— ati ZG LUE | : , Z : K 06 ¢ ry ie Atamnete Ss YE UIA Gass OF 4-6°7. Book. - SS 7 Copyright N° \ Lo COPYRIGHT DEPOSI % $ * / ~ s- a . , - a * |! : > ‘ ; a : : ” a $4,223.00 Profit _ In One Year On A Town Lot H. Cecil Sheppard TOUTE COC Published by H. CECIL SHEPPARD Berea, Ohio _ Copyticht 1920 1 By -_ H. Cecil Sheppard _ vy. e% 0 8 © ee » ses _ wae - FEB 1% 1922 OC A654654 PREFACE I have set down for publicaton in this book, the disas- trous and profitable experiences covering the six years from the time I first interested myself in chickens, until in the sixth year I took a net profit of $4,223.00 from my small poultry plant on a town lot. That year my books showed sales of $9,515.00, with expenses for advertising, feed bills, wages, and so on, amounting to $5,292.00. The benefit of my experience up to the time of revising the third edition, has also been incorporated. I would have gladly paid $100.00 during the first years of my experience, could such information have come to me. It has been no small task to write and revise this book, but I feel that it will be worth while. Fraternally yours, AE Bhhappord yest as no two eggs are quite alike so no two people can succeed in quite the same manner—but the “other fellow’s” experience costs less and saves time (when we are !) so why not save dollars by using it? In your selling, look for ideas as fresh as “just laid” wise enough to admit it 00'S eggs, CONTENTS GHANP IRE RAS vie) PBR SON AISS EDS TORY Sy cies & aac sie oot & ars eck done Back to the country—The Town Lot—Giving up my road business—90% perspiration. CHAPTER TI—THREE “P’S” IN THE POULTRY POD—Pleasure, Pep, Profit.. The pleasure in poultry—Getting birds with pep—Making a_profit—The backyard laboratory—Deciding on the best breed—Starting on a small scale 15 —Hens or horses?—Ending the second year—$1910.00 at end of fourth — year—Making the $4,223.00. CHAPTER III—INCUBATORS AND BROODERS Preliminary testing of incubator—Looking after the eggs—The brooder and its care—Preparing it for baby chicks old chicks. Getting ready to receive day- CHAPTER IV—BABY CHICKS—SOME DO’S AND DONT’S................. How Mother Nature planned them—Don’t over-feed—What to feed— Brooders and colony houses—Making baby chicks work—Chick physiology —How often to feed—Green food—Sprouted oats—Winter quarters— Automatic feeders—Piano box colony house. (ETAVE STUHR Nia G BT IN Ge Ty» GG Six eta Sic vacesteus «ence oh Syts2 wen @ area uencest ts, € ny eusielens Importance of male bird—When superb vitality counts—Diagrammatic com- parison—Specifications of an ideal male—Feeding for egg production— Housing for egg production—Some egg facts. THE leal ey Ee el — >) Re ETO) everereyenesene canst, wane es csncea ays) eyeie eS olay are cuayatsperer eye aust Building for egg production—For warmth—Specifications for economical houses—Water tight, well ventilated, well lighted. EW AVE NEARY, Vali WEAK NGG" IAT AMIE IN ES eae ev teretrcevs ds oa) sete issaies see etenseeneveuecd January inquiries—Boxing and shipping eggs—Shipping baby chicks— Shipping stock. CHAPTER: VITI—FOUR SALES BSSENTIATISS « gio: spore .a [ls acave.arevere oe gialsi siete ale Make them look—Make them like—Make them learn—Landing them— How to do it—A dozen and one sales pointers. CHAPTER TiX—ADVERTISING LO SUGCESS Ewen teres soa 5 sls ele Welbieierss. celles s © Visiting the shows—Building good records—Jacob’s follow up—Advertis- ing pays—An unpleasant experience—The first orders—Increasing my advertising—Getting business by letter—What about stationery?’—A mat- ing list or catalog—Service principle in advertising—Appeal to the beginner. CHARTER X—WHAT TO DO EACH MONTH OF TH EBeY RAR. ca. su. as «is CHAD RRs x OP POR MENG Y: MN) POUL DRY sists tesa. cence ae $4.0 coe wnpeus hs The chicken industry—The auspicious time—Possibilities in poultry— Pepful poultry for pale people. CHAPTER XIE—CUTTING THE COST OF LIVING WITH CHICKENS....... Every backyard a poultry park—Profit in table scraps—The economical cold pack method—There are chickens—and chickens—Chickens as chil- dren’s pets—The time is “Now”! ve ba | ws) a 46 49 53 66 69 Chap TE Rt A Little Personal History Qi SUPPOSE it would be a good plan to commence at PSN Ys the beginning! So I am going to tell you my SWZ 8 Ss: vec c sOls AAS 5 AF He actual experience in the poultry business, step }by step, from the first year when my total sales were $160.00 to the gross income of $9,515.00 the sixth year—all on a town lot. Back to the Country Cleveland was my home for a number of years. While there my health was not the very best. It looked to me pretty much as though it were a choice between getting farther away from the nerve-racking push and bustle of the city, and spending more time in the great out of doors, or of prematurely joining the ranks of the countless slumbering army. Naturally, I resolved to go “back to the country” and soon selected a location. Mrs. Sheppard and myself looked over a number of places on the southern shore of Lake [trie. We decided to settle in Berea where conditions were ideal, good schools and colleges to educate the children, and all modern conveniences. It is located on three trunk lines of railroads and a corking good electric line, so that shipping facilities are excellent. The Town Lot Well, I leased property for a couple of years, but at the end of six months we were so deeply in love with the location that the property became a Sheppard possession. We moved to Berea the latter part of March, 1906. It was a revelation to me. There we were, living on a nice town lot, the air pure and sweet, and as Spring pressed on and as Nature budded forth in all her beauty, the grass grew green and _ the air became redolent with perfume from a wilderness of fragrant blos- soms. The songbirds returned and added greatly to the surroundings with their cheerful and sweet songs. As the weather became warm we (my wife and children) commenced fixing up our lawn and preparing the soil for a garden. After the ground was nicely cultivated, we com- menced to set out trees, herry bushes, grapevines, sow the garden seed, and set out the plants. By the first of June everything seemed to fairly 1 $4223.00 PROFIT IN ONE YEAR jump out of the ground to meet the warm rays of the Summer sun. Midsummer found us enjoying luxuries of our bountiful harvest of fresh vegetables from our own garden. It was quite a contrast to what a city man had been accustomed. It was not only a crop of good vegetables, but a crop of gladness and joy as well. Our city friends envied our good fortune. My wife could prepare an excellent meal from the garden, with a few nice springers added to the bill of fare. A little later our flowers blossomed forth in all the colors of the rainbow. The next season we enjoyed a generous crop of red raspberries and straw- berries. Two years later our plum trees began to bear. The next year the peach trees bloomed out in their superb style and joined the plum trees in giving us a nice lot of delicious fruit. The next year the cherry trees began to bear. Giving Up My Road Business The five years’ experience directly preceding the year in which I made a net income of $4,223.00 from chickens on a town lot, caused me to sever my connections with the concern for whom I was traveling, and go into the chicken business in earnest and not as a “side line,” which it had been up to that time. It took me a great many months to make up my mind regarding this change, because I have many warm friends among the people I visit and it almost seemed as though—so firm had become our friendship—that everywhere I set my foot was “home, sweet home.” And of course after so long a term—traveling the same territory for twenty years for the one house— I had a mighty