Missing Page ornell Universit “Titi Cornell University Library The original of this book is in the Cornell University Library. There are no known copyright restrictions in the United States on the use of the text. http://www.archive.org/details/cu31924003134958 WUVA NVOIAWV NV NO SYaNVW ATNOW Making Poultry Pay J. M. Acheson E. F. Barry Michael K. Boyer Emma Clearwaters E. I. Cole William Cook I. C. H. Cook Samuel Cushman J. H. Davis . D. Myron Greene . Special J. G. Hoover Writers A. F. Hunter G. A. McFetridge A. V. Meersch Myra V. Norys T. E. Orr George H. Pollard Francis E. Pearson E. O. Roessle W.H. Rudd W. R. Smith John Weber By EDWIN C. POWELL Editor Farm and Home, “Formerly Poultry Editor American Agriculturist Weeklies ORANGE JUDD COMPANY NEW YORK, NINETEEN HUNDRED AND SEVEN r nel Copyright, 1907 ORANGE JUDD COMPAN NEw YORK Introduction The market is full of poultry books and poultry literature, but many of these works are out of date or have been written by people who know more of theory than of practice. Others, again, have had certain hob- bies to advocate. The amateur, who knows little or nothing about poultry, in reading one or more of the so-called standard works often gets erroneous ideas which prove costly when carried out, so that before learning by experience to keep poultry successfully he either loses much'necessary time and money, or gives up discouraged. The author, who claims to be only a practical poultryman, has no theories to advance, no hobbies to ride. He has aimed, in preparing this work, to draw largely from the experience of practical poul- try keepers and to present a brief hand-book of poul- try keeping, which will be a safe and convenient guide for those who keep a few or many fowls. That he has succeeded in this, even in a small way, is very gratify- ing and the words of commendation from those who have read the first edition show that the way to profit- able poultry keeping has been pointed out to many amateurs, Contents CHAPTER I Profits in Poultry.......... 6.06 e cece ee eee eee Not a quick-get-rich scheme—Where figures lie—What it costs to keep a hen—Conserva- tive and actual profits—Starting in the poul- try business. CHAPTER II ‘Care Of Poulttysesswraed bea ceo cee e ween Cost of producing eggs—A laying competi- tion—The sex of eggs—Selecting best layers —An amateur’s experience—Forcing the molt-—Care of poultry manure—Best size of flocks. CHAPTER III “Where to Keep Fowls...............00 +e eee Buildings of many kinds—Arranging the in- terior—Yards and fences—Nests and appli- ances—A well-arranged poultry farm. CHAPTER IV Breeds and ‘Breeding... cc aiid cee ceaeed anaes Principles of correct mating—Pure-bred poultry on the farm—Crossing pure breeds— Serviceable cross-bred chickens—Breeds ane varieties of poultry VI 20 46 82 CONTENTS ° CHAPTER V Feeds and Feeding Feeding for eggs—Fattening poultry for market—Composition of feeding stuffs. CHAPTER VI Hatching and Rearing the Natural Way........ Setting the hen—Brood coops for hen and chicks—Care of newly. hatched chicks— Water for young chicks—Removing the hen. CHAPTER VII Artineial: InCubaToinccs wise Wea ins asesestens Re ae A bit of history—Setting the incubator— Turning the eggs—Proper heat—Testing the eggs—Moisture—Feeding incubator chicks— The brooder—Handling brooder chicks— Brooder houses—Homemade brooders. CHAPTER VIII Broilers, Capons and Roasters..............+.- Best breeds—Philadelphia broilers—Capons and caponizing—The soft roaster industry. CHAPTER IX “The -Matket: Bud sicaie au iasia aa ale Wa Ae avec Fancy vs. utility—Storing eggs for winter— Shipping live poultry—Dressing and ship- ping poultry VII 166 206 224 VIII CONTENTS CHAPTER X : ‘Weatertow lt. ta diac nidencs Ghee cnet 234 Commercial duck breeding—Care of young ducks—Handling breeding stock—\inter quarters for ducks and geese—Killing and picking—Breeds—Keeping geese for profit— The care of breeding geese—Feeding and fattening—Picking—Breeds—Cross breeding —Breeding and keeping swans. CHAPTER XI Turkeys, Guineas, Peafowls...............005 265, Selection and care of breeding turkeys— Keeping turkeys in confinement—Feeding and care of young turkeys—Marketing tur- keys—Guineas—Peafowls. CHAPTER XII Pigeons and Squab Raising................0.. 278 Squab raising a fad—Where to keep pigeons —Pigeon lofts and houses—Pheasant rearing. CHAPTER NIII Enemies and Diseases...............0.0cc0eue 286 Asthenia— Blackhead in turkeys—Bowel trouble—Bumble foot—Cholera—To avoid colds—Consumption—Cramps—Crop bound —Douglas mixture—Ege bound—Feather eating — Gapes — Hawks — Leg weakness— Lice—Mites—Limber neck—-Rats—Roup— Sore heads—Scaly leg—Skunks—Venetian red—Worms. List of Ulustrations PAGE Money makers on an American farm... .Frontispiece Types of good and poor layers..............06- 32 The original scratching shed house........... 48 ‘Ground plan of scratching shed house.......... 49 Nest: boxes scuaceeeiiaraeia aa vatiadawadaeean 50 Curtain: front: NOUSés s+ s54.9ns eadee ewe dene se 51 ‘Cornell two-pen house......... 2.0.0 e cece ees 52 Frame of Cornell house......... ... eee ee eee 53 Side view Cornell house................0 eee ee 55 Front elevation Cornell house.............0000- 56 ‘Ground plan Cornell house................006- 57 Messrs. Perry’s well-arranged house........... 60 Daniel Lambert’s inexpensive house...........- 61 Interior view D, J. Lambert’s house............ 62 House and yards at New York experiment station 63 A forty-five-dollar house of the author’s........ 64 Barrel “Stave: HOUSE sciences yee geee els eee evecare 65 A novel house for winter layers............... 66 House in a Boston suburb.................08. 67 A corner in the hallway.............-.02.008- 68 House with pens on both sides.............64-- 69 Mr. Hayward’s A-shaped house...........2.065 70 Framework of a small house and yard.......... 71 Runway to second Story..........cee eee eens 72 Good interior arrangement..............-0.00. 74 Well-planned interior............2e cece e scene 75 Plan for dark nests 76; Maine trap nests........ 78 Pair Light Brahimass oo. sseui wa cies ee ote e's 04 Black Langshan pullet........ 0... e cece eee 96 Pair Single Comb Brown Leghorns........... 98 Rose Comb Black Minorca.........cceeeeeees 100 Ix x LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS PAGE Pair White-Faced Black Spanish............-- 1oL AM COna PUlleby wucsisn a ahs Shonen ales Gee LES 102 POUCAR COE we pge eeu shat eewe Genus x Rene we} 103 Barred Plymouth Rock cockerel 105; Hen...... 106 White Plymouth Rock hen......-.+++-+++0ee5 107 Pair of Golden Wyandottes.......---+5+++-0+- 108 Pair Silver Laced Wyandottes......--+++++-++- 109 White Wyandotte cock. ......0.e eee reece eens IIo: Pair Rose Comb Rhode Island Reds........... III Mottled Javan cock. asus cg cinmre cnces! panies 112 Bite (Orpiie tom COC as iy a sa there an atte atermiales 114 Comnisht Nidan cock: 202 ee eee ied ee ees 115 Red Pyle Game Bantam; White Cochin Bantam 117 Heed HROUPIY gon ege see wees meh MORE Oe sae 121 Selfteeder, feed. Dox issn barcineacuialy seein aneeeaiahate 123 elf teedetiy scree bee ree ee Aee 124 CIGVEE CUT. cau weet eela te Meee eetew eee Ed 127 Grit boxes 128; Grit crusher ................-. 129 Protected nests for sitting hens................ I51 Old-fashioned .\ coop: Coop with run and shelter 152 Coop with Wite covered fin.exvecskeeecewk ee oaks 153 Convenient: box CO0p .. 2200. beeen ede sew ee eas 154 Framework of coop and run................04. 155 Ventilated coop for hen and chicks............. 156: Protected coop for early chicks................ 156 Utilizing old barrels for coops................. 157 Shade board 3 4: ewer ee eatieeee eee dawes 157 Coop for wo DrOOdS:. 32.00 pda cweieenangen 158 Feeding trough for chicks.................... 162 Covered feeding pen for chicks................ 162: Chick” 1OUntdiiec aint os eee ew inmate aude 164. Outdoor summer shelter for chicks............. 165, Cat-proof shelter for chicks.................0. 165, Size of air cell during incubation.............. 173, The completed hatch............... cc cece 174. LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS xT PAGE A modern incubator cellar................00.0. 176. Plan of simple brooder house...... seb ee aes 184 Brooder house for farmers..............000008 185 Sectional hot water brooder............000e eee 186. Sidehill brooder house; Individual brooder house 187 Author’s colony-brooder house. .............. 188: Inexpensive colony-brooder house.............. 189. Small brooder houses on the range............ Igo: A Rhode Island colony-brooder house.......... Igl Built of two piano boxes........ 2... eee ee eee 192. An Indiana colony-brooder house.............. 193 Cornell colony-brooder houses and yards........ 194. Cornell colony-brooder house.................. 196 Frame of Cornell colony-brooder house......... 197 Dr. Woods? BROOder a2 ai2 Bex wigan eadnels Gelato 198 An improved. brooderssoiiceeiesas eves eee eees 202 Heéater parts fof broodet sn s.ces cave neon eeu 203 The Tillinghast homemade brooder............ 204. Hot water brooder and tank................. 205 Pen OF ‘Capos: x Mis.edee sp racesetes wana nese 213. Caponizing table with weights................ 214 Position of fowl on operating table............. 215 Set of caponizing tools.............. 2. ee eee 216. Caponizing, tools: s..acrsissaviwseiarseaeaees 217 SpOON: LOFCEDS sac Saves eAtinaai ce cise A eared in Sale 217 Colony house for south shore roasters.......... 221 Shaping rack and fowl........... esses eee eee 229: Water tank for ducks.......... 0. cece eee eee 238. A few Pekins on a California duck ranch....... 240: Pekiny duke tse aie ieee REE EA SaaS Se 246. An object lesson in duck keeping.......-...-.-- 247° Indian Runner drake......... 0... e eee eee eee 248. Toulouse gander -........ eee eee eee eens 258. An Embden gander ..........-- eee eee eens 259 Flock of Brown Chinese geese........-++--+-- 260: XII LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS PAGE Gray -Aftican P€es@.iccicac vedas esaiewncedaces 201 Enclosed roosting shed for turkeys............. 267 Group of Bronze turkeys..........eecceeeeeee 273 A perfect Bronze turkey hen...............0-. 274 Pait Of Péath Pinas o< vin scnesedeewes ow ens oe 276 Mating coop for pigeons. ........eeeeeeeeeeees 278 Pigeon house and fly..........eeceee Peer er 279 Pigeon loft in second story.......eseecceeecees 280 A, five-hundred-mile record Homer............. 281 Pigeon house and covered fly....... cece ee eeeee 282 Interior view of pigeon house..............05. 283 Pla Wik traps ca etc caaingis ites ordre eee etal ales 297 Protecting roosts from lice............000. «++ 299 CHAPTER I Profits in Poultry NOT A QUICK-GET-RICH SCHEME Father: “Now, see here! If you marry that young pauper how on earth are you going to live?” Sweet girl: “Oh! we have figured that all out. You remember that old hen my aunt gave me?” “Yes,” “Well, I have been reading a poultry circular, and I find that a good hen will raise twenty chickens in a season. Well, the next season that will be twenty-one hens; and as each will raise twenty more chicks, that will be 420. The next year the number will be 8400, the following year 168,000, and the next 3,360,000. Just think! At only fifty cents apiece we will then have $1,680,000. Then, you dear old papa, we’ll lend you some money to pay off the mortgage on this. house.” She had figured it all out like many another person has and got rich on paper, but, unfortunately, the hen died. In no line of work or business are such large fortunes made (on paper) in so short a time as in poultry keeping. Here is how an incubator manufac- turer puts it in his catalog: “Suppose one starts with fifty hens, for example. If the hens are properly selected, and one year old, they should yield from twenty-five to forty eggs per day from December until June; say 245 eggs per week. These eggs, placed in incubators weekly, should insure at least 175 chicks per week, after the hatching begins. As broilers are usually marketed when three months old, one would 2 MAKING POULTRY PAY need to keep constantly on hand about 2000 chicks. In six months from December to June, you would market at this rate, 4200 chicks; and an average of forty cents each would make your receipts $1680. The cost of raising these chicks, including the cost of keeping the parent stock, and of operating the incuba- tors and brooders, would not be half that. But figuring one-half, the profit from six months’ business, over all expense, would be $840.” But further along in his catalog he says: “In egg farming, the profit runs from $1.50 to $2.40 per hen. The raising of broilers costs about four cents per pound. The average selling price the year round is eight cents per pound. The profit on broilers, therefore, averages 100 per cent. It costs about five cents per pound to raise capons to market maturity. The profit is about $2 per head on them.” But as broilers weigh about two pounds each when marketed there is a big hole, somewhere, between forty -cents each, and eight cents per pound. And thus again: “Poultry raising is the easiest way that I know of to ‘make money. It is also the surest. The investment necessary is slight, and the risk almost nothing. There is no other line of work open to most people that pays ‘so well for the time spent on it.” That’s very true, -except the poultry business as a business is not easy. It’s hard work 365 days in the year, same holidays and Sundays as week days. WHERE FIGURES LIE Again, the enthusiast who has the hen fever sits down and figures that a hen will lay 150 eggs a year (some will lay 200) which at two cents each will bring in $3. It costs $1 to feed her, which leaves a profit -of $2. Now if one hen makes a profit of $2, 500 hens will make a profit of $1000 and 1000 hens $2000, or PROFITS IN POULTRY i 3 10,000 $20,000. Many poultry keepers are making this rate of profit from flocks of 500 or larger, but they -have spent years in getting their knowledge and expe- rience. The trouble with the amateur enthusiast is that he counts experience as nothing and attempts to walk before he can creep. His would-be profits go to pay the price of experience. But the poultry business does pay and pay well to those who understand it, have mastered its details and give it the necessary time and attention. It’s fun to care for a flock of twelve or fifty, but an eternal, ever- lasting grind to look after 500. So don’t attempt poul- ctry keeping as a business unless you will personally put in from twelve to sixteen hours every day in the year. THE HEN AS A MONEY MAKER The earning capacity of the American hen has never been carefully determined. Like all other lines ‘of business, farming and stock husbandry, the results are dependent largely upon individuality of the animal and the attention given by the owner. Long expe- rience of farmers and poultry keepers has shown that a flock of hens may be kept so as to give a return rang- ing from a considerable net loss on food consumed and labor, to a profit of as much as $5 per fowl. Yet, under good average conditions, with fair fowls, suita- ble food and a reasonable amount of intelligent care, it ought not to be difficult to arrive at a basis which will show what a flock of hens are capable of earning. There were entered in American Agriculturist’s ‘money-in-poultry contest, which closed April 1, 1got, over 500 contestants who sent in their reports. These came from every state and territory in the union. The flocks varied in size from ten to 500 fowls. All manner 4 MAKING POULTRY PAY and sizes of houses and yards were used and every con- dition presented which is likely to be found on this continent so that an average taken from the figures given will necessarily show what the American hen can do and is doing, under average conditions. In computing these results, we used the records of 3/95 poultry keepers who supplied all the figures called for in the record, the others being incomplete in some one or more details. The contest year was started with 24,345 fowls, and closed with 27,268, there being a gain during the year of 2923. -\s these represent almost entirely pul- lets hatched during the spring, they affect the income only part of the time—that is, after they reached ma- turity and began to lay, which we have assumed at eight months of age. Therefore we have added one- third of this increase to the original number and fig- ured that 25,340 fowls were the number kept during the year. There was invested in these fowls, in the poultry houses, yards, fixtures, etc., the sum o2f $43,987.52, or an average investment of $1.81 per hen. Figuring that each hen is worth about fifty cents, there would be required an investment of about $1.30 in the way of buildings, land, etc., to keep her. During the year there was expended for fopd and supplies, which includes grit, green bone, condition powders, medicines and the like, $23,712.34, or ninety-four cents per hen. This is very close to the usual estimate of $1 per year as the cost of keep of a hen. «An accurate account was kept by each contestant of the amount of time expended in the care of poultry and a fair valuation was placed upon this, which amounted to thirty-four cents per hen per year, or $23.96 per flock, there being an average of sixty-nin> fowls in each flock. During the year these hens laid an average of eighty-two eggs each. The best recorc PROFITS IN POULTRY 5 was an average of 247 eggs from a flock of twenty Rose Comb White Leghorns by a Connecticut poultry keeper; the smallest from another Connecticut poul- tryman who obtained 485 eggs from forty-nine fowls, or about ten eggs per hen per year. While this aver- » age record of eighty-two eggs per hen may seem small, it must be borne in mind the number of fowls given also includes the roosters, which would make a slight difference in the average yield. The eggs sold for $1.15 per hen, showing a fair profit on eggs alone over cost of feed. A considerable portion of the income was derived from the sale of poultry, either young stock or the original fowls, which were turned off and replaced by young stock raised during the year. This amounted to $17,118.81, or sixty-eight cents per hen. Making no estimate for stock raised, but charging the entire food cost to eggs, makes the eggs cost 41.15 cents each for food consumed, but as nearly one-third of the food used was consumeil by young stock, the net food cost per egg was about. three-quarters cent each. This must, of course, vary largely with locality, as food costs more than double in some sections what it does in others. It can safely be assumed, however, that the food cost of eggs is in the neighborhood of one-half their market value. The total receipts per fowl amounted to $1.95 each, leaving a profit of $1.01 over cost of feed and sixty-seven cents net over cost of food and labor. This gives a net income of $46.23 per flock and a gross in- come of $135.40. The gross income is actually much nearer the profit derived from the fowls in the contest than the net figures, for nearly all the labor given was that employed at odd intervals, which would otherwise be of small value, while a good proportion of the food was that produced on the farms and gardens, or refuse from the table which would otherwise go to waste. As ‘6 MAKING POULTRY PAY a basis for future figuring in the poultry industry, 4 cost of food of $1 per hen and a return over feed of $1 are pretty safe figures to tie to. The cost will vary largely from year to year, or in different localities, de- pending largely on the price of grain and other feeds. ‘These figures from the contest are briefly summarized .as follows: INCOME AND PRODUCTION OF AN AVERAGE HEN rug es laid in) a. years aia uliaie silane onemlanee ees 82 ‘Value of eggs sold and used.................. $1.15 “Value of chickens: Sold... .o4c0cceenw anes aad 68 ME TOSS INCOME 2 sch Saeed aE Ase ba tue deaerdle pace dies 1.95 ICOStiOf f00ds4 iwc. covaiee iN eRe eed 04 COSt Of labOPevedc eovunieue vines aeneaee es 34 Proht: over 100d) COSt. ice wns ae atnes 1.01 Net -profit:c.¢44 ei4h warageseainediea ete eRe haw 57 ‘Investment, including hen, buildings, etc........ 1.81 GETTING EGGS IN WINTER Some valuable results are gleaned from the winter ,egg laying contest conducted by Farm and Home, from November 1, 1906 to April 1, 1907. There were 117 ‘contestants, living in all sections of the United States who kept 7040 fowls in 136 flocks. With the exception of three flocks, whose owners were sick part of the ‘time, all showed a profit from the sale of eggs laid dur- ing the five months. The general average was sixty fowls per owner which laid forty-two eggs each, ‘that sold for ninety-five cents. The food cost was thirty-eight cents each, leaving a profit of fifty-seven ‘cents per fowl. Taking all points into consideration, the age of tthe fowls and the manner of housing seem to have PROFITS IN POULTRY 7 the most influence on the results obtained, Pullets gave far greater returns than either hens or flocks consist- ing of both pullets and hens. The results from the pullets were fifty-two eggs each which brought, at ‘market prices, $1.19 per fowl. The hens averaged forty-six eggs each which brought ninety-six cents. The cost of food was practically the same with each. ‘The pullets made a profit of nearly fifty per cent greater than the hens. The best results were obtained in warm houses (those thoroughly built but without artificial heat ) and in houses with a curtained roosting room, the profit being the same in each case. The scratching shed style of house ranked next. This contest was the most successful of the kind ever conducted and the results were so strong in some directions that we may safely draw some definite con- ‘clusions as follows: Pullets produced the most eggs and the greatest profit. Poultry houses should be warm or at least there should be a warm sleeping apartment for the greatest egg yield and the highest profit. The rations should consist largely of whole grain fed in a deep litter of straw or other scratching mate- tial. There seems to be no advantage in feeding a ‘warm mash. Better results are obtained by feeding the mixed ground grain dry in a hopper or box to which the fowls can have access at all times. There is no danger of their eating too much of this. The breed is not so important as the feed and ccare. Well matured pullets, comfortably housed and well fed have got to lay in spite of themselves. Pref- erence should be given at all times to well bred stock, Ddecause there is an added return in the sale of eggs & MAKING POULTRY PAY or fowls for breeding purposes or, with American and Asiatic breeds, in the greater weight of market poultry. CONSERVATIVE AND ACTUAL PROFITS A profit of $1 per hen a year may be counted on as reasonably as you can estimate profits in any business, by one who will give the fowls necessary care and attention. There are scores of people who are making a good, comfortable living keeping 200 or 300 hens, producing eggs for market, raising the pullets each year and dressing and selling the cockerels. It does not require much capital for a start, but one should have enough to get through the summer and fall in easy circumstances and take into consideration that 600 or 700 chickens will eat a good many dollars’ worth of grain while growing. Here is what some poultry keepers have done and are doing: From our experience with fowls and cows, with- out counting the expense of either, we had decided that twenty-five hens would pay full as much profit as a cow and with less labor. An accurate record showed us that the hens brought an average profit of $1 each. —[Mrs. J. L. Marvin, Rensselaer County, N. Y. Last year I kept an average of 144 hens, starting the year with 143 hens and pullets and closing with 145. The monthly financial record is as follows: FINANCIAL STATEMENT OF THE FLOCK Income Cost of feed Profit January .......... $37.16 $17.88 $19.28 February ......... 40.21 13.00 27.21 March ........... 42.36 10.25 32.11 700) 3 | Gam eRereeere ree 46.30 8.45 37.85 May: iacsicvaeee es 39.39 6.30 33.09 PROFITS IN POULTRY 9 Income Cost of feed Profit UME 28), aves ees 29.06 8.90 20.16 PUL caannectaie es areas 19.96 10.00 9.96 PURUSE sae aagniisee 22.08 9.40 12.68 September ........ 19.38 II.00 8.38 October .......... 22.32 10.75 11.57 November ........ 18.00 10.90 7.10 December ......... 28.18 10.75 18.43 Motalt nace Robes $365.40 $127.58 $237.82 From the total profit should be taken $7 for stock bought and $12 for eggs and oil used for hatching, which leaves $218.82 as the exact profit for the year. Chickens consumed by family were not counted. No account of time was kept. I hatched 300 chickens, but raised only seventy pullets and about eighty cockerels. Fifty died. from wet, cold weather when from one to two weeks old, and the rest disappeared gradually until they were shut up for the winter. Fifteen disappeared after they had been housed.—[M. C. Harris, Massa- chusetts. The sweepstakes prize of $200 in American Agri- culturist’s money-in-poultry contest was awarded to Mrs. Leonard Johnson of Radnor, Pa., not because of the greatest profit, but because her report complied the closest with the rules under which the contest was held. She lives on a place of one-fourth acre, and keeps a small flock of mostly White and Barred Plymouth Rocks. She began the record year with sixty-three hens, two males and eighty early-hatched chicks, and closed with twenty-eight hens, two males and sixty-two pullets. The hens laid during the year 5828 eggs, which sold for $149.18. Those used and set were worth $5.90. She sold 126 head of broilers and old fowls for $100. The hen manure, feathers, etc., brought the LO MAKING POULTRY PAY total receipts of the flock to $267.59. The feed, nearly all of which was bought, cost $88.78, labor was wortit $27.48 and other incidental expenses brought the total expense to $121.21, leaving a profit of $146.38, to which should be added a gain of $18.04 in added value of stock at the end of the year and of $17.92 profit on eggs and poultry bought and sold to customers. This, with the pay for her time, brings Mrs. Johnson’s. income close to $200, and that from a small flock which were cared for largely at odd moments. An interest- ing comparison of the egg and hatching records of her flocks for seven years is here given: LAYING AND HATCHING RECORD FOR SEVEN YEARS 1900 1899 1898 1897 1896 1895 1894 50 70 Number hens.... 90 110 113 85 7 36 Eggs laid, dozen. 507 952% 846 1030 727 653% 25712 Number per hen. 121% 132% 101 104 103 112 100 Income per hen.. $2.78 $2.89 $1.73 $1.78 $1.72 $1.98 $1.92. Cost feed per hen -80 .80 1.00 1.00 -60 Rays) 19 EZES SOU gee sper 370 226 1039 824 1080 276 374 Eggs hatched.... 116 139 686 554 680 200 127 Per cent hatched 52 56 66 67 63 (= 69- Chicks raised .... 69 70 *280 130 175 170 ca Per cent raised.. 60 50 67 28 25 $5 49- I began with 100 chickens at New Year's, and at New. Year’s a year later had 185, besides eating sixty- six and selling $16 worth at prices ranging from fif- teen to twenty-five cents each. Also sold $103 worth of eggs, after eating all we could. Did not pack any eggs, but sold every week at market prices, which were as low as six cents a dozen for a while in the. summer, and eighteen cents was the highest price I got in winter. My flock is just a scrub flock.—[ Mrs. J. Sykes Wilson, Davison County, S. D. A profit of $2.67 per hen was made by WH. Pearson of Cumberland County, Me., who started the year with seventy-five Barred Plymouth Rock hens, and closed with eighty-five. The receipts from 11,594. *Sold 250 newly hatched chicks. PROFITS IN POULTRY Lt. eggs sold were $236.91, and from 498 chicks and fowis. $148.87. The total cost of feed and of eggs for setting was $153.15. During the early part of the season, a good many of the eggs were sold for hatching at three cents apiece, but the rest went at market prices, A very high price for pure-bred poultry often yields a big return to the one making the investment. A Maine carpenter, who by accident was unable to work at his trade, invested $15 for a trio of turkeys. From the two hens he raised 122 turkeys, most of which he sold at $2 to $5 each for breeding purposes and the remainder at $1.25 per head for market. An- other breeder paid $50 for a Brahma hen and her brood of chicks. In less than a year he sold $300: werth of stock and eggs. A Living from Poultry and Bees can be made ona small plot of ground but the person must study to learn the conditions of success and then faithfully carry them out in detail. His plant must be large enough to give him constant employment and he should have a taste for the work so that instead of its being onerous. to him’ he will enjoy doing it. In this business as in any other what leads to success is a large capacity for painstaking work. On my little farm in the village, I have four large poultry yards. In these yards are planted small fruit and apple trees, which make a shade for the hens and furnish me with fruit for family use and for market. In each yard, as fast as they increase, I shall set twelve or fifteen hives of bees. These do- not in any way disturb the-hens, and with good man-- agement are a source of considerable profit. I have- been able to pay for my farm and many improvements. upon it, besides saving some money, because our poui-- try have nearly made a living for my little family, so- we could save about all the receipts from my special money crops grown on the farm. Our poultry and: 12 MAKING POULTRY PAY | bees and the three acres on which strawberries and celery are grown for market, I know are more profit- able to me than would be a good dairy farm of 100 acres.—[W. H. Jenkins, Delaware County, N. Y. Keeping Poultry for Pin Moncy—I am a farmer’s wife and in the spring of 1899 I determined to find some way to get “woman’s pin money.” I decided to turn my thoughts to poultry. I set a good many eggs from White and Barred Plymouth Rocks that were on the place and bought some others of different breeds. The result was 240 chicks, some of which were sold for broilers, and some the crows carried off, so that I had roo pullets and five old hens in the fall. I put twenty-eight in an old henhouse and the remaining seventy-two in an underground cellar. I fed a warm mash through the winter and gave them good feed and care. I closed the year with 140 hens on hand. They laid during the year 12,129 eggs, which brought $266.60. Stock sold brought $29.35 and sixteen bar- rels of manure $12, making total receipts $307.95. Feed and supplies cost $122.95, labor $25.50, birds bought $2.20, making total expenses for the year $150.65, which left a profit of $157.30, to which may be added $48.33, gain in inventory value from in- creased number of hens.—[Mrs. D. McDonald, Con- necticut. WHO SHOULD ESSAY THE POULTRY BUSINESS ? It often strikes me as a part of the irony of life, that the two classes who seem most eager and deter- mined to try their hand at poultry are those who have no income whatever, and those who already have an assured and ample income. These, it seems to me, are just the two classes to whom poultry insures most risk, with least prospect of satisfaction. PROFITS IN POULTRY 13 At first glance, this idea may seem paradoxical. It is not so, however, because the reasons which render the business an uncertain venture to the one class are an entirely different set from those which render it an unwise opening for the others—just as their object in attempting it is different. Those who know anything at all about the risk, the difficulty, the anxiety, the work connected with poultry raising as a means of support, will need no words to convince them of the folly of entering upon this work without capital, expe- rience, or means of support while the latter is being acquired. Yet it is the poor in our cities, who are straining their eyes for some means of getting a bare living, who are the most frequent inquirers—at least that has been my experience. It is just because the farmer has his living assured, whether the poultry flourish or die; and it is because the wife and children can put into the work time which has no commercial value, and which is not the one thing which stands between the family and absolute starvation, that the farm is pre-eminently the place for poultry raising. This wholly aside from the patent fact that here, of all places, is room to give the flocks proper chance for full and best development. The farmer’s family are of all the people in the world best fitted in every direction for this work. Those who live on the farms, yet still believe that there is no money in poultry, or who believe that it needs someone with ready money to hand to make poultry really pay, should consider one fact which they almost invariably overlook. This is, that the man with an income and no farm must spend that income in acquiring the things which the farm furnishes; and if he throws up a paying job of any sort to keep poultry, that poultry must pay him a surplus equal to that which he before received, and which was his own 14 MAKING POULTRY PAY ‘value, ere the word profit can be applied to it at all. Thus, it may not count for much if a man’s flock of fowls is paying him a profit of $800 per year; if he has given up a position which paid him $1000, he is rais- ing poultry at a loss. That is, this is the case, unless his other work was an injury to his health, or he gets sufficient pleasure, or profit (if it is “profit” to him) ‘in some side line to make up the difference to him.