POULTRY NOTES,

Otago Witness, Issue 2892, 11 August 1909, Page 35

POULTRY NOTES,

Bx Terror.

— South Dunedin, or "The Flat," caft hardly be considered an idsal - epot for „ poultry, for the ground is damp and the- . runa open to the cold north wind. Mi Ball, of Bradshaw street, has, however, by ; building his houses in circular 'orm, man- : aged to break the wind, and by raising .' the ground on which the fowl runs are built higher than the surrounding ground '■ lie has secured comparative dryness. Al- " though Mr Ball has for years taken an interest 'in che fancy he has consistently favoured "utility," and consequently has " always been able to boast of egg*. Hearing of Mr Douprlas's fine strain of ley in? Minorcae, Mr Ball sent for a trio, and fiom these birds has built up a fine strain, suit: able for his locality, and ir view cf the good results obtained frorr rose-co.nberl ■ Minorcas he is now forming a strain of hi« > own, using his Douglas birds ac a base on which to build a hardy strain of rosecombs. While not yet perfect by any means from a show point, these birds are wonderful layers— .the eggs being nearly as largj as the old Minorcas, and the birrlf themselves are tight in feather, have fine dark ,' eyes, and are short on leg. Hearing the Wakfer Langshans well spoken of as. win- • ter layers, Mr Bell has established a p?n. They are small, compact birds, fine in head, ' beautifully dark in eyes, and lay very dark-coloured egge of good size. As « "utility" bird they arc hard to beat, and their wonderful records in the Australian competitions stamp them. a 6 one of the very best of birde for farm* or town breeders. —Mr Shrimpton, of Maori Hill, a breeder of white Leghorns for many years, reports that in eight years, on a quarteracic, he ha- 2 put out close on £600 worth of egg-s, and sold about" 1000 small chickens at Is, also every year he disposes of about , 50 pens at 4s 6d per pair, and extra goodi ' birds from 5s to 10s each. Mr Shrimptoiti believes in plenty of green-cut bone, grit, and clover, and has all the accessories for; the supply of these requisites. The grind* ing is done by a 2 h.p. kerosene engine.During the hatching season three Petalumc incubators are kept in use. Mr Shrimptoi feeds his fowls and chickens on good food, and the following is an approximate return of one year's consumption : —Twenty sack* of wheat, f our sacks of oats, 12 Packs of pollard, eight sacks of bran. 14 sacks of

