POULTRY NOTES.

Waipukurau Press, Issue 304, 5 September 1908, Page 6

POULTRY NOTES.

Pure, fresh water is every bit as essential to the health and comfort of poultry as to any other kind of stock on the farm. It is surprising how much water fowls will drink during hot 'weather. See that they get all they want and whenever they want it. Also, keep it clean and pure.

If there are signs of rats about a poultry house a warfare should at once be begun against them. For a time they may cause little or no damage, but if allowed to grow large and increase in numbers trouble and loss are sure to follow, and may occur suddenly and unexpectedly at any time.

Some poultry raisers recommend giving aconite to chickens affected with roup. The dose is one drop of aconite ( in a gill of water given to the sick bird to drink.

Hens properly cared for bring the greatest profit in proportion to capital invested of anything on the farm. If this branch of farm work were not considered by so many as too small to merit their consideration, the farm flock might be even more profitable than it is.

TESTING EGGS DURING INCUBATION.

Many poultrykeepers boast that they do not ever trouble to test the eggs when they have once set them, for when they are under hens they do not care about disturbing them, and when in machines they do not think it matters. This is' for the want of reasonable forethought, because it is very disappointing to poultry-keepers who have had a couple of hens sitting for 21 days to find at the expiration of this time that not one-third of the eggs have produced chickens. Such a state of things means loss of valuable time,-which is never again picked up, for if the eggs are tested and the clear ones taken away it is possible to put both lots of fertile eggs together under one hen and give the other a fresh lot.

At the expiration of from six to eight days the eggs should be examined, and this is best done by candle light, as the unfertiles can then be easily detected, and if the greater part be sterile time is saved, and the stock birds can be put under closer observation and a new male bird introduced if necessary. A new laid egg, as should be well-known to poultry - keepers, appears clear and translucent when held between the eye and a candle. Unfertile eggs appear so still even after being sat upon for three weeks, but eggs whicn contain embyro chickens then have a dark shadow’ in the centre, shading off to more transparency at the edges. The amount of space will vary with the time of incubation and size of the eggs, and perfect opacity will not be fownd till nine or ten days have elapsed, even with good-sized eggs, but after a few’ experiments carried out by holding between the thumb and forefinger, and turning the rest of the hand so as to shade the light as much as possible, no mistake will be made, and even 'with the hand alone the condition of contents can be determined with certainty. By using a plate of tin or zinc, to shade the light, and holding the egg to an aperture in it, cut to the shape, the light may be brought closer. With a good egg-tester/ besides the shadow in the centre, some of the small blood vessels can generally be distinguished, and after experience many breeders axe able to pronounce upon the eggs by the fifth day, especially if a lamp be used which has a lens to condense the light, such as a good bicycle lamp, which answers excellently. A hole may be cut in a book cover or other sheet of thick card and used in the same way.

The sterile eggs up to eight or nine days are quite good enough for puddings, and if fresh when set, will be better than many bought eggs even for boiling ; or they may be used as food for the chickens when “ egg-food ” is given. Early in the season, when unfertile eggs are most likely to occur, it is a good plan to set in

every case two hens simultaneously. Then the fertile ones, if many have to be rejected, can all be given to one hen. and the other set again. In any case, if the majority are unfertile, the waste of the silting hen may be avoided by ascertaining the fact thus early. —“ Farm, Field and Fireside.”