— [Myra V. Norys in Farm Poultry. STARTING IN THE POULTRY BUSINESS An inquiry comes to our desk: “How much does ‘it cost per hen per year, and what is a reasonable per- ‘centage of profit on an investment in the egg and ‘broiler business?” It is assumed that the party asking ‘that question has sufficient capital to start, but knows nothing about the business. Probably he has been building air castles; has figured out on paper the huge profits that will eventually make him wealthy. Or, on ‘the other hand, he may be a man of limited capital and wants to begin right. There are two classes to whom satisfaction cannot be given: The first, those who have a lot of capital and no experience, and who want to begin on a gigan- tic scale. The second, those who have a limited capital and no experience, and who cannot afford to begin on .a small scale, as they want to make a living from the ‘start. A successful poultry farm must grow. It must be started on the ground floor. Capital is necessary, ‘but capital without brains will be useless. “Money -nd fools soon part.” . To get to the question: “How much does it cost per hen per year?’ An estimate for years accepted by the poultry fraternity has been that it costs $1 a year,to keep a hen, and that $1 a year is the PROFITS IN POULTRY 15 average profit per hen in well-managed flocks. We do not know exactly how these figures were reached but we do know that if they were true twenty years ago they are somewhat changed today. For the past eight years, we paid special attention to our feed accounts. Eight years ago we bought meat, cracked corn, oats and other feed at about one-half what we are paying today; but on the other hand, the market prices of eggs and broilers are almost a third better than they were then. Carefully kept accounts show that, taking into consideration the rise and fall of the prices of feed, as well as the prevailing prices of the market, it has averaged us—for the past eight years—ten cents per month per head, making a total of $1.20 per year for each fowl. As for receipts, we have found that, allowing fifty cents as the average price for the full two-year-old hen, when sent to market, we have made a profit of a little over $2 per head (for two years) as a general average. We have done even better with some hens, especially with those which laid from 120 to 150 eggs a year. We had records of 180 and even reached the 200 mark, but our average egg yield for the entire farm was 100 eggs per year. So here are the figures: Two hundred eggs were laid in two years by the hen. At the average price of two cents each, the receipts were $4. At the close of her second season we sold the hen in market at fifty cents and this put the total receipts at $4.50. .It cost us $2.40 to feed that hen two years, so that amount must be taken off the receipts, and this gives us a clear gain of $2.10 on each hen. This was from an average of 200 head of stock. ; Now at this point the novice is very apt to jump to conclusions. He will reason: “Here are figures showing that there is a profit of $2 per head. One 16 MAKING POULTRY PAY thousand head will make $2000—just the income that I want.” And that is just where he is making a great mistake. In the first place, no one man, not even an expert, can properly take care of 1000 hens. Conse- quently, he will have to hire labor. To keep down the expense he will naturally hire a cheap, inexperienced man. This man’s ignorance of the business, coupled with the lack of practical knowledge on the part of the owner, will soon be the origin of a multitude of mis- “takes and final failure. The cheap man will be a dear one. If an expert is employed, it will be necessary to divide that $2000 profit with him, and as this would mean that the hired man was getting as much money as the owner, and did not have the risks to run, it would not be long before the arrangement would be cut short, and the owner, who by this time probably has had a little experience, is now at that stage when he thinks himself fully capable of doing the work him- self “just as good as this costly man”—and in less than a year the plant is for sale. In the second place poul- try in large numbers do not receive the proper care. In small lots they are divided up into families in sep- arate runs. The successful poulterers seldom run more than fifteen head in a flock. There is no crowding in consequence, the condition of the stock is noticed each day and the little details of the business are not neg- lected. All these matters go to making success. On a large farm it is utterly impossible to give it that attention and the result is mistakes after mis- takes will happen, disease will get a foothold, and loss instead of gain will be the outcome. This is not hastily written. It comes from years of experience and close observation. Right here in Hammonton, N. J., where poultry farms sprung up right and left, where the gigantic broiler boom started, where attempts at PROFITS IN POULTRY I7 poultry culture in every line were begun, and where, at one time, fifty poultry plants were operated—today but ten successful ones remain, and forty monuments are erected to the memory of men who overestimated their ability and capacity. Yet, with all that, the fact cannot be disputed that a good, honest living can be made on a poultry farm, but when we say “living’’ we do not call for profes- | sional incomes. We mean the equal of the wages re- ceived by the average mechanics. Our observation has taught us that 300 hens, properly cared for, and the egg crops partly used for broilers, will be more profitable than a larger concern, excepting probably 500 hens kept for egg farming exclusively. It costs about fifteen cents a pound to produce a marketable broiler, and the average profit on a broiler is about ten cents a pound. Where part of the time is to be consumed in broiler raising, not more than 300 hens should be kept. This will give all the work a man and a good boy can perform. That number of hens would run from three to five 200-egg incubators stead- ily and leave a large lot of eggs over for market pur- poses. Three hundred hens would lay from 10g to 150 eggs a day. To run three 200-egg incubators steadily would require about thirty eggs a day, leaving from seventy to 120 left for sale in market. Three 200-egg incubators run regularly should produce from 300 to 400 chicks every three weeks. ‘These, however, will not all be raised to broiler size, but supposing that only 100 pounds can be marketed each week, there would be an income of $10 a week, clean money. Also, supposing that only seventy eggs a day could be sold, that, at an average price of two cents each, would give $9.80 a week. Therefore, we are safe in saying that from $15 to $20 a week can be 18 MAKING POULTRY PAY made from 300 hens, when the egg and broiler busi- ness is combined, and when it is rightly managed. To erect a plant sufficiently equipped to carry on a business like that just mentioned, will require about. $1200 for hen and brooding houses, incubators, brood- ers and general supplies, and it would cost, in addition, from $1.50 to $2 per head for the poultry. Three hundred head at $1.50 would need $450. This would give a total cost of $1650, but there must be money for feed and money to pay the hired boy, as well as money to maintain the owner. We should not advise the attempt to be made with a capital less than $2000- It will take several weeks before the hens become rec- onciled to their new quarters and start in laying, and it will take another several weeks until the machinery etc., can be arranged for incubation, and the hens give enough eggs to start the incubators. Then it will be three weeks before the first hatch, and from fourteen to sixteen weeks before the first shipment of broilers. The income, however, will begin on a:small scale. after the hens have started in to do steady laying— say, a month after being domiciled—and it will keep. them busy for a week to fill the three machines. Then, after that, say, the sixth week after starting, there will be table eggs for sale. All these matters have to be fully considered before starting. Now, in all this, we are assuming that the man: knows his business, for a novice could not secure this. success without experience. Therefore the best plan is to begin in a small way. Start with 100 hens and one incubator; next year make it 200 hens and two incubators; and the third year 300 hens and three incubators. In this way the work can be gradually done, and the experience will come in the same wav. In running three incubators it would be best to start one each week, and in that way, after rightly started, PROFITS 18 POULTRY 1g, there would be a hatch due and a batch of broilers marketed each week. It would keep the machinery moving nicely. If this work is carefully mapped out, and worked with a system, we certainly can predict a good, honest. living for a good, honest man (or woman ).—[ Michael KX. Boyer in American Poultry Journal. CHAPTER II The Care of Poultry THE COST OF PRODUCING EGGS There is as much difference between hens as there is between dairy cows, is the result of a co-operative test made by the Cornell experiment station of New York in the cost of producing eggs. This experiment was started in December, 1901, and carried on for four months. The tests were ‘continued during the winter of 1902-3, under the direction of Prof. H. H. Wing, and the result shows a great similarity in many respects with those of the first year. Eleven flocks in various parts of the state, in which were included 3133 hens and pullets, participated in the experiment. The food was reckoned at a uniform price, as near as possible to the actual cost to consumers. The fowls were credited for the eggs on the basis of highest weekly New York quotations for fresh eggs. The experiment began December 1 and closed March 28, and was divided into four periods. A careful study of the figures presented by Prof. Wing shows that the cost of eggs is influenced more by the individuality of the fowls than by the food used. The difference in the cost of food for the flock that produced the eggs at the lowest cost and that which produced eggs at the highest cost was only four ‘cents per 100 fowls. The flock fed at lowest food cost ranked among the highest in cost of eggs; on the other hand some of the fowls that were fed at a rela- tively high cost produced eggs the cheapest. There was no marked difference between the number of eggs 20 THE CARE OF POULTRY 21 laid by hens and pullets. The following table shows the breed and age of fowls, cost of eggs produced, per- centage of eggs laid and cost of food consumed: COST AND PRODUCTION OF EGGS Breed Age Bey dozen * Eggs lald + Cost of Feod 8 White Leghorn........ pullets 8.5¢ 38. $32.06 White Leghorn........ pullets .. 8.7 36.1 31.28 White Leghorn........ pullets 9.3 34.1 31.63 Mixed) 224: i2eeseasg fae pullets 10.2 34.9 35.61 White Leghorn........ pullets Sis 28.6 31.30 White Leghorn........ pullets 11.2 26.8 30. IVER OC cee fig tes setcensetenidih 5c mixed 11.3 34.9 39.07 White Leghorn........ mixed 13.6 26.8 36.16 White Leghorn........ pullets 13.5 29.9 40.31 White Leghorn........ pullets 14.2 24.1 33.91 White Leghorn........ hens 14.6 21.6 31.26 Plymouth Rock...... .». pullets 16.2 30.8 49.51 IMEC otis, so. fh Soa Lenepeeis, mixed 16.3 17.7 28.62 White Leghorn........ hens 16.4 24.8 40.36 White Leghorn........ pullets 16.7 18.6 30.84 White Leghorn........ hens 17.3 18.5 31.66 MIRE: scars 5 he 2 bss) ateeeree pullets 17.6 18.1 31.71 Black Minorca....... .- pullets 17.6 21.7 37.92 White Leghorn........ hens 18.1 17.2 30.86 AMIR OG seisite. ecco ears a ataNee hens 18.7 19.2 35.64 White Leghorn....... . hens 19.5 16. 31.02 Brown Leghorn....... hens 20.3 14.6 29.46 Brown lLeghorn....... pullets 20.5 20.6 41.88 Black Minorca - White Wyandotte ......... mixed 23.3 19.4 44.78 MMIC. ecsnsene ig es mixed 21.1 9.5 17.58 Plymouth Rock-Wyan- dotte ...... .. hens 30. 16.6 49.38 Black Minorca. .. hens 32. 16.3 51.94 Black Minorca........ - pullets 32.1 16.4 52.20 Black Minorca. hens 33.9 9.3 81.32 Reduce Cow of Eggs—Eggs have cost me the most when I have kept the hens too much on grain tations. I believe I can reduce the cost of eggs nearly one-half by feeding less grain and in its place giving cut clover, cut meat and bone and vegetables both cooked and green. Feed them the morning mash of bran middlings and corn meal but only enough to partly satisfy them. Keep the cut clover and meat in boxes so made that they cannot get in to scratch them out; also shells and grit. Cover a little small grain with litter to induce them to exercise and make the house warm and light. “*Per 100 fowls per day. +Per 100 fowls for 17 weeks. 22 MAKING POULTRY PAY Do not overcrowd. In my own rooms which are thirteen feet square I can get more eggs in the winter from fifteen hens than I can from forty and save more. than half the expense for feed. I keep no cockerels. among my laying hens, where eggs are sold for con-. sumption, but keep one in a room of thoroughbreds. whose eggs are wanted for incubation. I want no hens older than two years and I want. lets hatched in March and April, so they will com-- mence laying in the fall. I want no stock that when well fed and cared for is not in condition to lay eggs. in the winter. To further widen the margin of profit. I try to market my eggs where I can get above market quotations for them, and I certainly cannot afford to. sell eggs at the country stores when I have fine stock. Keep the breed of hens that lay the kind of eggs. your market demands and grade as to size and color, then pack. clean, strictly fresh eggs and ship them to a. reliable grocer or commission dealer, and you can soon. establish a trade for fancy eggs at fancy prices —. [W. H. Jenkins, Delaware County, N. Y. English Laying Competition—Every year there are two poultry clubs in England which hold open lay- ing competitions. Four pullets of the present year’s. hatch are penned for a period of sixteen weeks begin-. ning October 16 and ending February 4. These are: placed under the management and control of one man, who does all the feeding, etc. The reports of a recent: contest by the Utility poultry club and the Burnley society are here given: UTILITY POULTRY CLUB LAYING COMPETITION Pon Breed ‘Ystmo 2dmo Sdmo dthmo «Regs Points merits 1 Buff Orpington .... 17 18 28 9 72 4144 15 2 White Leghorn .... — 17 50 43 110 220 9 3 Buff Orpington .... 20 7 28 8s 93 186 12 4 White Leghorn .... 13 44 17 31 105 208 pik 5 Buff Orpington .... 24 54 44 42 1¢4 328 3. THE CARE OF POULTRY 23 No. c Egg , -—Tot—, Order Pon Breod lstmo 2dmo Ydmo 4thmo ‘Eggs Polnts. ~—merit 6 White Leghorn .... 24 65 50 46 185 362 2 7 Silver Wyandotte .. 20 15 41 48 124 244 6 8 Minorca. osc. axauiey 11 33 9 34 87 172 14 9 Golden Wyandotte .. 65 44 36 55 200 397 1 10 Minorca ........... _ 1 — 33 34 68 20 11 White Wyandotte .. 20 13 15 66 114 222 8 12 Buff Leghorn ats 13 Barred Rock WA AATICONAR: 6 tit iiehtriscatereners —- 3 16 50 69 136 16 15 Buff Rock ......... 28 5 34 40 107 2138 10 16 ANCONA. 6 icc mans 30 52 18 43 143 281 5 17 Black Rock ........ 3 16 12 20 51 100 18 LS. ANCONA 4-4 wigan es _ 18 28 44 90 178 13 19 Faverolles ......... —_— 3 17 15 35 70 19 20 White Leghorn .... 40 44 37 43 164 328 3 Total. s<24 wsankee es 319 483 546 770 2118 N. B.—In scoring, an egg weighing up to 1% ounces counted one point; above that weight, two points. The Burnley society reckoned one point for an egg weighing up to one and one-half ounces; above this weight two points. Each soft-shelled egg was dis- qualified. In previous competitions of the Utility club, the prizes in 1897-8 went, first to Black Minorcas, which laid 161 eggs; second, to Black Minorcas, with 149 eggs; third, to Langshans, with 146 eggs; in 1898-9, Buff Leghorns, 154 eggs; Barred Rocks, 146 eggs; Golden Wyandottes, 133 eggs; in 1899-00, Silver Wyandottes, 223 eggs; Golden Wyandottes, 161 eggs; Buff Orpingtons, 151 eggs; in 1900-1, Barred Rocks, 127 eggs, Buff Leghorns, 81 eggs; Lincoln Buffs, 73 eggs. BURNLEY SOCIETY LAYING COMPETITION No. rc Egg . Orde, Hatched Pen Breed 4wks 8 wks 12 wks 16 wks Points mert March 1 Buff Orpington.. 23 62 107 127 264 5 April 2 Buff Leghorn ... 40 73 99 130 260 4 April 38 Silver Wyandotte 49 101 159 201 402 2 April 4 Brown Leghorn... — 20 70 114 227 6 April 5 Barred Rock .... 23 84 128 173 346 3 April 6 White Leghorn .. 6 28 47 76 152 8 April 7 Ancona ......... _— —_— 27 64 128 10 April 8 Buff Orpington .. 19 80 161 210 420 1 April 9 Buff Leghorn ... 6 22 49 92 184 7 April 10 Buff Orpington .. — 12 33 72 144 9 166 482 880 1259 24 MAKING POULTRY PAY HOW TO GET EGGS IN WINTER If the hens have comfortable houses and plenty of food, they will scarcely know it is winter. The natural conditions under which hens will lay must be looked into, and we find these to be a mild temperature, vari- ety of food, and plenty of exercise. Under such con- ditions hens will lay, because they can’t help it—and if we produce such conditions in winter, we will surely get eggs, especially from early hatched pullets. The first requisite is comfortable houses, which may be designed according to, fancy, but should open to the south. The house can be made warmer by the addition of building paper or plastering the room, which should be whitewashed at least twice a year. -\ good tight floor is desired, one through which no drafts can enter. Always bear in mind while building that your house must be free from drafts, and warm, so warm that water will not freeze in it. The hens must be kept comfortable and dry, with some place to exercise, and plenty and a variety of good nourishing food that will go to aid in creating eggs. -\n egg is composed of all the elements that sustain life, and unless the hens are supplied with these ele- ments, they can no more furnish eggs than a cow can furnish a large supply of milk on insufficient food. Not only is the carbonaceous material required for the yolk, but the nitrogenous matter composing the white of the egg is essential. Wheat and oats come nearer furnish- ing a perfect food than any other grains, because they not only furnish the elements named, but also mineral elements which must also be supplied. Clover (and alfalfa) has now come to be recognized as an excellent egg producing food, as it is rich in lime and other egg forming materials. In the winter this can best be fed by chopping into short lengths, place in a tub or THE CARE OF POULTRY 25 bucket, pour boiling water over it, and allow to stand till morning. Mix with bran, shorts, meal, a little salt, and feed warm. Oats should be scalded and fed same as clover, as the sharp points of the oats in the dry state are likely to injure the fowls. Wheat can be scalded or fed dry in scratching pens; and note the pleasure it gives the hens with their bright red combs, merrily singing and scratching for grain. Chopped clover is an ideal litter for scratching pens, as it fur- nishes food also. The chaffy fodder and shelled corn picked up where corn has been “shredded,” makes good litter also, the fodder supplying green food, as they will eat much of it. Feed plentifully of green food. A cabbage head hung up every day where the fowls will have to take exercise in jumping to reach it; small potatoes and turnips chopped and fed raw, or together with all parings, cooked and mixed with morning or evening mash, will supply green food. All kinds of roots such as mangels, sugar beets, carrots, etc., are excellent. Keep charcoal and gravel mixed with lime by them all the time. An occasional mess of parched corn is feeding charcoal in a valuable form. Mashed or cut bone and meat scraps should be fed to take the place of bugs, etc., which is one of the natural foods in summer. Milk, acorns and all nuts are valuable as food. Supply plenty of water that has the chill re- moved. Fowls will drink lots of water if it is where they can get it; as the egg contains some water, it is necessary that the fowls have plenty. The large breeds require somewhat different treat- ment from the small fowls. Being large and heavy, they are naturally inclined to be indolent and inactive, so the more necessary to devise means to make them exercise, the exercise helping in digesting their food, and keeping them warm, which is an important factor 26 MAKING POULTRY PAY in egg production. By no means keep the lazy hens of any breed, for a lazy hen is not a good egg producer. Keep the ones that molt early for winter layers, and avoid crowding. Hens having the range of the farm do not need as much attention as those confined in pens. Do not leave chickens to shift for them- selves until the cold bleak days are here, but give them attention all the time (they do not need so much during the warm months when nature supplies their wants), especially during the molting season, when they need plenty and a variety of good wholesome food to supply the extra demand made upon them. At all times en- deavor to keep the hens busy, comfortable, happy and cheerful. Every successful poultry keeper has worked out a way of feeding and care which is best for him. He might not be successful with the methods which bring good results for another. The following plan of feed- ing has been quite satisfactory with one good poultry keeper who makes his living from hens. He says: “T mix bran middlings and corn meal in about equal parts, putting in a tablespoonful of ground bone to every two quarts, and season the mash with a little calt and pepper and wet up the mixture with hot milk, when I have it. In the morning, I feed this mash to the hens, and give them only what they will eat up at once, but not enough to quite satisfy them. I then scatter a few handfuls of grain, using wheat, oats and buckwheat for a variety, on the floor, and cover it with leaves, chaff, or other loose litter. This is done several times a day to induce the hens to scratch for the grain and thus get plenty of exercise. In the coldest weather, I feed them boiled corn at night. I give them warm water to drink and keep cut clover, meat and bone, grit and shells in boxes so made that they cannot get into them to scratch them out. I hang up cabbages and THE CARE OF POULTRY 27 ‘chop up the celery trimming to keep them supplied with green food. I try to give them the kind of food that hens naturally seek when on a large range in summer. Then furnish them a warm house. and make them work for a part of their living.” Egg-eating is a habit more easily prevented than ‘cured. Give the hens plenty of exercise, with a variety of food. Gather the eggs frequently, provide sufficient nesting places and keep one or more porcelain eggs ‘upon the floor of the house. Dark nests are advisable, and a meat diet is excellent. To cure the habit provide ‘dark nests and add meat to the food. Remove one end from several eggs and pour out the contents. Make a ‘mixture of flour, ground mustard and red pepper, add- ing a little water to hold the materials together. Frill the shells and place upon the floor of the henhouse. ‘The hens will make a wild scramble for these prepared eggs, will gobble down some of the contents, and will soon be gasping with open beaks. Follow up this treatment until the hens refuse to touch an egg. It seems, and perhaps is somewhat severe, but no perma- nent ill effects will follow. The hens will soon learn that eggs are not so palatable as they regarded them, and will desist from the bad habit. Positive cures have followed this method. Another is to cut off the end of the upper beak, making it blunt by paring back near the quick. Probably the best way to prevent egg-eating is to use one of the simple automatic nest boxes that are now becoming so popular. These nest boxes are necessarily dark. Only one hen can get in at a time, and after getting in the hen can only get out into another compartment. Once here she cannot get back to the egg. It would take a pretty clever hen to beat a mechanical contrivance of this sort. With darks nests there is no temptation to scratch and eggs seldom get broken. If they do get broken it is so dark 28 MAKING POULTRY PAY that there is little likelihood of the hen eating the egg before it is discovered and removed. It is a wise plan to collect the eggs on each of the regular trips through the poultry house and to put them in a place of safety where they are not likely to be broken. Brown vs. White Eggs—Why are brown eggs more salable than white ones? Most people will answer, because they are richer. How many people blind- folded could tell the difference in taste between a white egg anda brown one? I doubt if it could be done with more accuracy than one can call heads or tails to a properly tossed coin. An interesting experiment was recently carried out to test the physical and chemical composition of eggs. A large number of breeds were chosen, and several hundred eggs dealt with. The brown eggs were laid by Cochins, Dark Brahmas, Black Langshans Wyandottes and Barred Plymouth Rocks; the white ones by Brown and Buff Leghorns, White and Black Minorcas, and the tests showed the following: PHYSICAL DIFFERENCE BETWEEN BROWN SHELLED AND WHITE SHELLED EGGS AVERAGE White All the eggs Weight (in grains) ...........4.. 62.9 61.3 Length (in inches) .........-...005 2.27 2227 Width (in inches) ................ 1.76 A fe Specific gravity ...........e. ee eee 1.058 1.070 Number eggs to pound 7.32 7.50 Shell (per cent)..........0ee0e08 10.92 10.81 Edible portion Per cent Per cent < 33.18 82.47 55.90 56.72 89.08 86.19 White All the eevs Per cent Per vent 67 66 10.92 10.81 99.52 99.47 690 680 Calories Calorles THE CARE OF POULTRY 29 The food value of the white shelled eggs was therefore slightly the greater. Taking all points into consideration, there is nothing to choose between them in physical or chemical properties. Yet who will make the average householder believe it? The brown shell is thought to be richer than the white shell; it has been held so for a number of years. They look prettier on the breakfast table, and that always bears weight; but there is no ground for believing that the white are less rich than the brown. The Boston market will pay a premium for brown eggs; New York for white ones. THE SEX OF EGGS The story is told of an English farmer who asked his wife to pick out a sitting of eggs. She chose medium size, good shaped eggs, but he rejected all, saying: “Them’s cockerels, Martha.” Instead he picked out all round eggs. They hatched eleven chicks —all cockerels. Another English poultry keeper, who has been working on this subject for several years, thinks he has at last discovered a way to insure a large propor- tion of either pullets or cockerels, as may be desired. He has given up all idea of being able to determine the sex by the shape of the egg, size of air cell, time of day it was laid or any external characteristics. He now thinks the sex of the egg is determined at the time of sexual contact and that there are two elements or forces which unite, a positive from the male and a negative from the female. Where the predominating force is positive, a male will result, and vice versa. To test this he mated in April a very vigorous cockerel with two hens which had laid all winter, with the object of getting cockerels. The hens had worked hard for some months and the 30 MAKING POULTRY PAY conclusion was that they must be more or less weak- ened by it. Thus was obtained a condition which pointed to a preponderance of the positive element, and the result was about eighty per cent cockerels. To further test this matter, six pullets, in the pink of condition, were put in a pen by themselves and every afternoon a two-year-old cock, which all the rest of the day was running with forty hens, was placed with them. This mating resulted in eighty per cent of the chicks coming pullets. Similar matings have been practiced by American breeders for some years, and they have been able to obtain a large per cent of pullets or of cockerels, but not always as high as eighty per cent as here mentioned. A new idea in breeding for sex is advanced by Arthur Wulff according to the following translation from the German Geflugel Zcitung: Of greater value than the statistics of the human race is the record (well supported by documentary evidence) of our most important animal—the horse. The considerable size and costliness of the individual, the consequent easy determination of identity, the long period of ges- tation, the birth of (invariably) but one young at a time, and especially the careful registration of the stallion’s “visits,” combine to furnish weighty material, from which we draw the conclusion that foals in cases where the mare has been “covered” in the evening (that is after the stallion had been previously used during the day) will generally follow the sex of the mother. We do not know whether this fact, which is no: doubt capable of a plausible explanation (the older seminal cords have a tendency to produce male, the younger ones female offspring), has already been noticed in the poultry world, though we may add that: we alluded to it two years ago. At all events, poultry THE CARE OF POULTRY 31 is in our opinion specially adapted to similar experi- ments, owing to its, shall we say, handier size, and to its capability of great and speedy reproduction. I beg leave to adduce two examples from personal ex- perience, the first an accidental case, the second an intentional experiment, not (by a long way) as final proofs, but merely as links of a progressive chain of evidence. In 1899, in the midst of the breeding season I bought a fine Minorca hen. Not wishing to put her into my breeding pen, whose members had not visited any show since autumn, and were just in full lay, when the introduction of a stranger generally causes a dis- turbance of acquired conservative habits, I placed the fresh arrival in a small pen. In the evening when the inmates of the breeding pen had retired to rest, I took out the male bird and put him into the run of the pen, then turned out the stranger hen when he invariably attended to her at once. From forty eggs laid by this hen and set I obtained only pullets. Last year, pro- ceeding on the same lines, I got 11% cockerels and 89% pullets. During the interval I did not do much breeding. It is not so very difficult to arrange these matters with our poultry as vigorous male birds are generally pretty active throughout the day. Therefore place your hens intended for cockerel breeding into the run with the male as soon as they leave their house in the morning, and remove them again early. Your pullet breeding hens should not associate with their ap- pointed mate until evening, the latter having been with other hens during the day, (but, of course, the special hens must not in the meantime run with other cocks). Active males generally pay immediate attention to strangers of the other sex, and it is desirable in this present instance for breeders to watch the process. It 32 MAKING POULTRY PAY is, as a rule, only a case of one, two or three, hens specially destined for the experiment. Should, after abundant tests, a real law of nature be here discovered, the future of poultry breeding would certainly appear in a rosy light. I am far from asserting that the law would universally apply, but we certainly ought to try to find out if, and to what extent, it can be proved. SELECTING THE BEST LAYERS While the trap nest is the surest, best and only reliable means of picking out the good and poor layers expert poultrymen can, by the general appearance and makeup of the fowl, tell pretty closely which are the best layers in the flock. There is something in the Ry Pe A BAD LAYER iN » I—A GOOD LAYER makeup of the good layers that is indicative of quality to the expert as are the points of a heavy milking cow to the eye of the experienced dairyman. The trouble with most of us is that we are not expert enough to distinguish the points of the good layer. Mr. P. A. Cook in the Orpington Poultry Journal, says he can invariably pick out the good and poor layers by the shape of the head. As an example he uses the illustra- tion (Figure 1) of two heads of Light Brahma hens. You will see that the hen on the left has a thin, clean cut head, with bright and prominent eye and also a thin neck. This is the good layer. Notice that both THE CARE OF POULTRY 33 the eyes are so prominent that they stand out like the side of a ball. These illustrations were drawn from life and are not exaggerated. In the bad layer you will find a thick clumsy head, dull eye, somewhat sunken, which will not be as bright as the former bird’s spoken of. She will also have a thick neck. After reading the above, some will probably go out into their poultry yards and inspect their flock for good and bad layers. If you do you must take into consideration the breed or breeds that you keep; also the age of the birds. The reason is this, such fowls as Leghorns, Minorcas, Anconas, Campines, etc., of course will have a smaller head than Orpington, Rock, Brahma, etc. This is because the former breeds are so much smaller in size. Then as a bird gets older the head thickens. This is of course learnt by experience; but do not expect a three year old hen to have as thin a head as a,young pullet. Most people know that the first birds out in the morning and the last ones to go to roost will nearly always prove to be the best layers. These birds will roam further and if in confinement will scratch about more than the bad layers as these are usually lazy. Of course there are exceptions to all rules. Of course the bad laying fowl will lay some eggs but these will be produced in the late spring and sum- mer months when eggs are cheap, but the good layer will produce them in the late autumn and winter months when they are dear, hence ten good layers are worth more than twenty-five bad ones, taking the cost of keeping. To Pick Out a Layer—When she sheds her feathers and we kill off the non-layers, it is well to be sure and not slay a fowl full of eggs. “When the rear bones are wide apart at the points below the tail 34 MAKING POULTRY PAY feathers, you have caught a layer. When they are close together, biddy is taking a vacation. SOME EXPERIENCES OF AN AMATEUR I began to raise chickens for my table and had no idea of any enjoyment in the business. I am surprised to discover that I have made a nice hobby for my coming old age, and am really having considerable fun besides some little profit. The chicken business is a mere episode in a professional life, begun to produce fresh eggs and some food for my household of seven people. It has developed into a pleasant recreation. I have nearly half an acre in a city, on which I raise nothing but fruit and chickens. I never mean to exceed forty-five hens and five cocks, or thereabouts. From the last of November until about May 1 I keep them in small flocks, and then let them run together. I think I know the best breed. The all around fowl for domestic use is the Plymouth Rock. I know more money is made in eggs than in poultry, and the Leg- horn is said to surpass them in egg-laying capacity, yet, taking the year altogether, I have my doubts of it. But when you kill Leghorns for the table, com- pared with the Plymouth Rocks you have to kill two to one, and the two are not much at that. The Plymouth Rock makes, in my judgment, the finest poultry for the table in the world. Forty-five April hatched pullets will give all the eggs I want in the dead of winter. Never fall in love with your chickens, and by all means don’t let the women of the house do it. Cocks and pullets are not worth sentiment. One is fit for nothing but to lay eggs in a nest; the other to lie on the table for food. A hatching and brooding hen is interesting, but interest ends when she drives her brood away.