ibtatoee, a small supply of maize and J irfey and prepared food for the young iuckens. During the busy season a hatch Mnes out every alternate Wednesday, and he chicks are ready for sale when two reeks old. ■- — Dear Terror, — I would be very much bilged if you would kindly give me the flowing information : — (1) The standard jr bronze turkeys? (2) Do you know of v suitable leg band for newly-hatched thickens? I find if the mothers get toetber the chicks while young very often Bt mixed. (3) Would line breeding answer I the case of turkeys? Some breeders say , ley should not be inbred at all. — GbasBBE (1) The standard I give below. (2) , i, small indiarubber band is best. (3), I . pn-'t approve of inbreeding with turkeys. ( t does not favour size — a matter of first t hportance, — and the young birds are , weakened in constitution, and consequently > [artier to rear. — -Tehbob. v — Dear Terror, — Could you give me any lformation on the following? I have a isease among my hens that is very bad, note especially with turkeys. They scour cry bad, won't eat any food unless I put i down the throat, have a great thirst. Dine of them last a few weeks, some only , !- few days. I cannot make it out. I •ed twice a day on oats, sometimes giving hem a hot feed in the morning with some life and sulphur. They get plenty swede irnips and plenty of fresh water, and are ot shut up : have any amount of ran. — Spurs, etc., Subscbibbb. Symptoms bated are not definite enough to enable le to judge the cause, but I suspect en rritanc poison. Is there any unslaoked itne about? What does the mash 'consist ►f? If you are giving more bran than ollard stop the former altogether for a few reeks. .I? there any diseased or over-ripe tuff in the mash, say potatoes or turnips? Jascontinue the salts and sulphur, and see bat tihey have plenty of grit. — Tebbob. •— A cold storage company in Detroit iae had to pay for 12,000 dozen of eggs, rhich, it was proved, had been oermeated vith. the smell of damp cement, the cold [tore having been but recently built. One expert witness stated: "There are different imelk to spoiled eggs. I can smell an egg j Hid almost tell what it has been near in •old etoragc ~nd what has spoiled }t. Sometimes eggs become permeated with bard-board smell because the strawboard jfillers in tho crates have become damp. Again, I have known eggs to become tainted with orange and lemon flavours from beinor kept near those fruits." That eggs absorb tha flavour of other goods or material alongside them is well known, particularly in relation to the brown cardjboard fillers, which are ofter made of material. > — The Western Australian Government, like Queensland and New Zealand, have be€9i retrenching: in their Poaftry Departments through the industry not responding fo the optimistic views cf Jie experts. A 3outh Australian paper, commenting on the subject, says : " Professor Lowrie, Director of Agriculture in Western Australia, appears to have lost little time in knocking |pff the ornaments and trimmings of his [poultry department. The State stud stock lias gone to tho hammer or the pot. Lectures and junketings are a thing of the past, and the industry is left to live on jits merits. Some of tlhe' people are rather «ore on the subject, for they appear to ?«soribe the considerably reduced imports -of eggs to the lectures, and, with all 3nodesty, of course, to their own teachings. Did ever one read such rubbish, in the 'face of the obvious cause — viz., the recent Readjustment of the proportion of producers ;4fco consumers, in a country which is quicklypassing from a mining camp into a settled agricultural community. Are such people iaware that tens of thousands of acres are ' being added to the producing area rof Westerr Australia, and, if so, cannot -they approbate the inevitable consequence. 'The supply of eggs is determined not by .lectures and poultry papers, but by the rea under cereals and the price of wheat ;.State farms, egg-laying competitions, impassioned eloquence of experts, and fervid exhortations are just froth and nothing more. The true industry away | down underneath is a far more solid pro- ! position." i — It is well known that turkeys should not . be kept with other fowls. : — Poultry-keepers must see that turkeys Ido not fatten too soon, as they soon go off, , ;»nd never attain such perfection afterwards. ' -. —No grain food is as good for turkeys as oa*a. Oatmeal and milk fattens them ad- I , mira-bly, and makes their flesh fine, and j.,whi-te. ' — Young- turkeys, besides needing as fresh -» range of ground as possible, will interfere f with other poultry if they are not separate ■ tfrom them. i' ■ — While wandering about turkeys pick up :• large quantity of food, and so the farmer ; fteed not give them as mnch. food as he f would give to his other fowls. -■-Money alone is a poor standard by ; ■which to measuH. 6uccees, but it is. nevertheless, the- standard that the poultryman can never lose sight of if he wishes to ' continue in his work. —It is unwisft to keep turkeys in large flocks — not only does overcrowding injure- j their health, but in case a contagious illness j breaks out among them the farmer may have his entire flock succumb. —Of course, when turkeys are being fattened for market much more food must necessarily be given them, but while they are growing they will almost feed themselves with what they pick up in the paddocks. — Unless turkey chicks are provided with grit they cannot digest their food, and in consequence do not grow. Cane, however, must be taken that the grit is of suitable size. They must also be given plenty of fresh water. Husky oats of pobr quality are clear at any price "for the purpose of feeding fowls, for whose consumption clipped or full-bodied short car* are the best, and a good »«»Ple •will provide a very suitable and well-bal-anced ration. — Although oarley is a little beating for general use, except in cold weather, it is helpful in inducing egg production': but here again quality and condition is all-im- , portant, some descriptions being useless for ' the poultry -keeper. | — While they are being fattened turkeys should be allowed to roam about, and they require feeding several times a day with oatmeal and milk. Before going to roost | they should be eriven as large a quantity of oats as they will gobble up. — The frame of a turkey must have xrowv fully before it is fattened up. If the birds are required to have large frames "Virine meat and bone should be mixed with

