Common Sense Agriculture's Blog

So far I have discussed what influences the nutrient requirements for animals and have provided some basic information regarding feed values for several popular feedstuffs. In this post, I will try to explain in simple terms, how a ration is formulated, after knowing what the requirements are.

When feeding concentrates, it is often necessary to blend two or more feeds together into a mixture that contains the required nutrients for the specific animal.

Square Method

1. Draw a square.
2. Write the % crude protein for the final ration in the middle of the square.
3. Write your grain, with its % crude protein on the upper left corner.
4. Write your protein supplement, with its % crude protein on the lower left corner.
5. Subtract the %CP of your grain, from the %CP of the ration and write on the lower right corner. This will tell you the parts of supplement necessary.
6. Subtract the %CP of the ration, from the %CP of the supplement and write on the top right corner. This will tell you the parts of grain necessary.
7. Add the two results together and use this as the denominator to determine the percentages of each on a Cwt basis

Pearson Square

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