
 
 HISTORY OF THE CANADIAN RANGE. 
 
 The ranching industry in Canada is rapidly passing. In Saskatchewan and 
 Alberta the handwriting is already on the wall, and in these provinces it is only a, 
 matter of time until even the districts still regardied as unfit for general agriculture 
 will, through modern methods of dry farming or by means of irrigation, be brought 
 under cultivation. In the Peace River country ranching may persist for a time, but 
 there, as elsewhere on the continent, the settler ^will soon be its undoing and the cow- 
 boy wiU disappear. This being the case, a brief history of the industry during the 
 thirty years since its inception, may be found interesting. 
 
 In 18Y9, after the disappearance of thie buffalo, which had up till that time, fur- 
 nished the Indians of the plains with their principal susttenance, the Canadian Govern- 
 ment brought in from Montana a thousand head of breeding cattle for the purpose 
 of creating a future' source of meat supply for these aboriginal wards of the nation. 
 
 This herd, the introduction of which was largely in the nature of an experi- 
 ment, was placed in the foothill country west and southwest of Port Macleod, and 
 
though badly han<Jled and depleted by cattle thievies and wild animals, soon proved, 
 beyond a doubt, that the profitable raising of cattle in the Canadian west waia a 
 feasible proposition. , 
 
 The establishment of a number of extensive ranches quickly followed. Arrange- 
 ments were made for the leasing at low rates of large areas of government lanld. 
 Capitalists became inteifested, and money from Europe, from eastern Canada, and 
 from the United States flowed into the country. From lack of experience of climatic 
 and other local conditions some of this money was lost, but, with the advent of the 
 railway in 1883, conditions improved and a large and profitable) industry was spleedily 
 built up. 
 
 In the beginning, fences were unknown, the cattle being controlled by herders, 
 but about 1885 the proprietary instinct began to assert itself and many of the larger 
 holdings were put under fence, although, needless to say, the smaller owners con- 
 tinued to prefer the opien range system. ' 
 
 The big concerns usedl almost exclusively pure bred bulls of the beef breeds, and, 
 as the grazing was good and not over-stocked, usually held their steers until at least 
 four years old, the result being that a most excellent type of beef animal, full grown, 
 and well finished, began to find its way from Alberta to the eastern market. Being 
 mature and well furnished, with fat in the fall, driven slowly, feeding and hardening 
 on the way through a rich grazing country to the railway, distant often many days' 
 journey from the home ranch, these cattle stood the trials of the export journey fairly 
 well, and landed in Britain, somewhat shrunken it is true, but still yielding a reason- 
 able profit on the comparatively small cost of production. In the early days of the 
 industry, only the best were exported. The lighter and rougher stock went for local 
 consumption and to fill railway construction and Indian contracts. 
 
 DKTERIORATION. 
 
 As time went on, the country became more heavily stocked, many men without 
 d,diequate capital or experience began to kleep cattle, cross-bred bulls became com- 
 moner on the range, carelessness in breeding methods, lowered the natural increase, 
 thie purchase of stockers first from Manitoba and later from the eastern provinces 
 introduced many very inferior animals, and a general deterioration both in quality 
 and value became only too evident. 
 
 The climax of this deterioration was reached about the year 1902 when, tempted 
 by the low prices of Mexican cattle, some of the larger ranchers began to make impor- 
 tations from Chihuahua and Coahuila. These diegenerate descendants of the ancient 
 Spanish breed, although hardy and exceeding in length of horn, as in length of wind 
 and in speed, anything ever before seen among our western cattle, did not recommend 
 themselves to the intelligence of the Canadian rancher, and, after a few years of 
 trial, the trade practically died out in 1905. 
 
 SALES OF PURE BRED MALES. 
 
 About the same time the effects of the policy of this department in festablishing 
 annual provincial auction sales of pure bred bulls began to makte themselves apparent. 
 
 These sales, although to somie extent hampered by the jealousies of local breeders, 
 as well as by the indifference of many of the less intelligent and less progressive 
 ranchers, have done an excellent work in raising thie standard of our western cattle, 
 as regards size and conformation. 
 
 There is still much room for improvement in this direction, and it is to be hoped 
 that as diversified husbandry takes the place of ranching, the ntecessity for using a 
 bettier class of bulls than those hitherto employed will be more generally recognized 
 and appreciated. 
 
 EFFECTS OF SETTLEMENT. 
 
 The advent of the Mormons and others familiar with dry farming and the 
 experience of a few of the more progressive ranchers themselves, especially in the 
 
8 
 
 Pincher Creek district, having demonstrated the suitability of much of the country 
 for general farming, a strong tide of immigration set in. about the year 1900, and 
 since that time, many of the old ranches have been divided, cultivated and built upon, 
 and now form populous rural areas, rapidly beginning to resemble in appearance 
 similar districts in the older settled provinces. 
 
 At the present date, while many of the larger ranches have closed out, the cattle 
 industry is by no means at an end. It is true that many cattlemen, seeing the inevit- 
 able end of ranching, have been rapidly 'beefing' out their herds byi selling cows, 
 spaying heifers and disposing of bulls, but this is only a link in the chain connect- 
 ing the old with the new and better condition of the industry. The determination to 
 beef out has temporarily increased the output of cattle of range quality, but, while 
 this is going on, the incoming settlers are stocking up, not to return to the old system 
 of selling their cattle off the grass in the fall, but to- follow the more profitable method 
 of finishing beef throughout the. year for the good markets, as is done in other pro- 
 gressive countries, where beef raising is recognized as a legitimate and useful adjunct 
 to mixed farming. 
 
 The condition of the range industry was described in striking terms by a repre- 
 sentative western cattleman, at the National Live Stock Convention, in February, 
 1908, who said : — ' No one at all familiar with the ranching industry will hesitate 
 to state that it is^in a condition of rapid decline, dying as decently and as quickly 
 as it is financially able to do.' It is not yet dead, however; there were still in force 
 in the four western provinces, on April 1, 1908, 939 grazing, leases, involving 3,259,271 
 acres divided as follows: — ^Manitoba, 12,6-42 acres; Saskatchewan, 632,493 acres; 
 Alberta, 2,132,718 acres; British Columbia, 281,418 acres. The average area under 
 lease ils 3,481 acres. It would therefore appear that there are still a good many cattle 
 kept under the old conditions, even when the sheep and horse leases are taken into 
 consideration. 
 
 WINTER LOSSES. 
 
 From its very inception the ranching industry was subject to winter losses, more 
 or less severe according to the nature .of the weather, as well as that of the rancher 
 himself. Even in the worst winters those herds whose owners had made reasonable 
 provision for bad weather conditions escaped, as a rule, with comparatively little loss, 
 although they also occasionally suffered heavily through sudden storms, which, coming 
 early in the season, drifted thte cattle so far away from the stores of fodder prepared 
 for them that it was impossible to get them back before the advent of spring, or until 
 ;i timely chinook enabled the cowmen to collect from far and near the remnants of 
 the herd. 
 
 The winter of 1886-7 was almost fatal to the industry, being unequalled in 
 severity by any season, either before or after, until the memorable year of 1906-7 
 when approximately fifty per cent of the cattle on the range were lost.. 
 
 In the year first mentioned, however, there was much more grass .and many 
 fewer cattle, while on the ranges then occupied there was considerable natural shelter, 
 so that, although badly hit and sorely discouraged, the ranchers did not abandon 
 the field, but investing new capital and energy, soon regained the ground they had 
 lost. 
 
 As stated above, the rancher who makes adequate provision for a bad winter, 
 may, through unforseen circumstances, lose heavily in spite of his .fo.resight ; on the 
 other hand the careless and improvident owner, who trusts to luck and stores' no hay 
 for winter use, is certain to be seriously hit, should the season prove exceptionally" 
 rigorous. 
 
