THE POULTRY YARD

Sun (Auckland), Volume II, Issue 602, 2 March 1929, Page 28

THE POULTRY YARD

(By

GEO. H. AMBLER.)

SELECTING THE COCKERELS

It should now be possible to determine which cockerels are likely to be worth keeping for stock purposes next season, assuming that one is able to find buyers for them. As a rule, however, it is somewhat risky for a little-knowa breeder to keep a number of cockerels In the hope of selling ihem for breeding, since the demand for such birxls is necessarily limited. However, when it comes to making a selection of the likeliest breeders the safe rule is to pick out the most forward and the most vigorous birds of the earlier hatches, and on no account should the smaller and obviously inferior birds be saved for that purpose. Take the opportunity now of clearing out any i|i stock which have finished laying, for they arc at their best just before they begin to moult, and the feathers come out easily, leaving the skin clean and clear. Unless the hen is a show specimen and worth keeping on for this purpose, she should not be held beyond two years, for all her usefulness will be over by this time. It should lie the aim of every breeder to get as much as possible from his stock up to two years, and then naturally make the best of It and kill off, to make loom for the young stock. In killing or selling the birds, much, of course, depends upon the quality of the stock and tho record they hold. If from a crack laying stock, or a breeder of winners in the show pen, it may pay to hang on to them for another season. They should also find a ready sale to someone who wishes to start at a moderate figure. It should be noted that the amateur ■ ould do worse than work along these lines, provided he is prepared to wait a season before getting any definite results. Suppose a few well-known layers can be secured cheaply, even for the third season, they will go through another breeding period, and though not producing quite so many • hicks, these youngsters should be good and suitable tor continuing breeding operations. Of course, it will he necessary to secure a good cockerel to head the pen. To maintain the standard it will be necessary to see that the males used in future pens a e from good stock. This method would give the novice a good start at a moderate figure. Unfortunately many novices are In a big hurry to get to the top. and unless they breed a big winner the first season they accuse the seller of the breeding pen of being dishonest, and then give the game up in disgust. This is not the spirit to get them to the top. By starting in a small way and gradually working their way up they will become better breeders and a credit 10 the industry. They will succeed if they first walk before trying to run. CARE OF APPLIANCES Those who have not put away all their spare appliances should do so without delay. It is quite late enough to have finished with all coops and brooders, etc., hence all such material

should be overhauled, cleaned and carefully stored. See that the water tanks in incubators and brooders are run dry, the flues properly cleaned, and the lamps emptied. The drying box, egg drawer and inside the drawer space must be thoroughly cleaned with some strong disinfectant to destroy all germs of diseases. Burn el] canvas and cloths on which the chickens have been, then you have made sure cf purification, and it is the best safeguard for the future. Thousands of chickens die every year from white diarrhoea, a disease which attacks the chick from the first day of hatching. If one brood has been through the incubator suffering from this trouble it is certain to have left germs behind, and the next hatching can contract the disease as soon as out of the shell. For this reason alone a thorough cleansing is essential between each hatch, but more so before putting away for the' winter. The foster mother must have the same attenti JU, because this is an equal source of propagating disease. After they are a few days old chickens will pick at anything, and if the droppings of any diseased chicks are left in the bottom these will be picked up. Lime wash, to which has been added some Yama, should be spiaved into every comer, as this will destroy all germs of disease that may have been left. Any broken parts sir'-’ ' ' re _ paired and the outside of the bro- ' r should be painted, as this will ensure a sound machine for next season s work. All nest boxes should be cleaned out during the hot weather and the contents burned. After thoroughly disinfecting, new nesting material must be added. The most common parasites during the hot weather is the hen flea, which, if neglected will multiply rapidly. Poultry houses, 100, should be overhauled. thoroughly cleaned out and whitewashed. If the whiter-ashing is done in the morning it will be dry before the birds go to roost. If the house is not whitewashed it should be sprayed with a strong disinfectant to make the air pure and cleanse the sides. See to the perches, carefully examine the undersides for red mite, also sockets where perches tit. Dip the ends of perches in kerosene to which has been added some ereosrote. In fact, it is a good plan to get an old paint brush and paint the perches with neat Yama. Cleanliness will go a long way to prevent the spread of disease or insects. Cold, damp, poorly lighted and badly ventilated poultry q rtD>"s favour th :- 'ad of dis' 'se. l Wherever prevev ‘ Mve measures fail, i separate the sic l - birds fro-' the flock | cs soon as there is evidence of disease, j and then consult expert advice to effect a cure. THE YEAR-OLD HEN The time of year'has come when the I pullets must be mow ' into tlu laying j houses. Therefore, we must decide how many of the year-old hens we I