—[ Austin G. Yates, New York. THE CARE OF POULTRY 35 Preparing Fowls for the Show Ring—The prep- caration of show birds really begins with the selection and mating of the breeding pen. After they have -attained an age of four or five months, when they. give evidence of future form, the best birds should be selected, or the entire flock, if it is not too large, may be fed with the show ring in view. Feed them sound, nutritious food but not so as to fatten them. In the morning, give a warm mash of cooked meal and pota- toes; at noon, whole wheat or buckwheat, and at ‘night, a very little whole corn with crushed bone and .a small allowance of scraps three times a week. Give also two or three times a week somie cooked meat or fish. Never feed more than they will eat up clean at one time. Supply regularly with pure, fresh water, and give milk to drink if you have it. Unless they have free range, provide a large, dry run and ample dust boxes. From two to four weeks before the show, pick out as many birds as you contemplate exhibiting and two or three extra ones. Separate the sexes and provide pens for both, the floor of which is covered with clean, dry sand two inches deep. Give the most nutritious feed obtainable while the fowls are confined. Rice ‘boiled in milk, is one of the best foods, but whole wheat is also excellent. There is nothing like sunflower seed to give the plumage the rich, brilliant gloss which is so vattractive in the show pen. Clean water, grit and a little charcoal must also be provided. The final preparation of all white birds is to wash and clean the plumage, which should be done the day ‘before shipping. Take three tubs of water, one hot, one lukewarm and one cold. Place the bird in the hot water, which should be deep enough to cover the back and come well‘up on the neck. Use white castile soap and make a good suds, then rub the bird well with the 36 MAKING POULTRY PAY soap on all the dirty parts, rubbing the feathers hard, but not so as to break them. Give the bird a good washing and then rinse in the lukewarm water, being sure to get out all the soap and dirty water. Add enough bluing to the cold water to give the feathers a nice appearance. Clean the beak and legs and place the bird in a clean box with cut rye straw or excelsior in the bottom, placing it by the stove. With a soft sponge, bathe the wattles, face and comb with a little alcohol, which will give them a rich, red color. The shanks and feet may be rubbed lightly with a little sweet oil, taking care not to get on so much that the dust will settle on them and make them look grimy. A little butter color will deepen the shade of yellow- legged birds. As a rule, few exhibitors know or care about all the little tricks and so-called mysteries so often re- ferred to in the columns of the fanciers’ papers. A few undoubtedly attempt all that sort of thing, but the greater part of the men who exhibit successfully are content to send a good bird away with no more preparation than is necessary to make it a clean healthy bird, with a short course of such dieting as is necessary to enable it to stand the confinement of a show coop for five or six days. This reasonable method of getting birds ready to show is certainly not difficult, and any breeder who would like to exhibit as well as to raise market fowls, will find little trouble in catering to his desires in this respect. Bringing Birds up to Weight—Last year I had two clutches of eggs hatched out May 18 and one June 2. The result was thirteen fine Light Brahma chicks. I also had chicks hatched in March ‘and April and of these later hatched I wish particularly to speak. Lay- ing aside the hard boiled egg ration after the first day, I fed stale bread soaked in water and pressed dry THE CARE OF POULTRY 37 before feeding. The hens were kept in a small grass run for the first ten days, after which they had the lib- erty of a fifty-foot square pen with plenty of grass. The chicks could run out on the lawn. From the time they were a week old until the first of September their principal feed was millet seed, whole wheat and bran, with plenty of fresh water constantly before them, also cut bone. After September 1 a mash was fed every morning, consisting of two parts bran to one part each of shorts and corn meal, by weight. To every ten pounds of this mixture one pound of deodorized blood meal was added. Two quarts of this mixture was scalded each evening, and fed as a morning mash to twenty-five chicks. Nothing more was given until roosting time, when they were fed all the whole corn or wheat that they would eat. During the day they had about the usual range of town reared birds. At eight months of age the heaviest cockerel weighed twelve pounds and the lightest nine and one-half pounds. The pullets weighed from seven and a half to nine pounds. As little chicks they were never allowed out in the morn- ing till the dew was off the grass. They were fed sys- tematically, and as near the same time each day as possible. I believe a single feed missed will tell on the growth of a chick. Constant vigilance is the price of a show bird or a good sized specimen for the breeding, pens. My earlier hatched birds were no larger than the later ones, with the same care; and I do not think much is made in this cold northwest in hatching chicks before May, at least. Get a chick out after the cold changeable weather and spring rains, and then push him right along with good care, regular and systematic feeding, and the work is done—[Rev. J. M. Acheson in West- ern Poultry Journal. 38 MAKING POULTRY PAY Forced Molting—When a specialty is made of winter eggs, it is of much importance to have the hens shed their feathers early in the fall, so that the new plumage may be grown before cold weather begins. In case molting is much delayed, and it will be delayed if fowls are fed heavily for eggs during the summer, the production of the new coat of feathers in cold weather is such a drain on the vitality, that few eggs are laid until spring. If the molt takes place earlier the fowls would be in good condition for winter laying and yearling hens will produce as many eggs as early hatched pullets. A method of forced molting has been worked out very successfully by Henry Van Dreser, a New York poultry keeper. Briefly stated it consists in ‘confining the fowls in yards during August and with- holding two-thirds of thein feed for two weeks. This stops egg production in a few days, reduces the weight of the fowls, and then heavy feeding on a ration suit- able for the formation of feathers causes a quick molt, and a general building up of the system. Picking fowls to help molting is practiced and rec- ommended by some poultry keepers. During July and August when the hens have fully matured their feath- ers and are inclined to be broody, they may be picked the same as one would pick geese or ducks. The feathers are very fine to use, and the operation hastens the molting season so that fowls are ready to lay in early October. In addition to the regular food, which should be made up largely of wheat and oats, either ground or whole, a little sulphur will be of great help in the formation of feathers. Skimmilk, meat meal and an abundant supply of green stuff should also be given. The growth of a new crop of feathers is a severe drain on the vitality, and even when it occurs naturally fowls should have extra feed and care. The grain THE CARE OF POULTRY 39 ration should be increased a third, and the fowls pro- tected at night from drenching rains and severe storms, The Care of Poultry Manure—The dung of fowls is a highly nitrogenous manure, and should be carefully used and saved. Most of the nitrogen is in the form of uric acid, and is very readily available to growing plants. Weight for weight, the droppings of the hen roost are not nearly as valuable as guano, but are worth much more than ordinary barn manure. Unless properly preserved, the nitrogen is easily lost. Roosts should have tight platforms under them, which should be cleaned weekly, or oftener, and the accumulated droppings mixed with a suitable absorbent and kept under cover. By itself hen manure is a one-sided nitrogenous fertilizer, and as usually managed half or more of its nitrogen is lost. _As both acid phosphate and kainit prevent the loss of nitrogen when mixed with manure, it is possible to use them in connection with sawdust or some other dry material, as an absorb- ent, so as to make a well-balanced fertilizer. Good dry loam will answer very nicely for this purpose. This material should be spread freely on the roosting plat- forms. For example, a mixture of thirty pounds hen manure, ten pounds sawdust, sixteen pounds acid phosphate and eight. pounds kainit would carry about one and one-fourth per cent nitrogen, four and one- half per cent phosphoric acid and two per cent potash. Kainit or acid phosphate by itself makes the manure quite sticky. Whitewash—Poultry houses and coops should be whitewashed inside and out. All the nest boxes and other fixtures should receive a coating. The ordinary lime and water wash has the disadvantage of easily washing off, and also sticking to and marking one’s clothes or whatever rubs against it. Here are some 49 MAKING POULTRY PAY excellent recipes for making whitewash that will not rub off: Slake in boiling water one-half bushel of lime, keeping it just fairly covered with water during the process. Strain it to remove the sediment that will fal! to the bottom, and add to it a peck of salt dissolved in warm water. Mix the different ingredients thoroughly and let the mixture stand for several days. When ready to use apply it hot. Ifa less quantity is desired, use the same proportions. A good whitewash for use upon outside work: Slake in boiling water one-half bushel of lime, and strain as before. Add to this two pounds of sulphate of zinc and one pound of salt dissolved in water. If any color but white is desired, add about three pounds of the desired coloring matter, such as painters use in preparing their paints. Yellow ochre will make a beautiful cream color, and browns, reds and various shades of green are equally easily obtained. An excellent wash, lasting almost as well as ordi- nary paint: Slake in boiling water one-half bushel of lime. Strain so as to remove all sediment. Add two pounds of sulphate of zinc, one pound common salt and one-half pound whiting, thoroughly dissolved. Mix to proper consistency with skimmed milk, and apply hot. If white is not desired, add enough coloring matter to produce the desired shade. Those who have tried this recipe consider it much superior, both in appearance and durability, to ordinary washes; and some have not hesitated to declare that it compares very favorably with good lead paints. It is much cheaper than paint, and gives the houses and yards to which it is applied a very attractive appearance. Ordinary whitewash is made more effective by the addition of carbolic acid. Slake lime (in an old tub or half-barrel) with a sufficient quantity of water to THE CARE OF POULTRY 41 make a wash of the desired consistency, adding a little water atatime. Then adda fluid ounce of crude car- bolic acid to every bucket of wash. Apply the wash with an old broom or with a force pump. Put it on hot and get it into the cracks. Best Size of Flock—At the Maine experiment station, flocks of fifteen, twenty, twenty-five, and thirty hens, respectively, were tested for comparative profits. The lots containing twenty hens gave a greater net profit per lot than any other number. Lots of twenty-five hens gave slightly greater net returns than did the fifteen-hen lots, and those with thirty hens gave much less net returns than any of the others. The result indicates that the best profits will be obtained by allowing each hen eight to ten square feet floor space. very common mistake is the keeping of hens to an age when they have passed their usefulness, and frequently this is done because of the feeling that the hens are unusually good ones, when as a matter of fact a hen more than two years old, no matter what her record has been, is less valuable than one younger. It would pay to mark all chickens when hatched so that you could readily by selection keep your flocks down to pullets and one-year-old hens. _ Litter for Scratching—In order to induce fowls to exercise in winter, it is essential to cover the floor several inches deep with some loose kind of litter, in which to throw the whole grain. Long rye straw makes probably the best litter, because it does not mat down. Wheat or oat straw is also good. Hay or corn- stalks will answer the purpose admirably. Leaves break up quickly and must be renewed often. Refuse from hay loft containing seeds, clover heads, etc., should be used frequently where it can be obtained. The chickens will get a great deal of good material out of this. : 42 MAKING POULTRY PAY Clipping Wings—Many hesitate to clip the wings on account of an almost certain disfigurement that is likely to be the result. If care‘is taken in cutting, the wings can be clipped in such a manner that the muti- lated feathers cannot be detected unless the fowl is caught. I have a flock,of Leghorns which I recently clipped; it would take a very acute observer to note that the wings had been tampered with in the least. The task is by no means difficult; anyone can do it by using a little care. If the operator is a right-handed person, take the fowl in the left hand and hold close to the body partly by the hand and forearm. Spread. out the left wing with the thumb and forefinger of the arm that is holding the fowl. With the right hand take a sharp pair of shears and cut the flight feathers, or the ones on the outer side; cut until you come to the natural division between the flight feathers and the secondaries. The section that should be cut is techni- cally known as the “primaries.” If the primaries are cut as close to the flesh as possible and the operator is. careful not to cut over too far and get into the sec- ondaries, the effect will not be noticed when the fowl is in its natural position. Except in extreme cases this will prove just as effective in restraining high fliers as though the wing had been practically cut entirely away. When this is not sufficient, which is seldom the case, more clipping will be necessary. It is possible to cut the wings when the chickens are young so that their flying ability will be effectually impaired for all time. This will often prove to be a great advantage especially with fowls of the Leghorn, Hamburg and Minorca breeds. This is not difficult nor painful to the chick, if done at the right time, and consists simply in cutting the wing at the last joint; the portion cut off is but a trifle when the chick is young, but when it is developed it makes quite a material difference in THE CARE OF POULTRY 43. its wing power, so much so that it is a comparatively small matter to confine them, and so far as practica- bility is concerned, it does not impair their useful qualities. If the work is done when the chicken is. about ten or twelve days old, it is scarcely painful, and the chick soon recovers its usual activity. Road Dust and Coal -Ashes—The fine, dry dust. on the roads, which is such a nuisance to the traveler,. is a blessing to the poultryman. It is an admirable absorbent, and used under the roosts and mixed with the droppings, it preserves the volatile properties of the hen manure, increasing in a very material degree the fertilizer made by the flock. Used in a dust bath, it penetrates the feathers of the fowls and stops up the air passages of the parasites that dwell on the bodies and hide among the feathers of the hens, thus promoting the comfort and health of the flowls. Used on the floors and about the house, it assists in destroy- ing little mites that hide in the cracks and corners of the building, removes noxious odors and exhalations, and makes the poultry house a healthy home for its feathered occupants, instead of a disease breeding prison. It pays to gather and use road dust, which. is plentiful everywhere. In most cases where coal is used for fuel, the coal ashes make perhaps as good a dust bath as can be had. It has the further advantage that the bits of coal which hens find among the ashes. will be eaten by them, and will help grind the food in their gizzards. The coal itself will also be digested in the process, and may appear as black specks on the egg shells of fowls that have access to coal ash heaps. Coal ashes make a very excellent insecticide. They are finer than any road dust can be made, and therefore are more effective, closing the pores of ver- min which breathe through the holes in their sides. When these are closed by fine powder, the vermin 44 MAKING POULTRY PAY quickly die from suffocation. The addition of a few wood ashes to the dust bath is a great help in keep- ing down body lice. Poultry on Shares—If A furnishes B with poultry to raise on shares, B doing all the work and supplying the feed, he should receive one-half the poultry, A to take his half and the original flock at market time in the fall. To prevent frozen combs keep the poultry in their houses on very cold days, particularly when the cold is accompanied with a high wind. Make a burlap curtain to hang over the roosts and down around the fowls to keep them warm at night. The color of the yolk is influenced by the food. Feed plenty of cut clover and some corn, and the yolks will be yellow enough to suit you. Fowls fed largely on buckwheat and wheat often lay eggs with light colored yolks; but it does not affect the fertility of hatching. Dehorn Roosters—It sometimes becomes quite a problem what to dé with the old males after the breed- ing season is over. If turned out on the range with the cockerels, they tyrannize over them, driving them from the feeding grounds, injuring and even killing them by their assaults. If put into an inclosure together, a series of fights will immediately begin, and when it is over the birds will be hardly worth keep- ing. Cut off the spurs with a very fine saw within one-half inch of the leg and put on a little powdered chalk or sulphate of iron to prevent bleeding, then trim down the beak until the blood shows close to the cut. Then the birds will run together as quiet as a lot of pullets and by the time the beak grows out they will be living in peace and harmony. Crooked breast bones are commonly caused by the chicks going on the roost too young, as a chicken’s THE CARE OF POULTRY 45. breast bone at that age is little more than cartilage, and bends very easily. Chickens should not be permitted to roost until about twelve weeks old, and if of the heavier varieties, such as Brahmas and Cochins, they should be four or five months old before being allowed to roost. We have known of breast bones being de- formed in birds that did not roost at all, and that could possibly be done by their crowding too much on the ground. The bones of chickens could be hardened by feeding them lime or fine bone meal in small quantities from time to time. Teaching Chicks to Roost—Sometimes changing the chicks from the house they have been accustomed to to one with roosts conveniently placed induces them to roost. When this fails, the only effective plan is to put wide boards on the roosts extending clear back to the wall, and lift a part of the chickens to these every night until they learn to go themselves. When a part of the flock learns to roost the rest gradually follow suit. It is a rather tedious performance, but we know of no other way to accomplish the end sought. CHAPTER III Where to Keep Fow!s While fowls can be kept almost anywhere and everywhere, they do best in congenial locations. The soil and arrangement of buildings have much to do with their health and profit. As a general proposition it may be said that a light soil which provides good natural drainage, yet is strong enough to grow grass, makes the ideal location. An exposure varying from southeast to southwest, protected from prevailing winds, is best. Fowls naturally like to roam. The ideal condi- ‘tions are such that provide them with a liberal area. ‘On the farm the most that is needed is a suitable house and a good sized yard in which they can be confined at certain seasons. In village and city lots the area is necessarily limited and the fowls must be kept in yards most of the time. Where poultry is kept as a business there are two ‘plans which may be followed: One, the intensive sys- ‘tem, whereby they are crowded together in small yards ; the other, the colony plan, in which small houses are scattered about the place so that the fowls are given either partial or entire free range. One must be governed by circumstances and amount of land at dis- posal as to which plan to adopt. The intensive plan requires considerable more labor to care for the fowls ‘because every want must be supplied. The colony plan is, no doubt, the best for the great majority of ‘poultry keepers who have a few acres at their disposal. With this system separate vards may or may not be necessary. 46 WHERE TO KEEP FOWLS 47 BUILDINGS OF MANY KINDS A warm house, or at least warm sleeping quar- ters, is essential to get eggs in the winter. Fowls of the Mediterranean breeds and others which have large -combs and wattles must be kept in warm houses to prevent freezing the combs and wattles. Warming the house by means of artificial heat is not advisable. This gives an unnatural condition which leads to many troubles. It is better to spend a little more in building the house substantial and warm. The importance of warm houses cannot be too greatly emphasized. A ‘test by the West Virginia experiment station shows -clearly the value of a substantial house. Two houses built exactly alike and placed side by side were selected for an experiment and in each were placed twelve pullets. One house had previously been sheathed on the inside and covered with paper to make it perfectly tight. Both were boarded with matched siding and shingle roofs. Fowls were fed alike in each case and the experiment, which started November 24, continued five months. In the warm house the twelve pullets laid a total of 629 eggs; in the other, 486 eggs. North of the Mason and Dixon line it will pay to make all ‘houses double boarded with or without a dead air ‘space. A small roosting room that can be closed tight during winter nights, and roomy, airy quarters for the -daytime, is the ideal arrangement for health and profit. Such an arrangement is provided for in the scratching shed house or in some modification of it. The Scratching Shed House—Although open sheds have long been used for poultry to run under during winter, we believe the scratching shed house, so called, originated with Mr. A. F. Hunter, formerly editor of Farm Poultry. Such a house, shown in 48 MAKING POULTRY PAY Figures 2 and 3, is thus described by him in that journal: The house can be built of any length desired, the pens and sheds being in groups of two, with doors opening through from pen to pen and from shed to shed, so that the whole house can be passed through without going out of doors. Each roosting room is eight by ten feet, and each shed (adjoining) is ten by ten feet, the front being seven feet high, the back four feet high. The shed having a tight roof, and being tight on the north and west, is all open to the south (when the curtains are up), giving the birds fresh air nie nil FIG. 2—THE ORIGINAL SCRATCHING SHED HOUSE and sunshine, at the same time they are protected from our cold northwest winds. Each combined pen and shed is eighteen by ten feet, and will well house twenty-five fowls; and as it is the most economical plan to build upon, it is easy to see that it is by all odds the best for the man who has to make his dollars go as far as possible. For these reasons we recommend this compact open shed and roosting pen plan of house as being the best all- around house that can be built. We have 108 feet (in length) of this house on our farm, and find it just about perfect. We intend that the top of the sills of our house shall be about a foot above the ground level. The sills are two by four-inch scantling, halved and nailed g WHERE TO KEEP FOWLS 49 together at splices and corners. They rest upon posts of cedar or chestnut, which go into the ground about two feet. A board one foot wide is nailed along lower half of sill,-extending into the ground three or four inches. The plates are same as sills, and are halved and nailed together at splices and corners. A sufficient number of studs six feet eight inches long for the front and three feet eight inches long for the back, are cut from the scantlings, one for each corner of the pen = eqtesssos=s2c43 c ik = can eA OPEN FRONT D SCRATCHING ROOSTING SHED O ROOM 19 x10! 8 x10' —=_\ [ S| FIG. 3—GROUND PLAN OF SCRATCHING SHED HOUSE and shed. These are toe-nailed onto sills, and the plates spiked onto top of them. We set an interme- diate stud in front of each scratching shed and two two by three-inch studs in front of roosting pen set the tight distance apart to receive the window. At the back, we use one intermediate stud of two by four- inch stuff in each pen and shed. As we purpose double boarding this back-wall, boarding on the inside of studs with matched boards, we use the two by four-inch studs, and thus get the four-inch dead air space. Rafters are of two by four-inch scantling, notched and spiked onto plates, the top end cut flush with out- 50 MAKING POULTRY PAY side of plate, the lower end projecting about eight inches, and mitered to nail a gutter to. It is best economy to set rafters two feet apart. All outside boarding is lengthwise of building, and is cheapest hemlock boards, put on with as small cracks as pos- sible, then covered with, first, sheathing ; then, roofing paper. This is put on lengthwise of building, also, each strip lapping about three inches, and secured with the tin head nails provided with each roll. We add battens, stripped one-half inch thick from seven-— eighth-inch boards, putting them on over the rafters, two feet apart. We give the roofing paper a coat of FIG. 4—NEST BOXES paint, and also paint the battens before putting them on, then put on a second coat of paint over battens and all. A twelve-light window of eight by ten-inch. glass is set in the middle of front of roosting room, and a half-window is set in each partition between shed and pen. The roost platform is three feet wide, as long as. will go easily in between the partitions, and rests upon strips of furring securely nailed to the partitions, the top of rest being twenty inches above floor. The plat- form we make of matched boards, and edge it with a strip of furring all around, so that it is a shallow pan. one and a half inches deep. The two roosts are of two by three-inch scantling slightly rounded on top, and are fifteen inches apart, the rear one being ten inches from the back wall. The bank of nest boxes, ex- plained by the illustration, Figure 4, is set under the WHERE TO KEEP FOWLS 5L. roost platform so the fowls can go round the ends and. enter any apartment from the back, the front (hinged at top and secured by a simple button at the bottom): lifting up to allow of removing the eggs. Keeping this front closed makes the nests dark and secluded, most important aids to prevent forming the egg eating habit.. We make the floor of scratching shed ten by ten. feet, and plan for two curtains four and one-half by five and one-half feet to close the front. Both these curtains can be hinged to right and left, the right hand one being a door to admit to shed and thence to pen;. or they can be simple curtains on frames secured by buttons, excepting that the shed at end must have a. FIG. 5—-MAINE TYPE OF CURTAIN FRONT HOUSE door for entrance. A better plan, and probably the best, is to have the curtains hinged at top so as to: swing in and up along the roof rafters, where a hook secures them. This plan has many advantages, not. the least of which is having the curtains hung up out. of the way all summer, when they are not wanted. The Curtain Front House—This is a style of building designed by Prof. G. M. Gowell of the Maine experiment station, and is a modification of the scratch-: ing shed house. It has been in use by him for many years. Figure 5 shows a general view of it. This. building is 150 feet long, fourteen feet wide, five and. one-half feet high in the rear and six and two-thirds in the front. The sills are four by six inches in size: 52 MAKING POULTRY PAY and rest on a stone foundation. The studding is two by four-inch. The building is boarded, papered and shingled on roof and walls. The rear wall and four feet of the lower part of the rear roof are ceiled on the inside of the studding and plates and packed with hard and dry sawdust. The end walls are packed in the same way. {he house is divided by close board partitions into seven twenty-foot sections and a ten- FIG. 6.——CORNELL TWO-PEN HOUSE foot section is reserved at one end for a feed room. The feed section has two twelve-light outside windows screwed onto the front. The space between the. win- dows, which is eight feet long and three feet wide down from the plate, is covered during rough winter storms and cold nights by a light frame covered with ten-ounce duck closely tacked on. This door or cur- tain is hinged at the top and swings in and up to the roof when open. A similar curtain at the rear closes in WHERE TO KEEP FOWLS 53 the roosts, there being two roosts over a tight plat- form. The curtain is made to fit closely and enough air gets through it to afford sufficient ventilation for the fowls. The several years during which this house has been used shows that it is the ideal house for Amer, ican breeds. Fowls are rarely, if ever, sick in it and the yield of eggs during the winter is very satisfactory. The Cornell House—Only in recent years have FIG, 7—-FRAME OF CORNELL TWO-PEN HOUSE poultrymen discovered the value of cloth curtains in poultry house construction as a means of providing ventilation and promoting the health and comfort of the flock. The latest fashion in poultry house con- struction, as exemplified by the house on the Gowell Poultry Farm in Maine, the model house built by Prof. James E. Rice of the Cornell experiment station and many other practical poultry keepers, is to use cloth- covered screens in place of part of the glass. A roost- 54 MAKING POULTRY PAY ing closet inclosed with a cloth screen in front protects the fowls at night during the coldest weather. Where exercise is provided by making the fowls scratch in deep litter for their grain, they keep warm in open houses. The science of.poultry house construction is being gradually worked out. The latest style of house is that shown in Figures 6, 7, 8, 9 and 10, which is de- scribed by Prof. James E. Rice in a, recent reading course bulletin for farmers. The house is four feet eleven inches in the rear and eight feet seven inches in front, which is as low as it is possible to build with- out danger of bumping the head while doing the work. The house is twelve feet wide and twenty-four feet long, divided into two pens, each twelve feet square. It may be made of any length desired, but in a long house, it would be advisable to make it fifteen feet wide and the pens fifteen feet square. ' The shed roof is used because it is easiest to build, provides the largest volume of sunlight and the best possible conditions of sanitation, warmth, brightness and dryness. There is no projection on the north side or rear of the house, which enables the paper to run continuously without breaking at the eaves, thus mak- ing an air tight joint and preventing rain from wash- ing the soil, also doing away with eave troughs. Each pen is intended to accommodate from thirty to forty fowls. The foundation is built of concrete. The wall need not be more than eight to ten inches thick. It should stand at least six inches above the natural level of the land and need not go more than six or eight inches below the surface, except in soils inclined to heave badly. The floor is also made of concrete. The sills are of two by fours, which should be placed upon the foundation before the floor is laid, so the cement WHERE TO KEEP FOWLS 55 can be flushed against the sill to prevent air and water entering. The walls on all sides except the south are made of one thickness of matched pine lumber with planed side inside. The outside, including the roof, is covered with one thickness of roofing paper. The only part of the house that is double boarded is’ the portion directly back and above the roosting platform. An air space is formed between the studding and the inner VENTILATOR Summer Postrior Or CURTAIN WinDOW’ ashe TMM, Hid MAMA DDD FIG. 8—SIDE VIEW CORNELL HOUSE boarding, which is opened above and below. Holes are bored through the plate, which permit the air to circulate freely up between the studding through the plate, between the rafters and out into the room again. This makes the inner wall warmer than it would be with a dead air space, owing to the fact that the air is continually changing and, therefore, must be nearer the temperature of the room than it could possibly be with the dead air space, which in time becomes as cold as the outside boarding. The front of the house is made of one thickness of ship lap without paper either inside x 56 MAKING POULTRY PAY or out. This type of wall more readily warms up on the inside when the sun shines than would a double wall and the warm air does not readily pass out because the house is free of draft. The frame is made wholly of two by fours, except the rafters, which are two by five. The studding is placed four feet apart and the rafters two feet upon the centers. See Figure 7. The boards are laid horizon- + 2.4. ae 20 20". ee". arts] .4ii f fl ‘Nu 28. 