fy ay iinet wee , - aero Of the Successtul Raisinig4 x of Turkeys Ge aod ed MISS MAHANEY AT TURKEY PARK Margaret Mahaney TALKS ABOUT TURKEYS By - MARGARET MAHANEY > oS THE SKILLFUL NEW ENGLAND RAISER TELLS US SOME OF THE SECRETS OF THE SUCCESSFUL RAISING OF TURKEYS PUBLISHED BY ait PARK & POLLARD: CO. BOSTON, MASS. Copyright 1913 by THE PARK & POLLARD CO. Boston, Mass. Copyright 1915 by MARGARET MAHANEY Concord, Massachusetts vA ©OcA428217 MAR 13 1916 UA’ f MARGARET MAHANEY Talks About Turkeys Price, $1.00 INTRODUCTION By PHILIP R. PARK ORE than a century and a quar- M ter ago there was fired in Con- cord, Mass., a shot that was heard around the world. This shot termi- nated the domination of monopoly and marked the opening of a new era,—the building of a new empire. Not less important to all lovers of turkeys is the shot fired in this same beautiful old town by Margaret Ma- haney, when she first put an end to the bogy that has been hovering over the Turkey industry so long, i.e., Black- head. Not less triumphant has been her conquest of practically all the ail- ments besetting this beautiful bird. ili It is really beyond belief that Miss Mahaney has raised in a season 300 turkeys with a loss of less than 2 per cent, when for years the Experiment Stations and Agricultural Colleges, as well as nearly all poultrymen, have claimed that turkeys could not be raised in this State. All would recognize this as wonderful work if applied to chick- ens, but when accomplished with tur- keys it is doubly wonderful. These same Experiment Station directors had told Miss Mahaney that she could not do the things she was already accom- plishing, but when they visited her farm they held up their hands and de- parted, acknowledging that here was a woman who had performed the miracle. Miss Mahaney was a wonderfully capable trained nurse who broke down at her work and was ordered to the country to save her life, urged particu- iv hoes a, 5! % <3 oad aig WOL @AZIUd 00'0ST$ SAHNVHVW SSIWN larly to take up some out-of-door work. Poultry keeping appealed to her from the first, but turkeys particularly for the reason of the difficulties to be sur- mounted. If she could do what others could not she would be satisfied. Any- one could raise chickens, but hardly anyone could raise turkeys. Here was a task that delighted her and a prob- lem that appealed to her. The diffi- culties she encountered would have dis- couraged any one but a pioneer of her character. Her deep maternal instinct (and she is, figuratively speaking, mother to everything and everybody upon the beautiful estate where she lives) brought the babies and old tur- keys through their blackhead troubles, and from her medical training, to- gether with the aid she received from contact with members of her family who were physicians, she recognized Vv symptoms and remedies which one could acknowledge as miracles and not overstep the truth. She has applied the fruits of her life work to the solv- ing of a problem, and some day the country at large from Maine to Cali- fornia will raise its hat to Marga- ret Mahaney, the lady from Concord, Mass., who restored what was supposed to be lost:—the art of raising turkeys, —and that in confinement in poultry houses under practically the same con- ditions as chickens. If you find time to go to Concord, by all means call on Miss Mahaney and she will make you welcome. She will show you more turkeys than have ever before been raised in one flock in the eastern states, and she will delight in telling you the simple methods she vi uses. On the following pages she will tell you in her own way how she accom- _plishes it. We repeat, Miss Mahaney is a won- derful woman. She has a beautiful estate on which to produce these birds, but others are doing just as wonderful work with them by following her teach- ings. Vii ef ‘ is q > i AA Uy ‘ hey f bites TABLE OF CONTENTS PAGE BE BRODUCTION NS 6 Bale bela eles 8 ill A LETTER TO My READERS...... 3 FACTS ABOUT TURKEY RAISING.. 13 ee eek a oe Oe 15 BRIEF OUTLINE OF My METHOD OF RAISING TURKEYS ...:.... 2a Throwing the Red......... 27 mI her tS Bila, ole 31 Selection and Treatment of Breeding Stock ......... 31 Rules for the Selection of eG MUG ee ee cts ae Kind of Hens to Select..... 33 Number of Females to One ye eeu cada es 35 Care to be Given Breeding =o Le GIRDERS age ea en Sr 36 Matine *,. 5 oa%cee ee ae 38 Feeding During Breeding SEASON; 2 Shelia eee men 38 Nests and Nesting......... 