 Apart from the mere question of money, the practice followed by too many 
 owners of facing the possibilities of the winter without laying in at least enough 
 fodder to sustain life, is cruel and reprehensible to a degree, and should, I think be 
 mad.e the subject of drastic legislation. ' ' 
 
 ]t would be possible to go much more deeply into the question and, in fact to 
 practically show by a consideration of its various demerits, that while in its own time 
 
and place it served a useful purpose, the ranching industry has properly had its day, 
 and that its early disappearance from southern Alherta and Saskatchewan need, ex- 
 cept perhaps from the standpoint of sentiment, cause no deep or lasting regret. 
 
 THE TRADE AS NOW CONDUCTED. 
 
 The export trade in western range cattle, as hitherto carried on, has been sin- 
 fully wasteful, unbusinesslike and unprofitable to the producer. Cattle wild, excit- 
 able and soft off grass, are driven to the railway, held sometimes for dajs on poor 
 pasture waiting for cars, and finally, after more or less unavoidably rough handling, 
 are forced on board. Once in the cars, they are, not unfrequently, run through to 
 Winnipeg without being unloaded for feed or water. Jt is 840 miles from Calgary 
 to Winnipeg, and as many shipments originate beyond the first-named point, it may 
 be readily seen what this means, even when the run is a good one. Some shippers 
 unload at Moosejaw, 440 miles west of Winnipeg, but others claim that it is alike 
 more humane and more profitable to run through, as the cattle, being still wild, 
 excited and unaccustomed to handling, not only refuse both feed and water, but 
 suffer much more in the unloading and reloading than they do when left in the cars. 
 On arrival at Winnipeg they are always unloaded, fed and watered, being, by this 
 time hungry, thirsty, and fairly quiet from exhaustion. After being rested they are 
 inspected, culled and reloaded, the next step being, as a rule, at White Eiver, 678 
 miles further east. There they are again fed and watered and after another stage 
 of Y55 miles, arrive at Montrieal. Here for most of them the land journey ends, 
 although when navigation is closed at that point, it extends to Portland, Boston or 
 St. John, New Brunswick, as the case may be; very rarely to Halifax. At Montreal, 
 however, all are unloaded, fed, watered, rested, and carefully inspected by the veteri- 
 nary officers of this department, whether they are to be shipped by water from there 
 or from some other port. If the latteif, they are on arrival, rested and again inspected 
 before going on board the steamer. 
 
 While the facilities for loading cattle on the ship at St. John are excellent, thos3 
 at Montreal are not of the best, and this necessitates more and somewhat rougher 
 handling than would otherwise be the case. Even o(n the ships there is much room 
 for improvement in conditions. The regulations as regards space, fittings and similar 
 matters, are, oddly enough, drawn up and enforced by the Department of Marine 
 and Fisheries, and although these might, in my opinion, be revised with advantage, 
 this is scarcely-the proper place to discuss them. 
 
 One matter, however, I must mention, namely the class of men employed to look 
 after and care for cattle on our Canadian ships. These are, as a rule, picked up indis- 
 criminately, through agents at the jxjrt of shipment. • These men, known in the trade 
 as ' stiffs,' are often returning emigrants, who have failed, through drink or otheif 
 causes, in making things go in Canada, or sometimes simply men looking for a cheap 
 passage, decent enough perhaps, but with no knowledge of cattle, and in many cases 
 quite unaccustomed to the sea. Such men are frequently incapacitated for duty 
 through seasickness, and, in other cases, simply refuse to work, with the result that 
 any who may be capable and industrious are overwrought and the cattle suffer accord- 
 ingly. In rough weather especially, the feeding and watering are apt to be irregular 
 and insufficient. 
 
 Is it a matter for wonder that after a journey of 5,000 miles, made under such 
 conditions, our grass-fed range steers arrive in British lairages gaunt and shrunken, 
 looking more like stockers than beeves, that our Scottish friends think we have no 
 feed or that I should declare a business so conducted as sinfully wasteful? 
 
 And still it is profitable; profitable to the middleman who, coolly reckoning on 
 the shrinkage, fixes accordingly his price to the producer; profitable to the com- 
 mission man who pockets in commission what the middleman takes in profits; profit- 
 able to the railway companies; profitable to the steamship lines and profitable to the 
 
 5581—2 
 
10 
 
 British butcher who pays only for what he gets and not, even that much if, by com- 
 bination or sharp practice of other kinds, he can manage to keep prices down. To 
 the producer however, and therefore to the country,- it is the very reverse, and tho 
 odd feature of it all is that if conditions were so amended as to make it profitable 
 for them, the others mentioned above would gain, rather than lose, by the change. 
 
 AS IT SHOULD BE. 
 
 No wild, grass-finished cattle should be shipped for export. In a country like 
 western Canada which, one year with another, is full of all kinds of materilal for win- 
 ter-feeding, there is no excuse for the sending forward, for immediate export, animals 
 which, owing to their lack of domestication and the nature of their food, cannot, under 
 ordiiuary circumstances, reach their destination on the British market without a woeful 
 depreciation in both quantity and quality of flesh. 
 
 Our friends in the United States long ago realized the folly of shipping to 
 Europe alive, steers direct from the r^nge. Their range cattle are brought to the 
 middle west, dehorned, if this has not been earlier done, fed for at least sixty days on 
 a ration comprising a liberal allowance of grain, then sent to market, generally in 
 Chicago, and carefully inspected and culled. Those deemed fit for export are then 
 taken to the seaboard by fast trains and in cars specially fitted for feeding and water- 
 ing en route. They are loaded on these cars under careful supervision, no over- 
 crowding or rough handling being permitted. The men in charge are almost invari- 
 ably regular salaried employees of the shipping firms, and the same is true of the 
 foremen on the ships and of those working under them. 
 
 As a result of these superior methods, United States cattle, even when originally 
 from the western ranges, arrive in Britain in much better condition than Canadian 
 range cattle, and of course command correspondingly higher prices, 
 
 Domesticated Canadians, properly finished, land, as a rule, in excellent condition, 
 and compete closely in price with the best States cattle of the same class. There is 
 no reason why our Canadian range cattle, if treated on similar lines, should not com- 
 pete as closely with steers from the Western States. 
 
 Finishing Bange Cattle. 
 
 As a matter of fact, considerable improvement is already taking place in the 
 finishing of western cattle, as year by year more winter feeding is undertaken.. Many 
 thousands of good steers are, in the autumn, put on a hay or grain ration for the 
 winter. When the feeding is liberal and judicious and good water available, the grass 
 flesh is not only held, but gains on hay alone, of from 80 to 125 pounds, and from hay 
 and grain up to 400 pounds, are 'not uncommon. The cattle thus wintered are ready 
 for the spring market, on which they usually sell well, prices always being better at 
 that season, the demand good, and, as but few cattle are being handled, shipping 
 facilities much better. Winter feeding is now systematically carried on by some of 
 the largest operators in the west. 
 
 Arrangements are yearly made by one firm with individual farmers throughout 
 the country to feed during the winter at a fixed price per head per month. The cattle 
 are handed over to these men on the approach of hard weather and taken from them , 
 when wanted. While many are slaughtered for home and coast consumption, a large 
 numbesr may now be seen during May and June at the Winnipeg yards on their way 
 to the British market, where, needless to say, they get a much more favourable recep- 
 tion than do those which come direct from the range. 
 
 A carefully prepared estimate of the number of cattle on feed in central Alberta 
 during the winter of 1908-9, gives 6,000 head being fed in small lots by individual 
 farmers, and 2,000 head by large concerns. ,It is believed that Y5 per cent of these 
 were receiving a grain ration, and 25 per cent hay alone. In the southern part of 
 the province, additional large numbers, of which reliable statistics are not available, 
 were also fattened. 
 