good business and enjoyed a fairly satisfactory salary, as salaries were in those days, and I had the friendship and confidence of several of the largest merchants in my line. When I resigned my position on the road, I was not only “passing up” the rewards of twenty years’ hard work but was also losing the social visits to all my old acquaintances on the road, and what was worse still, was the severing of my pleasant business relations with my company. In the long years I was with them there wasn’t anything that ever came up to disturb our pleasant relations. They were very good to me and I appreciated it. In fact, all the employees were treated with consideration, and it seemed like one big, happy family. It surely did seem like leaving home to sever my ties with this firm. My chickens were demanding more of my time, and I was really forced to give up my road position or my chickens. I chose the former and sent my ON A TOWN LOT 13 Members of American Poultry Associaton visiting Sheppard’s Farm. Artist Sewell of R. J. P. fame took the party unawares with his camera while they were having refreshments under the shade of the big oak. resignation to my house, to take effect four months later. When I laid aside my grip I wasn’t sure that I could resist the temptation of mak- ing a trip. At first it seemed very unnatural, but as time pressed on, I became so taken up with my chickens that I gradually became weaned from my former work. Of course, I missed my old friends on the road who were so generous to me. If perchance any of them read this book, I want to say that I haven’t forgotten them and shall always have pleasant memories of them. Across the broad miles I extend the glad hand for a hearty shake. On the cover of this book I use a figure which, to some of you, may seem impossibly large—$4223.00 is a sum of money not to be sneezed at. Fourteen years ago this would have seemed like a tremen- dous sum to me. But in 1912 it became a reality. What I did, thou- sands of others have since done—many of them much better than this. What I did, you can do. These figures are not too big for you to reach. There is no logical reason why—if you make up your mind you will reach them—you can’t do so. You are a man or woman of ordinary intelligence, else you wouldn’t be reading this book, and I here firmly state that any one person with average intellect, can succeed in the chicken business if the ideas set down in the following chapters of this book are followed. 14 $4223.00 PROFIT IN ONE YEAR 90 Per Cent Perspiration I certainly am not a wizard. I believe that genius is 90% perspir: tion and 10% inspiration. There is nothing magical about my su cess or method. I started with a very limited knowledge of the poultr business and a still more limited capital. Common sense was_ probabl my greatest stock in trade. I am going to tell you as simply and plainly as the nose on man’s face, how I have managed my chickens and of course you ca do what appears practical to you. I don't expect you to agree with m on every detail, but on the principal questions, my methods are thorougll practical. There is no theory in this book. It is all the result of pract cal experience. I am not attempting to give advice—but simply statin what I have done and how I have done it. ON A TOWN LOT 15 CHAPTER. fi THREE “P’S” IN THE POULTRY POD Pleasure, Pep, Profit The Pleasure in Poultry HERE is nothing new about this thought, but anless people have a natural liking for poultry so that they can get real pleasure out of the work—because there is a lot of hard work about it!—they had better not start the business even on a small scale. There in- variably is, of course, a certain pleasure following the accomplishment of profitable work—but this kind of pleasure follows after the profit and does not go right along with the work required to earn the profit. Although I now sometimes have as many as five thousand birds at one time on my farm, I never grow tired of these beautiful, active creatures—they have a fascination for me. They should for you,—and I believe they will—if you are to secure a genuine pleasure, taking your loss along with the profit, getting your bumps—not such stiff jolts as I received, I trust —and then profiting by the experience which I set down in this book, as well as your own experience. The Backyard Laboratory The very best laboratory is one’s own poultry yard. You can take the same methods I have used and am using and put them into practical experience in your own “laboratory” every day in the year, and by avoiding many of the pitfalls and eliminating many of the stumbling blocks, your pleasure with poultry will be that much more increased. Making a Profit—Getting Birds With Pep In order to make profit from poultry it is very necessary that you secure birds with abundant vitality—plenty of pep! A writer on poultry once said that the surest way to secure vitality, vigor and constitution is by the “survival of the fittest’—in other words a process of elimina- tion by means of the ax! Well, to a certain extent I found that true. As I went more into the commercial end of the poultry business, I saw the imperative necessity of having two attributes in my birds. First, 16 $4223.00 PROFIT IN ONE YEAR They should be eager to lay. vitality—or pep—whatever you want to call it. Second, the habit of systematic laying. Deciding on the Best Breed You can secure these two admirable qualities either by a very care- ful selection of the right breed, or by a process of elimination on your own plant. Although it costs more to begin with, to purchase the right breed, I am convinced that considerable time is saveu. You secure a flying start at once, You may decide to start with several breeds, as I did. I kept four the first year, and at the end of the first year I found I had three breeds too many, and decided to keep just one. It did not take me long to decide on the breed to keep. The first year I found it very profitable to be getting a good yield of eggs during the cold winter months, when eges were high and when my neighbors were not getting any. In cutting down the number of breeds I kept the breed that produced eggs abundantly during the winter months. This is one of the secrets of the business—to eet a breed that will produce eggs practically all the year round, and especially when the price of eggs is high. You will find there is a tre- mendous demand for chickens of this kind, and if you have them your neighbor wants them and is willing to pay you a good price for a setting of eggs or for a pen of birds. ON ASLOWN SLOT ly, Starting on a Small Scale I have told you the importance of selecting the proper breed. Now you ask whether one ought to start on a small or on a large scale. ‘he commercial agencies will tell you that 90 per cent of the business houses fail some time during their lifetime. Probably the principal reason for this is because they start on too large a scale. It is like a boy learning to swim. If he jumps in deep water he drowns, but if he stays in shallow water until he learns, he then can go into deep water with safety. On the other hand, I started my chickens on a small scale, and from the very beginning they were paying for their keep and a little more. I found it better to have the chickens working for me than for me to be working for them. I would suggest that you start in a small way and buy a good stock to start with. You will find that it pays. There is always a good demand for good stock, while the demand for poor stock is limited. It is a common error to invest in expensive chicken houses and buy cheap stock. Whatever breed you buy, go to some reputable breeder and secure good stock. Remember that it is quality of stock that pays the large dividends, and