40 Hatching: 4c c Gee 42 First (Peed oss eee 43 Avoid ) Wernuin 22 7 ee 45 The Setting of the Turkey TB eae 60 Oh a 46 THE THROWING OF THE RED AND VOUING IU BY St) oc ee ae 55d INVESTIGATION OF DISEASES..... 65 BLACKHEAD i: Gaueaeis d.1 Guba ta ee 71 My First Successful Fight Against Blackhead ...... 73 To Detect Blackhead....... 78 Treatment of Full Grown DUE RS a Re Hoe «cde ble 79 Blackhead in Young Turkeys 81 Starts with a Common Cold 84 Treatment of a Common tie ie viad i taste White es, 84 COMMON DISEASES ............ 91 RhSUM Be Bua bos Sew ek 91 “Rotten Crop,’ Sometimes Mistaken for Blackhead. . Cold — Catarrh — Cough — Peromchitisn (eg Sa eta 4 MOOMGLY x) ain Shei aes ee eae es Consumption of the Throat. . Consumption of the Lungs .. pwollen PHeads 0. os. .4. Sore Eyes and Head....... Constipation in Turkeys.... Pee ec es oa S was Diarrhea in Little Turkeys. . RMS eo eee aecc aN cae eos ee VOR oe ce e's ene ord E215 10101) Ce ge Ra em BRONZE URKEY...:...... The Organs and Size....... OSCLIOTS TAS RIESE ae ir Selection of Breeding Stock. . MARCUS o/s is sey ob ee 0 2 Be OR SE ee be Bee Jet ae tie kw ys once tae xi 93 W ’ > a i } { i » ' a i, 1 J * * pet 4 ie \+y . . S \ ls by - F f 4 . 4 p by q res 5 ao 4 « y ’ ue rr “e i ’ i, ‘ ‘ i 1 - ’ v n i\ . ) ' % ; ' ‘ ‘ ¢ , ’ 7 a ‘ me 5 ‘e 4 ® 4 hi i] ‘ y ‘a * ¥ ‘ rs i : ‘ 4 A “ 4 ™ 4 r 1 1 i . 1 , rs he : ’ , . ’ \ ‘ a te te . Ve fied rT J A » i ¥ A 2A. j BM yA ¥ pith ri ‘ Ph RG Oa ler ea Te ee ry "7 i i a A i) / ' ’ 5 j , Pa 4 ie | hc wm) i 4 ve “ Sa ey ‘ ‘ , ‘ 4 = ae ‘i at i a ; ‘ aye se ( Lu? Me OY rae Os mt, wh rp io8 ay i ( wie id i PS AP TS . J ‘ * A ry ‘ ry al iF : ‘ ; ~ ns ey, A \ i + a ‘ 4 / s J eva od j % : > ’ : Aa F , ’ uy * i a q Ae i p , : yas , pan! /. * \ w ba‘ 7 7 : ¥ ¥ 1 a } ‘“f i aye ws aA perk ve eye ith ¥ i ¥ r * ‘ _! ‘ Pf HT | , ‘ ‘. r ‘oe, f ‘ o , jf 1 } ray a, 4 > 20) he ‘ nN Y in Ae : 4 FULL-PAGE ILLUSTRATIONS Miss Mahaney at Turkey Park Frontispiece Miss Mahaney’s $150.00 Prize VERRIER ICED Tsong carer Showing Style of Runs........ The Mahaney System Develops eerous, Hardy Birds......... : “Give the Turkeys All the Milk Me oie sea kk eb a es R. I. Reds and Plymouth Rocks Make Excellent Mothers..... meeemine® Pens 2... ee ee Turkeys Should Be Tamed..... Friends (Miss Mahaney and “Grandma Cleaves’) ....... Women Make the Most Success- ser turkey Raisers ......... Turkeys Thrive Best on High ee eke SL Slain aie pial Turkey Raising Is an Interest- ing and Healthful Occupation Xi 126 \ A LETTER TO MY READERS xt A LETTER TO MY READERS TURKEY PARK, CONCORD, MASS. My dear Readers :— The following is a copy of a letter recently received by me, and which rep- resents the type of communications I have received daily for over three years from all parts of the country: My dear Miss Mahaney :— Altho we are strangers to each other, I am writing you today, regarding turkey rais- ing. I read some time ago in the “Boston Post” that you had good success in raising turkeys, so I take the liberty of writing you for instructions, if you will kindly give them to me. I have tried for several years to raise a few, but it has been a hard job. They would do well for about six or seven weeks, then grow sick with liver and bowel trouble and fade away. Now what is the trouble? What must they be fed with? Must they range or be kept in a yard? In fact, what way must I man- age to raise turkeys? What is your experience? Please write me. Sincerely, ete. It is in answer to such letters as the foregoing that I am placing my meth- ods in book form on the market, in order to enlighten the breeders of tur- keys and to inform them how I first succeeded where others have failed. In the first place, I visited two or three farms in the country. I found that no care whatever was taken of the Page four turkeys. A common hen was fairly well looked after, fed and kept warm. The turkey was supposed to forage for itself, roost on old wagons or any sort of roost that the bird found convenient at night and in all kinds of weather. Conditions were anything but sanitary. Inbreeding was permitted year after year, as one tom was thought sufficient for the hen turkeys of five or six neigh- bors. I visited one farm in particular, which had on it turkeys from very nice stock, about twenty in all. Of course they were small and pale, and had not developed as they should have. They roosted in a sort of shed right off the barn cellar, so that they had access to the barn cellar, and they roamed around on the manure pile all day. The manure