11 
 
 _ The growth of the practice of finishing cattle on dry feed (hay or hay and grain) 
 in the three western provinces, is indicated by statistics pi shipments received at 
 Winnipeg from January to June (fed on dry feed), as compared with the shipments 
 from July to December (grass fed) for the years 1906, 190Y and 1908, as follows :— ' 
 Number of cattle shipped east from Winnipeg, January to June, 1906. . . . 9,435 
 Number of cattle shipped east from Winnipeg, July to December, 1906. . . . 81,609 
 
 Number of cattle received for local use, January to June, 1906 9,135 
 
 Number of cattle received for local i:se, July to December, 1906 31,463 
 
 131,641 
 
 Number of cattle shipped east from Winnipeg, January to June, 1907. . . . 1,487 
 
 Number of cattle shipped east from Winnipeg, July to December, 1307. . . . 50,062 
 
 Number of cattle received for local use, January to June, 1907 16,397 
 
 Number of cattle received for local use, July to December,, 1907 32,254 
 
 100.200 
 
 Number of cattle shipped east from Winnipeg, January to June, 1908. . . . 19,531 
 
 Number of cattle shipped east from Winnipeg, July to December, -1908 .... 86,593 
 
 Number of cattle received for local use, January to June, 1908 22,342 
 
 Number of cattle received for local, use, July to December, "1908 41,622 
 
 170,088 
 
 The above tables show the percentage of dry fed cattle arriving at Winnipeg for 
 the past three years to have been as follows: — 
 
 1906 • 16-37 per cent. 
 
 1907 21-62 " 
 
 1908 48-67 " 
 
 The shipinents via Winnipeg in no sense include all the cattle produced in the 
 three prairie provinces. To these must be added the large quantity of beef consumed 
 in the local markets, in addition to that shipped to British Columbia and the Yukon. 
 It apppears safe to infer that the percentage of winter fed cattle that have gone to 
 Winnipeg, as shown by the above tables, indicates fairly accurately the relative pro- 
 portion of these to grass-fattened stock produced in the three provinces. These 
 tables further indicate that within a few years comparatively few lean, or rather 
 haK-fed, cattle will be shipped from western Canada for immediate killing. 
 
 This is an excellent showing, as far as it goes, but I am satisfied that, one year 
 with another, a profitable business can be done by farmers in the grain growing dis- 
 tricts of the three western provinces, in finishing for the market, the big growthy 
 grass-fed steers from the range country. In seasons when rough grains are scarce or 
 dear, it would not, of course, be so profitable as when these were cheap and plentiful. 
 There is almost always roughage in abundance. In many districts good prairie hay 
 is procurable at small cost, while straw is always available and can, as Mr. Bedford 
 and many others have shown, be fed with profit, when intelligence and~some other 
 things are in the combination. Once in a while too there is a little frozen wheat in 
 the country, and in years when this is the case, the best market for it is usually to 
 be found among the live stock, if one is fortunate enough to have them. 
 
 With the object of encouraging the proper finishing of range cattle in the west, 
 this branch has for two seasons offered to a number of selected farmers in Manitoba 
 and Saskatchewan, who have suitable locations and would undertake the finishing 
 of range steers in winter on their farms, a bonus of two cents per pound of gain 
 on such cattle fed by them. It is not desired that the cattle be housed, but fed either 
 in open sheds or naturally sheltered locations. 
 
 Sufficient evidence is at hand to demonstrate that profitable finishing can be 
 done without the use of expensive buildings and upon such feed as is now being 
 
12 
 
 wasted on many -wheat farms. The bonus offered was not in any case accepted, 
 farmers, intending to feed, preferring to utilize the semi-domestioated cattle avail- 
 able in most districts, rather than undertake the feeding of range steers to which 
 they were unaccustomed. 
 
 FEEDING AT BRANDON. 
 
 Outdoor feeding was, however, undertaken at the Experimental Farm at Brandon, 
 where in the tests made in 190Y-8, it was found that the cattle fed outside made more 
 profitable gains than similar cattle fed under the usual stabling conditions. The 
 experiment is being continued on a larger scale this winter. Following is Superin- 
 tendent Murray's report of the 190Y-8 experiment: — 
 
 Feeding Steers on Brandon Experimental Farm — Outside versus Inside. 
 (By James Murray, Superintendent.) 
 
 The feeding of cattle out of doors for the production of beef has been receiving 
 considerable attention of late at the hands of Manitoba cattlemen.. The strongest 
 advocates of this method of producing beef are men who have been successfully 
 practising it for a number of years and those who have ^een it in operation. The 
 conditions of outdoor feeding are so radically different from those that have been 
 generally considered essential that the majority of cattlemen are sceptical about it, 
 while many others look upon the practice as ludicrous, and aver that it must involve 
 a wanton waste of feed. 
 
 Last fall some work was started to secure definite information as to the compara- 
 tive economy of making beef in a comfortable stable and in the open with compara- 
 tively little shelter. The first lot of steers, thirteen head, has just been marketed and 
 the results are available. 
 
 Thirteen were purchased in late November and divided into two groups as nearly 
 alike as possible in size and quality, eight being dehorned and put outside and five 
 (as many as we had accommodation for) tied in the. stable. The steers were domes- 
 tic, purchased in the neighbourhood of Oak river and cost 3 J cents shrunk. The 
 inside group were started on September 3 on a standard ration that has given good 
 results here for a number of years for beef production and consisted of silage, straw, 
 hay, a few roota and grain. The grain ration at the start consisted of two pounds 
 of a mixture of oats, barley and feed wheat, and two pounds of bran per steer. This 
 was increased from time to time until by the first of April each steer wag receiving 
 daily 10 lbs. of grain and 2 lbs. of bran. The steers were not out of the stable after 
 being tied up until they were sold. 
 
 The eight steers outside had a range of about 100 acres of rough rolling land 
 some of which was well sheltered with scrub. Water was available in one of the 
 coulees, the ice being cut every day. No shelter by way of sheds was provided. Grain 
 was fed in a trough about three feet wide and high enough ofi the ground to prevent 
 the steers getting in it. Straw was always kept before them in an inclosure of stakes 
 that would hold about a load, arranged so that the straw could not be wasted by tramp- 
 ing over it. On December 3 they were started on a ration consisting of 2 pounds of 
 mixed grain and 2 pounds of bran, this being increased from time to time, so that by 
 April 1 each steer was getting 9 pounds of grain and 2 pounds of bran. For about six 
 weeks rough hay was fed instead of straw. This is charged for at the rate of $2 per 
 ton, which is its full value. 
 
 Both lots of steers were sold on April 22 for $4.25 per hundred with 4 per cent 
 shrinkage. Following is a statement of the transaction : — 
 
 Outside. Inside. 
 
 Number of steers in lot 8 5 
 
 First weight gross 8,854 lbs. 5,695 lbs. 
 
 First weight average 1,106 " 1,139 " 
 
 Finished weight, gross 10,630 " 6,950 " 
 
 Finished weight, average 1,328 " 1,390 " 
 
 Total gain in 138 days 1,776 " 1,255 " 
 
Inside. 
 
 251 lb3. 
 
 1-81 " 
 
 9-05 « 
 
 $Y7 95 
 
 6 20 
 
 177 97 
 
 255 92 
 
 283 56 
 
 27 64 
 
 5 53 
 
 35 59 
 
 56 71 
 
 21 12 
 
 15 59 
 
 5,390 lbs. 
 
 5,680 " 
 
 2,840 " 
 
 25,850 « 
 
 13 
 
 • Otttside. 
 
 Average gain per steer 235 lbs. 
 