not the expensive poultry houses. You can raise good birds from good stock in a cheap building, but you cannot raise good birds from poor stock, no matter how good your buildings. If you have twenty-five, fifty or one hundred dollars to invest, buy a pen of five birds in place of a dozen. I made the usual mistake beginners make by buying ordinary stock to start with. JI went to a certain breeder and bought from his utility flock, and from other breeders the same quality. At the end of the first year I found I had made a serious mistake, as I had lost a year’s time and had nothing but utility birds—something that intelligent chicken people don’t want if they desire to build up a flock of high grade exhibition birds. It taught me a lesson, however, and I resolved to get the very best birds money could buy. At the end of the first year I had discarded my other breeds and had secured the best stock that money could buy of my favorite breed. At the end of the second year I had a flock of strictly high-grade birds, and found I was on the right road to success. While this book is written mainly for the information and inspiration of the family with but limited space for their poultry plant, it has a direct application to the flock kept by the farmer’s wife, and the far- mer’s children as well. 18 $4223.00 PROFIT IN ONE YEAR Hens or Horses? Mrs. George L. Russell, of Chilhowee, Missouri, said something of intense interest in the “lruit-Grower” a couple years ago. She com- pared hens with horses and started out by asking a few questions. “What if the whole flock should be stolen? What if a storm comes and kills every hen on the place? What if they all get sick and die? You will admit none of these things are likely to take off the whole flock. But granted they do, why, then we have not lost any more capital invested than we have when one mare lies down and dies. And should these calamities befall a flock of chickens, with a comparatively few dol- lars one can start over and in one spring raise enough pullets to fill the laying house. “Tt 1s much easier to raise a few dollars to buy a flock of hens to start over than it is to raise enough money to buy one good brood mare. “Tf we were in the commercial egg farming business, this would be a story of larger profits, but as we are only farmers, the chickens are considered just one of the many farm crops, the same as hogs, cattle, oats, wheat and corn. “As is the case on the majority of the farms, the farm woman cares for the chickens. It is a real pleasure to me to do this. In fact, I cannot find the time to spend with them that I would like to, as there are many other duties, besides being a mother, to attend to on the farm. “The work with my chickens commenced with a worn-out hen house, surrounded by a dense plum thicket, where there was small chance of the sunlight ever appearing. You have all seen such houses with a row of nests and a path in front, the roosts occupying almost the whole interior, leaving no place for the hens to scratch and exercise. “Even with this poor equipment, the hens paid $112.00 the first year. This astonishing fact was hardly believed by my husband, but the figures were there to prove it, and he at once became interested in the chickens, building them a new house that fall.” My chickens gave me pleasure as well as increased my bank account. I mated up my first pens about February 1. My chickens had been lay- ing all fall and winter, so the eggs were in splendid condition to in- cubate early. I set my incubator about February 15 and had my first chicks hatched from eggs from my own breeding pens, early in March. I commenced shipping hatching eggs the latter part of February. At the end of my first fiscal year, which ended August 1, 1907, I found I had sold ONGC A TOWN LOT 19 hatching eggs to the amount of $71.00. I sold a few cockerals to the meat market and two for breeders. Adding these amounts to what I got for eggs which I sold to the market, I found that my first year’s revenue was about $160.00, besides having a fine lot of little chicks and a breeding pen from the previous season. I had thirty-one hens and was surprised to learn they had earned a little over $5.00 each. Ending the Second Year At the end of the second year, I had more breeding pens than ever, and many more chicks. I found that my sales had reached a grand total of $542.06. I naturally began to think the chicken business was all right. Before leaving Cleveland I had heard of several men who had failed. I could see that their failure was due to mismanagement or by wanting to get rich too quickly and starting in too heavily. I could see that it was no fault of the chickens. They were proving that if they were given a chance they would pay handsome dividends on the investment and for the time spent with them. T started my third year with more encouragement, and, as I found the poultry journals were doing me a splendid service, I again increased my advertising. I had raised a larger flock and had no trouble in dis- posing of it again. I mated more breeding pens and still found that my supply of hatching eggs was not equal to the increasing demand. At the end of the third year my sales figured $860.51 for the year. In addi- tion to this I had on hand a still larger flock of chicks and breeding pens. $1,910.10 at End of Fourth Year At the beginning of ithe fourth year I could see a grand future dawn- ing for this remarkable breed, so again resolved to increase my capacity. At the end of the fourth year I found my sales for the year to be $1,910.10. The demand had steadily increased the fourth year, so I made still greater preparations for increased business for the fifth year. I wasn't disappointed in my expectations, as you will readily see when I tell you that the sales for my fifth year amounted to $4,094.00. My business kept right on growing and at the end of the sixth year, T found that I had more than doubled the fifth year—my book showed that the sales amounted to $9,515.00. 20 $4223.00 PROFIT IN ONE YEAR Making the $4,223.00 I kept about ninety females for my breeding pens, and about ten males, selling off my culls for table use. I farmed out a lot of utility stock to farmers. By doing this I was enabled to supply a heavy demand for utility eggs that came from the birds that had plenty of range and eggs strong in fertility that produced vigorous stock. | sold many eggs from $2.50 to $30.00 per setting, and raised abeut five hundred youngsters. I followed the ideas described in this book. At the end of the year I found I had sold $9,515.00 worth of stock and eggs. My expenses, in- cluding advertising, feed bills, boy’s wages, etc. amounted to $5,292.00, leaving a balance of $4,223.00. These figures do not include the eggs and springers used on my table. The eggs and stock scld to the market would run about five hundred dol- lars. The balance of $9,015.00 was from sales of hatching eggs, baby chicks and standard bred stock. ON A TOIWN LOT 21 CHAPTER iit Incubators and Brooders QMIE one once asked me. this question: “Is a hen’s birthday when the egg is laid or when it is hatched?” I cannot answer! Nor have I been able to find a solution to the following questions: Whether first the egg, or the hen? Vell me, I pray, ve learned men. The hen was first, or whence the egg? Give us no more of your doubts, I beg. The egg was first, or whence the hen? Tell me how it came or when. But | do know that “In the beginning is the ege.” So, with your permission, | will here discuss my experience with in- cubators and brooders. As soon as we got nicely settled in our Berea home, we decided that the next thing was some chickens. So, off went my order for an incubator. Just a short time before this. I had visited a