was turned down through an opening under the cows. The roof Page five of that shed had no shingles on it, and in wet weather the rain simply poured down on those birds. It is only natural that conditions such as these will bring on roup and all kinds of diseases. The birds will not be developed and cannot possibly be strong enough when the spring comes to fulfill the duties of the breeding season. Birds hatched amid such surround- ings are tainted with roup and other afflictions. It is not very long ago since I had a talk with a gentleman from Vermont. He told me that at one time Vermont made a large amount of money in tur- key raising. When the turkeys got to be four or five weeks old, the raisers simply turned them out, and let them take care of themselves. Those that lived through the summer, weathered storms and all other sorts of hardships, Page six they rounded up in the fall, fattened for market or sold for breeders. This was what they called “clear profit.” Everyone can readily understand to what that “clear profit’’ has led. The result is that our splendid bronze turkeys are dying out by the thousands each year, and within seven or eight more years, if something is not done to strengthen the turkey and keep it up to the standard of at least the common hen, our famous turkey of America will © be a thing of the past. Whereas, if the turkey when hatched is given good feed as described in another part of my book, taken care of until the red is thrown, and then turned into a good, warm shed - at night, kept dry and warm in damp weather, and fed reasonably, three- thirds of the trouble in raising turkeys can be avoided. Page seven Care must be given to the breeding hens. They must be kept in sanitary quarters, given plenty of good feed, with four drops of tincture of iron to a gallon of water, plenty of lime and sand, about half and half, and left where they can eat it at their own convenience. If you give ground bone, have it very fine, for it is apt to lodge in the corner of the mouth and some- times will cause ulceration. When this happens, the jowl of the bird will be- come swollen, and on close examina- tion, there will be found a small piece of white bone which will have to be removed and the mouth washed with Sulpho-Napthol or Presto Disinfectant. I generally use my salve two or three times before the wound is healed. If the bird that lays the eggs is good and strong, the turkeys that are hatched Page eight will be strong and rugged, and to “keep them growing from the start” has al- ways been my motto. In my closing paragraph I wish to say to all my readers that I have been most sincere and straightforward in everything that I have written in this book. To one and all who may read this, I extend a cordial invitation to visit my turkey farm in Concord, Mas- sachusetts, that you may see for your- selves the progress I have made in the last eight years in raising turkeys in yards under the same conditions as chickens, a feat which has been claimed heretofore by experiment stations to be impossible to accomplish, in poultry- congested New England. I have labored with the problem of turkey raising for many years, and sincerely believe myself to be in a posi- tion to advise others who may be be- Page nine ginners, as I once was, concerning the difficulties of turkey raising, and the best method of overcoming them. I remain, Sincerely yours, MARGARET MAHANEY. March 19, 1918. Page ten FACTS ABOUT TURKEY RAISING an af Ci) ie May ea if ha { { WO) as ee “at ay ; ‘A a? ‘ & e, MA } r eh 4 tA i ont { FACTS ABOUT TURKEY RAISING HE one great essential on the OR vari of a person raising or at- tempting to raise turkeys is patience, or persistency, whichever you care to eall it. To anyone thinking of start- ing in this work I can only say that you will meet with plenty of difficulties and much that will discourage and dis- hearten you, but when you remember that each failure or discouragement means just that much more added to your knowledge of, and experience in this work, it should give you heart to keep on, and if you do keep on and on, using each little bit of experience thus gained and using it to good effect, in the end success is bound to come. I Page thirteen am going to tell you a few of the dis- couraging things that happened to me, and also of my method of raising tur- keys, a method based on long experi- ence and perfected in the face of many discouragements, and I hope that in the telling, you may learn something