 Daily gain per steer 1 -6 " 
 
 Daily gain per lot 12 -8 " 
 
 Gross cost "of feed $100 76 
 
 Cost of 100 lbs. gain 5 67 
 
 Cost of steers fed out of doors, 8,848 lbs. 
 
 at 34 cents 276 50 
 
 Cost of steers fed indoor, 5,695 lbs. at 
 
 3J cents 
 
 Total cost to produce beef 377 26 
 
 Out of door steers sold, 14,135 lbs. at 
 
 4j cents, less 4 per cent 433 71 
 
 Indoor steers sold, 6,950 lbs. at 4J, less 
 
 4 per cent 
 
 Profit on lot 56 45 
 
 Net profit per steer 7 05 
 
 Average buying price per steer 34 56 
 
 Average selling price per steer 54 21., 
 
 Average increase in value. 19 65 
 
 Average cost of feed per steer 12 59 
 
 Amount of meal eaten by lot of steers. . 8,892 lbs. 
 
 Amount of straw 8 tons. 
 
 Amount of hay 6 " 
 
 Amount of millet 1 " 
 
 Amount of ensilage and roots 
 
 Amount of com fodder 1 ton. 
 
 INVESTMENT AND LABOUR. 
 
 ^ The net profit as shown here, $5.52 on those fed inside and $7.05 on those fed out- 
 side, makes no allowance for interest on investment or labour involved in tending the 
 cattle. For the outside lot the only investment was the price of the steers and the 
 value of lumber for troughing, a total of $286. The labour incident to attending this 
 lot, including the drawing of straw, feeding grain and cutting ice would at the out- 
 side not amount to more than the time of one man for one hour per day. The extra 
 expense in attending 50 head would have been not more than the time required to dtraw 
 the additional straw — a small item. 
 
 In feeding inside the investment is necessarily very much greater, no matter how 
 economically the building be done. Provided a building suitable for stabling 30 steers 
 could be erected for $1,000, an additional gross profit of $2 per head would be required 
 to meet interest on the investment. The labour required to attend to the cattle fed 
 inside was fully four times as much as that required when the feeding was done out- 
 side. 
 
 The point has been raised in discussions on this subject that a large part of the 
 food consumed by the cattle fed outside must be utilized to keep up the animal heat, 
 and since those fed in a comfortable stable do not have the same waste of heat to pro- 
 vide for in the food consumed, they should on that account lay on fat more economic- 
 ally. It must be borne in mind, however, that cattle that are not stabled grow a coat 
 of hair more resembling in its density that of a beaver than that of a steer, and that 
 this provision aids greatly in conserving the animal heat. During the coldest weather 
 that we had this winter, when for a week the temperature averaged 29 below zero, the 
 steers did not seem to suffer the leasts and were not standing around the straw pile 
 with humped backs as one might imagine. 
 
 The cattle were always ready for their feed and none of them went off during the 
 winter. The abundance of fresh air has no doubt a salutary effect in keeping the 
 digestive system in tone. 
 
14 
 
 The work carried on this winter is intended as introductory to more extensive 
 trials. Experiments of the sort above outlined must be continued for a number of 
 years, when different kinds of seasons are encountered, before the results can be con- 
 sidei-od of any great value. The past winter's results may be taken as representing 
 what may be expected in an unusually mild winter free from severe storms or pro- 
 longed cold spells. How these results will compare with what may be obtained in a 
 more severe winter remains still to be seen. 
 
 Outdoor Feeding by a Private Owner. 
 
 The results achieved -at the Brandon Experimental Farm in the one season tried 
 have been verified over and over again, year after year on Manitoba farms. The follow- 
 ing description of a number of years' feeding near Newdale prepared by Mr. Grayson, 
 Mount Pleasant -stock farm, of that place, and published in the Nor'West Farmer, 
 shows the method to be a profitable one even in severe seasons : — 
 
 Some fifteen years ago Mr. John B. Cook, of Newdale, in connection with the 
 late Dr. Harrison, built a large barn and started somewhat extensively into the busi- 
 ness of winter feeding of beef cattle. After about three years' experience during 
 which time the balance was always on the wrong side of the ledger, another bunch 
 of cattle was bought and fed hay in the shelter of the scrub which extends along the 
 north side of the farm, the intention being to bring the cattle to the barn as the 
 weather got colder. The cattle had access to open water- in the ravines and appeared 
 to be doing so well that they were left out all winter. A small allowance of grain 
 was added to the hay about March 1. These cattle were sold early in the summer 
 and were the first cattle to net their feeders a profit. Since that time Mr. Cook has 
 continued to feed from sixty to one hundred head of steers each winter, and the writel*, 
 as well as others, has done something along the same line with satisfactory results.' 
 
 ' In this article I propose to give some idea of the work carried on here. In doing 
 so I know I shall say things that are at variance with what most of us believe to be 
 essential to the production of beef, but I would ask readers to remember that what I 
 am writing is actual experience and not theory,. Tears "ago Mr. Cook's plan was to 
 buy in the fall a bunch of cattle, big, lean steers and thin cows and heifers, almost 
 anything with a large frame that might be made to carry meat. But to-day nothing 
 "is selected but steers of good beef conformation and weighing from 1,100 to 1,300 
 pounds in the fall, steers that carry a considerable amount of flesh. Experience 
 has proved that the fleshy steer is the most profitable to winter and makes better gains 
 than the leaner one in the bunch, and we rarely find a steer so fat from the grass 
 that he will not stand a finishing spell with graiq. These steers have usually been 
 bought from some regular cattle buyer, a premium being, paid for the privilege of 
 selecting suitable feeders. 
 
 ' The steers are usually bought during October and allowed to run on the farms 
 until winter sets in in earnest. As early as convenient after the steers are bought 
 they are dehorned. Clippers are used for this purpose and a handful of lime is 
 pressed on each stub to assist in checking the bleeding. With the approach of winter 
 the steers seek the shelter and straw is drawn to them. 
 
 CRITICISMS ANSWERED. 
 
 ' I have noticed from questions that have been asked me and from criticisms that 
 the generally held idea regarding shelter is, that the cattle retire into the bottom of 
 some thickly wooded ravine or into some heavy bush where they would be almost 
 as much shut in as they might be in some sod building without windows. Instead 
 of this the cattle prefer the high open spaces, with just enough scrub to prevent the 
 snow from drifting over the straw. The cattle 'enjoy the life and especially enjoy 
 the sunshine so long as the winds are broken from them. 
 
 ' Here I may speak of another point and that is the manure. One of my critics 
 of a previous article seemed to think that it would be out of the q^estion to gather 
 the manure from among the scrub. Now if straw is fed in a comparatively limited 
 
15 
 
 open space, until it reaches a depth of two or three feet of straw and manure, I fail 
 to see the difficulty of getting it gathered up. And I contend that I know of no 
 better way to convert large quantities of straw into useful manure than by feeding 
 it liberally out of doors to grain fed cattle. In feeding straw it is necessary to use 
 much more than the cattle will eat up clean, as by this means the cattle can always 
 have a comfortable bed, and we aim to have them comfortable. 
 
 ' About the first of December, or earlier, if the weather is severe, the cattle are 
 given about four pounds of grain each day. The grain is all fed in the evenings in 
 troughs about three feet wide, eight inches deep and raised about two and a half feet 
 from the ground. The grain ration consists of a mixture of oats and barley chopped 
 (barley principally) and bran, about one-third bran by weight. Finely ground chop 
 gives best results and is most appreciated by the cattle. It is our plan to feed about 
 sixteen hundred pounds of grain i)er steer during the feeding period, and the ration 
 is increased in January to about eight pounds per steer per day and about April to 
 ten pounds. Thia is continued until about June 20, when the steers are sold. If the 
 grass becomes good in June less grain, is needed at the finish. 
 
 ' In feeding cattle on such a dry ration, watering is of considerable importance. 
 Those who are so situated that" cattle can Jiave access to open water at all times are 
 especially favoured for this work; the cattle need to drink frequently and in~small 
 quantities. Where water is not so easily available it must be kept in the trough as 
 much as the severity of the weather will permit, as a large drink of cold water follow- 
 ing long abstinence would chill any animal and cause temporary check to digestive 
 processes. In regard to salt, we usually place a barrel in some convenient place and 
 knock the head in. 
 