shall sell to make room for the pullets. i iu.l decision will differ with the flock kept primarily for commercial egg production, and the flock that Is mainly a breeding flock. It is defirr ely known rant a hen lays her greatest number of eggs during her pullet year. Therefore, the commercial egg flock will be made up mostly of pullets. However, it is an equally well-estab-lished fact that chicks hatched from the eggs of year-old hens are larger, stronger and possess a certain spark of vitality that carries them through the age of chickenhood, when less hardy chicks will die.

We had a very interesting experience along this line during the past breeding season. We made up two special breeding pens and gave them equal care as nearly as possible. Pen No. 1 contained 12 of our best year-old White Leghorn hens mated to a good cockerel. Pen No. 2 contained 12 of our very choicest pullets, mated to a full ’'-other of the cockerel in Pen No. 1. The chicks from these pens were pedigreed, and we kept a very accurate record of them. This was the result. Nearly all the chicks that we lost were from eggs from the No. 2 pullet pen, while we were able to raise nearly all the chicks hatched of the No. 1 pen. Another argument in favour of keeping the year-old hen as a breeder is that in flocks where trap-nesting is practised, the year-old hen’s ability as a layer is established. And in this case, only the very finest specimens that also have high egg records, may be kept as breeders. GENERAL NOTES The following is the result of the Taranaki Egg Laying Test to and including the 45th week: The White Leghorn section is proving very interesting. Last week Messrs. W. Cannon’s, W. Fergoson’s and A. J. Davey’s hens tied. The result of this week’s laying has, however, slightly altered their positions, W. Cannon’s hen having laid six for the week, takes the lead, W. Ferguson’s hen laid 5, thus tying with J. W. Carrick’s hen. A. J. Davey’s hen having laid only three eggs, is now relegated to fourth place. The position in the Miuorcas and Andalusians is unchanged. G. L. Gay lard’s Black Orpington hen is still leading in the Black Orpington section, as is H. Kirkwood’s bird in the Light Sussex section. C. C. Cleaver's Rhode Island Red hen, which has been laying most consistently for weeks, was challenging A. Gibbons’s ben for leadership in the heavy breed section, but laid only five eggs for the week, whereas A. Gibbons’s hen laid six eggs. The latter is now leading by two eggs. | In the Fawn and White Runner \ ducks section, V. L. Gane’s duck has ; again laid the possible, thus joining j the army of 300 eggers in the Dominion. her total being 305. G. L. Gay- i lard’s duck occupying second place j with 266 eggs. In the White Runners J. W. Car- j rick’s duck holds a strong lead over her nearest competitor.

During the week I had a long and interesting letter from Mr. Barrie, the well-known Otane (Hawke's Bay)

fancier. Mr. Barrie tells me he has some of the finest Silver Wyandotte cockerels he ever bred. All are showing excellent lacing with good top colour. His pullets are not quite up to his usual standard. Mr. Barrie is a keen fancier and shows only the best. Birds have to be exceptionally good to satisfy him. We feel sure that, when the show season comes round again, our friend will be as hard a nut to crack as ever. He tells me the Otane fanciers took several teams of birds to the Waipukurau show last month and won every prize on the catalogue with the exception of one second and one third. *At Masterton last week Mr. Barrie sent eight entries and got five firsts, two seconds and one third. He is also sending a big team to Hastings, and intends having a good team put for the winter show season. We agree with Mr. Barrie when he says the Auckland show should be second to none in the Dominion.