that will be of benefit. I started with twelve turkey eggs. Had I known then how hard they are to raise, I wonder if I would have at- tempted it? I hatched out eight tur- keys from that lot of eggs, and I raised just one. I named her Hen-Hen, and she is on my place today, and is at the head of all my flock. The following year I hatched out over thirty turkeys, and only succeeded in raising four. My work was then carried on on low land. The next year, I put old Hen-Hen on higher ground, where I am raising all my flock today. Page fourteen She hatched out fifteen turkeys, and I raised all but one. I killed off some of the young toms, and kept all the pul- lets, all of which I still have, and they are splendid, strong stock, short-legged, heavy and a splendid bronze. I then sent to Kentucky and brought out some of the best stock I could find down there, and then began my battle to raise turkeys. I had very good suc- cess, that is, as far as I went. At first, I knew hardly anything about the proper way to feed, and the right food to give my turkeys, but as the years went by, my experience in feeding taught me a great deal. BREEDING Now I will tell you in as concise a way as possible, the method I consider proper in raising turkeys. In the first place, it is necessary to have a good, Page fifteen strong two-year-old hen to breed from with a tom that is no relation whatever to the family. One of the foremost things you must be particular not to do is to inbreed. I much prefer a com- mon hen to put my first hatch of eggs under; that will give the turkey hens a much longer time to lay. I consider it better to put my turkey hens on my June eggs. I put fifteen eggs under a turkey hen, and twelve under a common hen. When the little turkeys come out, I disinfect their heads and under the wings with my own salve. Have you ever seen a little turkey that has a cold in its head wipe its beak under its wing? I have many times found the feathers under their wings mat- ted as a result of this ill-bred habit of theirs. That, of course, is not a healthy state for a young bird that is Page sixteen SNOUY HO WIALS ONIMOHS growing, and that is the reason that I disinfect with my salve under their Wings and on their heads, and they always seem brighter afterward. I have good, strong runs, 5 feet long and 4 feet wide, with high coops and thorough ventilation from the top, which carries off all the impure and overheated air, and keeps the temper- ature normal at the bottom of the coops for the little turkeys. On hot days I cover my runs with burlap. The turkeys must be kept clean and dry and their straw must be well aired every day. Once a week, I wash out the bottom of the coop with disinfect- ant, and put in clean straw. I give them all the lettuce they can eat three times daily, as the secret of raising turkeys is to keep their bowels in good order, and the droppings a bright green. Just as soon as I see a Page seventeen little turkey with its wings drooping, I take it away from the others and treat it as described on page 82. I have invented my own pills for the cure of blackhead and they are now being largely used by turkey raisers all through New England.* When my little turkeys are about three or four days old, I give them Margaret Mahaney Turkey Feed, and a little skimmed milk with a good solid feed of lettuce—all they can eat. At noon, I feed them lettuce again and clean water containing tincture of iron, 4 drops to each gallon of water. At night, I feed them bread soaked in milk and lettuce cut up fine with an onion and a shake of red pepper. After *The call has been so heavy that it has been im- possible for me to handle the business of the remedies from my Concord home, and they are now for sale with The Park & Pollard Company of Boston. Page eighteen having dry feed all day, they relish the soft feed at night. There is no reason why, if you use my method in raising turkeys, and have your runs on high ground, you cannot be successful. If the turkeys are raised in the right way, they are no harder to raise than chickens. When the pullets are about four months old, they should be given Epsom salts twice a week (a small tea- spoonful to a gallon of water). This keeps the turkey in good condition and the blood cool. Also a tablespoonful of sulphate of iron in a pail of water should be left in some place where they can drink it. Keep them good and dry until they are ready for shipment, for turkeys are subject to blackhead until they are one