 'In carrying cattle until June, it is a great help if one has hay enough to feed 
 for about a month after the snow goes, and by confining the cattle, so that they will 
 not ramble too far, they can be made to at least hold their own during this trying 
 period. The object in carrying cattle until June haS been to wait for a profitable' 
 market. If the market on, say the first of April, was anything like equal to the market 
 of June, I am sure that good results would follow the feeding of the same total quan- 
 tity of grain in the shorter period. 
 
 ' Now as to our business nethods. — The steers are bought when cattle are at about 
 the lowest, a premium over the market being paid for the privilege of selecting steers 
 of approved type. In working out our balance sheet we have been in the habit of 
 charging the grain fed to the cattle at the rate of 80 cents per 100 poun<fe. This we 
 consider a fair price in an ordinary year. We charge interest, wages, and all neces- 
 sary expenses and have been able with a margin of IJ cents per pound between buying 
 and selling price to have a balance on the right side of about an average of seven 
 dollars per head.' 
 
 Experiences of Others. 
 
 The question of outdoor winter fattening was discussed at considerable length at 
 the National Live Stock convention. The view held by many western grain growers,, 
 that winter fattening cannot be profitably done in the prairie provinces, was freely 
 expressed, but it was just as readily refuted by those who spoke from experience. A 
 delegate stated that he knew of a carload of cattle fed in the open air during the 
 winter of 1906-Y on prairie hay and water, the gain averaging 100 pounds per head- 
 Another speaker explained that 90 head averaging 1,260 pounds in the autumn, were 
 made to weigh 1,400 pounds by spring fed in a ravine in Manitoba. The feed con- 
 sisted of straw and chaff that would otherwise have been burned, with grain chop.. 
 Charging for the grain and the labour, the steers made a clear profit of sixteen dollars. 
 ($16) per head. After summing up the various arguments presented, the chairman 
 of the convention pointed out that it was simply the old stary — some men could make 
 it pay, while others, too careless or too lazy to do the thing properly, would fail in the 
 fattening of cattle as they would in any other undertaking. 
 
 There are thousands of wheat growers who spend their winters in idleness after 
 marketing the season's harvest. Continuous good crops, desirable as they are, have 
 
16 
 
 very great disadvantages for the fanning community. Already are to be found in 
 these new provinces, districts yielding little m'ore than half the returns per acre they 
 did some years ago, and while the yield, following continuous cropping, is going down, 
 the land is becoming foul with weeds, whereas, a system of mised farming, including 
 the feeding of the straw and other rough feed to cattle, together with a suitable sys- 
 tem of rotation, involving spreading the manure on the land, builds up the soil, keeps 
 it clear of weeds, and hastens the ripening of the grain, thus reducing the daaiger from 
 early frost. -- »* 
 
 There are in certain sections of the west, farmers who finish their cattle ^sjuring 
 the summer and ship them to the British market. An example of this "may be seen on 
 a farm near Moosomin, where Mr. E. J. Phin, is devoting his attention to this work. 
 He handles about nine hundred (900) head each year, sometimes shipping direct to 
 the old country. These cattle are gathered largely around MoosominJ and in the Moose 
 Mountain country, where there is abimdance of water and grass.. The chief points of. 
 interest regarding his operations are — (a) the finishing on rape of cattle not otherwise 
 fit to ship ; (b) winter feeding. 
 
 MR. PHIN's methods. 
 
 (a) Finishing cattle on rape : 
 
 ' The land intended for this purpose is treated as a summer fallow during the 
 early summer, and about the first of July is sown to the forage crop mentioned, two 
 pounds of seed per acre being used, sown in drills. After the sowing is done, manure 
 is applied with spreaders; surface cultivation is followed abput once a week, thus 
 keeping the weeds under. The cattle are turned on about September 15, and kept there 
 until the frost sets in; in addition some chopped grain is fed. The cattle come off 
 the rape in prime condition and ship well. The grains fed consist of oats, barley or 
 frozen wheat, depending upon the price at which these may be obtained. Not only 
 are the steers thus turned ofi in good condition, but the land is cleaned and made to 
 bear a profitable crop of wheat, the straw being strong and the heads well filled. The 
 packing of the soil seems to have the effect of preventing a rank growth of straw and 
 also hastens the maturing of the crop. In 1908 sixty-five (65) acres were under rape, 
 but some years double this quantity has been sown ; this course of husbandry has been 
 followed now for five years with satisfactory results. 
 
 (h) Winter feeding outside. — During the winter months, from one to two hun- 
 dred steers are fed on cut straw and chopped grain. The equipment is not expensive, 
 consisting of cheap wooden troughs, up about two feet from the ground on the leeward 
 side of the buildings. Adjacent to the buildings is a yard with cheap sheds, but the 
 steers fed there do not seem to make any greater gains than those altogether in the 
 open. As remarked by Mr. Phin, "A big well-fed steer seems to take little heed of 
 the cold." The cattle fed are practically all Shorthorn grades, which are preferred, 
 as, in addition to being good feeders, they have size and weight. 
 
 The following statement by Mr. W. F. Puffer, M.L.A., of Lacombe, Alta,, who is, 
 in every sense of the word, a practical man, will be found both interesting and in- 
 structive : — 
 
 INTENSIVE FATTENING. 
 
 (By W. F. Pufer, M.L.A., Lacomle.) 
 
 'In the district around Lacombe and Eed Deer, and in fact in that part of the 
 province generally spoken of as' Central Alberta, the winter feeding of cattle is laecom- 
 ing more general. . 
 
 There ia still plenty of grass throughout this district but the farmer is already 
 occupying considerable areas. The country is somewhat rolling with abundant water 
 and dotted with frequent groves of poplar and some spruce, affording excellent oppor- 
 tunity for winter feeding in the open without the expense of stabling. 
 
17 
 
 The method of feeding which is now being generally fpllowed and which, after 
 an experience of twenty years of cattle feeding, the most of the time in Alberta, I 
 have myself found to give the most satisfactory results, I will describe briefly. 
 
 First, let me say that I strongly favour feeding in the open, and that I am con- 
 vinced that many of those who attempt feeding cattle do not feed grain with suffi- 
 cient liberality to obtain the best results. This, I believe, is one reason why Cana- 
 diEin cattle are generally quoted on the Liverpool market one cent per pound lower 
 than United States' cattle. In the United States feeding districts, cattle are put 
 on a full feed of corn almost- from the start, which is kept before them constantly 
 for six or eight months. One hundred bushels of corn is reckoned as the requirement 
 of an ordinary steer during the feeding period. This method gives rapid gains, pro- 
 ducing better cattle, which make better prices, than where limited grain rations are 
 fed. The disposition of a thoroughly fattened steer is changed; he becomes docile 
 and contented, ships better and thus brings a better price at the end of his life's 
 journey. We have just as good cattle here as in the United States. Chopped barley, 
 wheat and oats are fully equal to com as a fattening ration, but we must give the 
 cattle all they will eat of it, and when we learn to do this, I contend that our cattle 
 will not sell at a lower price on the British market than United States' cattle. 
 
 I have been pleased to note that some good work is being done by the superim- 
 tendent of the Experimental Farm at Brandon in outdoor cattle feeding, and I have 
 read with interest reports of other Manitoba farmers who are experimenting along 
 similar lines. I cannot help but think, however, that all th^e experiments would be 
 better if they would adopt the method I here attempt to describe. At the time the 
 Experimental Farm cattle were sold at Brandon last spring for 4J cents, which I fancy 
 was about their value, a good many cattle were being sold here for 4i cents, but our 
 best feeders were getting 44 to 5 cents for cattle for export, and they had to contend 
 with the long rail journey, extra freight -and -shrinkage and other expenses which 
 would make cattle cost to the dealer in Montreal from 6 cents to 6J cents per pound. 
 