64% Ed x + ; ® CLorH CURTAIN % %|| } Door * « Winoow ‘ v \\ Dus? Bor {window [_“ U I t ———— ao = FIG. Q—FRONT ELEVATION OF FRAMEWORK tally. Most of the front of the house is filled with door and window openings which are easy of construc- tion and require a small amount of material. Details of construction are shown in Figures 7, 8, 9 and 1o. The best light is obtained by always placing the windows high. By placing the windows near to- gether and making that part of the partition near the front of the house of wire, the sunlight can pass WHERE TO KEEP FOWLS 57 through so that each pen gets the benefit of the sun- light from its own window and that of the other pen also. The windows are hung at the side and swing against the partition, in which position they are readily opened and closed. When opened, as they should be during the entire summer season, they are in the most lau" ee T. SU +0" ——— J N } ¥ a 7 2 Mi WAN | iil r] Tf * oT HRA on oe er ee ee Wu UU U ati". DROPPING BOARD sls stot re M ; WA T | piroosrs iON __cAtesrs, ‘ A Pe EN Peers | | SHELF /8’ABOVE FLOOR Nai | FOR_WATER, GRIT, SHELL a2” Y lauz2" 2 > tw esi ta | War Yan. s IDus7T Box i % en iL : $5 x spi ny ie xe A Od sa eile ae 2 : SoA iF ee ee a =a > cael ort "SS =. FIG. 8I—AN INDIANA COLONY-BRCODER HOUSE. a week twelve fowls can be kept in it with a yard six by twelve feet in size. — A Gasoline-Heated Colony-Brooder House—Lat- est developments in artificial brooding are to get away from the small individual indoor and outdoor brooders and to adopt a system that will hover more chicks at a less expense of fuel and labor. A system of using gasoline for heating a brooder is being successfully used by the Poultry Husbandry department of Cornell University. It has been devised by Prof. James E. Rice and associates. By his method of rearing chick- ens in large flocks in colony houses heated with gaso- line from 1700 to 2000 chickens have been reared each: MAKING POULTRY PAY 194 SduvA GNV SasnoH MAGOOUA-ANOIOD TIANUOI—ZB ei ARTIFICIAL INCUBATION 195 -year for the past five years in thirteen colony houses (Figure 82) which formerly would have required about fifty ordinary kerosene-heated brooders. In ‘experiments conducted by Prof. Rice it was found that in large colony-brooder houses with a large hover, where the temperature was kept at 100 degrees, 100 ‘chicks could be brooded as successfully as fifty in a flock, and continued experiments show that 200 could be handled with practically the same labor and no ‘more loss. The secret of brooding in large flocks, if there is any, is to maintain a temperature of 100 degrees at all ‘times accessible to the chickens. The larger the flock the more important it is that a high temperature be maintained, because the greater is the danger of crowding. If the temperature of 100 degrees is main- tained, the chickens will spread out of their own accord. They can be trusted to remain in the temper- ature which is most comfortable to them, which also will be the temperature best suited to their needs. ‘This heat cannot, with safety, be so well maintained with a kerosene burner, but with a blue flame gasoline burner and a brooder properly constructed, there is little or no danger of fire. A five-gallon can is suspended inside the house at the top and filled as needed with gasoline. A pipe leads this to the burner arranged beneath the hover ‘where a constant flame is maintained. The flame can be regulated at the will of the operator. The “A” type of house (Figures 83 and 84) is -eight feet square, inside floor measure, has twelve-inch side walls and is six feet, six inches from top of floor to top of ridge board. The sub framing is made and ‘both floors laid before the upper part of the building is put together. The sills are gotten out first. They are made of two by twelve-inch stock and are cut eight 196 MAKING POULTRY PAY feet long with a bevel at each end to form runners or shoes upon which to draw the house about when desired. The floor joists, four in number, are made of two by four-inch stock, cut eight feet long, and are fitted into the runners with a half joint. This gives a strong sub frame that is not likely to get out of square when drawn over uneven ground. After fit- ting the joists into the runners and securely nailing FIG, 83—CORNELL COLONY-BROODER HOUSE. with 20d nails, the work is leveled, squared, and tied by means of a one-inch board nailed diagonally across the joists. The first or sub floor is made of one-inch matched hemlock. siding and is laid diagonally, which helps to stiffen the building. The finished floor is made of seven-eighths-inch sap (white) pine flooring. This is blind nailed and is laid over a layer of build- ing paper. ARTIFICIAL INCUBATION 197 The studs are now put up (Figure 84). These, together with the plates, rafters and ridge-board, are made of seven-eighths by two and three-quarters-inch clear hemlock stock. The studs are placed flush with the outer edge of the floor and are toe-nailed to the plates. These are held in place temporarily by nailing a strip of board diagonally across them. The front and rear studs are fitted in place and then the boarding FIG 84—FRAME OF CORNELL COLONY-BROODER HOUSE put on. The boards are put on horizontally and over- lap the floor two inches. The building is inclosed with seven-eighths-inch matched siding, planed one side, with the smooth side turned in. The boards for sides and roof are cut in eight-foot lengths, and since the house is to be eight feet square inside, a small space is left at each corner which is filled by a quarter round molding, thus mak- ing it possible to use sixteen-foot stock without waste. 198 MAKING POULTRY PAY The ends are boarded up solid, with the exception of the door opening. After the paper has been put on, the casings for the windows are nailed in place and then the openings cut. By this method of construc- tion no studs are required for the windows. Best results have been secured by rurining the strips of roofing paper vertically, instead of horizon- tally, as is generally recommended. The laps are made to come over the rafters and are covered with a three-quarter by two-inch batten. It requires much less time to put the paper on in this way and it pre- sents a more pleasing appearance. After the house is | eee ee FIG. 85——DR. WOODS’ BROODER enclosed and doors and windows fitted and hung, the heater is put in place. The burner used is the Dangler Furnace and Lab- oratory Lamp burner No. 154. The Omaha burner has also been used successfully, also the Menges burner. This type of house complete with brooder, burner, ete., has cost in Ithaca, N. Y., $37.50. Much experimenting has been done in the way of homemade brooders, some of whch are both econom- ical and successful. Most poultry keepers think that manufactured brooders cost too much, hence they do not procure enough brooders to properly accommodate ARTIFICIAL INCUBATION 199 the chicks and severe losses are therefore sustained from overcrowding. Several good brooders are here described. The Up-to-Date Brooder—A good homemade brooder that is up to date and can be depended on to raise a good percentage of the chicks intrusted to it when rightly managed is illustrated in Figure 85, and was described in Farm Poultry by Dr. Woods. It has stood the test of several seasons under varying conditions, and has successfully reared ninety per cent of the chicks placed in it. It is an economical brooder to build, and the cost for material, where all new stuff is used, need not exceed $5 (this including lamp). By utilizing waste stock it can be made for less than $3 (labor not included). The brooder is made three feet wide from front to back, and three and one-half feet long from side to side. A general perspective view of the brooder com- plete is shown in Figure 85 with the smaller section of the movable roof removed and the loose board used for lamp door partly open. The front view shows how the windows are arranged and the door, w, by which the chicks enter and leave the brooder; an opening is left for inlet of fresh air into hot air chamber; there are two of these openings, one opposite the other. These openings may be made in the sides if more convenient. They are one and one-half inches wide, and the depth of the board which separates the iron floor of the, hot air chamber from the floor of the brooding cham- ber. In cold weather it will prove economy in oil and heat to partially close one of these openings. The sectional view shows the construction of the brooder in detail. The lower frame for the lamp chamber is built first, and is made of sufficient hight to accommodate your lamp, and leave a space of nearly an inch between 200 MAKING POULTRY PAY the top of your chimney (if you use one), and the iron floor of the hot air chamber. To the top of the three sides of this frame, which are of equal hight, is nailed the iron floor of the hot air chamber. This is a sheet of galvanized iron thirty-six by forty-two inches. Above this iron floor is fastened a frame of strips of board two inches wide to form the outer walls of the heat chamber, openings being left for the inlets. It is nailed fast to the iron in the back, and through the iron to the lower frame on the front and sides. On this frame is laid the floor of the brooder proper, which is made of matched boards. Before the floor is made fast to the frame a circular hole must be made in the center to receive the iron ring which conducts the heat into the brooding chamber. This hole in the wooden floor is nine inches in diameter. The front and sides of the brooding chamber form a movable three-sided frame, firmed together at the upper portion of the rear third by a strip of inch stuff. In the front section of this frame is a six by eight-inch window, and a door, w. The door is hinged, and fastens with a button. The window is beveled at the the top to shed rain, and is screwed to the frame. A cheaper and homelier way would be to set two lights of glass in the wood of the frame. The roof is made in two pieces. The main or front section is removable, and is held in place by cleats, as shown in cut. When the brooder is in outdoor use this seccion of the roof, 7, is secured’ to the sides of the brooding chamber by screws through the side cleats. The chamber sides are screwed to the base or floor cleats. A window ten by eighteen inches is provided in this part of the roof. The rear section of the roof is a movable board fitted and cleated and held in place by the cleats, with the additional security of a hook and screw eye on either end to keep animals from breaking ARTIFICIAL INCUBATION 201 in at night. This small movable roof section is a great convenience. At the upper and rear third of the sides of the brooding chamber is a ventilator, r, one on each side, and having a iin, galvanized iron or wood shut- ter, as shown. The ventilating holes are two and one- half inches in diameter. The heat conductor is a galvanized iron ring nine inches in diameter, and three and one-half inches high. This is fitted into the hole in the wood floor of brooder, and held in place by three nails driven from inner side of ring. To this ring is attached the heat spreader, an inverted cone of galvanized iron, hung to the ring by three strap hooks of galvanized iron. This heat spreader, k, is kept filled with chicken grit or gravel, which serves to hold the heat, and keep the tempera- ture more uniform. The spreader serves to diffuse the warm air equally on all sides under the hover. The ring is wound with a triple thickness of felt, which entirely covers in the metal parts, and does not con- duct" a sufficient amount of heat to make the chicks crowd around the heat flue. It is important that the iron ring be wound with felt or some insulating mate- rial. The hover is circular and is twenty-eight inches in diameter. It is made of matched stuff, and has no ventilating hole, as none is needed. A hole is made for the thermometer, and three holes for the hover legs; p is the thermometer, and o the legs. The legs Baines in number) are ordinary broom handle, and are drilled so as to be adjustable from four and one-half to six and one-half inches in length, the hover being held in place by nails passed through the drill holes. A double thickness of slashed felt is used for hover curtains (any kind of cloth that does not fray easily will answer). These flaps come down to within half an inch 202 MAKING POULTRY PAY of the floor when the legs are at the four and one-half- inch length. The lamp chamber has a one and one-half-inch ventilating hole in the side close up to iron near the front of the brooder. The lamp I have had the best results with, and the least trouble, is a common tin lamp (made from a tin pan), holding three pints of oil, e FIG. 86—AN IMPROVED BROODER and having a common kitchen lamp burner with a glass chimney or a chimney of Russia iron (the iron chim- ney is best), having an isinglass opening in front to view the lamp flame. An improved brooder is shown in Figures 86 and 87. Figure 86 shows the brooder complete with ARTIFICIAL INCUBATION 203, cover raised. The hover is shown within the top. The upper dotted line shows the position of the matched board floor and the lower dotted line shows the posi- tion of the sheet iron beneath which the lamp stove is. placed. Figure 87 shows the drum of sheet iron, or galvanized iron, which is attached to the edge of a circular opening in the floor, as shown at the right. This cut shows the floor, the sheet iron and the two- inch space between them, with the lamp underneath the sheet iron. The air above the sheet iron is warmer and rises through the drum, escaping through the small openings under the top, out into the brooder. A. FIG, 87—HEATER PARTS FOR BROODER cloth curtain is hung around the edge of the broad top: of the drum, forming a hover, into which the chicks go for warmth. This curtain is “slashed” up every few inches. Openings in the sides of the brooder admit air to the lamp, to the space between the sheet iron and the floor above and also ventilate the brooder chamber. These openings from the brooder chamber can be controlled by corks in very cold weather. The: brooder can be made any size up to three by four feet, which is large enough for seventy-five chicks. It can be heated with an incubator lamp or any good lamp with No. 2 burner and large oil chamber. 204 MAKING POULTRY PAY A Good Brooder—One of the best and simplest hhomemade brooders (Figure 88) we ever saw is used largely by G. G. Tillinghast of Connecticut, a success- ful poultry keeper and fruit grower. It costs not to exceed $2.50, if made of all new material. -It is built of matched lumber and consists of a frame three feet square and one foot high. In one side there is a door FIG. 88—THE TILLINGHAST HOMEMADE BROODER or slide in which to place the lamp. This frame is cov- ered with a sheet of galvanized iron and over this around the edges are nailed inch furring strips. A hole one-half inch high and one inch long is made through the ends of two strips on opposite sides to provide ventilation. The floor is nailed on these fur- ring strips. In the center of the floor is cut a four-inch square hole and over this is nailed a radiating drum. This drum is a two-quart tin pan, through which are punched a dozen holes with a big nail to allow the heat to escape under the hovers. The hover is two feet square and six inches high, with edges lined with felt slashed so that the chicks can easily get under it. The felt comes to within one inch of the floor. There is no cover to the brooder. A frame one foot high and ARTIFICIAL INCUBATION 205, three feet square is placed on the brooder to confine: the chicks until they are a week old, when some sods. are thrown up against one side to make an incline for them to go up and down. The brooder is, of course, kept indoors. The lamp is one of the most novel features. It is. made of a two-quart tin pan and a tin pie plate soldered together. Three or four small holes are punched in the pie plate to allow the heat and gas to escape from the kerosene. A hole is cut in the pie plate and a No. 2 burner soldered in. This lamp holds oil enough to burn two or three days without filling. In very cold weather two lamps are placed under the brooder. A Simple Hot Water Brooder—Figure 89 shows a simple form of hot water brooder to be used without a lamp, the galvanized iron tank being filled with hot water night and morning. The cut at the right shows. the position of the tank behind the front board, the bottom having attached to it a double row of slashed. woolen cloths, under which the chicks can run. The tank is seen to set back from this board, giving a chance for a packing of sawdust, or bran, over and all around the tank. The chicks huddle beneath the tank,. and if they find it too warm, they poke their heads out FIG, 89—HOT WATER BROODER AND TANK through the cloth, or come wholly out into the outer, or scratching, room. Keep the tank hot enough so: the chicks will not crowd together under it, but will be inclined to put their heads out through the cloth. CHAPTER VIII Broilers, @Capons and Roasters Broilers are young chickens under three pounds weight that are quickly grown and suitable to split in halves and broil over an open fire. In the South such chickens are commonly known as “fries.” They are _ most in demand during May, June and July, but there is a market for them at all times. The raising of broilers has become a business in which large capital is invested, and single farms turn out thousands every year. It-is a business which can be carried on by the housewife with a few hens as well as by the big broiler plant. The requisites are early hatched chicks that are grown rapidly and made to weigh one and one-half to two and one-half pounds each at ten to twelve weeks old. This industry requires both skill and cap- ital when conducted on a large scale. A successful broiler plant should be run in connection with an egg farm, so that the eggs may be supplied from the home yard. It is difficult to get a good hatch in winter time from purchased eggs. They either get chilled or are infertile. The second requisite to success is a good incubator. Hens cannot do the hatching during cold weather. The brooder is important after the chickens have been hatched. Success in growing chickens dur- ing the confinement of the winter months does not con- ‘sist so much in variety and quality of the food given as the manner in which it is fed and the amount of heat to which they are subjected when in the brooder. ‘Of course chicks will always grow faster, develop bet- ter and mature sooner when the food is adapted to their age, growth and wants. 206 BROILERS, CAPONS AND ROASTERS 207 The American breeds—Wyandottes, Plymouth Rocks and Rhode Island Reds—are commonly used for broilers; any quickly-growing, plump bird will do. Leghorn and Minorca cockerels at ten weeks old make excellent broilers. Brahmas usually lack in plump- ness. In order to determine the best breeds of fowls adapted for broilers, and also the cost of raising them to a marketable age, the South Carolina experiment station has conducted some experiments on these lines. Three varieties of thoroughbreds, two crosses of thor- oughbreds, and two crosses of thoroughbreds on com- mon fowls were used. The eggs were hatched in incubators and ten chicks fromm each lot were put into a brooder. The chicks were fed the first week on bread made of equal parts corn meal and wheat bran, mixed with salt, buttermilk and soda, and thoroughly baked. They were fed all they would eat five times a day. The second week they were fed bread at six o’clock, beef scraps at ten, bread at two, and at four. German millet was scattered in straw for them to work on until night. After the second week they were given bread, beef scrap, cracked corn and cracked wheat. They also had skimmilk, buttermilk once a day and all the green food they would eat. The following table shows the growth of the chickens to twelve weeks of age: WEIGHT IN OUNCES PER CHICKEN 2d 4th 8th 12th week week week week Barred Plymouth Rock ......... 3% 9% 29 43% S. L. Wyandotte ........-.cce0ee 3 8% 2814 42% TEmiari (Game oa sed tive erteeyerenesoievereve 3 9 28% 43 Indian Game X Plymouth Rock..4 10% 32 45% Pit Game X Plymouth Rock..... 3% 10 31% 46 Plymouth Rock X common....... 3 8% 23 43 S. L. Wyandotte X common...... 3 8% 26% 41 The Wyandotte, Indian Game and Plymouth Rock cross and Pit Game and Plymouth Rock cross showed 208 MAKING POULTRY PAY a plump breast. The Pit Game and Plymouth Rock cross, the Plymouth Rock on common hen cross, and the Wyandotte had most feathers. The Indian Game had few feathers but was plump. The cost of feed, which during the experiment was unusually high, was seven and one-half cents per chicken to eight weeks old, and twelve cents per chicken at twelve weeks of age. Finishing Broilers—When- nearly large enough for broilers put the chickens into a pen having a shady run and a shady side. Here give them clean, fresh water once or twice a day, and all the fattening food they can eat. Muscle and bone-making foods, remem- ber, are not required. Corn in various forms, how- ever, should be fed freely to them. Cooked corn, mashed corn and ground corn, as well as whole corn, should be fed every day. Warm potatoes and bread crumbs will also make fat. Any kind of milk and a little sugar will likewise help along the fattening process, and this should be as fast as possible, for dur- ing these days the chicks will eat considerable, and if they do not lay on fat every hour it will be a losing operation. Squab Broilers—Small chicks, known to the trade as squab broilers, may be grown in eight to ten weeks in brooders kept in a room where the temperature is kept at about seventy degrees. The Rhode Island experiment station found that when marketed at this age they could be successfully raised without any out- side exercise. Celery fed broilers are broilers fed celery for a few days previous to killing, to flavor the flesh. Feed- ing celery for this purpose is but little practiced. lt originated with some duck growers who fed their ducklings celery to give the flesh a flavor similar to BROILERS, CAPONS AND ROASTERS 209 that of the wild ducks whose flesh is flavored by the wild celery which forms a part of their diet. Philadelphia broilers, as the term implies, are broilers raised in the vicinity of Philadelphia, and are mostly bought up by New York city dealers, or at least the best of them find their way to New York, simply because New York consumers are willing to pay more for good broilers than Philadelphia consumers. It is also well known that the broilers raised within thirty miles of Philadelphia are the best to be found. They are noted for plumpness, with clear, yellow skin. The breeds most desirable are White Plymouth Rock and White Wyandotte. For small broilers a White Leg- horn male crossed on White Plymouth Rock females will get the finest one and one-quarter-pound broilers that are put on the market. For one and one-half- pound broilers either White Wyandottes or White Rocks cannot be beaten. Being white, they dress off fine and do not show the pinfeathers like other colors. The method of feeding is four times a day for the first three weeks, then three times a day. At first the feed consists of equal parts of bran, brown middlings and corn chop, and some No. 2 flour to stick the mixture together. Put the flour on after wetting and mixing, and shake it through the feed. It takes ten days to fatten the chicks, and the fattening feed should consist of four parts corn chop and one part bran. Wet and mix and use flour same as above. Confine the chicks in close quarters while fattening, and any which do not come up to the standard in ten days should be thrown out where they can range for at least two weeks. A healthy chick will get very fat in this time. , Feed light for the first two days. Give fresh water every feed, feed only twice, and give all they can eat. Take away what is left as soon as they 210 MAKING POULTRY PAY stop eating. Against the wall place coops eighteen inches square, with slat front, with six-inch board run along in front to set the feed and water on. Put six chicks in each coop. Give plenty of grit; crushed flint is best. When ready to ship, kill and pick dry, and if enough are ready at once the best thing to ship in is a barrel. If small quantities are shipped use an egg case, butter crate or any kind of a box. Broilers are very tender and should have a small quantity of either clean straw or excelsior on top and bottom to keep them from chafing. Cool thoroughly in ice water before packing and in warm weather use crushed ice on top, then the excelsior on top of the ice. Philadelphia broil- ers can be raised anywhere once the trick is learned, yet it will require some experience to get them so nice and fat that they appear almost like squabs. With strong, healthy breeding stock, which lay good, fertile eggs, the victory is half won—[G. A. Fetridge. CAPONS AND CAPONIZING A capon is a castrated cock, especially when fat- tened. The object in caponizing is to secure quality and size, but quality is the most desirable. To secure this, much depends on both the breed and the feed. To secure the best capons, the birds must be given plenty of time to mature, and cannot, therefore, be marketed while young. A few months’ old capon is no better than a cockerel. In fact, age does not impair the quality of a capon, provided the bird is not kept over a year and a half, as it more readily fattens after reaching maturity than before that time. The one great mistake in raising capons is in marketing them too early. BROILERS, CAPONS AND ROASTERS 21IT The demand, consequently the market for capons,. is a peculiar one. While there is a very limited demand during the entire year, the bulk of them are sold between the holidays and spring. The turkey holds the place of honor at Thanksgiving, divides it with ducks and geese at Christmas and New Year’s,. and when these are past, there is more inquiry for capons, which continues till April or May. So little call is there for them outside of this season, that many, if not all dealers, cease quoting prices at other times. The profit in capons is a moot question. It will not pay to perform the operation on any but the larger breeds, and there are many individuals and many localities where it will not pay at all. While good! capons usually sell for somewhat higher prices than roasting chickens, the difference in price between the two is less than formerly. In Boston, it is said that the larger part of the capons are dressed clean, and sold as “south shore roasters.” A capon must be fed for so long a time before marketing that the feed bil! eats up a large part of the extra price. Many poultrymen say that there is more profit in. keeping pullets for eggs in the space that would be occupied by capons. But locality and circumstance must decide this point. A poor capon will bring no more than a chicken. The small sizes,of capons, about: five or six pounds, sell quite readily, but at lower prices. The large ones weighing nine, ten and twelve pounds, or even more, bring higher prices per pound. They take the place of turkeys to a considerable extent. . Capons grow rapidly and mature early, as they are quiet and peaceable. Thcir flesh remains soft and juicy, like that of a young chicken, and as a rule, they bring considerably more per pound than natural birds. They are most in demand from after the holidays and 212 MAKING POULTRY PAY until June and are not commonly marketed until from eight to fourteen months of age. Capons make more weight for the feed they eat than do other fowls, as their only ambition is to eat and rest, two things which are favorable to the production of fat and growth. A flock of capons are quiet, do not crow and are easily ‘taken care of. The best breeds to caponize are the medium sized varieties such as Plymouth Rocks, Wyandottes, Rhode Island Reds, etc. The Asiatics do not give as satis- factory results unless kept until they reach maturity, when they are so large as to be beyond the reach of private families. It does not pay to caponize smaller ‘breeds, for they do not produce dressed fowls of the ‘highest quality. A cross of the Dorking or Indian ‘Game on Light Brahma, or a Pit Game on a Houdan- Brahma hen, will produce very fine capons. A pen of ‘fine capons, mostly Brahmas, are shown in Figure go. The Operation—Birds are three months old. They are confined to the table by straps and weights -around legs, wings and neck. A space of several square inches is plucked clean, a slit made with a sharp knife between the last two ribs one and one-half inches long. The ribs are held apart with a wire spreader, ‘the intestines are moved back, the organs found and removed by a twist with the spoon hook. Apt students complete the operation in about three minutes. To avoid needless cruelty the beginner should ‘practice first with a dead fowl. The operation is best ‘performed on chickens about three months old, although it will succeed if carefully done on older ‘birds, but the percentage oftleaths, slips and culls will be greater. As with many other operations, this is one that can be learned most readily by seeing it done, and we advise those who would undertake it to procure 213 BROILERS, CAPONS AND ROASTERS SNOdVO NIHOOD GNV VWHV4d 40 Nad—o6 ‘ord 214 MAKING POULTRY PAY instructions wherever it is available. Still, if one has a little confidence, he will meet with success if the directions here given are carefully followed. In the first piace a table is needed, in which a few screw rings are inserted at convenient places ; these are furnished with broad tapes, by which the bird is securely held during the operation. Two FIG. QI—CAPONIZING TABLE styles of tables are shown in Figures 91 and 92, but a barrel can be used. A set of tools is shown in Figures 93, 94 and 95. Place the bird upon the table and fasten it down upon its left side, as shown at Figure 92, where the rings and ropes are seen. Straps with weights may be used instead. The spot where the opening is to be made is shown by the .v. Here the feathers are plucked and an opening is made through the skin with a pair of sharp-pointed, long-bladed scissors, or a lance made for the purpose. The skin is drawn to one side and an opening is made with the instrument between the last two ribs for an inch and a half in length, great care being taken not to wound the intestines. The ribs are then separated by the U-shaped spring hook, so as to expose the inside. The intestines are gently moved out of the way with the handle of a teaspoon and the glands or testicles will be seen attached to the back. The tissue which covers them is torn open with the hook, aided by tweezers. The gland is then grasped with the forceps and the cord is held by the tweezers. The gland is then twisted off by turning BROILERS, CAPONS AND ROASTERS 215 the forceps; and when this has been done, the other one is removed in the same way. Care must be taken not to injure the blood vessel which is connected with the organs, as this is the only seat of danger in the operation, and its rupture will be fatal. The hook is then removed, and if the skin has been drawn back- yf Wr FIG. 92—-POSITION OF FOWL ON OPERATING TABLE ward at the outset it will now slip back and cover the inner skin which covers the intestines, and close the opening. No stitching is needed. A few feathers are drawn together on each side of the opening and plastered down on the skin with the blood, where 216 MAKING POULTRY PAY they will dry and form the best possible covering to the wound, which will begin to heal at once. The bird should be fed with a very little milk for a few days after the operation, but should have plenty of water. For two nights and one day before the operation no food or water should be given to the bird. This will greatly facilitate the work, and reduce the chances of loss. The