small poultry farm and was delighted by the beauty of the birds, and pleased with their utility as shown by the fact that they were working their heads off laying eggs in January. Some of them were busy in their nests. Others were trying to crowd them off. Others were cackling after laying. There seemed to be a general atmosphere of hustle and bustle in the hen houses. It certainly seemed unusual to observe so much industry in hen houses during mid- winter—and this condition made a great impression on me. I placed my order for eggs from these fowls, because the first thing I was after was a breed that would produce winter as well as summer eges—not occasionally, but frequently and systematically. The eggs ar- rived in the spring, a few days later than the incubator. Preliminary Testing of Incubator The incubator was placed in the basement, and after regulating the machine so that the thermometer registered 10214 degrees, | tested out the machine for two or three days to be sure that I had it well regulated before the eggs were put in. I didn’t want to take the chance of a short hatch. -A great deal had been said to me about the expense of 22 $4223.00 PROFIT IN ONE YEAR Type of brooder used when I commenced. These brooders prove very satisfac- tory. Have been replaced by a Modern Brooder System, which is illustrated a few pages on, “experimentation,” and I wanted to avoid this so far as possible. The sug- gestions and instructions made by the manufacturer of the incubator were followed as carefully as possible, coupled with a few common sense ideas I had myself. And then I was all ready to put in the eggs! The lamp was filled with the best oil procurable—not too—full, in order to allow for the expansion of the oil, and then I “lit up” the in- cubator. First with a moderate flame until after the heater was warmed through, because a new wick will cause the flame to creep up, and if the wick is turned too high at first, the lamp is likely to smoke and accumulate soot on the burner. It will then burn with a large flame until the burner is overheated and a puff of gas blows it out. In case the burner becomes overheated so much as to blacken the metal, it should be scoured bright or replaced with a new one—and the heater drum should be cleaned out thoroughly. The chimney of heater wants to ht closely to the burner. Looking After the Eggs Before placing them in the machine, I allowed the eggs to settle for twenty-four hours and then put these precious eggs in with eggs from ON A TOWN LOT 23 other different varieties. I had decided to try out several different breeds before deciding upon any one. None of the eggs were left standing on end—all were lying flat in the incubator. Since that time I was away on the road a considerable part of the time, I drafted the services of my faithful servant to run the incubator during my absence. Like all beginners, we were very much interested in the development from day to day, and I received frequent “bulletins,” reaching me at various stops on my route. Well, at the end of the third day of this first hatch, the eggs received their first turning and the next morning were turned again and cooled for about ten minutes. The tendency was for the temperature to rise the third week, when the chick had commenced to throw off animal heat. By slight adjustment of the regulator, we had no trouble in keeping the de- sired temperature. It is very important to maintain as nearly uniform temperature as possible. Every day the lamp was filled and the wick trimmed. Eggs must never be piled on top of one another, but always laid flat in the incubator. Much better results will be secured by operating the machine in the basement, because it is easier to maintain the necessary uniform temper- ature. If the basement or cellar is too dry, then place a pan of water under your machine to furnish sufficient moisture. I have said something about cooling eggs. This is done by allowing the eggs to remain out of the machine until they are cooled. If the weather is severe and the room is cool, it will not take them long to reach the desired coolness. A good way to tell when they are sufficiently cooled off, is to place the eggs to the lid of your eye, and if they feel neither warm nor cold, they are at the proper temperature to return to the machine. This “eye lid” test is a good one! This scheme was followed until the nineteenth day when the eggs began to pip. When we saw the first egg pip we closed the door and did not open it again until we saw the hatch was well over. The first week we ran the machine at a temperature of 102% degrees, and the second week 103 degrees. At the end of the third week the temperature went up to 104 degrees or a little more, but under no condition did we allow it to go above 105 degrees. What causes the hatch to go over the twenty-first day? The machine has been run a little too cold or the eggs have been cooled a little too long. If the hatch comes off before the twenty-first day, it is because the lamp has been run with a blaze a little too high. At the end of the 24 $4223.00 PROFIT IN ONE YEAR Interior of a section of one of my brooder houses. This one building has a capacity of 10,000 chicks a season. nineteenth day the eggs began to pip, so we realized that we had run the machine just about right. At the end of the twentieth day the chicks had begun to appear. At the end of the twenty-first day the hatch was completed and all of us were proud as peacocks and happy as newlyweds with the results. We had hatched eighty-nine lively little babies, and you may be sure it was difficult to conjure up a more fascinating picture! By this time my brooder had arrived and it was made ready to receive the little folk. 1 planned to be home on Saturday and Sunday, and found a great deal of satisfaction in guiding the destinies of these little folk, keeping their brooder sweet and clean, and in raising them in the “nurture and admonition” of the plans that seemed most practical to me. We raised all but two of them. One died a natural death and the other was killed by accident, After the first hatch was taken off, I reset the machine and hatched ninety chicks. It was then early in July. The weather had then become very warm, and they died off rapidly because I hadn’t provided sufficient ON Ax TOWN. LOT 25 shade to protect them from the hot July sun. I have since proved that midsummer chicks can be easily raised by furnishing them plenty of shade, fresh water, and keeping them in small flocks. We know this can be done even in the hot Southland because we have had experience in raising lots of mid-summer chicks on my Southern Branch Farm. Little chicks are r very delicate birds. oo much chill or too much heat soon finishes them. but after they get real muscle in their little bodies and begin to harden up, they are much more thrifty and not so likely to be pounced upon by disease. The Brooder and Its Care We commenced to prepare the brooder for the chickens as soon as the eggs began to pip. Most all of the standard make brooders come in “knock-down” form or in sections, with directions for putting them to- gether. It only took an hour or two to assemble our brooder and get it ready for business. We were then ready to light the lamp and heat up the brooder, ready to receive its rioting, fluffy mob of lively infants. Let me again emphasize the importance of using good oil in the brooder as well as the incubator. We trimmed the wick daily, as recom- mended by the manufacturer of the brooder, and started with a small flame. As the brooder got warm, the wick was turned up a little higher. By following this plan when the brooder is first started, there will be no chance to have any of the trouble I mentioned in connection with the