' their soft food. Fattening- food does not ' grow the frame, it only makes fleeh on an already developed frame. — The winter-laying hens, like the winter cows, freshen for business twice a year, while the hens that lay only in the summer time cost so much to winter that the summer eggs will pay only a small profit for the whole year. — Turkey hens like to lay and hatch their eggs in a nest of their own ; this, however, is not always desirable, so that a hen that is seen looking for a place in which to ley her eggs should be put in an outbuilding till she has laid her first egg Afterward she will always lay there. —A. turkey he>n takes a month for sitting, sometimes staying for two or three days at a time on her nest. Though she usually leaves her nest for food she has sometimes to be forcibly taken off it Plenty of clean water should be placed near her; the best food is corn, as that lasts longer than any other grain. — Oats ere particularly useful for laying hens if they can be induced to eat fcbem, and the usual difficulty in this respect is a strong reason for the feeding of different sorts of grain separately; otherwise the oats will be left in favour of a tetter-liked grain, but fed alone- hungry birds will eat them — if of & statable quality and desorip tion. . — The need for a mid-day meal is que>> tionabie, and only to. be recommended in exceptional circumstances: in the case of fowls run over a good wide range of grass, arable, or wood, it should only be necessary when the weather confines the birds to the neighbourhood of the buildings, and then the allowance of grain for scratching should be very sparing. — Turkey chicks, after being natonea, should be treated 'n the same way as ordinary chickens are. The first day they require no food, but after 24 .hours they should be fed with raw egjr and breadcrumbs. Coarse oatmeal boiled in milk is also excellent for them. Each day they should ba given some green feed ; it will be found that finely-chopped grass is as good as anything. MAMMOTH AMERICAN BRONZE. j In Australasia for many years the breeding of turkeys was a very neglected industry, and the birds then used for their propagation were but degenerate descendants of their princely race. Even now there is much to be desired. Thanks, however, to f anciexs, who have from their private -nea-ns imported excellent specimens of the American bronze turkey, the industry has of late progressed. The result is seen in the market when birds the progeny of the freehlv-imported American blood, are brought forward. These young birds are robust, full-breasted, and ' weigh heavily when well fed. Such of those who are in good market condition can always be relied upon to bring high prices. It is wonderful how the introduction of the American bronze turkey will resuscitate an otherwise decadent flock. From selected nens of the ordinary type, when allied to a bronze gobbler, the young come sturdy, and witih good frames. _ The females of the improved stock carry on the work of regeneration when fresh American blood is then mated with them. The mammoth American bronze turkey is a very large and robust bird, weighing anything between 351b and 451b. Some are even larger. In size- he is rig-htly entitled to .his prefix, mammoth. He is, moreover, a beautiful bird. As he proudly struts, spreading his wings to the sun, the jewel-like coruscations of his plumage "flash' back the noonday light" with a wealth of sparkling and harmonious colour. No doubt many of those who would and could give room -for turkeys are held off by the notion that the turkey is a deli-cately-constitutioned bird. So he is if, like the turkeys we had of old, his race has been bred in and in without selection, until he perforce becomes a shadow oT what he should be. But with the vigorous blood' of his American ancestry strongly diffused the turkey is as hardy a bird as any species of domesticated fowl. The turkey wants room. He is a roamer, I and he loves to pluck sweet grasses and 1 the various form 6of insect life he meets 1 with in his daily peregrinations. It has been found that the progeny does better with a turkey mother than with an ordinary hen; for their natures are different, the latter finding the food by scratching and the former by roaming. Therefore, with the turkey mother the progeny find I tho food they want .and what does them most good. The following is the accepted standard for judging: — — General. Characteristics of the Cock.— Head and Neck.— Head: Long, broad, carunculated. Beak: Strong, curved, well set in the head. Eye: Bright and clear. Wattle: Large and pendent. Neck: Long, and curving backwaxd toward the tail. Body.— Body. Long, deep through the centre, and handsomely rounded. Breast . Broad and full. Back: Somewhat c\irving, rising from the neck to the centre, and then descending in a graceful curve to the tail. Wings: Large and powerful. Tail.— Rather long. ! Legs and Feet. — Thighs: Long and stout. | Fluff: Short. Shanks: Large, long, and strong. Toes: Straight and long. Size and Weight.— Large. In BronzeCockerels, 221b; cocks, 341b. In "WhitesCockerels, 161b; cocks, 26".b. In BlacksCockerels. 18lb ; cocks, 271b. — General Characteristics of Hon — Similar to that of -the cock. Size and Weight.— Larse. In Bronze • Pullets, 141b; hens. 18'b. In Whites Pullets. 101b; hens, 161b. In Blacks: Pullets, 121b; hens, 18lb — Colour in Bronze Turkeys. — In Both Sexes.— Beak: Light horn at the tip and dark at the base. Eye: Dark hazel. Face, Jaws, Wattle*, and Caruncle: Rich red. Shanks and Toes: Dark, approaching brown in young birds; usually of a pinkish hue or flesh colour in adult birds. In the Cock.— Plumage : Neck— Rich, lustrous, bronzy hue Back— Brilliant bronzy hue, which glistens in the sunlight like burnished gold, each feather terminating in a narrow black band, which extends across the ! end. Breast — Dark bronze, with a- lustre in the sunlight similar to that of burnished ! gold. Body— Black, beautifully shaded with broaze, but not so decided or st rich as that of the breast. Wing-Tjow— Black, -with a brilliant bronzy or greenish lustre. Coverts \ — Beautiful rich bronze, the feathers terminating in a -wide- black band, forming a broad, bronzy band -across the wings when folded, and separated front the primaries by a glossy, black, ribbon-like mark, formed by the ends, of the coverts. Secondaries — Black or dark brown, evenly and regularly pen-