operation, after a few successful trials, may be performed in less than three minutes; and by the use of the rings and taps, no assistance is needed. PHILADELPHIA FIG, 93—-SET OF CAPONIZING TOOLS Examine the bird daily after the operation, until the wound is healed. The skin may puff up with air, and if this occurs an opening should be made with a needle inside a quill. Withdraw the needle, leaving the quill in, and press out the air, then remove the quill. The one great mistake in raising capons is in marketing them too early and not having them fat enough. After caponizing keep them growing until they reach full size, which will take from six to ten BROILERS CAPONS AND ROASTERS 217 months. Then fat them. This can be done in two weeks by shutting them in a small, dark coop and feeding three times a day all they will eat of corn meal and middlings mixed up with milk. CUT 2 [ tin FIG, Q4——-TWEEZERS, SPRING HOOK, WIRE HOOK The New York operating expert, I. C. H. Cook, writes: “Some care should be exercised in performing the operation lest the large artery following along the backbone is ruptured, since that would cause the immediate death of the chicken; still there is no loss, for he only provides us with a good broiler! Then, too, another thing to expect is from fifteen to twenty-five per cent ‘slips’—these are cockerels on which imper- fect operations were performed, and as they mature the comb grows, and to all appearances they are roost- ers. Possibly the most important factor of all in a TM [mmr TT io, 0 0 FIG. 95—-SPOON FORCEPS successful operation is having the cockerel at the proper age. I am better acquainted with the Plymouth Rocks than any other breed, and with them about three and one-half months seems to be the proper age. 218 MAKING POULTRY PAY Those breeds which mature much earlier, like the Leg- horns, should be operated upon much younger, while a Brahma could possibly be caponized when five or six months old, and not have much danger attending the work. “As soon as caponized the chicken should be given all the ground feed and drink it wishes, for it is hun- gry, since, in order to facilitate matters, the cockerel should be fasted about thirty hours previous to the operation; in three days’ time the wound should be healed over, and in two or three weeks it would be quite difficult to find even a scar. “Now we have a bird that will put on flesh at a surprising rate, the meat is of a delicious flavor and very tender and juicy, and with the same amount of feed, a capon will weigh about a third more at a given age than if left as a rooster. It is well worth the trouble to have the noisy young cockerels transformed into quiet, lazy birds, even if we were recompensed in no other way, but the price to be obtained for capons is what pleases the grower of them most of all, as the regular quotations range from six to ten cents above the ordinary chicken. I well remember the first year I engaged in this department of my poultry work, when I sold twenty capons averaging eight pounds each at twenty-five cents per pound, one of which dressed nine and one-half pounds, and a well-known lawyer paid me $2.37 for the same. So we see the advantages are threefold—a better price, a larger bird and a quiet bird. “The question usually comes up, What is the best breed for capons? All breeds. That is, whatever variety of fowls one has, by all means caponize your surplus cockerels; but for market purposes the larger breeds are of course preferable. The Plymouth Rock, for instance, is as good as the best; I, at least, am BROILERS, CAPONS AND ROASTERS 219 perfectly satisfied with them, and come to this con- clusion after trying several other breeds. But the best results in this as well as in any other line of work are attainable only by persistent effort, and doing it all in a thorough, businesslike way, having perfection as our goal and watchword, and then strive to win it.” Experience with’ Capons—An Ohio poultryman who has made a success of capon rearing is J. G. Hover. He writes: “My attention was drawn to capons by seeing them quoted in the New York mar- kets at eighteen to twenty-six cents per pound. I con- cluded I would produce some and take my chances on learning how to caponize, feed, fatten, butcher, pack and ship. When young market fowls were selling at five to six cents per pound, eighteen or twenty cents seemed an enormous advance. My first experience was with fifty-one Barred Plymouth Rock. cockerels, which weighed at the time of the operation in October three to six pounds each. It took me nearly two and one-half days to perform the operation. I could have done it much more rapidly if the birds had not been so big and strong. Forty-five of the birds survived. Under more favorable circumstances and with more experience, the loss of six of the fifty-one would have been a large percentage. “T did not give them any special care through the winter, but just let them run with the other farmyard fowls until about three weeks before shipping, when they were separated from all others and fed alone on corn, corn meal and bran mixed with plenty of fresh water. Oyster shells were provided freely. They had not been crowded any through the winter and only weighed when dressed five and one-half pounds each. Forty were sent to market and sold for eighteen cents per pound and brought $39.24, or nearly one dollar each. The feathers were very nice, as they were 220 MABRING POULIRY PAY picked dry, and sold for ten cents per pound, which more than made up the dollar. Capons must be large and fine to bring the best price. They should weigh from seven to ten pounds, or more, each. As near as I can estimate the cost of these capons was forty cents each, leaving in even numbers sixty cents for profit, or $24 for the lot. This I considered very satisfactory returns for the first attempt. “Remember this was some years ago, the sale being made in the spring of 1892, but as good or better results can be secured now by selecting heavy breeds and giving them good care and feed. Keep them growing rapialy. It will not pay to caponize cockerels of small breed, as they will weigh but a few pounds and sell at a low price. The size and development of the bird determines the time to caponize and not the age. No bird that weighs less than one and one-half pounds should be operated upon. Two pounds is just right.” THE SOFT ROASTER INDUSTRY The farmers along the south shore of Boston Bay of eastern Massachusetts have developed a special poultry industry which requires the most labor during the winter months and the least amount in summer. This section of the state is essentially a locality of small farms. On the largest plant, with a capacity of 6000 chickens a year, one man in addition to the pro- prietor does all the work. Soft roasters are fowls which have nearly reached maturity and are marketed while the flesh is still soft. The demand opens in a small way in January and continues until midsummer. The best prices are real- ized in May, June and July and usually reach thirty cents per pound live weight. The market opens at BROILERS, CAPONS AND ROASTERS 221 fifteen to twenty cents per pound and rises as the demand and season advances. The fowls used for this purpose are Light Brah- mas and Plymouth Rocks. The incubators are started in August with Brahma eggs and the hatching con- tinues until the following April. A few farmers keep their own breeding stock, but most of the growers purchase the eggs of farmers or villagers who keep fowls for this purpose and contract the eggs at fifty FIG. Q6—COLONY HOUSE FOR SOUTH SHORE ROASTERS cents per dozen for the season. Brahmas have long been the popular breed, but are being rapidly sup- planted by Plymouth Rocks, especially the White vari- ety. When pullets can be sold at thirty cents per pound live weight there is a great tendency to sell the larger birds. Added to this the fact that the smaller pullets mature the quickest and lay the most eggs, explains why the Brahmas have been allowed to dete- 222 MAKING POULTRY PAY riorate in size. Because Plymouth Rocks as now bred approach closely to the size attained by Brahmas in this locality, mature one to two months quicker and will lay more eggs, explains why they are becoming so pop- ular. Plymouth Rocks also have the advantage over Wyandottes and Rhode Island Reds in being from one to two pounds heavier. After the chicks are hatched they are placed in the brooders where they are kept until they feather out and are able to get along without artificial heat. Both the long, continuous brooder and individual brooders are used. After the chickens are feathered, or when they are from ten to twelve weeks old, they are placed in colony houses six by eight feet in size as shown in Figure 96. Fifty chickens are put in a house. No roosts are provided in the houses, which are cleaned out once or twice during the season. The fowls are given free range and as snow seldom lays on the ground longer than two or three days at a time, they are out doors practically every day. They are fed exclusively on cracked corn and beef scrap which is kept in self feeders constantly before them. They are also provided with water. and green food is furnished in the form of cabbages, etc. Most of the cockerels are caponized. Some of the growers perform the operation themselves, while others hire experts to do it. The loss is small, but about twenty-five per cent will prove to be “slips.” Two or three men make a business of buying, kill- ing and dressing the fowls. With large wagons they visit the raisers once a week and together pick out what chickens are ready for market. It is a nice point to know just when a roaster is ripe. This is the point when they will cease to make profitable gains. With the pullets it is when they begin to lay. A Brahma pullet may lay for a week or two without materially BROILERS, CAPONS AND ROASTERS 223 changing the quality of the flesh, but the flesh of Plymouth Rocks and other breeds changes very quickly at this time. The fowls are always bought alive by weight at the ruling market prices. They are bled in the mouth, picked dry, thrown at once into ice water and allowed to cool. They are then hung up to dry and the next morning packed in shipping cases and sent to market. Such prices can only be expected in localities which appreciate and are willing to pay for a high grade of poultry. The breeding stock for laying is selected from January and February-hatched Brahma pullets and February and March-hatched Plymouth Rocks. This gives a hint of the value of early hatching to get winter layers. CHAPTER IX The Market End The table is the end of all good fowls, and whether they be high-priced thoroughbreds or common mon- grels their utility points for egg and meat production must ever be kept prominently to the fore. Fine feathers make fine birds only when they are useful for utility purposes. The great value of thoroughbred or “fancy” poultry, as it is commonly called, lies in the fact that they are of larger and more uniform size, better layers and will return a larger profit in eggs or growth for the food consumed than will mongrels. Many look with scorn upon thoroughbreds, saying and believing that they are less hardy than mongrels. There is some truth in this, for thoroughbreds have been more or less closely bred in order to fix the breed or variety characteristics. This close breeding, often done by those who do not clearly understand the laws of breeding, has resulted in imparting less vigor to their stock. It is the law of nature that all animals whose living comes easy soon lose the ability to “rustle” for their living. The Jersey cow is not so hardy as the range cow, but this is nothing against her. The man who would keep Jerseys under western range conditions would be a fool. So also the man who will take a flock of high bred fowls, turn them out in his barnyard to seek their living and let them roost in trees or sheds, will be surely disappointed, as he ought to be. A flock of one variety will lay eggs of uniform size and color, will dress off about the same in size. Either alive or dressed they will command a better price than a flock of nondescripts. The only way to 224 THE MARKET END 225 get such a flock is to choose one variety and stick to it. Don’t breed from a Plymouth Rock one year, the next year a Leghorn to increase egg production, and a Brahma to add size the year following, or you will have a flock of all colors, sizes and shapes. Stick to one kind whatever it may be and in the long run you will come out ahead. _ Fresh eggs in the farmer’s and housekeeper’s mind and “fresh” eggs to the mind of the dealer are different commodities. To the latter all eggs which have not been in storage are “fresh.” “New laid” is a term which is now applied to eggs laid within a week or two, The storage business has grown to such large propor- tions that thousands of cases of eggs are now put in cold storage during the spring months to be taken out when the price and conditions warrant. Many of these are sold as “fresh” or country eggs. The farmer or poultry keeper who is in a position to do so will get the most money from his flock by selling the eggs direct to consumers. This can only be done advantageously where the eggs can be delivered each week. All dirty eggs must be washed clean, and if the eggs are crated and shipped it will pay to grade them as to size and color. Brown shell eggs are liked best in New England and command a premium; in New York spotless white eggs are worth most. In the west and south no difference is made for color of shell. Eggs should be gathered every day and all from “new” nests and those about whose age there is any doubt kept separate and candled. One bad egg will often lose a good customer. Cases holding thirty dozen filled with pasteboard fillers which hold each egg separately are universally used for shipping and stor- age. A variety of styles of boxes and baskets are used for shipping eggs for hatching. Anything that is neat 226 MAKING POULTRY PAY and clean and that will keep the eggs from breaking will do for this purpose. A good way is to wrap each egg in excelsior, pack in baskets and mark in large letters EGGS FOR HATCHING. It will not hurt the eggs to wash them if they are washed clean, and then wiped clean and dry. The objection to poor washing of eggs is that it often simply serves to fill every pore of the shell with matter which stops evaporation. To illus- trate, an egg smeared by the breaking of another egg might have half or less of the pores stopped up. If carelessly washed the broken egg might be only thinly and evenly distributed over the entire shell. In that case it is evident that it would have been better not to wash. But if the washing is well done it is an advantage. Take clean water that is warm enough to loosen the dirt. If that is very adhesive let the eggs soak awhile—but never use water hot enough to cook the egg next the shell. Don’t attempt to rub the eggs hard. I prefer a bit of soft sponge for the washing, and a soft cloth to dry the eggs, though I only dry them when to be sold (market eggs). The eggs I set I wash clean and let dry in the air. There can be no bad effects if the eggs are clean. There may be a slight staining of the shell, which is of no consequence when the eggs are to be incubated, but does not look well on eggs offered for sale. If many soiled eggs are to be washed use small quantities of water, and change often. Using water that has become thick with the stuff washed off the eggs causes most of the trouble which makes some warn against washing eggs. $ toring eggs for winter use is frequently done by the thrifty housewife who gets them when they are plenty and cheap. There are many recipes for holding eggs but only two have been proved good by compara- tive tests. These are water glass and. the lime and salt solution, Greasing the eggs, packing in oats or bran THE MARKET END 227 or any of the other ways sometimes recommended, does not give as satisfactory results. The requisites for success in keeping eggs are strictly fresh or new laid eggs kept in a cool dark place. Place the eggs in a stone jar or wooden tub and cover them with a solution of one part water glass (silicate of soda) in ten parts pure soft water. The cellar is a good place to set the jar. Water glass can be obtained of most druggists, and is a heavy, almost colorless liquid costing from ten to thirty cents per pound. It sometimes comes in powder form when it must be dissolved by boiling in water for two to three hours, then when cool dilute with ten parts water. Eggs will keep perfectly in this solution for eight to twelve months. The other for- mula is to mix one pound fresh stone lime and one-half pound table salt with four quarts boiling water. After slaking and settling draw off the clean liquid and pour over the eggs so as to cover them. This is an old- fashioned method but is very effective. Eggs kept in water glass or lime water and salt may be taken out during fall and winter and sold for packed eggs at about five cents per dozen less than the price of fresh eggs. Many families can safely pack a few dozen to use for cooking purposes in winter, but whether it is a safe business venture to put down several hundred dozen is another question. The safest method, and the only one available on a large scale, is to use cold storage, where the eggs can be held at twenty-eight to thirty degrees Fahrenheit. A temperature below twenty-seven deerees is required to freeze the egg and split the shell SHIPPING LIVE POULTRY Crates should be built with solid board bottoms, sattice sides, ends and tops, the slats being not over 228 MAKING FOULTRY PAY one and one-half inches wide. For turkeys and geese, the inside measurement should be forty-six inches long, twenty-eight inches wide and twenty-two inches high. For all smaller fowl they should be inside forty-six inches long, twenty-six inches wide and sixteen inches high. No crate, at any time, should have in it over 100 pounds poultry, large or small. Water and feed them regularly and keep them out of rain and sun, and you will thereby not only treat them as you would like to be treated, but bring them to the purchaser in the best possible condition. Old hens usually bring the best prices in the early fall and winter, but old roosters do not pay for the labor and cost of sending them to market. In selling off the stock in the fall send only the small stock and the fat hens that do not lay. Old hens sell as well as pullets. The main point is to have them fat, as that covers all other defects, provided they are healthy. Never send a sick fowl to market; it may die on the way and serve to depress prices by casting suspicion on all the others. When the weather is settled cold, the fowls may be shipped alive or dressed. Hens that are only one or two vears old are termed old hens when they are really young and in their prime. To dispose of surplus stock, when prices are very low, all join hands and have a killing day. Put a large pot on the stove, kill and dress the birds, put them into the pot and boil till tender. Have glass jars or tin cans ready and fill with chicken pouring the juice on top, cover with fat or melted butter and seal while hot. It will keep through the year and can then be pre- pared in many different wavs for the table. It makes a convenient dish for unexpected company. THE MARKET END 229 DRESSING AND SHIPPING POULTRY After the first of November it will pay better to send poultry dressed rather than alive. Do not feed for twenty-four hours before killing. Bleed the fowl through the mouth. A clean cut with a sharp-pointed knife across the mouth just below and under the eyes will do the business. A half-minute will be all-sufficient to bleed, and when the bird begins to struggle, give it a smart blow on the back of the head and begin the picking at once. FIG. Q7—-SHAPING RACK AND FOWL ‘ Fowls for Boston market should always be dry picked, as scalded poultry will surely be cut from ten to twelve per cent. For the New York market it is immaterial, as, other things being the same, the price will not vary much between dry picked and the scalded. Chicago and most western markets prefer dry picked. At the molting season, young stock will look and pay about as well if scalded as if dry picked. This should be quickly done in water nearly up to the boil- ing point, then pick perfectly clean, dip immediately 230 MAKING POULTRY PAY into very hot water and then lay in cold water for fifteen minutes. If a little salt is added to the water it will draw the blood out of the skin. After the chicken has been plucked, it should be placed on a shaping board, as shown in Figure 97. The weight placed on the top of the chicken is used to give it a compact appearance. This weight may be of iron or a brick will answer. If chickens are hung by the legs after being plucked it spoils their appearance, making them look thin and leggy. Whether scalded or dry picked the fowls should be carefully packed, breast down, and (if shipped any distance) with layers of clean straw between. Most of the Boston dealers prefer poultry drawn, but that sent to New York and to Chicago and western cities in general is not drawn. Undrawn poultry keeps best. Many good chickens are spoiled by being packed before they are thoroughly cooled. Care should be taken that all the animal heat is out of the body before the fowls are packed. In packing for dry shipment, the case should be clean and strong enough to carry tlie contents well. Barrels or cases holding about 200 pounds are the most satisfactory. For packing mate- rial clean, dry hand-threshed wheat or rye straw is best. Place a layer in the bottom, then alternate layers of poultry and straw. Place the backs of the fowls up and the legs out straight, filling so that the top layer will fit down closely upon the contents of the package. Pains must be taken to have every fowl perfectly drv before putting in the packing case. All blood remain- ing about the mouth must be removed with a damp cloth. If the fowls are to be shipped in ice, use only poultry or sugar barrels. These latter must be thor- oughly washed so that they will not contain any traces of sugar. Place a laver of cracked ice in the bottom THE MARKET END 231 of the barrel, then alternate layers of poultry and ice until the package is nearly full. Over the top layer of poultry place a layer of ice, then a piece of burlap, and finally a layer of cracked ice on which the head rests. Pack the poultry breasts down and back. up, with the legs out straight towards the center of the barrel, making a ring of fowls side by side around the outside. The middle of the barrel may be filled with fowls so that the top may be level. The methods of dressing capons vary somewhat for different markets, and it is wise for the grower to learn from the dealer or commission merchant in the market to which he purposes shipping as to any special demands. They are usually, and always for best mar- kets, dry picked. It is customary with most growers to leave on the feathers of the neck, tail and wings; some leave on more than others, but the carcass must show up its plump proportions and rich yellow color. For they must be well fattened. For the English market, fowls of about five pounds weight, dressed, are the best size. They want a bird with a white flesh and skin instead of a yellow, and they object to black legs or feathers on the legs. While the Plymouth Rock and Wyandotte have yellow flesh and legs, the color can be influenced considerably by the feed. Oats and skimmilk have a tendency to make them light colored. Turkeys are killed, dressed and shipped in the same manner as fowls. Never allow them to freeze; this greatly injures their market value. Dry picked turkeys usually sell best in most markets. Dry picking is not the difficult task many consider it if rightly managed. It is easily and quickly done if picked at once while the body is still warm. The skin is not so apt to be broken or the flesh bruised as when picking those that have been scalded. In packing, be careful (232 MAKING POULTRY PAY to assort the fowls properly and place all of the same grade together, putting the toms or any not looking so nice in boxes by themselves. Place together the hen turkeys, which always have rounder, plumper bodies than the toms, and to sell well the packages should always be of uniform quality. When different quali- ties are packed together they are invariably rated with the inferior fowls. Many dollars are lost every year by not giving attention to this simple but important particular. It is best to have packages to weigh from 100 to 200 pounds, as these sizes are most conveniently handled. On the outside of boxes should be plainly written the contents, gross weight and name of the consignee as well as the consignor. Care in this respect will insure prompt delivery and_ returns. Shippers should manage to get in all of their largest turkeys for Thanksgiving; they are then wanted as large as can be produced. Medium sized hen turkeys sell better for the Christmas and New Year’s markets. After the holidays are over, eight and ten-pound birds sell best. When shipping poultry that is first-class in every respect, it is a good idea to neatly tag each fowl with the name and address of the sender. In this way a reputation may be gained that will enable him to always dispose of his stock at fancy prices. Ducks and geese are commonly scalded. Dip them in water nearly to the boiling point and lift up and down a few times. Then take out and wrap in a flannel blanket to allow the feathers to steam a few minutes, They can then be picked very quickly. A blunt knife is of great service in removing the pin- feathers, as with it one can seize the shortest and pull them. After picking throw the carcasses in cold water to cool, then dry and pack the same as poultry. All game birds should be shipped in their natural state—undrawn—except in very hot weather, when it THE MARKET END 233 is necessary to get the animal heat out in order to keep from spoiling. With proper care, stock can be for- warded in all seasons so as to arrive in good condition. Trapped birds are more desirable than those that have been shot. Game birds can be packed dry unfrozen, or frozen solid before packing, or packed with ice. Of late years venison saddles have sold higher as a rule when skinned than when sent with skin on. Whole deer, however, should never be skinned, but the entrails should be removed, including liver and lights, and the inside of carcass thoroughly washed with cold water. Hares and rabbits should never be drawn, and should be kept as free from blood as possible. CHAPTER X Waterfowl! Duck keeping as a business has assumed very large proportions within the past twenty years, some breeders raising as many as 20,000 ducks a year. They are marketed when ten to twelve weeks old, at which time they are very tender and much prized by epicures. On the farm where only a small flock is kept and raised the care of them is very simple. Damp, marshy land, not suitable for fowls, is well adapted to ducks and geese, particularly the latter. COMMERCIAL DUCK BREEDING Let us begin with the location of the plant. and that may be almost anything that you can get. While water is one of the almost necessary points, there are many leading breeders who do not have water running through their yards and do not consider it necessary. In establishing a plant, if you could select just what you wanted, I should advise choosing a place with a good, sizable pond or running stream of water, for in that way you would gain in the fertility of the eggs. The Pekin duck we advocate altogether because of the deep keel. In the improved type the breast line should be nearly parallel with the back and the breast should be nearly the same length as the back. The old line bird is something the shape of a Bartlett pear. Of course it is possible with the old type of bird to get a heavy weight, but the weight does not come in the right place; it is mostly back of the legs, which is where most of the waste comes, and there is no frame 234 WATERFOWL 235 to build on. In selecting birds for breeding I would choose preferably birds that only weigh from six to seven pounds apiece alive, and mate them carefully with medium-sized drakes. We used to mate five ducks to one drake, but now I should like to mate up in single pens one drake with five, six or seven females. We feed them lightly until November, when we generally mate them. We try not to force them this year, thinking that it destroys the vitality of the birds and the fertility of the eggs, and so we feed what we call “harmless food”—largely clover, perhaps one part clover and three parts bran and two parts corn meal, and no beef scraps. It is not the question how many eggs they lay, but what we get out of them. Asa rule we get less than 100 eggs rather than over. I think that ninety is nearer what we really get. Now if we get only ninety, it is a great point to get ninety good eggs, rather than so many poor ones. By forcing we destroy the fertility, yet the eggs are quite profitable if it does not take too much out of the breeding stock to get them. I would prefer not to have them begin to lay before some time in February. The first few eggs laid will not be very valuable, they are almost always infertile; perhaps the first two or three eggs from each breeder, and the first machinefuls do not average more than forty per cent fertile. If you hatch twenty-five per cent of them it will be doing well. If you try the eggs you will see that thirty-five or forty per cent comes nearer the average. After starting to hatch with hens and machines you will probably find that you average more with hens than machines, but if you average in either case fifty per cent you will be doing well, and even forty per cent will be doing fairly well. From the forty per cent you will naturally expect to raise eighty-five to ninety per cent of the ducklings, and that is all that you can expect, and. 236 MAKING POULTRY PAY seventy-five per cent will often cover those raised by experts. We feed the old breeding ducks, before we begin to force them for eggs, about a third clover and some- times plain hay and the rest bran and meal. The idea is to fill them up with something bulky and when they begin to lay we begin with five per cent of beef scrap and work up gradually, until in a week or so we will be giving them ten or twelve per cent. We keep water before them all the time. At a season of the year when it is possible we let them have it for swimming.