incubator. Being human, I had a little trouble. This made me more care- ful because the job of cleaning the soot from the drum and pipe is not an agreeable one and it can be avoided with a little care. The drum and pipe must be kept clean. Preparing It for Baby Chicks While being heated, the brooder was placed level on level ground, and then banked up around the edge with earth to keep the wind from blowing under the bottom. I placed it facing the east so that the chicks could get the warm rays of the early morning sun. I next hung on the wall of the brooder, a hopper containing fine grit, charcoal and beef scrap. Then put about one-half inch of coarse lake sand on the brooder floor. The next day I had the temperature registering 95 degrees, which is about the right temperature for the brooder to receive the chicks. I ran it for a couple of days before the chicks were ready to occupy it, so I would be sure we had the “hang’’ of the proposition all right and would be able 26 $4223.00 PROFIT IN ONE YEAR to keep up a uniform temperature, which, of course, must be regulated to a certain extent, with the warmth and brightness of the sun. When the sun is shining brightly, the wick can be turned down. Be sure to run a new brooder for a few days before putting chicks into it, in order to get it well regulated... This will save you the disappointment and expense of losing many baby chicks. The first hatch came off largely on the twenty-first day, and as the weather was cold, I left them in the incubator another day to get thor- oughly dried out. Later in the season, when the weather was warmer, they were removed to the brooder as soon as the hatch was well over, as the confinement seemed too clase for little chicks when the weather was hot. They need fresh, dry and warm air—not too much moisture, no chill, no excessively hot weather. Getting Ready to Receive Day-old Chicks Millions of day-old chicks are now purchased from poultry specialists who reside at a distance from the purchasers. I would like to suggest certain preparations that ought to be made for the reception of these day- old chicks. On arrival the box in which they have been packed should be carefully opened in a room before a fire, if the weather is at all cold. It is absolutely necessary that the birds be kept warm and dry. If these babies are to be raised under a broody hen, the chickens should be kept warmly indoors until evening and then, after she has settled down, quietly introduce them to their new “mother.” We suggest that a second broody hen should be kept in reserve in case the first one objects to raising an alien brood. I am taking it for granted that the hens have been carefully dusted with insect powder and are free from insects. If it is decided to bring up the chicks in an artificial brooder, this can be cleaned and warmed to receive the baby chicks, just as I have dis- cussed the matter in preceding paragraphs. About 90 degrees is a suitable heat for the sleeping chamber. See that there is plenty of good oil in the lamp and that the wick is burning clean and bright. Test the brooder thoroughly before the arrival of the baby chicks. There is absolutely no difficulty about working a brooder. It is very simple but the maker’s in- structions should be followed. On a warm spring day, when the sun is brightly shining, very little artificial heat will be required, but of course you have got to make sure that all is cozy and comfortable fer the night, which may be chilly and damp. ON A TOWN LOT 27 CHAPTER JV BABY CHICKS—SOME DO’S AND DON’T’S How Mother Nature Planned Them VES NATURE has made very wonderful provi- sion for the nurture of newly hatched baby chicks. They require no food for the first two days except the water with the chill taken off, when they are put into the brooder. Mother Nature has taken care of their wants by permitting the absorption of the yolk of the egg in their bodies. This is just why it is not only possible but easy to send day-old chicks by rail, or road, or steam, for long distances. I have shipped day-old chicks safely, more than two thousand miles but, usually a forty- eight hour journey is ample for the young explorers. In order to break these long distance shipments of baby chicks and give the greatest satis- faction, I have established a branch farm in the far South, and at this writing am negotiating for one in the extreme West. Don’t Over-feed I was amused to have a young man write to me that he had a good hatch but had lost a little chick. On examination he had found that it had swallowed the yolk of an egg, which had killed it. If the chicks are fed too soon, the yolk of an egg does not become absorbed in time, and the natural result is just what it would be if a small child stuffed and gormandized with more food than he could take care of in his digestive tract—they droop and die. 28 $4223.00 PROFIT IN ONE YEAR What to Feed It is perfectly natural to feel that the baby chicks ought to be fed. But don’t be ina hurry about it. It is better to let them go without food a few hours too long than to feed them too soon. After the chicks had picked at the sand for a few hours, I placed clover chaff or chopped clover hay under the hover for bedding. I use this because if they eat any of it, it will not injure them. If you use sawdust or something similar, the chicks are apt to eat more or less of it before they distinguish be- tween that and what they should eat, and they are liable to become “stuffed” with the wrong sort of material. The gizzard of the chicken is its feed mill and ordinary coarse sub- stances are required to grind the food, hence it encourages early vitality to furnish them with clean, coarse sand at once. If the weather permits, I allow the chicks on the ground for an hour or two for the first time about the fifth day, or when they are six days old. If the weather is mild, they can remain out longer. In cold weather care should be taken to see that they can find their way back into the brooder, and not allow them to stand on the cold ground and get chilled through, which is likely to prove fatal or stunt their growth later. After they learn the way into the warm hover of the brooder they will run in whenever they get cold. If the weather is cold they should be tempered to the cold ground by degrees by allowing them to stay out longer each succeeding day for three or four days. Brooders and Colony Houses It is a good plan to keep the chicks in the brooder in the morning until the grass becomes dry. They should be given green food of some kind from the start. In case that green clover cannot be secured for them from the lawn, some sprouted oats will make a good substitute. On a subsequent page you will find directions for sprouting the oats. As the chickens grow older the flame can be turned down and the heat reduced by degrees. The second week 90 degrees is about right for them, the third week 85 to 90 degrees, and the fourth week 80 to 85 degrees. If the weather is warm they will commence to desert the hover when they are five or six weeks old and remain in the exercising room of the brooder. During the early spring months give them 80 degrees until they are six or eight weeks old, and after they are ten or twelve weeks old the weather has moderated sufficiently to take them from the brooder and place them in a piano-box colony house that is described on page 36. I keep them in these houses until they are taken to their quarters. The ON A TOWN LOT 29 cockerels are separated from the pullets when they are taken from the brooder. I have the parks containing these brooders plowed and _ culti- vated every spring and sowed with rape seed. This produces a splendid green feed up until the snow flies, and it also makes a splendid