Important Points on Feeding

Horowhenua Chronicle, 15 June 1910, Page 4

Important Points on Feeding

HINTS FOR POULTRY

KEEPERS.

Prof. J times E. Rice, of Vornell University, has the following to say about feeding poultry :■ —

A hen which is in the ibest laying condition has some surplus fat in her body. This moans that ihdr bodily wants have been supplied, and thoro is some food to spare. She has surplus energy. A very fat hen seldom lays well. A poor he'll cannot ky well. The first pa rib of the eggs to be formed is the yolk, which contains 30 per cent, of albumen (a. form of protein), and 04 per coat, of tat. rood is first used to maintain the body. New growth and production generally come from the surplus after tho bodily waa'ts have been satisfied.

A large part of their food should be cereals. Corn is tan excellent grain. It is perhaps the grain most relishe<l by fowls. Therein lies the danger. Fowls rat is so greedily that, being a fattening food, they are likely to become over fat, if it is fed too froe ; ly. Wheat is perhaps the best grain -for poultry, and its by-prodnc,ts are among, the safest and most satisfactory of foods.

Heavy oats are/ perhaps nexiti in value. Light oats aire a delusion. Oat sharks, that make up aibout weight of on,ts, have only 3F, to 40 per cent of the total, about Itihe same food value 'as oat straw. Peas, though difficult to secure, are the richest, and one of tih-a best of poultry foods. Barfey is excellent. Buckwheat is fattening, and usuallv expensive: the.ner.ore it should be fotl sparingly, mid, as a rule, only in the winter season.

They are naitiirally woirm and insect hunters. They must have meat in some form, and much of it, in order to do their best. This is .not only abundantly shown in practice, but it has been proved by experiment. Undoubtedly the besit moat food is fresh meat. It also keeps longer and is more easily feci when cooked than in the raw state. Green cut hono is excollent.

Tt is safe to feed in n,n egg ration one-tenith to one-fifitib by weight of meat in the total ration, tho quantity varying, with the richness of the mea.t and other foods, used. Tt is preferable to mix the meat in the meal feed. It is, however, fed separately, with peribaps equally good results. Skimmer -milk is a valuable source of aiyhnal .protein, and should be fed liberally, if possible, not only to moisten the mash, but it may also be placed whore the fowls may dirink it.

Fresh made clover or alfalfa ha\ or clover meal, mixed in tho m'ash and scalded, is much enjoyed b.\ poultry, and is profitable, food. U adds bulk to the ration, makes a variety, supplies valuable nutrients, particularly protein and mineral matter, and therefore saves the buying of grain. Tho second growth of clover is to be preferred, because it has a larger proportion of leaf and seed and less woody fibre than the first growth. It will bo seen firom analysis that, ton. for ton, clover liny contains a little more mineral matter, mor.e than half as- much protein, and about one-third more carbohvdrates than wlient bran.

The great vmluo of food lies in it.<? ability to aid in the dligestion oT otlieir foods, thorehy promoting good health, which means more eggs. For summer feeding, elovors a.nd rape are nmoiig tho hest pireon foods. TJiey slionlc! be provided in unlimited quantity. ' For win'tcM , feedpipe, caibhage and mangel beets are |x>rhap.s the best fod feeding raw, but for cooking, tiirniixs, and small potatoes arc preferable. Xo objection IkiS evei «risen on account of the flavour of flesh or pgijs Jrom fooding any of these fo'lds liljerfl.llv.

More than 05 per cent, of every egg is water. Welter also makes it)) 55 per cent of ihe Len's body. Unless a hen has water she cannot make eggs, nor can she properly digest her food. True, all foods contaiin some water. Vegeitialbles contain a great deal, but all these .soures will not be sufficient to more than supply ithc bwlily wanlts. Mucili water is used in digesting the food and much passes off in Itreatliimg. Many a lien .that at otherwise well fed fails to lay .because sho is ctompellod to go without water, or to accept the alternative—to suck it out of the snow bank. Whey laying freely a flock of 50 iliens will dirink from four to eight quants of water each dav.

The richer the food is in protein, the more water fowls will drink, because it is required in digestion. The warmer the weather the more they reqiiiiie, because more n's'thrown off ,by the body. Tihe more eggs thait are laid the more water is consiyiied because, it is needed in their manufacture.

Grit enables the gizzard to prepare the food for digestion. Tt is •a fowl's false tedt'h. Whem gnit becomes worn is expelled. Tf new, shairp material cannot oe secured, tho food must remain unground in the gizzard imvUl it it softened and falls to pieces. Tin's makes slow, imperfect digestion. The hardest grit is be.s't. Always keep it before ttie fowls.

Fowls do not really begin to satisfy their hunger until tho food has been ground .and expelled bv the gizzard. Fowls have ibeen known to starve to death with a orop full of food, me rely "because i!t could not pass to the gizzard, and thence on to be diigested. They need more lime than is furnislied in the ordinary ratio-it. Wheat, bran, clover, and turnips are particularly inich in nune-nal matter. This js one reason why they are so valuable for young grooving animals.

When the ration lacks mineral matter ! t>he eggshells are tender. Hens .then become ravenously hunffry for lime. They (begin to eat 'their eggs to get more lime for msikin« eggshells. Lack of mineral matter in ilhe food is the principal reason why hens eat eggs. Cracked ovstel shells, mortar, bone. etc.. should be accessible to fowls "&i all times.

Tins is natural. A person soon tires of even tho best food in steady <UPt. The extent to whikfli an ammall relishes its ration has much to do uith digestion. A variety 'of grain also gives individuals in :tlie Hock an opportunity, in a measure, to gratify a, natural desire to eat the food that they prefer. Exercise produces warmth, provides pleasure and promotes health therefore it is well to Idti hems bun* in a deep litter of straw for nil their fpurh Hens love to scratch. They «o it intuitively. The only mie for feodimg [ s the rule of appetite. Keep the apoet»fe good To do this is tliij fine ? J?! J****" l * It cannot be tenant; it must foe learned; iby practice. Fowls do not eat the same amount <o foods each day. Those that are laying eat far more than jowls of *he eame *ige and breed not Mying. Pullets not laying eat more than the same weight of old hens not laying. Some breeds eat more -tdian others all other comtiMons Mm eqiral. Moreover, individuals of the same variety and age differ in tlheir cnipncity to consume food; therefore hens cwnnol be fed by nile of vreiffht or measnre.- Peteliuna, Weekly Poultry Journal.