— [George H. Pollard, Bristol County, Mass. In starting in the duck business the most impor- tant question that arises is personal adaptability. One must enjoy caring for the poultry, besides doing con- scientious work. The money that is in the duck busi- ness attracts a great many people. We always recom- mend starting in a small way, and if successful, go right ahead. The man who starts a $10,000 plant with a rush is usually in at the death. If one already owns -a farm, $1000 capital would give one a good start in the business; such an amount would be sufficient to cover all expenses—two incubators, a flock of about thirty ducks, a house for the breeders, a brooding house and heater, feed boards and water fountains, wire fencing, etc. Such a plant would keep one man busy and the future growth of his plant could be built on the profits. In buying breeding birds our experience tells us that it is folly to breed from small, undersized birds, and our advice to beginners is to get only the best; begin right. One pound difference in the weight of each market bird makes quite a difference in the receipts at the end of the season. The most suitable land for a duck farm is either sand or gravel, with a slope sufficient to give good WATERFOWL 237 drainage. We have never kept our ducks-in a marsh, or let them swim in water; but we think it would be an advantage to give the breeding ducks a marshy range if convenient. Pekin ducks never wander far from their night quarters, even when they have unlimited range. The ducks lay their eggs in the night, or very early in the morning. As a regular thing we gather them about 8 o’clock, but if the weather is extremely cold, we get them just as soon as it is light, to prevent any from freezing. We supply no nests for the ducks to lay in. They prefer to make their own nests in the different corners of the pen. The pens should be large enough to accommodate the number of birds put into them without crowding. We allow eight square feet to each bird, say forty ducks to a pen twenty-four by fifteen feet. In the early part of the season when the prices are very high, we begin to market our ducklings when they are nine weeks old. Later on, as the price drops,. we let them go till they are ten or eleven weeks old. In the hight of the season, we market on an average nine hundred ducks per week. It takes four men to dress that number. We usually begin to market the birds the last week in March, and continue until Thanks- giving time. On a large plant one must expect a greater per-- centage of mortality among the young stock than where only a few hundred are raised. Our loss is. estimated at fifteen per cent right through the season. The average annual egg production is from 130 to 140. The duck, when she begins laying her eggs in the latter part of the winter, is somewhat different from a hen. When she begins she will lay one egg and then rest two or three days, then lay a few more, and then start in for good, and never stop until she has laid her last egg in the fall—[John Weber, Norfolk County, Mass.. 238 MAKING POULTRY PAY Growing ducks require a plentiful supply of fresh water. About the only neglect that will kill young ducks is failure to provide them with plenty of fresh water, in a vessel deep enough for them to get their heads beneath the surface of the water. One of the new diseases to which ducklings are subject is sore eyes. This may be avoided if they have water con- stantly before them, deep enough to get their heads in and keep the eyes washed. A cheap and convenient water tank for ducks may be made of the bottom third of an old barrel. Saw the barrel off just above the second pair of hoops, making sure that the bottom is whole. Bore an inch hole in the bottom, and fit with a soft pine plug, and you have a cheap and convenient tank that only requires to be properly set in the ground to be ready for use. The best way to set such a tank is to dig a hole deep enough to make a blind drain of stones; on these stones arrange four bricks to support the tank, and fill in about it with earth firmly packed down. Figure 98 shows a section of tank so made, and the manner of making drain and the arrangement of the bricks. The tank is emptied daily by pulling out the plug. It takes about two water buckets full to fill the tank even full. When the drain becomes foul and gives off a bad odor, it can be thoroughly cleansed by pouring into it a bucket of water in which has been dissolved two tablespoonfuls of sulpho-napthol. After using the FIG. Q8—WATER TANK FOR DUCKS WATERFOWL 239 disinfectant, rinse the tank before refilling. Properly constructed the tank will last a long time. The breeding ducks keep clean and do better if they can have water to swim in. The eggs are more fertile, for they copulate in the water. Where no pond or stream is at hand a small pool can easily be made for them. Dig a square hole eight inches deep and as large as desired. Put eight-inch boards around the sides. Now tamp down the bottom hard and level, and coat the surface with an inch of cement, bringing the coating up to the top of the boards at the sides, of the same thickness as the bottom. Drive shingle nails thickly into the boards to give the cement some- thing to cling to. In the same way a pool for a “water garden” can be made for the growing of aquatic. plants. Keep this filled and clean out frequently, for it is quickly fouled. t CARE OF YOUNG DUCKS The ducklings are left for twenty-four to thirty- six hours in the incubator to dry off and get upon their feet, during which time they receive no food or water. Then they go to the brooder houses, which in large establishments are heated with hot water pipes. The pens are three or four feet wide by ten feet long, with a passageway along the back, and each pen holds from seventy-five to 150 ducklings. Here the duck- lings receive their first meal, which is the same as the regular rations which they are to receive afterward, viz, a mash of two-thirds bran and one-third corn meal, mixed with cold water or skimmilk. Ducks intended for market are not fed green stuff and an exclusive grain diet seems to give a firmer flesh. After the first four days the feed consists of corn meal and bran in equal parts and about one pound in 240 MAKING POULTRY PAY twenty of beef scraps. The amount of beef scraps is increased until at three weeks old they get about one- eighth scraps. This proportion is kept up until they are ready for market. This ration gives a white- skinned duck free from flabbiness. The houses and runs on a California duck ranch are shown in Fig- ure 99. HANDLING THE BREEDING STOCK The birds should be housed in warm quarters before the first of December, placing from thirty to d CM pIN TUBA nit Ut TL H juiilt ara FIG, QQO—.\ FEW PEKINS ON A CALIFORNIA DUCK RANCH thirty-five together in a.pen. Twelve by twenty feet will be large enough, if kept clean, with a yard of corresponding width outside 100 feet long. This will give the birds room enough to exercise in. These yards should have natural drainage, otherwise they will soon become filthy in the extreme. There is no WATERFOWL pee § harm in letting the birds out on pleasant days during the winter; snow is no objection, provided the weather is not too cold. They enjoy it hugely, espe- cially during a thaw. The pens inside should be kept dry and free from odors. This is absolutely essential, for though ducks are not as subject to disease as hens, they will not thrive in filth. Too often the health of the young bird is injured by the improper feeding of the mother bird during the laying season. This food should consist of the proper ingredients, in quantity just what the bird will eat clean, and no more. Grit is absolutely necessary, and is one of the essentials. We not only keep it, together with cracked oyster shells, in boxes constantly by them, but mix it in their food. They must have something during their con- finement during inclement weather to enable them to assimilate their food. One ingredient which we con- sider of the greatest importance is green food, which should compose nearly one-fourth of the whole. We use green rye which is cut three-eighths of an inch long, and mixed with the food. When there is prospect of snow we cut large quantities of this in a frozen state and pile it up on the north side of a building. It will not heat in this condition. Should this be used up, and the ground still be covered with snow, we have several tons of fine clover rowen stored for the purpose, which we consider next in value to the rye, so that we are never out of that material for feeding. We also grow about 1000 bushels of turnips, which we steam until they are soft, and mix them in the food. This the birds relish highly. My formula for feeding breeding and laying birds, when fertile eggs are desired, is as follows: For breeding birds (old and young, during the fall), feed three parts of wheat bran, one part of Quaker oat feed, one part corn meal, five per cent of beef scrap, five per cent of 242 MAKING POULTRY PAY grit, and all the green food they will eat, in the shape of corn fodder cut fine, clover or oat fodder. Feed this mixture twice a day, all they will eat. For laying birds, equal parts of wheat bran and corn meal, twenty per cent of Quaker oat feed, ten per cent of boiled potatoes or turnips fifteen per cent of clover rowen, green rye, or refuse cabbage, chopped fine, five per cent of grit. Feed twice a day all they will eat, with a lunch of corn and oats at noon. Keep grit and ground oyster shells constantly by them. We never cook the food for our ducks, after they are a week old, but mix it up with cold water—[James Rankin, Bristol County, Mass. WINTER QUARTERS FOR DUCKS AND GEESE Ducks and geese need dry winter quarters. This is absolutely essential. Scarcity of bedding or a low, damp floor will soon put a whole flock out of business. Rheumatism or leg weakness, accompanied by a gen- eral falling off in flesh, is the inevitable result of damp quarters. As breeding birds in off condition during the winter cannot possibly be early spring producers, the far-reaching results of a little neglect practiced now, probably in ignorance, are often visibl, felt in the receipts at the end of a season. Any shed that bids defiance to winds and rain and that has a floor at least six inches higher than the surrounding ground, is a fit place for quartering waterfowl during the inclement season. Feed the ducks near this shed at night and as soon as they have done justice to their meal drive them slowly without undue excitement into their quarters. The best door for this purpose is even with the ground, two feet high by three or four feet wide, fastened on hinges at the top and hooked, when open, with an iron hook on its WATERFOWL 243 upper edge. A button on its lower side will secure the door during the night. As this shed is aimed mainly to be night quarters, one four or six-pane sash is ample to admit sufficient light for the few days or hours of really bad weather when the birds must remain indoors. A shed eight by ten feet of floor space, six feet high in front and four feet in rear, is large enough to hold comfortably from twelve to twenty ducks or from six to ten geese. Let the temperature be your guide as to the sufficiency of air inside. If you find upon opening the house in the morning, that all walls are damp and the air close, ventilate more thereafter. The mixing of ducks and geese in one shed cannot be recommended, as owing to the quarrelsome habits of geese, the ducks would not get the peace and rest they must have at night in order to produce best results, Teach your geese from the beginning that they must not feed or mix with the ducks and soon they will not trouble you any more, when attending to the latter. Geese are not in need of a closed shed, such as mentioned, but should such a one be allowed them, leave the door open, as they always need plenty of fresh air. In order to make their home attractive to them, provide empty barrels in ail corners laid sidc- ways and securely fastened down; half fill them with straw and add a few china nest eggs. This will save many a step in spring hunting their eggs. Make them familiar with their surroundings and future nests and eggs stolen away will become rarities. Ducks lay at night or early in the morning and should be confined during the laying season until 8 or 9 o’clock in order that all eggs may be saved. aaa MAKING FOULTRY PAY KILLING AND PICKING DUCKS The Muscovy and Pekin ducks are the leading market birds. The Muscovy has to be from two to four weeks older than the Pekin before it can be dressed, and is sometimes four months old when killed. After a duck gets its age it is rather deceptive as to weight, as it is then fat and solid. Pure-bred Pekins of proper grade should weigh about eleven pounds per pair at eleven weeks old. The smaller birds serve a purpose in hotels and restaurants. A quarter of a bird is served to each customer, and in that way the smaller birds answer the purpose just as well as the larger, nicer-looking ones. It does not pay to raise these small birds as well as it does to raise the large ones, for it costs just as much to raise, dress and market them, and they will not reach the largest birds by one cent per pound, though there is a season when there is a call for the small birds. One great draw- back with ducks is that the shrinkage is so great as compared with other poultry that it seems a high- priced meat. In different parts of the country, modes of dress- ing differ. In the west they are headed and drawn and sometimes scalded, but generally dry picked. A dry-picked bird holds its color better than one scalded. ‘Scalded birds appear puffy and are likely to turn dark by exposure to the air. The market price of scalded birds would be from two to four cents per pound less than for dry-picked birds. In New England scalded birds could not be sold unless there was a shortage in the market. Green ducks are shipped with heads on and undrawn. They are picked down one-half of the neck and to the first wing joint. The feathers from the white ducks are quite valuable, being worth thirty- WATERFOWL 245 seven to thirty-nine cents per pound, and colored ones seventeen to twenty-three cents. The feathers would make quite a difference in the season’s profit were you using colored or white birds. You cannot get the colored birds without the colored pinfeathers, and of all distressing sights for the poultryman, a bird shot with pinfeathers is the worst. At the stage when they should be dressed for the greatest profit, if the pin- feathers are thick all over the bird, it is impossible to dress them so that they will not have a badly tattooed appearance. Pekin ducks as compared with Muscovys would dress at ten weeks, while the Muscovys would dress at fourteen. At twelve weeks the Pekin would require little pinfeathering. After killing, which is done by cutting in the roof of the mouth, and picking, the birds should, in warm weather, be thrown into cold water immediately after picking and allowed to soak, for an hour or two. Then the blood is washed out of the head and bill and feath- ers and they are thrown into a tank of ice water. By putting them in the warmer water first, it swells the flesh and closes the pores, then by putting them into the ice water all the remaining animal heat is expelled and they are left white, hard and firm. To give them the best shape they should be tied before going into the water. If the wings are folded close to the sides of the body and tied down, and the birds are put into the water, it gives them a better shape and appearance for market. In shipping, they can be kept from twenty- four to forty-eight hours in ice water but if kept longer than that they should be packed in ice. In ship- ping them to market, pack them in the same way if it is a two or three hours’ journey. Put in a barrel a layer of ice, then a layer of ducks, and on top of all put a layer of ice. The ice water trickling down among the ducks keeps them in good shape. 240 MAKING POULTRY PAY BREEDS OF DUCKS There are several breeds of ducks but only three kinds are popular with poultry keepers. These are f FIG. IOO—PEKIN DUCK Pekin, Muscovy and Indian Runner. There are sev- eral other breeds which are kept mainly for fancy WATERFOWL 247 ‘purposes, yet for the farm have some points of superi- ority to those mentioned. Pekins are most popular because of their early maturity, large size and prolific egg yield. They are kept almost exclusively by the large duck raisers who grow thousands annually. Figures 99 and 100 show _ a typical duck ranch and individual bird. Standard weights are, adult drake, eight pounds; duck and young drake, seven pounds; young duck, six pounds. FIG. IOI—AN OBJECT LESSON IN DUCK KEEPING The Indian Runner is a breed rapidly coming into popularity. It is aptly termed the Leghorn of the duck family, for it is a wonderful layer. Figure 1o1 gives a good illustration of the capacity of this breed. A good drake is shown in Figure 102. They are much smaller than Pekins, standard weights being, drake, four and one-half pounds; duck, four pounds. They are quite beautiful to look upon, the plumage being light fawn or gray and white. 248 MAKING POULTRY PAY The Muscovy is the largest of all ducks, the standard weights being, adult drake, ten pounds; duck and young drake, eight pounds; young duck, seven pounds. As commonly bred the drakes are much larger than the ducks. They have a peculiar appear- FIG. I102—INDIAN RUNNER DRAKE ance owing to the long, crest-like feathers on the head, the sides of which and the face are covered with caruncles. There are two varieties, the White and Colored, the plumage of the latter being a mixture of glossy black and white. : WATERFOWL 249. Other Varieties—The Rouen, which is larger than the Pekin, is very beautiful owing to the rich shades and markings of the plumage. The flesh is considered superior to that of the Pekins. The Aylesbury, a large, white breed, very popular in England, is little seen in America. Cayuga ducks are black and of the same size as Pekins. There are two varieties of Call ducks, the Gray and the White. These are smaller and kept mainly for ornamental purposes. The Black East India ducks are another fancier’s breed, likewise the Crested White, which are large. The Blue Swedish is a new breed to this country, a native of northern Europe, hardy, exceptionally good layers, and the meat is of fine quality. They have delicate plumage. The White Muscovy is probably the quietest of all breeds, the Pekin the noisiest. KEEPING GEESE FOR PROFIT The two great objections to geese are the noise they make and the fact that they spoil a pasture for other stock. Cattle or sheep do not like to graze where geese have been. Yet there should be a place for them on many more farms than they now occupy. Under the right conditions geese give better returns than any other poultry. By nature geese are more like a sheep or cow in habit of feeding than like poultry. They are essentially grazing animals and too much grain will spoil them. Pure air is of even more importance to geese than to cattle. They will not thrive if shut up in buildings. If you have not a good pasture, do not try to keep geese, or at least to raise many goslings. They can, however, be kept in yards, if fed an abundance of fodder corn, green rape, clover or other green feed, but this adds greatly to the expense. .250 MAKING POULTRY PAY While green pasture is important for maintaining old geese, it is indispensable food for young goslings. They must have fresh, tender grass in abundance at all times during the day, from the first day they eat to the time they are well feathered and have grown their wings. After that, those intended for market may be penned and fed green stuff and grain, but those intended for breeding should continue to have pasture and free range. If a large flock is raised, quite a pasture is needed to sustain them. It takes geese almost as long to reach full development as it does cattle or sheep, but they remain profitable for many years. Yearling geese are very poor breeders, two-. year-olds are better, and they only reach their best at three years of age. If one wishes to make a start in keeping geese, the best plan is to buy breeding stock early in the fall. They must not only become accustomed to their new quarters, but to each other, for geese do not mate readily and if put together after January 1 will often fail to breed that year. Old, well-mated geese of the highest quality are the cheapest and most profitable to buy. The best way to get the finest geese is to buy young ones, and to order them before they are hatched. Have the large early hatched specimens selected for you and delivered early in the fall. They must be kept at least one year without profit and two years before they will do their best, but in this way one knows the age of his stock, and in the end will get better results. MONEY IN GOOSE FARMING The breeding and growing of geese on a large scale for market and egg purposes could undoubtedly be made profitable if handled in a practical manner. WATERFOWL 251 It would be necessary to have farm range with plenty of pasture and sufficient water for the birds. It would not be necessary to have a small lake, as spring water or pond water is sufficient. Geese, as a rule, do not require much grain, as the young feed almost entirely on pasture. Our best goslings are grown to about five months of age with less than one peck of grain each. After that age, if good weights are desired, furnish them with grain food. The mature or breeding stock should be fed very lightly during the spring and summer months, as overfattened specimens are usually entirely worthless as breeders. The leading varieties for both market and egg purposes are the Toulouse, Embden, African, White and Brown Chinese. As a general purpose goose, in my opinion, the Toulouse leads all other varieties; the Embdens are about the same size as the Toulouse, but much poorer layers. The Chinese are a smaller goose, but the best layers of any variety. We have produced large numbers of young Toulouse at six months of age, weighing on an average of thirty-two to thirty-five pounds per pair, and Chinese averaging at six months of age, when in good flesh, twenty-four to twenty-eight pounds per pair. To obtain the best results in hatching it is necessary to use common hens to hatch and care for the young goslings. After the goslings are eight weeks old they may be safely turned in the field with the old geese. The young goslings after a week old should have free access to plenty of fresh, green grass, when no grain food will be required. Young goslings are very rapid growers and at eight weeks old will be over one-half grown, if properly cared for. Considerable revenue may be obtained from the feathers by picking the mature specimens some four or five times during the spring and summer months, 252 MAKING POULTRY PAY and early goslings may be also picked during the latter part of August and again in October, provided they are not being fattened for market. It would not be necessary to secure the best farming land for geese raising; on the other hand, geese would thrive much better in low, marshy land which had not been under- drained. If properly handled I see no reason why this industry should not prove a financial success.— [Charles McClave, Ohio. CARE OF BREEDING GEESE Two geese are usually sufficient for each gander, and they would do better to be in pairs during the breeding season. About February, when the geese begin to talk “goose talk,” about building a nest, the ganders will begin to tell you how many there are of them, which fact you might not have known before, for it is very difficult to distinguish the sex in geese. This distinction is very easily made by the ganders, who begin to decide supremacy. One gander will drive all others out of the pen, if they can get out, or injure them quite severely if they cannot keep out of his way. Now is a good time to divide the flock. Leave one or two geese with the boss gander, and remove the others to another pen, and in the same way continue to single out pairs or trios until you have them all separate. This is only for the starting year. After they are separated put leg bands on them and record the same for future reference. It’s a difficult matter to distinguish the young from the old in the fall, and the use of the leg band is the only way out of the difficulty. If holes are punched in the web of their feet they will grow up after a while, and the scar can hardly be found. WATERFOWL 253 Each pair or trio should have a separate room or small house with yard attached in which they should be kept from the time they begin to mate till the goslings are able to follow their parents without get- ting tired out, when it will do to allow them free range. The old geese will generally come to the house at night for several weeks after the goslings are hatched, and frequent the building during storms as long as the goslings remain unfeathered, after which they will stop outside night and day. For the reason that the three geese with their goslings are liable to need shelter even after nearly full grown, a pen eight by ten feet will be none too large for each trio. A yard twenty by forty feet will do during the breeding season, but if kept in a yard of this size they must be supplied with green stuff. That is the first thing the goslings want for feed, and the sooner they are let out on free range the better. As a rule each flock will keep separate during the entire summer. An occasional fight between ganders may take place. If a gander is very mean about fighting, better shut him up than the whole family, for it’s the gander only that will fight—[E. F. Barry. Geese are quite partial to their mates. One old gander does not like to change his mate every year and there is often trouble from a change. They will not try to get out of a lot unless separated from mates, when they will try very hard and often succeed. A gander should never be kept longer than three years, as young ganders insure greater fertility in the eggs. On the contrary, a goose of three years or over will lay more eggs and more fertile ones than will a younger one. In goose raising there is the further advantage that a large mumber can run together without proportionally decreasing the profits, as with other fowls. For breeders, select large birds 254 MAKING POULTRY PAY and those having a record as being early and good layers. Of most varieties mate one gander to two or three geese, possibly to four. An Embden gander will care for eight or ten, and an African for from fifteen to twenty. A low shed, open to the south, with straw on the floor, is all the shelter they usually need. They lay early in the morning, and should be penned until 9 a. m. in order that all the eggs may be gathered. ‘Boxes and barrels on their sides make good nests for them, or lacking these, geese will make their own nests of the litter on the floor. They commence to lay in March. The first clutch is ten to fifteen eggs, sometimes more. If not allowed to sit the goose will soon commence laying again and lay eight to ten eggs, and if not set will lav the third clutch of a few eggs, but the latter are not very fertile and the young are difficult to raise late. The early eggs are quite fertile. To get best hatches, the eggs should be gathered shortly after being laid, and well cared for, and in a reasonable time set in a warm place under a heavy hen. If well incubated the eggs hatch in twenty-eight days, but if not it will take thirty days; in the latter case one cannot expect a good hatch. Breeding stock during winter should have free access at any time to a trough containing whole oats. Only on very severe days a little whole corn might be given to keep them warm over night. The tendency of all geese is to lay on fat, and our efforts in conse- quence must be to keep the breeding stock from get- ting fat, that strong fertilizers and good hatching eggs may be produced. Distinguishing Sex—It is almost impossible to determine the sex of young stock. When they begin to mate one can easily tell them, but no one wants to WATERFOWL 255, keep a flock until spring in order to pick out the geese and ganders. Lay the bird down on a board and with the fingers you can press out the private parts of the male. This is the only reliable test that can be applied and is, of course, conclusive. THE GOOSE FATTENING BUSINESS This is carried on quite largely by poultry keepers in Rhode Island and eastern Connecticut. E. A. Cornell of Rhode Island, who does the largest busi- ness, thus speaks of his methods: “I fatten from 12,000 to 15,000 geese each season. I send out teams. to pick them up, and get them from the middle of April to the last of September. They are from eight to twelve weeks old when I begin to buy and will weigh from seven to nine pounds early in the season and later more. Through the summer I put about 100: in a pen forty to fifty feet square. Corn, meal and beef scraps is the feed used to fatten them. They are fed three times a day and heaviest at night in warm weather, as they will eat better in the cool of the day. They are fed from four to seven weeks. They are picked all but neck and wings and packed in barrels. with ice, from fifteen to twenty-two in a barrel, accord- ing to size. The average price received is sixteen cents per pound. Later in the season I have the wild mongrels, which command a higher price. They are a cross between the common African or Embden and the wild goose and bring twenty-five cents per pound in market at wholesale.” FEEDING AND FATTENING YOUNG GEESE When the young geese are hatched do not give them feed and water for the first thirty-six hours, or 256 MAKING POULTRY PAY if water, only a few drops from the finger tips. Their first feed should be bread crumbs, moistened with boiled sweet milk, and mashed up fine with a hard- boiled ege. After that for the first week feed boiled oatmeal, stale bread, potatoes, corn meal and bran moistened with milk, or scalded meal and_ shorts. Then add cracked corn and wheat. When three days old feed all the green food that they will eat, young sprouting rye, clover, purslane, onion tops, etc. Have plenty of water for drinking purposes near them, but in a vessel which they cannot get into, as they should be kept as dry as possible. They should be fed often, but not more than they will eat at one feeding. They should be kept clean, as they eat so greedily that they will devour droppings or anything, and filth is fatal to them. They need care for the first two or three weeks, after which they will look out for themselves. A good pen in which they can be kept during this time is made of four boards one to two feet wide and ten to fifteen feet long, nailed together at the corners. ‘This can be moved about from place to place over patches of young rye or tender grass, for a few young goslings will soon eat a place very clean of green food. They should always be housed at night, and have shade accessible during the day, as intense heat or dampness is fatal to them. When young they should not be allowed to run on the grass until the dew is off. Kill by severing the artery in the neck with a small, sharp knife, or by giving a sharp blow on the head. Let them bleed hanging up for about five minutes. Then plunge into boiling water for about twelve seconds, wrap in a cloth and let steam for five minutes. Pick immediately, beginning at the head, and the down will come off very easily. Care should be exercised in plucking young goslings, as the skin is WATERFOWL 257 often very tender and tears readily. Green goslings,. as young goslings are called, should not be drawn for market. After picking place in ice cold water for an hour to plump them. In eight weeks geese can be made to weigh eight pounds, and at the end of three months from fifteen to eighteen pounds, depending on the breed. Some large varieties will weigh twenty pounds the first. season. When they are from eight to ten weeks old they can be sold to those who make a business of fat- tening them for market, or may be fattened at home,. when they will bring much more. The fatter they are the better price they will bring, especially in Jewish quarters, as the Jews make extensive use of goose fat.. The best market for them is in June or early July. If not sold then, keep them and fatten for Christmas. Pen them three or four weeks before selling them, first putting them into water to clean their feathers, and then into a pen with clean straw. Feed scalded meal in a crumbly state with about one-fifth part meat scraps, or give cracked corn with water, or a little corn and always plenty of grass. They should be given all the food they will eat. Keep them quiet, for if excited or disturbed they will not fatten. Young geese are ready for market when the tips of the wings. reach the tail—[E. I. Cole. PICKING LIVE GEESE Geese should not be picked till after the laying season is over, as picking retards laying, and if done in cool weather subjects them to sickness. Ganders are first picked about April, and every seven or eight weeks thereafter. In plucking a goose, draw a stock- ing over its head, or you are apt to be bitten. Do. not pick the feathers that cover the wing butts, as 258 MAKING POULTRY PAY it will cause the wings to drop and means lots of trouble for the goose. Do not pick feathers growing in the back, or the down on any part of the body. If you tear the skin, which will not happen unless you take hold of too many feathers, put on a little pine tar. VARIETIES OF GEESE Of all the geese that the American Standard of Perfection speaks of, only three breeds come up to the FIG, I03—TOULOUSE GANDER requirements of the farmer, who sees more than any- one else to the actual market value of a bird, Toulouse, WATERFOWL 259 Embdens and Africans are breeds that will do their best to bring an extra penny. They have the weight when matured that makes them desirable, the hardi- ness that causes their eggs to hatch well and their young to live, and the meat qualities that are in demand in the city markets. BEE RR Saeed FIG. I104—-AN EMBDEN GANDER The Toulouse (Figure 103) are about as good as any. They are easily confined, as they are too heavy to fly and too large to get through a good fence, are strong and hardy, small feeders and good layers, commencing to lay early. They grow rapidly, are 2090 MAKING POULTRY PAY gentle and quiet, weigh well, have good feathers and many. of them: . The principal objection to them is their color, which is gray. The Embdens (Figure 104) are white, very hardy, weigh as much as the Toulouse, mature a trifle earlier and are better mothers. The Chinese (Brown, Figure 105, and White) are the best of all layers and have a graceful, swan- FIG. IO05—-FLOCK OF BROWN CHINESE GEESE like look on account of their long necks, but are too small to be very profitable. The Africans (Figure 106) grow the quickest, lay as many eggs as the Toulouse and have very nice flavored flesh. They are little known in the west, but are great favorites in the east, many preferring them to any other breed. African geese have a large head with a large knob and generally have a dewlap under the throat. These and the Chinese geese are different from the others in the head and are the only two WATERFOWL 261 breeds that have a knob on the head. The bill of the: African is rather large and stout at the base and. their necks are long. The wild or Canada geese are kept pure by a few breeders. They are easily domesticated. The. FIG. IO6—PAIR GRAY AFRICAN GEESE. ganders are used largely for crossing to give the mongrel geese spoken of on Page 255 by Mr Cornell. The Egyptian is a small colored breed kept bv fanciers CROSS BREEDING Good Africans are as large as the best Embden or Toulouse geese, grow faster and larger than either 262 MAKING POULTRY PAY up to midsummer, the time goslings should be mar- keted. They also lay the largest eggs, and almost equial the Toulouse in number produced. They are good sitters, and therefore will not lay so steadily. The African ganders are like Leghorn males among fowls, the most active and attentive ganders of any of the large breeds. They may be given four times as many geese as the Toulouse ganders, and twice or three times as many as the Embden males, and rarely fail to insure highly fertile eggs. The only drawback of this most valuable and important breed is its dark bill and skin, and the fact that it is harder than the others to pick. When dressed, the white gosling leads it in price. A greater number of large goslings will usually be secured from pure Africans than from Embdens or Toulouse mated straight. By mating an‘Embden gander with African geese, he will be more attentive than to either Embden or Toulouse geese, thus insuring a high per cent of fertile eggs, while a majority of the goslings raised will come white in plumage, and with yellow bills and legs. An African gander mated with Embden geese will insure more fertile eggs than if an Embden gander is used, and many of the goslings will be of the desired color for market. An Eimbden gander mated with Toulouse geese, while not so sure to give as high per cent of fertile eggs as an African, will usually insure excellent results, a large number of goslings, most of which will be light or white. For Christmas geese this is the most desirable cross, and gives the largest light colored goslings. The Toulouse gander in this sort of cross- ing has no place, and can be dispensed with. Failing to secure African ganders of the right sort, Brown China or African-Brown China cross gan- ders may be used with about as good results. They are still more active than .