shade. It furnishes then with lots of bugs and worms, which are generally found on such plants. At one end of the park I planted two or three dozen hills of sunflowers, which make excellent shade and give a crop of seeds. It is in here that they have their best times and flourish. When the cockerels are two or three pounds in weight I sell off the culls to the market and the balance are kept in these colony houses until the late fall, when they are taken to their winter quarters. After the pullets are four months old they are put in their winter quarters, in order that they will not be disturbed when they are getting ready to lay. Making Baby Chicks Work Take as one of your mottoes in feeding chickens that, “If they will not work, neither shall they eat.” Teach them to work by feeding them in litter, so that they will have to scratch and dig around for what they eat, and keep this up as long as they live. On the third day I feed them hard-boiled eggs (boiled twenty minutes) mixed with bread crumbs thor- oughly dried, or corn bread will make a good substitute. The coarsest ground oatmeal obtainable is a very safe food for the first meal. It has been called a perfect chick food. At the beginning it is a good plan to mix chick feed in lake or any other coarse sand. This will teach them industry and as they develop the muscles in their legs and bodies, naturally makes them stronger chicks. Chick Physiology Strange as it may seem, the little fellows thrive on sand and tiny bits of flint. The chicken has no teeth and never will have, and needs something hard, brittle and rough with which to grind its food to pulp when it reaches the gizzard—the “feed mill” of the chicken. The crop is simply a large pouch low down in the neck, into which the food is shovelled, awaiting the process of digestion. Shown herewith is a rough diagram of various parts of a chicken’s anatomy. This will show pretty well how food travels on its way down the digestive tract. (1) The mouth; (2) the throat, through which the food passes to (3) the crop, which is a storage tank where the food rests until the eizzard (5) is ready for it. Between the crop and gizzard, where the food is ground, there is an enlargement (4) called the stomach. At (6) is shown the small intestine, to which is fastened the unassimilated 10 $4223.00 PROFIT IN ONE YEAR yolk (7). Through the little opening at (8) this yolk keeps passing into the intestine, where it is absorbed into the chick’s system. Thus you will see that when food is given before the yolk is entirely assimilated you have food coming from two directions, each kind battling against the other. At (9), the caecum, or lower intestine, you will note two tube-like extensions. These are the places where worms may lodge, and are the seat of many bowel troubles with the older fowls. Over-feeding crams the caecum full, and this condition is generally indicated by a pasted-up vent (10). I venture to say that fully 80 per cent of the mortality in raising baby chicks is caused by improper feeding, and one of the most serious sources of danger is in the moistening of food. Dry food and then good, clean water, which lets the chick do the moistening for itself in the proper proportions, is the safest way. Nature has taught them what they require. We don’t know. Of course baby chicks can be raised successfully with wet mashes—but it certainly takes more care and to my way of thinking is not Nature’s plan. Don’t pamper and overly milk feed young chicks. Prepared foods containing powdered buttermilk are very beneficial. How Often to Feed For the first day or two, chicks should be fed every two or three hours. For the next week, four times daily is sufhcient and then three times daily. Be careful about not overfeeding. One of my greatest ON A TOWN LOT 31 difficulties when I found it necessary to be absent on the road, was to find any one to feed the chicks without overfeeding. As I stated before, it is better to underfeed them than to overfeed, but there is not much danger of overfeeding when chick feed is mixed in sand where they have to scratch and work for it. Watch and see that they have what they can ‘eat up clean—and no more. Cut of brooder made from a piano box. After they are a week old a hopper should be placed before them containing beef scrap, bran, fine charcoal and grit, a hopper for each. After the chick is two or three months old, a few handfuls of wheat can be added to the chick feed, and the wheat can be increased by adding more every week until they become accustomed to the whole grains. If cracked corn and kafir corn can be obtained, feed a mixture of three parts wheat, two parts cracked corn, and one’ part of kafir corn. ‘This will make excellent growing feed for them until they are four months old, when any other grains may be added that can be secured in the market, such as buckwheat, oats, barley and any other grains that the chickens will eat. A good formula to go by is to use about 50 percent wheat where three kinds of grain are fed and 40 percent where more than three kinds are used. This grain is small, easily digested, and is 32 $4223.00 PROFIT IN ONE YEAR rich in protein and mineral matter. Corn when fed alone has not enough protein and too much fat. Buckwheat and barley are also rich in fat. During the winter months corn ought to be fed in larger proportions and should constitute at least 50 percent of the feed during the cold weather. Green Food Green food should not be overlooked when chicks are small. In the very early spring sprouted oats make a splendid green feed for them. As soon as possible sow a bed of oats, cover the top of it with one-inch poultry netting, which should be placed about six inches from the ground. The chicks will eat the tops off and they will grow up again. Take six- inch boards and stand them around the edge of the bed, driving sticks in the middle to keep the wire from sagging. The wire can be nailed on the top end of the board, which will make a good arrangement for this purpose. The little fellows prefer this green feed to anything that you can furnish them, and it is always there for them to work on. By the time the oats are through growing the chicks will be large enough to eat any green feed that is supplied them. As the chicks grow larger, it is important that they are furnished with plenty of charcoal and grit of a larger size than they required when they were smaller. The charcoal and grit can be secured in three sizes— one size for the baby chick, a medium size for the growing chick, and a large size for the matured fowl. Their winter quarters should be provided with a hopper containing bran, beef scrap, oyster shell, grit and charcoal a section for each. During the winter months, when the hens are con- fined, they should be fed green bone, about three pounds to a hundred hens per day. Skimmed milk, curdled thick, makes a good substitute for green bone. I get splendid results without feeding mashes. But mashes are good if not too wet. A mash moistened with milk makes fine feed for hens. To insure the proper amount of exercise during the winter months, it is best to put the grains in litter and compel the hens to scratch for them. Green food must not be overlooked. When it is not con- venient to feed sprouted oats, alfalfa meal, cabbage or mangels are splendid. Sprouted Oats Sprouted oats is the best green feed obtainable, and makes a good cheap feed and is a great ege producer. The fowls are fond of it. Feed at noon as much as they will eat up clean. To prepare, take a pail half full of oats, soak in water for about one day, drain water, and empty into a box with half inch holes bored in the bottom. Sprinkle night and morning with warm water. When oats commence to sprout, spread them out