year old. I will be only too glad to give any information in my power to people who are interested in this subject. While Page nineteen the Experimental Colleges have put out some bulletins on the care of turkeys, the person that is going to issue a re- port on the raising of turkeys must get out in the field and be with them from the time they are baby chicks until they are ready to be disposed of, and then it will be many years before he will know all there is to know about turkey rais- ing. I have spent years on my tur- keys, and I think that I am now in a position to give any information that any grower may require in regard to this matter. Page twenty BRIEF OUTLINE OF MY METHOD OF RAISING TURKEYS SduId AGUVH ‘DNOULS SdOTHAHGC WHLSAS AUNVHVW AHL BRIEF OUTLINE OF MY METHOD OF RAISING TURKEYS N the first place I select a good quiet | hen that has been setting two or three days and put her in a deep, warm nest, not too far from the top of the box, so that when she goes to feed, the hen will not break the eggs by jumping on them when she returns to the nest. Twelve eggs seems a great number of turkey eggs to put under one hen, but that is what I put under every common hen, and I sometimes hatch out all the eggs. I spray the nests well with sul- phur and also use my salve on the hen up until the sixteenth day. I never put any disinfectant on the hen or on her nest after that because there is life in- Page twenty-three side the eggs by that time, and the dis- infectant is very apt to kill it. When the eggs begin to hatch, some will hatch out before the rest; these I © take away, placing them in a good warm box wrapped in flannel and keep them good and warm until all the eggs are hatched out and the mother able to receive them. When they are two days old, I put the young turkeys in a good clean coop, well whitewashed and wa- terproof. My runs are 5 ft. long and 4 ft. wide. I shut my little birds up in the coop for the first four days, until they become good and strong. After that, if the weather is fine and warm, I let them out about ten o’clock and put them in about three o’clock. Their first food consists of a hard boiled egg, a shake of red pepper and three parts dandelion, cut up fine. You can give them all the green food they Page twenty-four will eat, and also powdered charcoal and fine grit. After they are 3 or 4 days old, I give them bread and milk squeezed dry, and the Margaret Ma- haney Turkey Feed. The young poults are kept in runs which should be moved to a new spot each day and care taken that they are kept clean, dry and warm, and the straw must be taken out of the coops and thoroughly aired and kept good and clean, as the sanitary condition is half the battle in raising turkeys. Place your runs on a side hill, facing the south. On hot days, cover the runs with burlap. Let them out into the runs for two hours or more every afternoon that is pleasant and dry until the time the birds are nine weeks old. Do not let them out in damp weather before they are two ae old, for they are very ee Feeney ie. ; aad susceptible to dampness and should be kept housed and warm in rainy and damp weather. While the little birds are out, watch carefully for hawks and pests. Give the turkeys all the milk you can afford to give, as this will keep them growing. Plant a good field of lettuce and give them all this vegetable they can eat, and you will find that they will eat lettuce three times a day with good relish. One of the secrets of raising turkeys is to keep the droppings a bright green; that, of course, keeps the liver in good condition, and goes a long way in keep- ing blackhead out of the flock. Take some lime, slack it, put half sand with it and make a sort of soft mush out of it. Place this on a board and dry it; then crumble it up and leave it around where your little turkeys can get it to eat. Page twenty-six Pe. aA Medel ota 7 A M ‘ J CAN” ‘GIVE THE TURKEYS ALL THE MILK YOU Keep them in dry, tight houses with the south side open so that they may have an abundance of fresh air with- out draughts. When it is time to let them out of the runs, you can let them out for three and four hours at a time; you will find that they will want to go back to the runs when they become tired. Do not give them much feed at night; give them plenty of time to digest every- thing in their bowels, and they will then be ready for a good morning meal. THROWING THE RED When they show signs of throwing the red, put four drops of tincture of iron