Mr. R. Pearce (Christchurch), secretary of the South Island Poultry, Pigeon and Canary Association, together with Mrs. Pearce, has been visiting Auckland during the week. Mr. and Mrs. Pearce visited several fanciers’ yards, also the Mount Albert laying test. Mr. Pearce was disappointed at the lack of entries in Anconas and Black Leghorns.

Mr. W. A. Hanson (Epsom), the well-known Sliver Wyandotte specialist, has had a most successful breeding season, and has over 4 exceptionally good Silver pullets. Practically every bird Is true to type, extra good in lacing, sound in both black and white and, in our opinion, will be hal'd to beat.

Mr. F. Blacklock (Avondale), who some couple of seasons ago sold out all his Khaki Campbell ducks, is evidently still keenly interested in the breed, as he has invested in a firstclass trio from Miss Ambler, Glen Eden. The ducks are closelj' related to Miss Ambler’s winners.

Fanciers will be pleased to hear that Mr. Carl Cussen, the popular South Island Government Poultry Expert, who recently underwent a serious operation in the Mater Misericordia Hospital, Auckland, is now convalescent, and is able to return to his home in Christchurch.

All fanciers will regret to hear that, owing to pressure of business, Mr. Nicolas, Remuera, one of our most enthusiastic fanciers, is compelled to reduce his flock of poultry. We called on Mr. Nicolas a few days ago and inspected his stock, which consists chiefly of White Leghorns, including a peu of 50 pullets of that variety, Mrs. Nicolas, too, is an enthusiast, and among her bantams I noticed a most promising Spangle Game Bantam pullet.

An extraordinary special meeting of the members of the Auckland Poultry, Pigeon and Canary Club, which has been convened by Mr. Geo. H.

Ambler, the club’s president, will be held at the Y.M.C.A. on Monday next, March 4, at 7.45 p.m. All members are requested to attend.

Mr. T. Dowthwaite’s Fawn and White Runners in the Mount Albert laying competition must have put up a world’s record, as all four birds have topped the 300-egg mark, and have still several weeks to go before the close of the competition.

In a previous test at Mount Albert Mr. A. Wood’s team of three ducks laid well over 300 eggs each. A team of three ducks of Mr. R. W. Hawke’s also, in the Papanui test, laid over 300 eggs each. We have not, however, on any previous occasion, heard of a team of four ducks or fowls all exceeding the 300-egg mark, as Mr. Dowthwaite’s have done in tho present Mount Albert test. ANSWERS TO CORRESPONDENTS Ellerslie, writes: Could you please give me any information through your valuable paper about my hens? They are Leghorns, and there is a lot of them laying eggs with a streak of blood between the yolk and the -white. Blood streaks in eggs are sometimes due to the rupture of a small blood vessel either in the ovary or oviduct. It is a condition "which occurs usually in the spring, when egg production is heaviest, and hens which are perfectly normal may lay these eggs; but it may also be caused by the use of too stimulating a diet. When hens are forced for heavy egg production. Our correspondent does not give particulars of feeding, but if a number of her hens lay eggs affected in this way ■we would advise her to look to the feeding. Wc would suggest as a suitable ration for her laying fowls: Four parts pollard, two parts bran, two parts ground oats, one part maize meal, one part meat meal, all by measure. Estimating Nutritive Rations.—l have a letter from '‘lnquirer," Sydney, respecting albuminaid rations. *1 have to point out that his arithmetic is wrong. Oats work out as follows, according to Kellner’s formula: Carbohydrates 44.8, plus fibre 2.6 plus fat 2.44, equals 57.2. This total, divided by the digestible albuminoids of S.O per cent., gives a ratio of 1, , 15. I fear I am quite unable to make the matter more clear. It must be observed that the calculation is made on the digestible nutrients. I am pleased to hear from my Australian correspondent, and if I can help him at any time I am at his service.