into other boxes two inches thick, and sprinkle twice daily with warm water. Keep oats well stirred each time they are sprinkled, and in about ON A TOWN LOT 33 a week or so they will have sprouted. The length of sprout will depend on the temperature of the room. When sprouts are two inches long, commence to feed to the hens, and by the time the sprouts are four to five inches long you will have them all fed, and in the meantime have another lot ready to feed. Winter Quarters You will bear in mind that the most perfect winter quarters are those that have conditions nearest to summer. I do not mean that the tempera- ture shall be as warm as summer, but to have other conditions as near like what your fowls are accustomed to in the summer as practical. The sprouted oats, a generous box of gravel, plenty of dust in their box, clean quarters, fresh air, and no drafts can be had with little expense and trouble, and will make conditions summerlike to them to a large extent. If it is convenient, throw a basketful of old plaster in one corner, and it will be surprising the amount of this they will consume, and it is good for them, as the lime is needed for them in the formation of the egg shell. This will make a good substitute for oyster shell. Automatic Feeders The automatic feeders are a fine thing for growing stock or breeders in the summer time. When the flocks are confined to their winter quar- ters I would much prefer to feed in litter. The chickens must be kepi active to get the best results, and I find the best way to keep them active is to keep them working in a good supply of litter on the floor. Hopper feeding is all right to a certain extent. The mineral matter, such as oyster shell, grit, animal matter such as beef scrap, and a dry mash may be fed them in this manner. Keeping the fowls supplied with a dried mash in the hopper insures them always having enough to eat. In case they are not fed sufficiently in the litter they will finish their meal at the hopper. If the chickens are always ready for you when you enter the pen with the feed pail you will know that they are not being overfed. If they are hungry they will flock around you as soon as you enter. If they are indifferent when you go in you will know that they are being overfed. So it is time to cut down on their rations. Piano Box Colony House In another chapter I discussed incubators and brooders, but perhaps while I am talking over with you your baby chicks, you'd be interested in my experience with a home-made colony house—many of which I still use. After the hatches came off, the fluffy babies were transferred to the brooder—and it is remarkable to see how they thrive and grow. They are always anxious to get out and when the robins return bringing spring with them, I let the growing youngsters into their sunflower parks. 34 $4223.00 PROFIT IN ONE YEAR The beautiful days of May come all too soon—and chicks grow splendidly. They are now large enough so that sexes may be separated. \ colony house made from a piano box such as will be found illustrated on page 33 will make comfortable and economical quarters for growing stock. I removed the bottom of the box, then placed two pieces of 2x6 under the box, sawed off the corners next to the ground, which will make it easy to move. ‘These pieces are placed about twelve inches from the outer edge of the box and the floor nailed to them. | placed a few bricks under them so that the box can be raised high enough to afford the chickens splendid shelter on rainy days. I placed the box on a high spot so that the ground was dry under it, as the chicks prefer to go under the box rather than go inside during the daytime in case of any rough weather. After I had the runners secured I next divided the front, which was the bottom of the box and is now open, by nailing a 2x4 between the bottom and the top at the front edge. Next I nailed a 2x4 of the same length against each side, on the inside flush with the front. This served to hang the doors on. I made the doers out of 1x2 and covered with one-inch mesh. If you are likely to be troubled with weasels it would be a good idea to tack wire cloth on the frames instead of one- inch poultry netting. This wire cloth can be secured any width and as fine as you wish. The half-inch hardware cloth is sufficiently fine. These doors answered the purpose very nicely until the weather became a little cool in the fall, when I tacked muslin over the wire. After the doors were on | covered the top of the box with roofing paper, stopped all the cracks so that there was no draft, and next put in the roosts. These I placed about ten inches apart, and there was room for three or four of them. These boxes make splendid quarters for the growing stock and will be a good place for them until the weather gets cold in the Fall or until they are ready to be taken to their Winter quarters. *€ The colony houses can be placed in the parks or in an open field. A cornfield makes an ideal location on account of the shade and the ground being tilled frequently, giving the chickens lots of loose earth to work in and a chance to get earthworms. | used two parks for the colony houses, one-for the males and one for the females. In May I found the chicks growing nicely, and those of the large males that did not promise to make good breeders [ sold for broilers. Care should be taken not to force the breeders during the breeding season or any cther time. The breeding pen should not be fed wet mashes, because this has a tendency to produce the fatal white diarrhoea in the chick. In case that the eggs are not as fertile as they should be, it will be found that the male is so gallant that he defers eating until the females have the feed consumed. In such cases as this it is necessary to feed the male by himself once or twice a day for a while, and every other day he should be supplied with a little ground raw lean beef. ON A TOWN LOT 39 CHAPTER Vv GETTING THE EGGS Importance of Male Bird aN i] N my former edition of this book I made the statement SA “The male is half the pen and should be a bird of == good type.” I feel satished in my own mind, after recent experiments, that the male bird is more nearly seven-eighths of the pen. The hen is a factor—but by no means the dominant one. If a breeder mates a hen of great laying capacity with a cockerel whose parents were moderate egg producers, the chances are that the “kin” will take after the male, and also be moderate egg layers. If a hen of moderate egg-laying capacity be mated with a cockerel whose parents held a high record, the chances are the progeny will also take a high place in egg production. Admittedly the greatest profit from hens is in the eggs—and_ par- ticularly winter eggs. It costs a certain amount to feed and care for a pullet until it reaches the laying age. And then there is a constant monthly “overhead” and feeding expense, all of which must be figured, and for which the hen must be made to pay before she produces a profit for the owner. It is important, therefore, to bear in mind the necessity of getting male birds from a prolific egg-laying strain. If you want more eggs, one of the cheapest and most effective ways to secure them is to buy best cockerel possible instead of purchasing an entire flock of pedigree hens and then mating them with a second-rate male bird. You get practi- cally all the inherited ability to lay, transmitted by the cockerel. 