\fricans, but are smaller, WATERFOWL 263 not so hardy to stand cold winters, and their goslings partake of their nervous, excitable nature, and do not take on flesh, or fatten, as readily. However, where size of goslings is of little importance, or where a medium sized bird is desired, and especially where no preference is shown whether goslings dress white or dark, or whether the bills or legs are yellow or dark, the Brown Chinas, bred pure, will be the most profit- able of all breeds; their sharp voice will be a draw- back—[Samuel Cushman in Farm Poultry. BREEDING AND KEEPING SWANS Swans are the most graceful of all breeds of waterfowl and where one wishes to beautify. a pond they add more than any other breed to the scenery. Their keeping is easy, provided surroundings are con- genial. Ponds that are freshly fed by springs and that have shallow banks, covered with vegetation, are their favorite abiding places. Make an artificial float, cov- ered with a small, partly uncovered house, and anchor the same in the middle of the pond, and you have the best kind of breeding place for them. Cover it three inches deep with straw and then allow their instinct to do the rest. Swans mate in pairs and the female, if more than two years old, is a good persistent sitter and watchful mother. She will take her young on the water within two days after hatching and will guard their every movement with maternal care. Feed them three times daily with chopped greens, such as lettuce, watercress and young rye, and when five days old add some finely broken bread. Throw this in the water, teach them a certain call, and they will soon learn to come to you for their feed. When four weeks old wheat, buckwheat 204 MAKING POULTRY PAY and cracked corn may be given them, placed in troughs along the water’s edge. A swan will lay from twenty-two “to thirty eggs annually, and if, as said, all conditions are favorable, a large percentage of them should hatch and live. They are hardy and do not need any extra houses or care, even in the coldest winter. Treat them as you would treat old and hardened geese. Great precaution should be exercised in buying mated stock birds, as many irresponsible breeders sell two male swans for a pair. The goose test, if applied to swans, will reveal their sex, i A qi) CHAPTER XI Turkeys, Guineas, PeafowIs The turkey is a funny bird For everybody knows That when we “dress” we undress him ;— That is—take off his clothes. And then he must be dressed again And all sewed up, or tied,— How odd! For now the “dressing” is All put in his inside! A. G. BUTLER. SELECTION AND CARE OF BREEDING TURKEYS No poulterer can hope to become a successful turkey raiser who resides in the midst of a thickly settled neighborhood, and must therefore keep his stock in close quarters. A prime requisite at the start is to secure the best stock, even at fancy prices. For vigor, hardiness, numbers and immunity from disease, the stock raised from a cross between the American wild and the domestic, a cross producing the Bronze. turkey, is most satisfactory. Too great an admixture of wild blood, while it gives increased hardiness, decreases size, as does also breeding from young gob- blers. One gobbler may run with a flock of from twelve to twenty hens. The best results in breeding are from old gobblers not related to the hens. Go to an expe- rienced turkey grower two or three weeks before Thanksgiving and select a good tom, not necessarily 265 266 MAKING POULTRY PAY the largest in the flock, but rather the brightest. Pick the one that flaunts his plumage most proudly and is quickest to resent a strange noise with the loudest gobble, and be sure he is a greedy eater. The one that meets you at the barn door when you come out with the corn is the one you want. Now go to some other breeder for your hens. Here again you must exercise judgment in selection, looking carefully that you choose none with crooked backs or breast bones. Don’t take fat birds, but get large bodied, bright plumaged, gentle acting ones. Mind that you see them eat and make careful inquiry as to whether they are related to your tom. No stock will show the evil effects of inbreeding so quickly as the turkey. Turkeys are much healthier and hardier when kept out of doors. Charles McClave of Ohio, one of the largest turkey breeders in America, says: “My turkeys are wintered in the timber, which is nature’s place, and I find after many years’ experience in this line that they are much healthier than when kept around the buildings in the ordinary way; in fact, with the number that I carry over the winter for breeders, it would be impossible to keep them around the farm buildings. For more than ten years I have kept my large flocks of turkeys in this manner. The track of timber in which I winter them covers some forty acres and is inclosed by a woven wire fence. Near the center of the tract is a roosting pen covering one acre, also inclosed by high wire fence. The turkeys all roost in this pen at night for protection, and during the day roam about the timber at will.” Where thieves are apt to help themselves to turkeys it is not safe to let them roost in the trees all winter. An open shed, the front of which is closed with wire netting or fencing, as shown in Figure 107, ‘ TURKEYS, GUINEAS, PEAFOWLS 267 may be used. This can be locked securely, while at the same time providing plenty of fresh air. But whenever possible let the turkeys choose their roost if they can find easy access to apple trees on rising ground, rather than a valley. They should be fed away from the house, and not encouraged to intimate association with the hens and other fawls. A flock properly tamed will seldom venture into the woods for laying, but where nests are provided, will usually will- ingly seek them. An inclosure with wire netting, and FIG, IO7—-INCLOSED ROOSTING SHED FOR TURKEYS nests provided therein, may be used, and the birds. confined within for a half day during the season, or with a little more watchfulness, nests can be built against the barn or other buildings. Keeping Turkeys in Confinement—An experi- ment of confining turkeys in yards was tried recently by the South Carolina experiment station. A trio of Bronze and a trio of White Holland turkeys were con- fined in runs eighty by 100 feet, in which were placed. 268 MAKING POULTRY PAY ‘two covered nests thirty-six inches square. A few brush were thrown in front of each to make them private. The two Bronze hens laid forty-two eggs, of which thirty-seven were fertile and twenty-seven hatched. The two White Hollands laid thirty-six eggs, of which twenty-seven were fertile and sixteen hatched. The eggs that did not hatch were those laid during the first two weeks. Although the experiment was very limited, it tends to show that a considerable saving can be made by confining turkeys during the laying season, which would avoid loss by the hens stealing their nests and other accidents incident to it. In a commercial way where a large flock is kept, a yard inclosing an acre or more of ground would be ‘desirable. A seven-foot wire fence will usually con- fine them. Nests—Often large roomy boxes can be utilized very nicely for nesting purposes, but the handiest and best thing is a large sugar barrel securely blocked to prevent rolling, with the inside littered with straw or forest leaves. The barrels serve an excellent purpose in more ways than one. They are not only cheap and ‘easy to get, but owing to their shape make an excel- lent protection for the turkey not only from cold winds and rains, but hot days as well. Very often one finds ‘two, and sometimes even three turkeys, that will insist on the same nest, so that it often becomes quite pro- voking before they can be broken up so that only one will claim the nest. When one uses barrels for nests and such a thing occurs, he has everything his own way; he has but to lean a wide board across the end, leaving a few inches at the top. By such arrangement it is practically impossible for a turkey on the outside to get in, and the inmate of the barrel has but to push the board over when she wishes to walk out. When ‘she returns the board can be replaced. The barrel TURKEYS, GUINEAS, PEAFOWLS 269: next serves an excellent purpose when the brood is. hatched. Securely fasten an eight or ten-inch board across the lower end so that the little turkeys cannot squeeze out, but be sure to leave sufficient space so. that the hen can leave or return if she sees fit. With a barrel so arranged the poults are not apt to become either chilled or lost and they are very easily caught when it is desired to move them. Setting Turkeys—The first clutch of eggs should be set under chicken hens. Break up the broody turkey and she will soon go to laying again. Before setting the eggs, sprinkle the nest and turkey with pyrethrum powder or sulphur to prevent trouble from lice or mites, either of which may cause her to desert the eggs.. The hen turkey is usually allowed to hatch the second clutch. The turks will be a little more trouble, as the turkey mother is more apt to wander farther from home than the hen. By driving them home for a few nights they will soon learn to return, especially if fed at the coop. Never leave them out over night, as they will most likely become the prey of some marauding animals. A whole flock may be destroyed during one night by foxes. The mother turkey is also likely to start on her travels before the grass is dry, dragging her little ones after her, often causing serious loss. Move coops to a clean spot every other day at first, and later every day. FEED AND CARE OF YOUNG TURKEYS After the young are thirty-six hours old remove all to a good sized coop and place the coop where there is plenty of grass. If the grass is long mow it off. For early in the season be sure to have a movable board bottom to the coop and clean this off and sand every day. Dampness and filth mean death. After the 1270 MAKING POULTRY PAY weather settles and the ground warms up place the ‘coop in the ground or grass and clean by simply moving it to fresh ground. Lice are the cause of nearly all the ills of turkeydom and kill more young ones ‘than all else combined. Get rid of the lice on the old birds first by dusting them every week, while sitting, with insect powder and place green cedar leaves and branches in the bottom of the nests. Lice won’t tarry long where these are. The poults should be given a ‘drop of sweet oil on the head and neck, under the wings and around the vent, once a week, applied with ‘the finger and rubbed on next the skin. Too much may hurt them. The first feed should be dry bread. Take one ‘quart each of corn meal, middlings and bran and one pint of sifted ground oats. Season with salt, add a little pepper, mix up with water or sour milk and add enough saleratus to raise it. Bake until done. Enough can be baked at one time to last several days. After the poults are several days old moisten the hard crust in sweet milk, squeeze out dry and feed. Give a little every two hours. Feed on a clean board and be sure that none is left over to sour. Feed everything as dry as possible, as sloppy or uncooked food is injurious. After the turks are a -week old the feed may be scalded. The saleratus and sour milk should be left out and a little meat added, or cook a piece of fresh lean meat and feed a little of it once a day. Ground bone may be put in the feed at all times if it is sweet and good. When the poults are ten days old commence to feed whole wheat for ‘supper, and when a month old feed cracked corn for supper and wheat at noon. During all this time keep on with the scalded feed between the times when wheat or corn is given. After four weeks old feed only four times a day. When four months old twice TURKEYS, GUINEAS, PEAFOWLS 271 daily is sufficient and the feed may consist of whole grains, which should be kept up until killing time if you want to have the stock large. Feed very little corn unless you want to fatten them for market. Give a variety, if possible, such as wheat, oats, buckwheat ‘and barley. Wheat is the best food if only one kind is given. Procure some whole black pepper, and every morning look over the little ones, and whenever one is noticed to appear droopy pick it up and look for lice, and at the same time give it a grain of the pepper. Most of the trouble with young turkeys can be traced to inbreeding and lack, of vigor in the parent stock, lice and improper feeding. Corn meal and skimmilk curds are favorite feeds for young turkeys. Either alone is enough to kill them; combined they are not quite so bad, yet they are a very poor ration. After turkeys “shoot the red,” or are full feath- ered, they will largely take care of themselves, but before that they will require constant watching. Build a little pen with some short boards in front of each coop and don’t let the little fellows out of this for the first four or five days. After that time they may be let out on every fair day—after the dew is off. Also let the hen out with her brood after the seventh day. Always know where your turkeys are and if a shower comes up get them under cover as soon as possible. It pays to herd turkeys where they are raised in considerable numbers. A peculiar thing about herding turkeys, especially if the poults have turkey mothers, is that once their day’s route is established they will go the same round each day and generally on schedule time. The best plan is to keep the flock restricted to the territory adjacent to their coop until the poults are feathered, when the broods can be flocked together and started out to the woods and fields. Here is where the herder is needed. The losses from various sources 272 MAKING POULTRY PAY —strays, hawks, foxes, minks and weasels, hunters and dogs a little later in the season, make big inroads into the flock unless guarded. Ordinarily this would be rather dull work for a boy or girl, and none should attempt it unless there were two for company. The route taken by the flock could be through all the stubble fields, where sufficient grain food would be gleaned, in the pastures and cut meadows, where the poults would do good work on grasshoppers, crickets and other insects, and into the woodland, where they will dust themselves in the fine dust of some rotten log, to rid themselves of lice. Even when it is imprac- tical to guard them the entire day, much can be done by way of insuring their safety by having them roam in the direction showing least danger. This can be done by starting them right in the morning and feed- ing them a short distance from home on their return at night. When fattening turkeys in the fall, feed plenty of whole corn and pen them up in a shed or stable, letting them out every four or five days to take exercise. MARKING TURKEYS an neighborhoods where many of the farmers raise turkeys it is necessary to brand or mark the stock in some way in order to prevent loss and the occasional neighborhood quarrels which result. As turkeys are so much inclined to roam, flocks of several neighbors frequently get mixed early in the season and run together more or less the rest of the year. The one who first rounds up the flock usually selects his original number and chooses the best turkeys; the others have to stand all the losses. By a system of punching the webs between the toes the turkeys can be easily identi- fied. This is easily done with a harness punch or a 273 TURKEYS, GUINEAS, PEAFOWLS d009 GOOud GNV SAAMUNL AZNOUM AO dNOAXN—OI “DIA 274 MAKING POULTRY PAY poultry marker. A large number of combinations can be worked out, and whichever combination is decided on should be registered with some town official. BREEDS OF TURKEYS While six varieties of turkeys are recognized by the American Standard of Perfection, only two are . . 4 FIG. IOQ—A PERFEGE BRONZE TURKEY HEN . Fe o kept to any extent by poultry gtowers. These are the Bronze and the White Holland. The Bronze (Figures 108 and 109) is the largest, hardiest and most prolific. TURKEYS, GUINEAS, PEAFOWLS 275. It is descended directly from the wild turkey and wild. blood is frequently crossed in to keep up the vigor. The White Holland is much smaller than the Bronze, in fact, standard weights are lighter than for any of. the other breeds. It is of a more quiet disposition and not so much inclined to roam. Buff turkeys are quite striking in appearance and are often met with in small: flocks. Other varieties but little seen are the Narra— gansett, Slate and Black. GUINEAS Guineas are a noisy, useful fowl about the farm.. They are great foragers and live very largely upon. bugs and insects. They seldom scratch, hence need not be feared in the garden. They are apt to steal their nests and frequently several hens will lay in the same nest. They sit late, and unless the nest is found. they will cover all the eggs they can, but many of them will not hatch. The period of incubation is twenty- six days. The young are hardy from the start and can be brought up in the same way as chickens or turkeys, but they need feeding every two hours the first week. Guineas are very noisy and make a great racket. when anything unusual occurs. They are useful in giving alarm at the approach of hawks or crows, or other intruders. It is a brave chicken thief who will go into a chicken yard or roost guarded with a pair of guineas. The eggs are small to medium in size, light brown in color, speckled with fine dots, and very pointed at one end. The shell is thick and tough. The eggs are rich in flavor and greatly prized by house-- wives. The flesh of the guinea .s quite gamy, dark in color, tender and relished by many who like game. 276 MAKING POULTRY PAY Cocks and hens resemble each other very closely and it is difficult even for the practiced eye to tell them apart. The head of the cock is frequently a little thicker, with wattles double the size of the hen. The hen cries out her song, “buckwheat,” while the cock has an entirely different call. One cock mates with not over two hens. There are two standard varieties, the White and the Pearl (Figure 110). FIG, IIO—PAIR OF PEARL GUINEAS PEAFOWLS No bird is more ornamental in appearance than ‘the peafowl. They were formerly prized by epicures -and the flesh is considered a very choice morsel by those who have eaten it. The young are very tender, much like pheasants in this respect,-and should be brought up in about the same manner. They do best when TURKEYS, GUINEAS, PEAFOWLS 277 raised with the mother hens or in a brooder, for they want hovering for six months. The old are very hardy and delight to roost in tall trees or on the ridge- pole of buildings. They are quite noisy and inclined to roam. If the young are wintered the first year in a yard inclosed with wire netting on sides and top they will not roam so far in after years. The hens lay only a few eggs, which require twenty-eight to thirty days to hatch. The cocks do not get their full feathers until three years of age. There are several varieties. The Blue or variegated is the most common. The White are rare as well as very beautiful. Peafowls are often cruel to other fowls and are frequently a great nuisance about the poultry yard. CHAPTER XII Pigeons and Squab Raising Pigeons, unlike poultry, are monogamous. They mate in pairs and when once mated generally stay so for life. Therefore, a careful breeder will see that all his pigeons are properly mated, for an unmated cock or hen in a loft will stir up a lot of trouble. Breeders of fine pigeons always make their own matings, which can be easily done by confining the birds to be mated EilG@, [TI—-alATING COOP FOR PIGEONS in a cage, such as shown in Figure 111. A good size is three feet long, fourteen to eighteen inches deep and same hight. It must have a partition in the center which can be removed when required. Place the cock in one side and the hen in the other, and after leaving them for a day or two remove the partition. If they do not seem ready to mate, separate again and wait a 278 PIGEONS AND SQUAB RAISING 279 day or two longer. This method prevents fighting and secures any mating desired. Where pigeons are kept it is too often the prac- tice to house them in some low loft under the eaves; where it is inconvenient to visit them and where the birds often suffer neglect. If possible it is better to have quarters upon the ground floor and preferably in a separate building. The pigeon house may well be made an ornament to the place. A good one is shown in Figure 112 and a suitable loft in the second story in Figure 113. The former represents a small and inexpensive house, built on attractive lines and FIG. [I2—PIGEON HOUSE AND FL. thoroughly suited to the purpose for which it is intended. A small hallway runs through the center, giving access to a commodious room on each side. A “flight” on either end of the house opens out from these two lofts. Such a little house, stained and cov- ered with vines, will make a very attractive addition to any country place, and will do much toward getting children in love with country life and interested in the companionship of animals. Squab raising is becoming ‘a fad or boom in which many are doomed to disappointment, failure and finan- 280 MAKING POULTRY PAY cial loss. The squab is a young pigeon just before it leaves the nest and is considered a great delicacy. Squabs are much in demand in many large cities and take the place of quail. They bring from $1.50 to S6 per dozen, depending on quality and season of the FIG. II3—-PIGEON LOFT IN SECOND STORY year. Although any pigeons will give squabs, Homers (see Figure 114) are by far the best breed for this purpose, being hardy, good breeders and of good size. A special house or loft is needed that is proof against mice, rats, cats and sparrows and where the tem- perature in winter can be kept above the freezing PIGEONS AND SQUAB RAISING 281 point. If this cannot be done, the sexes should be separated until the approach of mild weather. A cov- ered fly is necessary to confine the old birds. Homers brought from a distance will return to the place where they were raised at the first opportunity, hence must always be confined. Young birds raised on the place may be given their liberty. FIG. 1I4—-A FIVE HUNDRED-MILE RECORD HOMER A good house and fly is shown in Figures 115 and 116. A house six feet high between sill and plate, twelve to fifteen feet wide and of any length desired may be provided. The fly should be from ten to fifty feet long, six to eight feet high and covered on top and sides with inch mesh wire netting. This will keep out the sparrows which otherwise will come in swarms and 282 MAKING POULTRY PAY eat much of the food. A six-inch board or shelf should be put up along the two ends, and possibly one side, for the pigeons to alight upon, but nothing should be placed across the middle of the fly, or the pigeons may strike against it and be injured. The interior should be divided into rooms ten feet wide, with a three-foot alley extending along the rear FIG. 1IS—PIGEON HOUSE AND COVERED FLY in long houses. On each of two sides of the room the nests should extend from floor to ceiling. Shelves should be put up with partitions so as to make nests three feet long, one foot wide and twelve to fifteen inches high. There must be no alighting board in front for quarrelsome birds to walk on. As the hen will frequently lay again before the squabs have left PIGEONS AND SQUAB RAISING 283 the nest, a box of this size must be provided so that two nests can be put in it. Lice killer must be used freely and the houses whitewashed frequently to keep down OS sa S FIG II6—INTERIOR VIEW OF PIGEON HOUSE the lice. A room and fly of the size mentioned will accommodate twenty-five pairs of pigeons, which is enough for one flock. The pigeons are fed a variety 284 MAKING POULTRY PAY of grains, such as cracked corn, wheat, peas, millet, hemp seed, etc. They need water for drinking and bathing, also sharp sand or grit and occasionally some salt. Besides Homers, which are the best and cheap- est, Antwerps and Runts are also used for raising squabs. The latter are the giants among pigeons, but are shy breeders and not good feeders. White squabs always sell better than do colored ones. A flock of old . birds will average in the hands of a skillful breeder about six pairs of squabs a year. Much bigger claims than this, however, are often made by persons who have birds to sell. The beginner should start with a few mated pairs and then raise his own flock of breeders. Great disap- pointment and much loss comes from getting birds which are not mates. An unmated cock or hen in a loft will cause a lot of trouble—a few such will prevent any profit. Many dealers who find it more profitable to sell breeders than to raise squabs, send out anything and everything to their customers as mated birds. Some of them say mating commonly means in sales half cocks and half hens. William E. Rice, an author- ity on squab raising, thus defines mated pigeons: “A mated pair of pigeons consists of a male and a female which have built a nest, laid eggs and hatched a pair of squabs which are fit for market in four weeks from the time of hatching.” The only safe way in buying breeders is to get a written guarantee that they are mated, and a list showing which the pairs were. If any dealer will not furnish this better let him alone. The purchaser who buys birds represented to be mated has a right to expect that they have actually been mated and will prove it by going to work and rearing squabs, and he ought to be provided with a list for his guidance showing which birds are mated. Pheasant Rearing—The critical time of the young pheasant is the first two weeks, and during this time PIGEONS AND SQUAB RAISING 285 too much care cannot be given the young birds; they should be fed at least four times a day. Custard made of milk and eggs is the best and only feed that should be given them for the first two weeks; feed them on a board or common pie pan. Place some directly in front of the coop and just as close to the coop as possible, especially for the first two or three days; after that the birds will find the feed anywhere in the inclosure, as they will by that time ! run all over the space allotted them. Should you prefer, the hen and her brood can have their liberty in five or six days, as by that time the young will know the call and talk of their foster-mother and they -will not leave her. The hen will always come back to the coop to roost. Never allow the young to eat ary stale custard, and be quite certain that all stale food is removed before feeding. After you have given them liberty, but little attention may be given them, as the hen will ‘care for her brood better than you can. However, I find it an excellent idea to feed them once or twice a day, as by so doing they will get very much tamer. Hard boiled egg is-an excellent food for pheas- ants after they are two weeks old; boiled potatoes, chopped up fine, will not be amiss to mix with the egg, but care should be taken not to form a paste with the eggs and potatoes. Should you prefer, the hen can be left in the coop until the pheasants are ready to wean; in this case remove the birds and allow the young to roam over as much territory as they like. They will not be likely to get so far away that they cannot hear their mother’s call. Before you attempt to raise pheasants or quail, kill all your cats, and if you have neighbors who have cats, tell them that it means death if any of their cats are found trespassing. CHAPTER XIII Enemies and Diseases Probably the best and most effective remedy for all serious poultry ailments, in young or old, is the application of a good sharp ax where it will sever the head from the body. This remedy is scouted by some, but it still remains the best time and money saver, and the surest means to promote health in our poultry. Many poultry ailments serve as a warning from nature that the affected birds are unfit for breeders through some constitutional taint. If we doctor these individ- uals which nature has marked as unfit, and succeed in pulling them through, we defeat our own best interests. Unless we weed out the ailing and weaklings, and refuse to breed from such, we must expect a large mortality in the offspring. A correspondent writes us that after five years of using no remedy for sick fowls except “a good sharp ax,” he now finds disease in his flock of very rare occurrence, and usually of trifling character, which recovers spontaneously. Previous to using the ax freely he had much trouble with sick hens, and never got through a winter without roup. Another cor- respondent, who always uses the medicine bottle, and cannot bring himself to killing off the diseased breed- ers, is complaining of great mortality among his chicks from “no apparent cause.” His chicks die at all stages of incubation, and some are dropping off all the time from hatching up to maturity—a sure sign of unhealthy parentage, and evidence of the working of nature’s law, that of “the survival of the fittest.” Had 286 ENEMIES AND DISEASES 287 he used the ax and aided nature he would now be better off. We are not afraid to advocate the free use of the ax as a poultry remedy. There is no danger of any- one overdoing it; people are not built that way. Every- one will hold on to a miserable, puny or diseased spec- imen until they are sure that there is no relief except in the ax. The way to succeed in the poultry business is to start with the best, always keep the best, and always strive to improve it. Build it up, and keep it built up, and remember that “like begets like.” The very first requisite in breeding birds is a strong constitution and sound health. Unless you have this solid foundation, all attempts at improvement are time and money wasted. You cannot secure healthy fowls with the aid of the medicine bottle; but you can rid yourself of undesirable specimens, and prevent the reproduction of disease in the offspring, if you will only use sound common sense—and an ax. However, there are some who wish to doctor their poultry; and there are times when it is wise to treat a fine specimen. Hence the necessity of giving a few simple remedies for some of the common ailments. Asthenia or Going Light—This trouble is not a form of consumption, as many suppose. The fowl has a ravenous appetite, but the food seems to afford no nourishment and the fowl gradually wastes away and dies of actual starvation. The disease has been investigated by Dr. Charles F. Dawson, who finds that it is caused by a microbe or bacterium in the small intestine. The bacteria undoubtedly subsist largely on the food consumed by the fowl and cause a fermenta- tion in it so that no nourishment can be obtained from it. A slight inflammation of the intestines is also noted. The treatment should be, first, the removal of 288 MAKING POULTRY PAY the bacteria, and the use of easily digested foods and tonics to build up the system. As medicinal agents for the removal of the cause by purgation, Dr. Dawson recommends castor oil in two-teaspoonful doses, or calomel in oft-repeated one-quarter-grain doses may be tried. Purgation should be followed by a stimulating tonic. Dr. Salmon recommends the following tonic in similar affections: Powdered fennel, anise, coriander seed, cinchona, of each thirty grains; powdered gen- tian and ginger, of each one dram; powdered sulphate of iron, fifteen grains. Mix; add from two to four grains of this mixture for each fowl to the food twice a day. Blackhead in Turkeys—It is an infectious liver disease, similar in its nature to human dysentery. The disease takes its name from the fact that turkeys of a certain age, when affected, look shrunken, pinched and purple about the head. Turkeys ‘having the disease probably infect the land they run upon. The organisms are present in their excrement, and if taken in with food or water, many produce the disease in other turkeys. Sick birds should be killed and burned or buried deeply. Buildings, coops, and feeding and drinking vessels which they may have contaminated, should be disinfected. Birds once having this trouble, even if they have apparently recovered, may still not be free from it, and be able to scatter infecting mate- rial. It is, therefore, not best to keep specimens that have ever been affected. Take great pains to clear out the sick from both young and old, and then if it is possible, change the well ones to new ground. Little turkeys are most susceptible. They are infected early in life, and the disease develops fast or slow, accord- ing to how numerous the organisms are, or to the strength of the turkey. Wet, stormy weather agera- vates the disease. The feathers look rough, the birds ENEMIES AND DISEASES 289 have diarrhea, with bright yellow excrement; and they weakly drag one foot after the other for some time before they die. In some cases both caeca are affected, in others but one or a part of one. Those having but a small part of the liver invaded may live through the winter, and not die until spring. Prevention