cilled across with, bars of white or grey, the colours changing to a bronzy brown as the centre of the back is approached, with but little admixture of white; an edging of white on primaries or secondaries is very objectionable. Primaries — Black or dark brown, pencilled across with bars of white or grey, the more evenly and regularly the better: Tail — Black, each feather irregularly pencilled with narrow bands of light brown, and ending in a broad black band, with a wide ■edging of dull white or grey. Coverts — Black or dark brown, each feather irregularly pencilled with narrow bands of light brown, and ending in a wide black and bronze band, extending across the feather, with a- wide edging of dull white or grey; the more distinct the colours throughout the whole plumage the better. In the Hen. — The entire plumage is similar to that of the cock, hut the colours are not so brilliant cr clearly defined, and the edging of the feathers is generally a dull white or grey THE CENTRAL PRODUCE MART (LIMITED). Messrs Reilly, Scott, and • Gill, proprietors, report for week ending Saturday, the 7th inst. : — Poultry : At our sale on Wednesday we catalogued 694 birds. Some extra good lines were penned. Prime cockerels realised from 2s 3d to 3s Id; good hens, from 2s to 2s lid; and some extra good laying hens, making from 3s to 4s 3d, ducks realising 3s to 4«» 4di, small young roosters making Is 3d to Is 3d, and "weedy hens Is 6d to 2s each. Turkey gobblers made 8d to 9d, and. hens 5Jd to 7d per lb Eggs have ' arrived frseely, storekeepers buying frqm band to mouth. Agents forcing to clear stocks, prices came back eacn day, and sales were difficult to make on Friday, agents quoting freely at Is per dozen, at- which- price fair sales were effected. Butter ie also very hard to sell at present, prices-ranging from 6£d to 10id per lb. Bacon pigs' have fair inquiry at 4£d to 4|d. Cheese- is in steady demand at 5Jd to 6£d per choice loaf. Honey is slow of sale at 3|d to 4£d. Beeswax, horsehair, rabbit skins, and fat aro realising good prices. A fair amount of business is passing in incubators, brooders, poultry foods, and stud birds— in. fact, the be*t sales we have experienced for some time.