36 $4223.00 PROFIT IN ONE YEAR When Superb Vitality Counts In my last catalog and in other advertising which I have recently published, I have emphasized—somewhat to the surprise of many of my business friends—the idea of superb and supreme vitality. I even went so far as to show a photograph of one of my birds making a “20 yard dash” across one of the yards. I will not tolerate a droopy slacker hen or cockerel—and at the present time we very seldom have to contend with such birds. When they appear, and imperfections are discovered, the cockerels are fattened for broilers and soon killed. Diagrammatic Comparisen If you will compare the two diagrams, you will observe the alert, sprightly, vigorous carriage of the parallelogram shaped body and the weak, supine aspect of the triangular shaped body. Keep away from ON A TOWN LOT 37 birds with triangular shaped bodies. Select cockerels with plenty of pep and fight, with glossy feathers and well developed, large heads, with well formed combs of brilliant color, strong, prominent eyes, proud appearance, full, deep breast, well rounded abdomen, powerful legs, set quite far apart, a broad, strong back—and a fellow who has a loud, clear crow to welcome the rising sun. Specifications of an Ideal Male In my selection of the ideal Ancona male, I would look for the following points: I’d pick out a fellow with a long back, slightly sloping downward to the tail, with no apparent angle at the tail. Huis tail should be carried at an angle of 40 degrees, but don’t be afraid of the tail being too low. The head, and especially the comb, should be as near perfect as possible. The comb is the first thing that is noticed in a bird and is naturally very prominent. It should have five serrations; three or four is no serious objection, because the tendency is for the points to increase in number. ‘~}he comb should stand erect, the blade continuing a flowing curve upward from the line of head, free from all side spriggs. Do not use a male too light in color. He should be dark, with as little white in his wings and tail as possible. The shanks should be yellow, or yellow mottled with black. Females of good shape, with a long body, with the tail carried at an angle of about 35 degrees, good head points, comb of good size with five serrations or less, free from side spriggs and folds, well mottled, with as few white feathers in the tail and wings as possible. The shanks should be yellow, or yellow mottled with black. If the male bird has a solid yellow shank, the female may have a little more black on the shank. A combination such as this will give you splendid results. If the male bird is very dark the female birds may have more white. By mating them for a season or two you can determine what results you will get from light or dark colored birds. The tendency is to breed lighter, so it is a good fault to breed the birds dark. The Rose Comb Ancona may be mated the same as the Single Comb excepting the comb. The principal point to note is to see that the male bird is strong in the points where the females are weak. If the male bird has not a good spike on his comb, care should be taken to secure females that are strong on this point. Breeding pens to get best results, should not have over fifteen females. I have seen twenty females mated to a good vigorous male with splendid results, but this is unusual. Put the right kind of a cockerel with second grade birds, and you 38 $4223.00 PROFIT IN -ONE YEAR are much more likely to secure a generous supply of eggs, than if you put a second grade cockerel with an entire flock of pedigree hens. Housing for Egg Production When you have secured your pullets with the inherited tendency to lay large numbers of eggs, you have only begun. These pullets have to be carefully tended until they reach the creative stage and then they must receive the treatment that will bring the egg-laying tendency to its finest fruition and this means proper housing and proper feeding. Keep the eround free from taint and open to the action of the air and sun. Keep ihe houses scrupulously clean and nest-boxes inviting with fresh hay or straw. These things matter very much! Feeding for Egg Production the right ield. The There certainly is no mystery about the problem of feeding sort of food in the proper proportions to encourage heavy egg y ratio of albuminoids to carbohydrates should be as one in five. The albu- minoids make flesh—eeggs! Carbohydrates supply the heating energy. One way of working out the question in terms of food is as follows :—One pound bran, one middlings, one maize meal, one fish meal and one half clover meal. One of soya-bean meal may be added when not too expen- sive. As I have said, these meals may be given moistened with warm water or fed dry, just as they are, but in that case the dry mixture must he fed out of a specially constructed box called a hopper. Green bone, fresh from the butcher's, as a part of the food—say one- third—on every alternate day, encourages pullets to lay quickly—but be careful about “forcing” the bird. Sprouted oats or sprouted wheat are economical feeds and excellent aids to hen fruit. Next in importance to food for egg-yield, is the supply of water. Without water there would be no egg and no fowl. Don’t keep hens wailing one moment to drink! If the hen has to wait a long time, the potential egg may vanish and where two eggs would have been laid, with ample liquid available, only one will materailize. Keep plenty of fresh, clean water before your hens. Four important reasons why a constant supply of fresh water should he kept before laying hens, are as follows: 1—Water is used to soften food for digestion. 2—\Water, in the form of blood, acts as a common carrier and keeps the body vigorous, 3—Water constitutes about 75 percent of the ege. 4--Water is very important in equalizing the temperature of the hen’s body. ON A-TOWN LOT 39 Some Egg Facts The demand for eggs has always been, and probably always will be, ahead of the supply. An egg is something that can be marketed on either a modest or large scale, but always marketed. It is never a drug on the market. The word “ege’” comes from the Anglo-Saxon oeg. Chaucer and -other early writers use the forms cy, eg, egge. It was really surprising Ss SS to me to find how many expressions and products got their name directly from the egg. Tor instance, the first watches ever made were egg-shaped and were sometimes called “animated eggs.’ The finest artists have used delicately tinted bird’s eggs as color models—the exquisite shades painted by Nature on these shells being matchless in harmony. 40 $4223.00 PROFIT IN ONE YEAR A great many people think that eggs are good for the voice. Egg and lemon juice beaten together are recommended for hoarseness. Charles Il of England presented a favorite singer with a silver egg filled with guineas, wittily remarking, “Take this; I am told that eggs are good for the voice.” I could sit here and talk for an hour on the romance of what we call “a common hen’s egg”—I could call your attention to the Jewish people who taboo pork but are a remarkably healthy race. As a people they make great use of eggs—even the poorest giving them preference over other foods. A man once said that if, for every pig kept by private families, a flock of hens were substituted, there would be less patent medicine required and a general improvement im health. Tf you will stop to think of it, you will realize that fewer individuals show an antipathy for eggs than for most foods—in fact no honest appetite rejects them. Right here it might not be out of place for us to give consideration to the food value and chemistry of the eggs. I] am showing a sketch of a typical Ancona egg. The “Famous” Ancona egg will weigh two ounces or slightly under that. Standard authorities give the following proportions of chemical elements in the dry substance of the average hen's egg: CAG DOM, jiouiwna twenties eet ay Ova to toe Net trey: ET) tats sp oe eo ate ree eee 15% to 16% FING ROOT wera eleva thy Gye'ie.s ase Sire eaten ete 7% Ony DiGi eral