 THE METHOD. 
 
 Where there is no natural shelter, a corral with a tight board fence about T feet 
 high, with a rough, straw covered shed for stormy weather is necessary, and even 
 where there is good natural shelter, cattle will do better with a roughly improvised 
 shed in which to lie down during stormy weather. The rest of the equipment con- 
 sists of racks for holding hay or rough feed, which should always be kept filled, and 
 the cattle allowed access to them at all times. The grain feeding bunks should be 
 placed in the centre of the corral or in the open, where the cattle can get all rovdnd . 
 them. They should be about 2i feet high, 3 feet wide, with 8-inch sides to keep in 
 the chop, and if made about 16 feet long will be found convenient. With cattle not 
 dehorned, and until they are on full feed, about one of these bunks to every eight 
 head is necessary ; after they are on full feed a bunk would accommodate more cattle. 
 Self-feeders may also be used and are very satisfactory. 
 
 It is perhaps needless to say that attention to the smallest details is absolutely 
 essential to obtain the best results in the feeding of cattle, and this applies just as 
 emphatically with cattle that are being fed in the open, as under the most artificial 
 conditions. They must be provided with plenty of bedding, good clean straw a foot 
 deep ; all frozen lumps of manure should be regularly removed so that cattle may have 
 'solid comfort.' Eemember that when cattle are lying down quietly and contentedly 
 chewing their cud they are making the most money for the feeder. 
 
 As above stated, the feed racks should always be kept filled, and I always like to 
 supply the best hay at the first of the season before the cattle have got on to the full 
 grain feed. 
 
 I find, like Mr. Grayson of Newdale, that finely chopped grain is best, being more 
 easily digested. Barley and oats ground together is what is usually fed; sometimes 
 oats aHd wheat, but I have had better results -from feeding barley alone. 1 
 like to put in three-year-old steers weighing about 1,200 pounds; I begin feed- 
 
18 
 
 ing about December 1, 5 pounds of chop once a day, graduaUy increasing 
 this till about the 15th of the month to 4 pounds twice a day, which is still further 
 increased until by the end of the month 6 pounds twice a day is being fed. This is 
 gradually increased for the next ten days or so, when a little chop will be left over m 
 the bunks; they should then be filled up and never allowed to get empty. I find more 
 grain is eaten the third month than the second. Steers, such as referred to above, 
 will sometimes average two pounds per head per day when on fuU feed depending on 
 the size of the steer and the quality of rough feed and also, to some extent, on the 
 weather. Steers of good breeding will gain in weight in five months from December 
 1 to May 1, from 350 to 500 pounds. Such steers will continue. growing after the date 
 mentioned until sold, and I am sure no one ever yet experienced any difficulty 'in 
 getting a good price for such cattle in the spring. 
 
 I suppose objection would be raised to the amount of grain fed, but I contend 
 that half-way methods don't pay, and in my experience, the results obtained justify 
 the extra quantity of grain. On limited ratSons, steers do not become contented; they 
 remain on their feet too much of the time playing and fighting, thus wasting a certain 
 amount of the feed consumed, whereas when put on fuU feed, even the wildest cattle 
 soon become lazy and lie down a great deal of the time, when,' as I have already said, 
 they are making flesh economically. 
 
 Another important item is the water supply, and it is most essential that water 
 should at all times be available. If water is supplied from a well, a tank heater is a 
 necessity to keep the water in the troughs from freezing, and it will pay for itself in 
 a short time if twenty head or over are being fed. If the water is supplied from a 
 lake or a stream then ample water holes should be provided, and attention should be 
 given that these are made convenient for drinking from, so that the animals can stand 
 comfortably. This can -be done by making a long opening in the ice, say not over 
 twelve inches wide, and as long as necessary. A little ledge should be left all around 
 the edges of the water hole to keep their feet from slipping in, and the ice should be 
 chopped away at the back so that their hind feet are down almost on a level with their 
 front feet. The ledge round the water hole Will also prevent the water from becoming 
 contaminated on warm days. Barrel salt I find best and it should not be aUowedl to 
 get lumpy or hard.' 
 
 Operations of a large Firm. 
 
 Many other Alberta feeders are adopting intensive fattening methods. A repre- 
 sentative of this Branch, travelling in Alberta, reports the operations of one firm that 
 had in the winter of 1908-9, 1,400 head on feed at three points — Carbon, Midnapore 
 and High Eiver. At High River, where 485 head' were feeding, the cattle had only a 
 bush shelter on the banks of the river. In January when visited they were getting all 
 the hay they could eat, and a meal ration of 16 pounds per day. The meal consisted 
 of a mixture of two-thirds oats and one-third barley ground fine. This meal was fed 
 in self-feeders of which there were thirty, these being filled every second day. The 
 cattle when seen in extremely cold weather appeared comfortable and contented. They 
 were eating comparatively little hay-^about four tons per day, or 16 pounds per head, 
 which is about equal to the weight of meal consumed. They had free access to salt 
 and to High River water. While they had not been weighed they appeared to be put- 
 ting on weight rapidly. Three men were able to look after this herd of 485 head, in- 
 cluding the work of grinding the grain by means of an engine and chopper. 
 
 WINTERING CALVES. 
 
 There is perhaps no greater loss in the entire ranching industry than that arising 
 from the usual methods of wintering calves. Not only are many promising calves lost 
 from exposure and shortage of feed during severe periods, but practically all that have 
 come through the winter have lost weight and become stunted for future growth. 
 Those who have taken the trouble to weigh thei,r calves in fall and again in spring 
 
19 
 
 have been surprised to learn that fully 200 pounds of flesh per head have been sacrificed 
 by allowing the youngsters to take their chance on the range along with the herd. 
 Calves that weighed 600 pounds at the beginning of winter had actually shrunk to 
 400 pounds by spring, losing just one-third their weight, and this all flesh, as neither 
 bone, hide nor horn had been reduced. Any stockman can readily imagine the time it 
 requires for such animals to regain the lost ground. It is fair to estimate that fully 
 a year is lost in the animal's growth and a year delayed in the time the ranchman' 
 must wait for the price of his crop of steers. 
 
 Is there a better way practicable? That is the question vs'hich concerns the cattle- 
 man. Housing is not an easy problem and help is expensive, but something must be 
 done to prevent or reduce the enormous loss from fatalities, shrinkage and stunting, 
 that goes on from year to year. A year's saving of time and feed would do a great 
 deal towards a provision for caring properly for the calves, especially since it can be 
 done without expensive housing, or even the feeding of grain. 
 
