POULTRY-KEEPING.

Hauraki Plains Gazette, Volume XXXIV, Issue 4594, 29 August 1923, Page 4

POULTRY-KEEPING.

EARLY HATCHING. It slujuld be unnecessary to reiterate that where winter eggs are the objective aimed at all chickens intended to be reared should be hatchled out not later than September. Chickens hatched' later than that make unsatisfactory stock, and the later the hatching the more disappointing are the results. Indeed, with the present cast of foodstuffs it is next to impossible for late hatched birds to show even a fair profit over the cost of their keep. Not only do they lay only in the cheap egg season, t but they involve constant trouble with disease, and seldom or never make good breeding stock, however good the strain. Where possible the aim of t;he poul-try-keeper should be to secure all his chickens during two months—August and September—instead of extending hatching operation over a period of about five months, which is often the case. If the most money is to be made from the business it is not sufficient to have merely a small proportion pf t,he pullets laying when eggs are worth most money; the great majority of the pullets must be in a productive condition if a payable winfer-egg yield is to be secured. It should always be remembered that one egg in winter is usually worth more than two in summer, and it is the early-hatched pullet that produces the dear egg. Thus on all plants an endeavour should be made to secure the required number of chicks at the earliest possible moment. BROODING POINTS. Always at this season of the year I receive many complaints regarding mortality amongs.t young chickens that are being artificially reared. Usually my correspondents satisfy themselves that their loss is due to bad luck or to some mysterious epidemic form of disease over which they have no control. In most cases, however, there is nothing mysterious about it, the cause being mismanagement and nothing else. The man who i is successful in rearing brooder chicks leaves nothing to chance. In the first place, he sees thfit his breeding stock are in the best possible condition for the production of vigorous progeny. When the chicks are hatched out he keeps a close wait,ch on them, and on the first sign of anything wrong he looks for the cause and removes it. He also takes climatic conditions into account, and sees that the right degree of heat is maintained both by day and night under the covers as well as an ample supply of fresh air. This means long hours of work and giving the young birds almost, constant attention. In regard to success or otherwise in artificially rearing chicks too many breeders fail to follow the set of instructions provided by the mother hen and her brood. They attach the main importance to the food supplied. Good feeding is certainly an essential, but it, is only one important link in the chain of management. For example, it is common to see chickens with the mother hen doing remarkably well o-n a class of food that would on its appearance alone be condemned for brooder chickens. The palpable lesson, is that warmth—and this at a uniform temperature—is more essential than the providing of any special ration for t,he young birds. Herein is seen the prevailing weakness in artificial rearing. The chickens seldom enjoy that absolutely uniform degree of warmth and fresh air which they receive when being reared in a natural way. The hen studies weather conditions, and so must the poultrykeeper if he is to rear his chickens successfully. The chief cause of brooder mortality lies in allowing the chickens to become chilled. Thousands of chickens die annually from no other cause. Chills are most commonly due tp the temperature of the brooder not being maintained at a uniform degree,, or to the chickens being allowed too much freedom for the first few days. Here the mother hen gives a striking lesson. For the first few days she keeps the chicks under her wings, where they -are warm and comfortable, but at the same tjme are given an opportunity to breathe fresh air, that great essential for their welfare ; during this period the time given them to feed and exercise is strictly limited. As they grow older, and providing the weather is favourable, the tjme given to exercise is extended by degrees, but on no account does she neglect to give them a warm-up when required. The most pronounced sign that chickens have been chilled is the occurrence of bowel trouble, and once chicks become so affected there is proctically no cure. Preventive measures at all times are really the only .safeguards, and the chief of these is the maintenance of an even temperature and good vent,ilatio:i in the brooder, together with strict attention to cleanliness. There are also other details that must be observed if the young birds are to thrive and do well. For instance, the food supplied should contain all the elements necessary for healthy growth and -development. Never feed inferior or musty grain because it is cheap. Do not on any account fail to provide an ample supply of succulent green material ; chickens will never thrive In its absence. Keep always before the chickens a supply of fine grit, fine granulated charcoal, and clean water ; dry wheat bran should also be always within reach pf the little ones. Another important mabt.er is to see that the chicks get plenty of exercise, as they would in a state of nature. For this purpose the floor of the brooder house should be littered with dry straw chaff (not oaten chaff), in which the dry broken grains should be scattered. To have to scratch for their food is instinctive to chickens, and if deprived of this exercise they will soon acquire such vices as toe and vent picking, etc., to say nothing of their ceasing to thrive. FEEDING THE LAYING BIRDS. Now that the laying flock has settled down to heavy production the hens are apt to seriously decrease in

weight, owing to the great demand on the bird’s body-fat content for the formation of yolks, which largely consist of fat. Especially does this apply to pullets. Thus,, if the birds are to be maintained in a healthy productive condition, sound and liveral feeding is imperative. If the birds are not, well supplied with the elements necessary for the formation of eggs not only will the egg_ yield decrease, but in addition the eggs that are laid will rapidly become smaller, while the yolks will not be of the desired rich coour. The good layer is always a heavy feeder, and those who advocate keeping her on a scant ration have probably had little or no experience in profitable egg production. The day ..has gone for saying that hens are too fat to lay. Where they become too fat it indicates that the food supplied is of the wrong kind, or that the birds are not concerned in heavy egg production owing to their being of a poor laying strain, or that they have passed t,heir best period of production. An egg is one of the most concentrated and richest food products known. Obviously, a hen cannot be expected to lay day after day a 2oz product if kept in a state of semi-starvation. There are no fixed rules that can be laid down as to the daily ration required by a laying flock. If the best results are to be obtained the poultry-keeper must have an observant eye, and must use his judgment by way of anticipating the birds’ requirements.—F. C. Brown,, Chief Poultry Instructor, in the "Journal cf Agriculture.”