is pos- sible, but cure is difficult. By breeding them to secure great vigor, by feeding to counteract any tendency to diarrhea, and by giving preventive treatment upon the slightest symptoms of abnormal looseness, much may be done to help them resist the disease if they are exposed to it. A tonic and stimulant for the liver and bowels will help the disease ; confinement and over- feeding favor it. Pepper and ginger and something sour are indicated, as well as an astringent. Sick turkeys sometimes recover after they can eat all the acorns they want; they administer the astringent themselves. Bowel Trouble—Fowls whose droppings are black, watery or yellowish white have bowel trouble, probably caused by indigestion. Give an abundance of sharp, hard grit, moderately at first, some green vegetable food and good wholesome food, and pure, clean water, to which add one teaspoonful of Douglas mixture. Scald and keep clean all drinking vessels and feed boxes. Spread lime freely about the yard, spade it up and seed down to rye or wheat. Add two ounces sulphuric acid to two gallons water and sprinkle liber- ally around the house. Feed once a day a mash scalded, composed of four parts each of ground oats, wheat bran and corn meal and one part linseed meal, with sound, whole grain at other times. Every other day for a week add one ounce powdered charcoal to each quart of mash. Bumble foot is caused by some injury to foot. Jumping from roosts that are too high is an exciting 290 MAKING POULTRY PAY cause. Put a good warm linseed meal poultice on the foot as soon as the trouble is discovered. When the swelling softens up lance at the point where the skin over abscess seems thinnest, and after lancing wash the wound out thoroughly with a solution of hydrogen dioxide one part, with two parts warm water. Use this solution to bathe the wound daily until healed. Do not be afraid to open the abscess freely when you lance it. One-lancing should be sufficient. After you have opened it keep it open by packing the wound with gauze. So treated it will heal from the bottom out, and will give a good foot when healed. The wound should be bathed and dressed every day, and better, twice a day. Keep bird by itself in clean coop on clean straw, with foot well bandaged until well. If your roosts are too high, lower them. Cholera is a highly contagious disease affecting all poultry and is caused by bacteria. The infection occurs by taking food or drink contaminated by the excre- ment of sick birds, or even by inhaling the germs float- ing in the air. It may run rapidly through a flock, destroying a large portion of the fowls in a week, or it may assume a chronic form, spread slowly and be troublesome for weeks or even months. The earliest “symptoms are a yellow color of the urates, or excre- ment secreted by the kidneys, followed by loss of appetite. The bird separates from the flock, the feath- ers become rough, the wings droop, the head is drawn toward the body and the fowl becomes weak and sleepy. These symptoms are usually accompanied with a high fever and intense thirst. The disease lasts usually about three days. Medical treatment is of little avail. A dessertspoonful of a solution of one dram carbolic or hydrochloric acid to one quart of water for adult birds is recommended. Affected birds should be isolated and the greatest dependence placed on a ENEMIES AND DISEASES 291 thorough disinfection of the premises and on sanitary precautions. Give a thorough cleaning to the houses, yards and whatever ground the poultry frequent. For disinfecting, sulphuric acid is the cheapest, but it is extremely dangerous to use, as it burns severely if it touches one’s flesh or clothing. One pound to fifty quarts of water is the right proportion to use. Pour the acid slowly into the water in a wooden vessel, as it creates considerable heat in mixing. Sprinkle the weakened acid freely around the henhouse and on the ground frequented by the poultry. Thoroughly cleanse the drinking and feeding vessels and keep them clean. Persistent and heroic measures are necessary to get rid of cholera when once it gets into a flock. The following remedy is given by an Illinois poultry- keeper as a sure cure for chicken cholera: Two ounces pul- verized capsicum, two ounces pulverized asafetida, one ‘ounce pulverized rhubarb, six ounces Spanish brown, two ounces flowers of sulphur; mix thoroughly and keep in an air-tight can. Put one teaspoonful in two ‘quarts of the mash and feed twice a day until all symp- toms of the disease disappear. To Avoid Colds—Each fowl showing evidence of cold or congestion should be shut up in a small coop and given two grains of calomel at night, followed by a one-grain quinine pill night and morning for two or three days. If there is any discharge from nostrils inject a few drops of camphorated oil into each nostril. If any improvement is manifest in two or three days, remove to a small room and add a solution of copperas to the drinking water. Keep here for a week or two, or until they show a complete recovery If, on the other hand, after two or three days’ observation and treatment, no improvement is manifest, the bird should be killed and buried. 292 MAKING POULTRY PAY Consumption is a disease prevalent to a consider- able extent in parts of California and no doubt causes more or less loss in all parts of the country. The affected fowls grow thin, pale, listless and eventually die. Breeding from healthy, vigorous stock, clean, well ventilated quarters, food and care are the best ways to avoid it. 5 Cramp is a trouble which often affects chicks. confined in damp quarters. The toes begin to swell, and grow crooked, turned to one side, and twist; joint after joint becoming affected until the whole foot is swollen. The chick stops growing, and its feet seem tender and painful. It is a gouty condition, and akin to rheumatism. It is often caused by overfeeding of heating.and stimulating foods. Any considerable amount of greasy meat scrap or poor meat meal from which the fat has not been well extracted, will cause it. The disease appears most frequently in chicks from delicate or rheumatic parents, or those which are overfat or suffering from the effects of overfeeding. Chicks which have had cramps are worthless as breed- ers. Those which apparently recover are only fit for the pot, as they will almost to a certainty transmit to. their chicks their tendency to rheumatic diseases. Treatment for mild cases, rub the legs and feet twice a day with a good liniment, carefully stretching out the toes. Add to a pint of fresh drinking water ten grains of salicylate of soda. Let the chicks have a drink of this morning, noon and night. Take it away as soon as they have each had a drink. Mix fresh every day. Continue treatment for a few days after apparent cure. Allow no other drink but the medicated water while under treatment. Crop-bound is perhaps the commonest form of crop trouble, and is generally caused by careless feed- ing. The proof of a crop-bound is purely external, but ENEMIES AND DISEASES 293 is, fortunately, very easily discernible. Instead of the crop having a firm, close appearance, in fact, not being noticeable, it is seen to hang down like a bag, and on being felt there is found to be inside a lump or ball of food. If the trouble is discovered early, cure is very easy. The first step is to pour some salad oil or melted lard down the throat, and then to work gently with the hand the mass in the crop. This, if properly and effectively done, will soon cause the food and the fluid to mix, and when the mass has been well broken up, it will in the course of a few hours pass away. Warm water may be used instead of the oil or lard, but it is not so rapid or so effective in its action. When the mass has been got rid of, great care is required in order to prevent a recurrence of the same thing. Feed spar- ingly for a few days on sopped bread. When the kneading process is ineffectual, then an operation becomes requisite, but no one need fear the performing of this operation, as it is a very simple one and needs no great skill. Nor is there any danger involved in it. Make an incision lengthwise in the upper part of the crop, about an inch or an inch and a half in length. This should be very cleanly made with a sharp lancet or penknife. Through this incision the contents of the crop may be removed, using for that purpose a small eggspoon. Sometimes the mass is so hard that it can- not pass through the aperture, and in that case it must be broken up, which can be done with care and patience. This mass is usually very offensive indeed, and to remove any contaminating matter from the crop this organ should be washed out with Condy’s fluid, or a similar non-poisonous disinfectant. It is also desirable to pass the finger, well pared and oiled, into the orifice so far as to be certain that there is no obstruction there, for if so the whole process may have to be gone over again. This done, the incision must 294 MAKING POULTRY PAY be sewed up, and for this a small bent needle is best, as by it the skin can be most easily gathered together, and horsehair, not thread, used. Sew the inner skin first, and then the outer one. Three stitches will be needed in each skin. Tie each stitch separately. The food must be limited in quantity. No water must be sup- plied until the suture has completely healed up. Douglas mixture is the best general poultry tonic. Mix one-half pound sulphate of iron, one ounce sul- phuric acid and two gallons pure soft water. Let settle twenty-four hours, then drain off and bottle. Add one teaspoonful to each pint of drinking water for the fowls. Egg-bound—Do not allow the hens to get overfat, and they are not likely to become egg-bound. The best thing to do when a hen gets in that condition is to kill and eat her before she gets in such condition that she is unfit for food. Dip the finger into sweet or castor oil, and introduce it into the vent. Ten drops of fluid extract of ergot, given the hen from a spoon, and fol- lowed in half an hour by holding the bird over hot water so the steam can reach the vent, will sometimes relieve this condition. At all events, remove her from the male bird, and feed soft food and warm water. If successful in removing the egg, and the bird is worth the extra trouble, keep her in dry, sunny quarters, and in her drink put ten drops of tincture nux vomica to one pint of water. Give this for ten days, avoiding foods rich in starch, such as corn and buckwheat. Faw'us is a disease produced by a minute parasitic fungus and attacks the comb, wattles and neck, causing the feathers of the latter to fall out. It is very destruc- tive in poultry yards in England, and being highly contagious, spreads with great rapidity. .A single dis- eased bird soon contaminates the whole flock and several outbreaks have been traced to the introduction ENEMIES AND DISEASES 295 of a new bird from an affected yard. Unless treated properly, it usually ends fatally. The feathers become erect, dry and fall out, leaving the skin covered with dull yellowish gray crusts. The English board of agri- culture in a recent leaflet recommends bathing the affected parts with warm water and castile soap, then applying some ointment to destroy the fungus. Nitrate of soda and lard is useful. Red oxide of mercury has also proved an excellent remedy. Feather eating is a vice caused by idleness and lack, of exercise, also from want of proper food, particularly animal matter. Generally one or two hens in the flock are the guilty ones and if these are removed the trouble stops. Give them exercise and plenty of fresh meat. One who has succeeded in breaking it up, writes: Take a piece of raw, fat salt pork, (a piece with a good rind, so it will not come down in the dirt) and driving a nail through the rind nail it to some part of the building in easy reach of the hens and let them work at it all they please. When this is gone if they still continue to pick off the feathers, give them another piece. Gapes are caused by the presence of one or several forked red worms in the windpipe of the chick. The chicks get the gapes by eating the eggs of the worms which have been discharged from other affected birds. The worms can be conveyed from affected birds to healthy ones through the drinking water, also in the food if it has been contaminated by affected birds. The ground and coops that have been at any time contam- inated by, affected poultry should be thoroughly disin- fected at frequent intervals with a two per cent (in water) solution of sulphuric acid. Whitewash all coops with hot whitewash, plow up all runs frequently, and keep them planted with quick growing green stuff. When gapes appear the drinking water should be medicated as a preventive measure. For this purpose 296 MAKING POULTRY PAY it will be well to add three drams of salicylate of soda to each quart of drinking water. Affected chicks will need radical treatment. Take each chick separately and remove the worms from its windpipe. This can be done with a strip of feather. Take a long slender feather, and tear off all the barbules except those at the tip. Mix a little oil of clove and sweet oil. Moisten the feather tip with this, and insert it gently into the windpipe of the chick. Twist the feather around several times, and withdraw it. If you have operated successfully you will draw out most of the worms with the feather, and the oil will kill the others which may have been left behind. After a little practice the operation is easily performed, and does not seem to trouble the chick much. It is seldom necessary to repeat the operation. Clove oil is used with the sweet oil because it has been found that its use is followed by less irritation that when other lubricants are used. The bodies of any birds which may die of gapes should be burned, all worms removed, and all excrement of affected birds should be burned also. Hawks are often troublesome but can be fre- quently caught in an ordinary steel trap, not too large, mounted on the top of a common fence rail or a long pole, set firmly in the ground. It is best located on some moderately high point in the middle of a wide field, where there are no trees or other objects upon which a bird may light. No bait is needed. The trap is simply opened on top of the pole, where the bird sets it off and is caught in the act of alighting, Fig- ure 117. Of course the trap must be firmly secured to the pole. The device is based on the principle that birds of prey habitually light on prominent objects in large open spaces, where they will have a good outlook for game. A trap well placed will, during one season, catch all the hawks within a radius of several miles. ENEMIES AND DISEASES 297 Owls and other large birds are also frequently found in the trap. The longer and the more substantial the pole, the better it is. Leg weakness is noticed more in young cockerels of the large breeds than in pullets or in those of the saan nenscens ta a 1 “4 ————————_} Lz ‘) a | —— ——4 3 = a, A (es ah pe re ——§<—<——$— ve Tk Mado AVA A ue tl FIG. I1I7—-HAWK TRAP smaller varieties. It is generally caused by pushing too rapidly for growth. It will first be noticed by uncertainty in the gait and in a week’s time the bird 298 MAKING POULTRY PAY will not be able to stand. The appetite is all right and examination will show nothing wrong except the weakness of the legs. The remedy is to take away all forcing foods, such as meat or green bone, also corn, buckwheat and rye if any of these are fed. Feed entirely on wheat, oats and barley. Give plenty of sharp grit and add fine ground bone or bone meal to the ration. What the chick needs is more mineral matter, which will be supplied in these grains and sub- stances named. One-tenth grain quinine a day will also be a great help. Lice and mites are the worst enemies with which the poultry keeper has to deal. There are several kinds but the two commonest ones are the gray body lice which live on the fowls and the mites which live in the houses and go on the fowls at night when they are on the roost. Once let a henhouse become infested with the mites and it is almost impossible to get rid of them. They multiply very rapidly and live on filth and refuse matter. Many houses, unsuspected, swarm with them. The gray body lice can be killed by dust- ing the hens with insect powder, greasing or dipping in sheep dip or tobacco water or confining them a short time in a box or barrel painted on the inside with lice killer. Wood ashes mixed with the dust in the dusting box, equal parts of each, will keep away the lice. A little vaseline on the heads of small chicks as a preventive of lice is better than lard, and if pur- chased by the pound, is not much more expensive. Thorough and persistent work is needed to rid a house of mites and keep it free of them. If the house is _ tight, fumigate with sulphur; if not, whitewash with hot lime, to every gallon of which add one ounce crude carbolic acid. Remove the old roosts, nests and other fixtures and saturate with kerosene before putting them back. Also clean out and burn all refuse. Twice ENEMIES AND DISEASES 299: a month shut up the house and throw around air- slaked lime and sulphur. Tobacco dust in the nests. and wallows is also useful. Paint the roosts frequently with a lice killer. A good one can be made of one- half pint carbolic acid, one-half pint bi-sulphuret of carbon and one-half gill pine tar. Shake thoroughly and add slowly to fifteen pints crude petroleum. Keep well corked in a jug or can. Shake well before using and apply with a brush to drop boards, roosts, nests and the inside of poultry housé shortly before the fowls go to roost. Another good lice killer is made by dissolving in kerosene all the crude naphthalene flakes. Dp < | FIG I118.—DEVICES FOR PROTECTING ROOSTS FROM LICE it will take up. Moth balls will not answer. Mites. will not venture on roosts that receive a soaking in this fluid every two weeks. The odor of the naphtha- lene sticks to the roosts, and warns vermin away. After two or three applications the roosts will not need treatment oftener than once a month. Sawdust slightly moistened with this liquid is an excellent article to keep vermin from the nests. Vermin proof roosts are also effective and well worth using. Make the roost of two by three-inch planed joists and set both ends in shallow boxes arranged as shown in Figure 118. One end of each box is partly removed: 300 MAKING POULTRY PAY and the boxes are then filled with dry, powdery, air- slaked lime, heaped up so that the roost rests entirely upon the lime and does not touch the box at any point. Vermin will not get to a roost protected in this way. Another simple yet effective device is to place the ends of the roosts in tin cans containing kerosene. A slot or groove is cut in the can, a, half way down, to hold the end of the roost, b, as shown. The bottom of the can is kept filled with kerosene. These cans are nailed to the side of the building and effectually pre- vent all lice from crawling into the roosts. Limber neck is a complaint common to chickens in the middle and southern states. It is caused by ptomaine poisoning from eating putrid flesh. The disease is a paralysis of the neck, and death is not caused by maggots gnawing through the craw, as is commonly supposed. Poultry keepers in England and France feed their birds on maggots, but where mag- gots are, the poison which causes this trouble is likely to be found. Turpentine is a good remedy, but probably the most effectual is venetian red, say half a teaspoon- ful to each bird daily. Mix this with dough and roll into strips one inch long. Rats are one of the worst pests around the poultry house as they not only steal much of the grain but carry off eggs and young chicks. Persistent trapping and poisoning will keep them subdued. The best baits to use in trapping are small pieces of Vienna sausage (Wienerwurst) or bacon. One of the cheapest and most effective poisons is barium carbonate, or barytes, a mineral without taste or smell. In the small quanti- ties used for poisoning rats and mice it is harmless to larger animals. Its action is slow but reasonably sure. Mix one-fifth barytes with four-fifths cornmeal or one-eighth barytes with seven-eighths of its bulk of oatmeal. Then mix it with water in the form of a ENEMIES AND DISEASES 301 stiff dough and place the prepared baits in places: where the rats frequent. Plaster of paris is also used frequently with good effect. Take a large box, make some holes in the sides and ends high enough from the ground so chickens cannot get in; put in corn meal for a bait for a few nights. After the rats get to eating good, mix some plaster of paris with the meal. The moisture in the rats’ stomachs will cause the plaster to set hard, and the rats will die. A small dish of water in the box might be a good idea, and cause the rats to die sooner. Roup is the name commonly given to most dis- orders of the passages of head and throat, the symp- toms varying considerably, as in humans affected with colds, mild or severe, influenza, acute catarrh, sore throat, diphtheria, etc. These troubles, although not strictly one disease, are enough alike to admit being considered together. First signs are dumpishness, usually, but not always, a poor appetite, breathing is loud, and sometimes there is a choking noise or cough. Then follows a discharge from the nose, and if the case is severe, a secretion extending to the eyes, often covering them with a whitish matter. Sometimes the whole face is badly swelled. In diphtheritic roup, the roof of the mouth and throat show patches of white matter, which later becomes yellowish, sometimes with a bad odor. Mild cases of roup get well, others linger a long time and still others grow thin and die. Some- times roup hangs around a flock for years, owing to bad conditions. Fowls of strong stock, which are not overfed, which are induced to exercise for a living, and not much exposed to drafts, damp floors, or infec- tion from sick fowls, will not be likely to get roup. Those which have the mialady must be kept in a dry, warm place, and separate, as the disease spreads. through the drinking water and in other ways from 302 MAKING POULTRY PAY bird to bird. The buildings should be cleaned, white- washed and made as dry, light and warm as possible. Feed:-the well birds attractive food, but never leave it before them to eat at will. Add Douglas mixture to their drinking water. As for the sick fowls, if they | are numerous enough or sufficiently valuable to be worth treatment, a simple remedy is a drop of kerosene in the nose passages and a very little applied to the other diseased parts with a small brush. Carbolic acid one part to fifty parts water may be used. Peroxide of hydrogen diluted one-half with water and squirted into the nostrils with a fountain pen filler or medicine dropper will help clear the passages. Remove matter on face and eyes with soft sponge and warm water, and from the throat with a cotton wad on a splinter. Roup is sometimes mistaken for gapes on account of the gasping for breath, but examination will show the difference by the appearance of whitish matter and other signs of roup. Sore Heads—Use vaseline, kerosene and sulphur rubbed on the head. This is quick and effective. Scaly leg is caused by a parasite that lives under the scale of the leg, and the scab is the excrement, etc., thrown off by these insects. It can be easily cured if a little. pains is taken to rub on ointment made of kero- sene, lard and a little sulphur added. The quantity is immaterial; the kerosene, being the most penetrat- ing, is the best part of the remedy, and the lard gives sufficient consistency to it, so that it does not run off quickly. Rub this well in under the scales three times, about a week apart, and it will effect a cure. It is no harm to rub it on oftener if you wish to, but there is no particular need of it. Skunks—Lay for them on moonlight nights with a good gun, and shoot them. After you have killed a few they will be less troublesome. You can trap them ENEMIES AND DISEASES 393 in box traps, using a fresh killed chick for bait. Owing to the peculiarity of the beasts this method is not so satisfactory as shooting. Dosing the body of a freshly killed chick with arsenic and placing it where his skunkship will get it, is also recommended as a good method. > Venetian red has long been a popular remedy with some poultrymen. It is the red oxide of iron, and undoubtedly possesses medicinal virtue. Its value is vouched for by reliable men, and we can see no reason why it should not be tried in the diseases for which it is recommended; more especially as it is found useful in troubles which have hitherto been considered incurable and fatal. Venetian red is used in the drink- ing water, about a teaspoonful (for fowls, less for chicks) in a quart of water. It does not dissolve, ana in time settles to the bottom of the vessel. The water is renewed without rinsing out the powder, which rises to the surface when fresh water is added. Those who have used venetian red are inclined to attribute to it “cure all” virtues, much the same as any enthusiast is liable to overrate the curing capacity of his special favorite remedy. There is reason to believe in the value of venetian red in the treatment of the follow- ing: canker, some bowel troubles (more especially those accompanied by wasting of flesh), “going light,” “pasting up behind” in chicks, and in all diseases where a blood tonic would be useful. Worms—Two kinds of worms are quite common in poultry; the round, and the flat or tapeworms, Infection takes place through fowls eating the eggs of the parasites found in the droppings of infected birds. Droppings of stock having worms should be collected frequently and burned. For round worms, give a two-grain pill of santonin to each affected bird every other morning before feeding, following it in 304. MAKING POULTRY PAY half an hour with two teaspoonfuls of raw linseed oil. Continue treatment one week. Flat or tapeworms when found in the droppings look like pieces of tape. The eggs of these parasites are expelled in the drop- pings, and are taken up and undergo a preparatory stage in some of the insect parasites like fleas and lice; when these vermin are eaten by the fowl the contained embryo is ready to develop into a full fledged tape- worm in the intestines of the fowl. The affected bird is often possessed of a remarkable appetite, and at the same time grows thin. At other times the presence of tapeworms in a fowl may not be suspected until pieces of the worms are found in the droppings. Make a mash of bruised pumpkin seeds with a little milk, and after allowing the bird to fast for twelve hours, feed it all of this mash that it can be forced to eat. In an hour or two give a teaspoonful of castor oil, or two teaspoonfuls of raw linseed oil. After the worms are expelled feed a warm mash of bran, middlings and milk. If worms appear again in droppings the treat- ment did not get all of them, and may be repeated in a few days. Index Page Absorbents, road dust and ashes .....:.... 438 Amateur’s experience.... 34 Breeds, test of.......... 92 American Dominique.. Anconas atc Andalusians Bantams: sao ssa yales alkyd Brahmas w.6105 95 55.04 & 93 BUCKGYOS! erecncereceseui sso eseye 112 Cochins: | acwsw secs oes 95 Crevectoeurs: ac.kaaeess 97 DOrkings: sce ths cea e 113 Faverolles ...........- 95 GAIICS: Jee ie eacusmstisie ve aie aisve 116 TAAVUDUYES. siecersrscave- sree die 104 Boudan | a cewiserry eyes 104 Indian Games......... 114 SAV AIS. p58 Sap drtee S88 SO 113 Lod. TEICCHE) eoescuasecenee 0 0% 96 Langshans 95 DS@SHOrWS) wsvesesincrn cee 98 Minorcas SieWeMeseNae la. 85. 6 99 Orpingtons: scsccswee.: 113 Plymouth Rocks ...... 107 OWS: sues Beecontnelisys-¢: ais 17 PREACADS) 6 a bxicelicgerecranonere 104 Rhode Island Reds....111 Rhode Island Whites. .112 White-Faced Black Spanish sms: ssiecgecce 101 Wyandottes .......... 109 Ducks, Muscovy ...... 248 Ducks, Pekin ......... 47 Ducks, Indian Runner. 247 Ducks, other varieties. .249 Geese, African ........ 260 Geese, Chinese 260 Geese, Embden 260 Geese, Egyptian.. 261 Geese, Toulouse....... 259 Geese, Wild Canada... .261 UPR S 04 6 ti miesecniersiess + 288 crossing pure breeds... 89 serviceable cross-bred Chickens .<: sasuwauns 90 Breeding pen............ 92 Brooder, care of......... 181 capacity of ........... 182 gasolene heated ....... 193 handling chicks........ 183 homemade, 202, 203, 204, 205 houses ......... Cerone 186 Tillinghast ss se.ewews 204 up-to-date orbits latlenabioneirexeries OO wise Of aciikssaacevoescl dl 305 . . Page Broilers, American breeds. 207 2 Celery Leds smrumaaie.s.d 35 08 finishing’ 3 ssc eps eens 208 methods of feeding..... 209 packing and shipping. .210 Philadelphia 209 requisites for raising. .206 SQUAD: aw wt anaes eye ee 0s CaMODss i ccoe's iin wmrcanesen sa 5 210 experience with ....... 219 THALES: TOP: 6 ssiepsiseraueuaues vies 211 Caponizing, best breeds BONE os ci tse iatniroranfemencseday & 12 operation Of .sscecscas. 212 Chicks, baby chick food..161 bowel trouble 163 care of drinking fountain feeding feeding incubator feeding trough handling brooder. teaching to roost... why incubator GUC. ive tein yas aw weeeeees Clipping wings Colony PAM: ys ocse-e eeseeaneni Combs, prevent freezing.. 44 Contests, money-in- poul- CEY -Sa Sia a eine eres 3 Burnley society ...... 3 Utility Poultry club... 22 winter egg laying..... 6 Coops, barrel ........... 5 brood coops for and chicks.......... CONVENICNE . sacastad.s.o4:46 for early chickens for two broods ........ CrAMMING cee ee Crate fattening ...... Crooked breast bones. Dehorn roosters.......... Diseases, asthenia or go- ing Went x4 e202 e555 287 blackhead in turkeys.. 288 bowel trouble . .163, 289 bumble foot .......... 289 Cholera siccoiasnvesees 290 COIS: 3. id nteriuniati’e 6 aie 3-53 291 consumption EADS OETA 292 CLAM) 5 cic eisai eb 6 oo a 292 crop bound ........... 292 egg bound ........... 294 egg eating ..... 3 27 LAVUS snes anavertonng sa 5 294 feather eating . Beans seo 306 MAKING POULTRY PAY Page Page Diseases, continued Feed, continued gapes...... ve 295 self feeders.......122, 124 leg weakness skimmilk 127 limber neck Bape etek TOUD oescwcteceamemeee SOL BONE 5 ciedunasneierene scaly leg ..... . dates, “Of weights sore heads .... ENOUA, o iccinecisiativeria sow WOrMS .....-500% : variety Douglas mixture ........ 294 WHEAT. son cckunes Ducks, breeds of ........ 246 Feeding for eggs ........131 eare of young ...... +6239 incubator chicks....... 179 commercial breeding ..234 TMAH 2s gaviidvepoqeeantente - 122 handling breeding value and results in..142 stock ..... pupsviioesieyeitexene 240 whole or ground grain.121 killing and picking WMONCOS ne sc5ce wc utinn ae ¢ 72 232, 244 Flock, best size of. marketing ....... 232, 244 Floors, best kinds water tank for .......238 Fowls, for show ring, winter quarters for....242 PYCPATING 6 esssesa.es Egg laying contests, 6, 22, 23 Frozen combs, preventing 44 Eggs, brown vs. white... 28 Geese, breeds of ....... 258 chemical composition... 28 eare of breeding....... 252 cost of production.... 20 cross breeding......... 261 i re ee 27 distinguishing sex ....254 farming for .......+6. 139 feeding and making feeding for ........... 1381 YOUNES +5 <4-sMiawaue es 2 flavor influenced by goose fattening busi- feed. .sikwseaiw seve: 125 HOSS: oon ae nero ie ae 255 fresh defined .......... 225 keeping for profit..... 249 in winter, how to get Killings cos vec cos. 5 ess 256 6, 24 marketing marketing ............ 225 TONEY: Ae seeveesreaecn cusses mixed in incubator....176 picking live . dae mew lad): 22. waa wears 225 GUINEAS) iia coe ckidgavoueeene eae 2 physical composition... 28 Hatching, natural way..149 reducing cost ........ 2 setting the hen 1 sex of : -.29 Houses, cheap .......... shipping 226 A-shaped ............. storing ........ se aeanatas 226 barrel stave .......... Enemies, hawks ........ 296 breeding pen .......... lice and mites......... 298 ProOOder. beta xen wiwanaers PACS 2 ccerave denier atecetahevinns 300 cheap structure SKUNKS: sacesvsuwosisnac cae 302 continuous ............ Experiences of an ama- CORNET, vs cacondegevtnancusaea ante OUT, sia serascndifthawenoninssansi cas 4 curtain front ......... Farm, large poultry..... 80 HOOK (Of. snc ieev sarees well arranged poultry.. 79 INSIdE: OF aca ciaoannres as Fattening crate ......... 141 NONGD cctueguwew ees cee Gen DOUWLETYE Gisnsncyerernvereacids.cc% 140 practical and Feed, animal food ...... 125 SIMON seaeceusvene dete baby chick ....... 1380, 161 satisfactory ..... Darley cxisieinencinievsue se oie & 120 scratching shed composition of various suburban aosicscaenyox Stuffs ...... esse eee oe two-story ...........-- CTY Ucar er hatin UPS eer ann ventilation of ......... Green food 02 200Idat | Well arranged... --. EG LC) -seasenscoymachuaieaes wssesue.g as 128 Income, average per hen 6 influence on color of Incubation, artificial..... 166 VOWS cca reviveceiei a are 44 Incubators, advantages of 177 influence on flavor “of eare of lamp.......... 169 OPES witless anes db-65 gee 127 each breed separately. .176 OCS. weieiedsceecceverewis 120 feeding chicks ........ 179 Page Incubators, continued loss in weight of eggs. .173 necessity of .......... 178 proper heat of ...... Td question of moisture..172 setting the machine....168 testing the eggs.......171 the hatch ...... +178 turning the eggs...... 169 my incubator CHEE inaividuaiity, ‘influence OL Se anecaialiecerencaielneee Interior arrangements. 74 Laying* competition, Bng- VGH cscs ec cenedeene 22, 23 Farm and Home winter 6 Layers, selecting best... 32 to pick out Lice and mites Lice paint Litter for scratching.... Manure, care of......... Marketing, dressing ane SHippinge