 Many up to date ranch owners are recognizing the importance of proper shelter 
 and feeding and make special provision for the calves during the first winter. Rough 
 sheds are constructed in which they are run loose and fed on hay and oat sheaves or 
 other suitable feed. Others bring their calves through successfully without the sheds. 
 Mr. W. E. Tees, of Tees, Alberta, the owner of a herd of good cows, winters his calf 
 crop satisfactorily without buildings. Describing his experience and system, Mr. 
 Tees writes as follows : — 
 
 ' I will try to give you my plan and experience in wintering calves. I have never 
 weighed before or after wintering but I am sure I can bring them through the worst 
 winter in very satisfactory form. During the hard winter of 1906 I had to change my 
 usual plan, asthe snow was too deep for grazing, so I held them in a yard or corral.. 
 That winter I had some 40 head, and fed them on wild hay and green cut oat feed, 
 andj I certainly had a fine bunch of calves in the spring with no loss. I will try and 
 explain my usual plan, describing what I am doing this winter: — 
 
 First, I have a good amount of pasture land under fence; in the fall I cut and 
 bunch aU the available hay on wild land and leave it in the bunch for calves to run 
 to. Then there is usually some fall wheat or rye stubble land, as I do not fall plough, 
 and I have plenty of straw stack for them to run to. About the last of October, I 
 take the calves from cows to wean. I place them in a large pasture of twenty or more 
 acres, under high pole fence, securely built, so that it is impossible for them to get to 
 the cows, but stiU have a good range. There I give them the best of hay, with either 
 a straw stack or some green feed. In 48 hours after separation I let them all to the 
 cows again, but this is really to benefit the cows, as by letting them drain the cows at 
 this time there is no danger to the cows' udders. This plan I have always followed. 
 I do not try to drive the cows to another inclosure, as some do, but they are separated 
 from the calves only by this pole fence, therefore they are near each other all the 
 time. It is surprising how little they worry and fail. The weaning is accomplished 
 without perceptible shrink or falling off in flesh. In about two weeks' time I can turn 
 them into the stubble field where they have access to wild hay and where they will 
 remain till grass comes in the spring. However, should the feed mentioned not hold 
 out, I am careful to take them plenty of wild hay. I do not feed any grain and have 
 no buildings for them, only the bush and straw stacks.' 
 
 RAILWAY TRANSPORTATION. 
 
 The best of beef may be raised and finished in our western provinces, but unless 
 it can be marketed in good condition, and at reasonable cost, its production is not 
 likely to be continued. The home demand wiU of course grow, as population increases 
 and towns and cities multiply, but farming is certain to remain the chief industry and 
 beef production will undoubtedly always exceed local requirements. Outside markets 
 will therefore be necessary and. the means of reaching them must be duly considered. 
 
20 
 
 The transif.itstion facilities furnished to western cattle shippers have, for long, 
 been declared altogether inadequate. It is charged that the supply of stock cars is 
 irregular, uncertain and inefficient, their construction faulty, their equipment defec- 
 tive, that engines are overloaded and the speed of trains thereby greatly lessened and 
 that as a consequence of these conditions cattle in transit undergo much needless 
 suffering and their owners serious financial loss. While there is doubtless good ground 
 for these complaints much of the trouble unquestionably arises from the fact that 
 until within the last year or two, export shipments have been confined to a period, 
 little, if any, exceeding three months during which one railway company has had, in 
 addition to meeting the demands of ordinary live stock traffic, to do its best to move 
 from 50,000 to 80,000 head of cattle over an average distance of 2,000 miles. The 
 cattle shipping season in each year also overlaps the great eastward grain movement 
 during which every effort must be made to get the crop to the terminal elevators before 
 the close of navigation. In spite of these extenuating circumstances, however, there 
 is both need and room for improvement, and although the adoption of winter feeding 
 which will change and extend the shipping period and the near advent of railway com- 
 petition will doubtless greatly better existing conditions, the reasonable demands of 
 the present day trade must be ^iven reasonable consideration. 
 
 At the National Live Stock convention held here last year, the western cattlemen 
 present declared that without prompt and radical reforms in transportation methods 
 their export trade could not, under the altered conditions of beef production, be any 
 longer profitably carried on. As a result of the statements made by these gentlemen, 
 the convention passed unanimously a resolution that the matter should be referred 
 to the Eailway Commission for action and it is very gratifying to know that, on ths 
 request of the western stock growers, that Board is, with characteristic promp;Utude, 
 now actively engaged in remedying as far as possible the faulty conditions which have 
 caused so much dissatisfaction and given rise to so many complaints. 
 
 SHIPPING HINTS. 
 
 In shipping cattle practical experience is of immense value and if the shipper 
 himself is lacking in this qualification, he should endeavour to secure the services of 
 a reliable and trustworthy man, especially if he intends doing business on an extensive 
 scale. By following this course he will save himself much time, worry and money. 
 This is particularly true in the case of shipments to distant and above all to foreign 
 markets. Unless one knows the ropes, he is certain to find himself often at a loss and 
 so driven into the hands of commission men and others who, whatever they may do 
 for their regular customers, seldom show much compassion or consideration for the 
 chance wayfarer, who is trying to do business on his own account. Loading must be 
 carefully watched — overcrowding in a single car of a train load may mean a heavy 
 loss. Cars should be clean and well bedded or sanded to prevent slipping ; they should 
 be in good, sound condition, and each should be closely examined inside to ensure 
 that there are no projections such as splinters, bolts or nails likely to injure the stock. 
 
 Where hay is fed in transit, its distribution should be carefully supervised and 
 at any time when car doors have been opened they should be properly closed before the 
 train moves. 
 
 At feeding points the shipper must insist on ample time and space being allowed 
 for rest, and must see that the feed and water supplied are of good quality and that 
 each animal has an opportunity to get its reasonable share of both. 
 
 Undue delays in furnishing ears or in the movement of trains as well as all cases 
 of injury to stock through rough handlibg, violent shunting, or otherwise should be 
 promptly reported to the proper railway officials, who are generally more interested 
 than their subordinates in seeing that satisfactory treatment is afforded to shippers. 
 %• looking sharply after their own interests in matters of this kind shippers will 
 avoid much annoyance as well as financial loss. 
 
 It is almost superfluous to say that cattle ship much better when dehorned. This 
 should, however, be done some time beforehand, preferably when close feeding begins 
 
21 
 
 or better still when they are calves. The dehorning of range cattle which are to be 
 winter fed is especially advisable as it tends to make them quieter and much more 
 peaceable than when the horns are left untouched. 
 
 THE DRESSED MEAT TRADE. 
 
 Fully aware of the disadvantages attending the present methods of marketing, 
 the more advanced thinkers among our western stock growers have, for a long time, 
 been earnest advocates of the establishment of a dead meat trade. There is no doubt 
 that if the enterprise were properly financed, started on a sound basis and conducted 
 in an honest and business-like manner in the general interest of the producer, there 
 would be far less actual wastage than. at present. It is altogether likely that, had it 
 been possible to secure the required capital, -fhe trade would have been inaugurated 
 years ago. For such an undertaking on a scale sufficiently extensive to furnish effec- 
 tive relief, however, a great deal of money is necessary and as our western ranchers 
 are, like the eastern farmers, not much in favour of the co-operative principle, while 
 several large interests have been rather opposed to any change in existing ~ conditions, 
 nothing definite has yet been done. A number of packing establishments in which 
 both beef and pork are prepared for local and Pacific coast trade are now in operation 
 in Alberta and Manitoba, but no serious attempt has ever been made to develop and 
 build up an export industry in meats or meat food products. It is true that in recent 
 years some members of the great American Meat Trust have established outposts in 
 tihe Canadian west with results, so far at least, beneficial to the stockman, and it is 
 possible that this action on their part may be only preparatory to larger operations, 
 provided the field is found to be sufficiently promising. It is questionable, however, 
 bearing in mind the methods usually followed by these gentlemen once their grip 'is 
 assured, whether the Establishment of a Canadian dead meat trade under their auspices 
 IS a consummation devoutly to be wished. 
 
 Such an enterprise to be productive of the greatest benefit to all concerned, should 
 be under effective public control, and it is to be hoped that in the not too far distant 
 future some practicable scheme will be evolved which while affording a beter and more 
 reliable and regular market for our western live stock will still leave the producer free 
 from the trammels of any trust, whether foreign or domestic. 
 
 ADVANTAGES OP DEAD MEAT TRADE. 
 
 The advantages to be gained from the establishment of an export trade in dressed 
 meat are, in the opinion of those who have most fully and carefully considered the 
 subject, quite beyond question. 
 
