POULTRY-KEEPING.

Hauraki Plains Gazette, Volume XXXV, Issue 4753, 19 September 1924, Page 1

POULTRY-KEEPING.

SEASONAL NOTES. (By F. C. Brown, Chief Poultry Instructure, in the Journal of Agri-’ culture.) There should now be no delay in getting the required number of chick-' ens hatched out beforei the end of* September at the latest. The correct' season for bringing out chickens extends over a very short leriod, and the qnd ot September may generally' be taken as the end of this correct' season. Chickens hatched too soon—say, early in Jury—-mostly moult fust J when high-priced eggs are expected.! On the other hand, if the hatching is l delayed until November or December' tlie chicketas seldom grow to; a desir-' ed size. This not only means that! they will in all probability lay small-’ sized eggs, but such stock also are! always more susceptible to colds, roup, and other diseases than those I hatched at’ ‘an earlier period! INCUBATOR TROUBLES. Many inquiries have’ reached me! lately as to poor resUlUf and 'troublesl encountered in the work of .artificial! chicken production, but, with few ex-! captions, the corresponden.'s failed tol give the name of the particular make! of machine they are using. In the! circumstances- it is next to impossible) to even suggest the probable cause ofi the trouble. There are now so 'many! different styles of incubators. and! brooders in use, together with varied! methods of working them, that a'ny! definite instructions given in these* notes could not be applied generally.! Correspondents when asking for advice regarding the troubles they encounter should sl,ways give the name and the particular style of the incubator 1 ur brooder they-are-using. With-! but these particulars it would be! mbibly guessing* on- my-part to ex-* press' ah' opinion l as to-the probable! failure, POINTS IN BROODING.

Even in the best managed plant! where artificial methods are employ-? ed for the hatching'and rearing ofi chicks some losses during the brooder! stage are inevitable. Generally the! greatest loss takes place towards the! end oi the hatching season, when: thel days are gradually' getting' warmer.! Miich of tlie mortality could be ayoid-j ed by amending the methods of apsly-i ing heat and ventilatibh" in! ‘ the'brood-* er in accordance with‘the prevailing; weather conditions. It is cdinrdon fori poultry-keepers to work their’brobddrsi in exactly the same manner in l October and November as during, say,! July and August, when heavy frosts; are often experienced. This is a mis-! take. It should be remembered that! during the early season the'weather' conditions -are more' uniform than lathe case later; therefore the desired! degree, of temperature and ventilationi demanded by the .chicks in the brood-! er can be' easily controlled. With the* approach of summer, however, extreme variations of climatic condition! are often experineced, and it is these* that: have to bo guarded against. It* frequently happens that a hot night' follows a cold one, and this is where thercixief danger lies, mainly because! the chicks become overheated at* night.'and in leaving the brooder next! morning- the extreme ch.ainge of< tern-; per ature proves too much for them, - resulting -in chill ■ and. its attendant! troubles—white diarrhoea, droopy wings, 'e.tc. Once chicks-become thus: affected it> is useless! trying to doctor them, -for even -if they, are reared they’ seldom or: never 'make reaßy profitstock. The wise > poultry-keeper usual! l ' destroys such- stock at ■ the' outset.'

To prevent chill the brooder should be maintained' at- '■& more or less uni* form temperature, but it should be so arranged'that the chicks can secure a- variation-of warmth. In this wiy they are given an opportunity to move away from the heat when it is excessive, which frequently happens on a hot night That overheating and insufficient: fresh air are common causes of chill and mortality is borne out by the fact that duripg hot weather chicks, even when at a comparatively young age, will invariably thrive better if removed from the brooder to a colony houpe. No doubt this is chiefly due to the increased amount of fresh air which is made available to 1 them. It is, however, not suggested - that the chicks should be hardened' off’ at a very young age, as this often means a check in development, and serious losses. They should be well brooded, but care should be taken to provide the desired degree of warmth and fresh air at all times. The behaviour of the chicks at night is the best guide as to whether they are comfortable or not. If' the chicks are well 1 spread out it may be taken for granted that the heat being maintained is correct, bdt should they appear to be huddling, then more heat is required.' The spreading of the chicks should'at all’ times be studied as well as the thermometer.

As to huddling, complaints have reached me regarding chicks crowding in of the house when being reared with colony-brooder stoves. I attribute this largely to the presense of a ground draught, and not excessive heat, as is usually supposed to be the cause. In working this class of brooder provision for the admittance of an ample supply of fresh air is imperative, but- this must- be provided without draught. If there is a draught from any particular quartei the chicks will gradually move away from it until, a corner is reached, indicating that they prefer to leave the chief source of heat (so essential for their welfare) rather

than" remain in-the draught.- They feel'the need' of the desired warmth, with the result that they crowd in corners? each l trying to secure an ■ inside position, which is, of course, the warmest. The huddling brings on a sweating condition, and this is fatal to chicks at any time. As a preventive I would : advise L placing on the floor of the’ house a .board, say, Ift high, a few feet away from the bfboder, as a draught-break; If the behaviour of the chicks is observed it will soon be detected from which direction the draught is coming, so that the bdard or boards, as the case may be, can' 1 be placed to break the dr&ught Of course, care must be taken that the chicks are given sufficient space to move well away from the heat when this is excessive, especially When warm weather conditions prevail. The boards should not be moved but till the chicks are well settled down for the night. Even then they will’ be less disturbed it this is done in semi-darkness.