 In the first place, as has already been shown there is a very serious loss from the 
 unavoidable shrinkage which occurs in the carriage of live cattle by land and sea over 
 the enormous distance which separates the original seller from the ultimate buyer. 
 While this shrinkage will, no doubt, become proportionately smaller with the general 
 adoption of improved methods of handling, finishing and transporting the stock, it can 
 never be entirely eliminated and even when reduced to a minimum, it will, I think, be ' 
 found to constitute the determining factor in establishing the superiority of the dead 
 meat trade from the profit point of view, at least as far as concerns all cattle except 
 those of the very best quality and finish. 
 
 As will be shown later there is good ground for the belief that animals of the 
 class last mentioned will continue to be profitably disposed of on the hoof. ' 
 
 Secondly, the competition which would be afforded by a sanely established, honestly 
 conducted, and properly controlled dead meat trade would have a marked steadying 
 effect on the prices paid to producers. With such a trade in constant operation, we 
 would not see so often, the fluctuations in values which now occur, and which ajre 
 often undoubtedly due to friendly arrangements between buyers, many of whom unfor- 
 tunately appear unable to resist the temptation to feather their own nests unfairly by 
 
. 22 
 
 unduly cutting prices when stock is plentiful and easy to obtain. Dealers in Canada 
 as well as in the United States and other countries never seem to learn that tactics of 
 this sort cannot be counteracted by the payment of high prices when- stock is scarce 
 and when, as a rule, but little remains in the hands of the producer. Scarcity of this 
 kind is almost always attributable to the discouragement and disgust of the farmer or 
 feeder, who, feeling that he has not received fair remuneration for his feed and labour, 
 disposes of all his stock and ceases to be a producer. If buyers of live stock, which, to 
 a grr-ater c'ogree than any other farm product, suffers from petty price manipulations, 
 could only be made to grasp the fact that the time for small profit margins is when 
 prices all round are low, they would soon begin to reap the benefits of self denial in 
 the form of a steady supply, and a regular if perhaps not excessively profitable trade. 
 So long as they continue as at present to shake the confidence of the producer by 
 scheming for unjust profits when stock isi plentiful, so long will they continue to suffer, 
 as many of them are now dicing, from a shortage of raw material, not only disastrous 
 to themselves, but involving great national loss. 
 
 Another and by no means unimportant reason for the establishment of a dead 
 meat trade is one which has been plainly set before us on two different occasions within 
 recent years. 
 
 In 1902 and again during the winter just past foot and mouth disease made its 
 appearance in the United States, with the result that large areas were in each instance 
 at once debarred from participation in the export live stock trade. While this was 
 serious, enough for those portions of the United States concerned, it was, for geo- 
 graphical reasons, of trifling importance, when compared with the results which would 
 inevitably have followed a similar outbreak in Canada. 
 
 The United States has a long Atlantic coast line, and many different seaports, 
 situated far apart, and served by numerous widely separated lines of railway. They 
 have also, in constant operation, a complete system of fully equipped modern abattoirs, 
 refrigerator cars and ships, which enable them on the shortest notice, to convert their 
 export live stock into dressed meat, which can be sent forward without let or hindrance. 
 
 We, in Canada are in an entirely different position; our Atlantic seaports are 
 few in number, and the railways leading to them pass in convergence through a narrow 
 neck of land, measuring only a few miles from north to south. 
 
 We were on both occasions, fortunately successful by efforts much more strenuous 
 and exacting than is perhaps realized by the majority of Canadians, even those most 
 interested, in preventing the introduction to the Dominion of this notoriously infec- 
 tious and easily transmitted disease. Had these efforts failed our export live stock 
 trade would have been stopped at once. The British authorities would undoubtedly, 
 and from their point of view, very properly, have prohibited the importation from 
 Canada of live cattle, as well as sheep and swine. As, a matter of fact, it was only with 
 the greatest difficulty that they were induced to refrain from scheduling Toronto and 
 a large portion of western Ontario during the last outbreak in which the states of 
 New York and Michigan were involved. This attitude on their part was due to the 
 fact that in the advices from Philadelphia, the origin of the outbreak in Pennsylvania, 
 which was the first to be recognized, was wrongly attributed to a shipment of cattle 
 from Toronto. I was fortunately, at the time, in close personal communication with 
 the British Board of Agriculture, and it was only, by the strongest representations 
 that the action above indicated was averted. The Board, however, insisted on a farm 
 to farm inspection of the whole of the area to which any suspicion could possibly be 
 attached, and it was therefore, at its direct instance, that this particular line of work 
 was undertaken and carried out. 
 
 Canada is practically without abattoirs equipped for the slaughter of cattle except 
 to a very limited extent for the home market; she has no system of refrigerator meat 
 cars, and has, entering her ports, very few ships fitted for the carrying of chilled meats. 
 In view of these facts, it is scarcely necessary to dwell 6n the risk which she is con- 
 stantly carrying. At any time, in spite of the best efforts of her veterinary sanitary 
 
2S 
 
 service, the appearance within her borders of one or other of the diseases scheduled 
 by the British Board of Agriculture, is within the range of possibility. As matters 
 now stand, were such a thing to occur, especially during the short period in which our 
 western cattle are shipped, or at the time when out winter fed steers are being 
 marketed, the consequences to the producer would be disastrous, while the whole trade 
 would receive a blow, from which it would require many years to recover. Por this 
 reason, if for no other, the establishment of a chilled meat trade on sound business 
 lines and under proper control, may fairly be termed a matter of national importance. 
 
 LIVE CATTLE TRADE MUST BE CONTINTIED. 
 
 It must not be forgotten, however, that there is a constant paying demand in 
 Britain for home kiUed dressed beef. This demand is certain to coiitinue and as it can 
 never, under existing conditions, be fully met by the British feeder, it is likely to 
 remain profitable to those countries which, owing to their freedom from disease, are 
 permitted to land live cattle in Great Britain, and are at the same time so situated 
 geographically as to be able to transport such cattle at a reasonable cost and with not 
 too great a risk of loss. 
 
 In these two respects Canada occupies, and will probably continue to occupy, a 
 most favourable position. Many countries which, under other circumstances, would 
 be our keenest competitors, have been compelled, for one reason or another, to abandon 
 their export trade in live stock for that in chilled or frozen meat. As they are year 
 by year improving their facilities for the carrying on of this trade, the supply of dead 
 meat in the British markets, is likely, in the near future, to exceed the demand. In 
 the United States, the only country at present in a position to compete with Canada 
 in the live cattle trade, the home consumption of meat is increasing so rapidly, that 
 the surplus for export is likely soon to be a negligible quantity. 
 
 It would thus api)ear that while the establishment of a chilled meat trade is neces- 
 sary and advisable, it would be a short-sighted policy to contemplate the complete 
 abanc^onment of our present export business in live stock. It should therefore, in my 
 opinion, be not only continued, but fostered and encouraged, by making the conditions 
 surrounding it as nearly perfect as possible. This can best be done by the maintenance 
 of strict government supervision, involving full control of the methods adopted in trans- 
 portation and the establishment ,of some comprehensive system of inspection, which, 
 in addition to the present examination for health, would include the rejection of any 
 animal of inferior quality or condition. 
 
 It is, to my mind, somewhat doubtful, whether it would ever be possible, in the 
 face of the keen competition of an honestly conducted dead meat trade, to profitably 
 ship grass fed cattle on the hoof from western Canada to the British market. There 
 is, however, no_^ question that given better transportation facilities than- at present 
 exist, a profitable business could be done in grain fed western steers, as well as in the 
 stall-finished cattle from Ontario and other eastern provinces. 
 
 In, any event it is well to have two strings to one's bow and as each line of trade 
 would steady and balance the other, it is to be hoped that, in the near future, we shall 
 see both firmly established on a solid and paying basis. 
 
 I have the honour to be, sir. 
 
 Tour obedient servant, 
 
 J. G. EUTHEEFORD, 
 
 Veterinary Director General, 
 and Live Stock Commissioner. 
 The Honourable Sydney Fisher, 
 Minister of -Agriculture.