to a gallon of drinking water three or four times a week. If it is cold, rainy weather, put a drop of aconite in the water every day while the wet weather lasts. This will prevent their Page twenty-seven taking cold, and, as cold is the first sign of blackhead and diarrhea, it can be easily seen that a little precaution is worth more than a pound of cure. In regard to keeping lice off the little turkeys—you must disinfect your hens and the turkeys very frequently. My salve for that purpose is a convenient and effective remedy. If you will do as I have instructed you in the above paragraphs I do not think you will have much trouble in raising turkeys. Keep them dry by all means until they are five months old. Page twenty-eight BREEDING _ Pe BREEDING SELECTION AND TREATMENT OF BREED- ING STOCK HERE are some rules that must be followed in the selection of tur- keys for breeding if it is hoped to suc- ceed. Careless indifference has given no end of trouble to turkey raisers. In some instances which the writer has investigated all the turkeys owned in one locality have descended from the one original bird purchased many years before! In one case it was said that for twenty years no new blood had come into the neighborhood. If this foolish procedure had been continued it would have resulted in the destruction of the constitutional vigor of the turkeys. Page thirty-one RULES FOR THE SELECTION OF STOCK A few plain rules which may be ob- served to advantage are as follows: 1. Always use as breeders turkey hens over one year old. Be sure that they are strong, healthy and vigorous, of good medium size. In no instance select the smaller ones but do not strive to have them unusually large. 2. The male may be a yearling or older. Do not imagine that the large, overgrown males are the best. Strength, health and vigor with a well proportioned medium size are the main points of excellence. 3. Avoid close breeding. New blood is of vital importance to turkeys. Bet- ter send a thousand miles for a new male than risk the chance of inbreeding. Secure one in the fall so as to be assured of his healthy and vigorous constitution prior to the breeding season. Page thirty-two KIND OF HENS TO SELECT No matter what variety of turkey may be selected for keeping, they should, above all things, be strong, vig- orous, healthy and well matured, but not akin. Better secure the females from one locality and the male from an- other to insure their non-relationship rather than run the risk of inbreeding. In all fowls it is well to remember that size is influenced largely by the female and color and finish by the male. Se- curing an over-large male to mate with small, weakly hens is not wise policy. A medium size male with a good size fe- male of good constitutional vigor and mature age will do far better than the largest male bird with the smallest females. The wise farmer always selects the very best corn or grain of all kinds for seeds. Equal care should be given the Page thirty-three selection of the breeding stock in tur- keys. The best raised on the farm should be reserved for producers and the fact should be kept in mind that tur- key hens of the best quality after their second and third year make the best producers. Keep your best young hens with this in’ view. Undersized hens that lack constitutional vigor are not the kinds to select for successful turkey: breeding. When you stop to consider that the male turkey is half of the en- tire flock in the matter of breeding, we may be led to greater care in the selec- tion. None can be too good for the pur- pose. Constitutional vigor is of the first importance. Without this he can have no value whatever for the purpose intended. Plenty of bone, a full round breast and a long body are important. No matter of what stock or breeding the hen may be, the male should be selected Page thirty-four from one of the standard varieties. If the hens are of the same standard va- riety the male of the same variety should be selected so as to maintain the stock in its purity. Well selected in- dividuals of some one of the several standard varieties will give better re- sults than can be secured by cross breeding, which has a tendency to bring to the surface the weak points of both sides of the cross. Proper crosses may improve the first issue but if followed up they rarely prove successful. NUMBER OF FEMALES TO ONE MALE The best rule for mating is to confine in yards, using eight or nine females to one male; some say twelve, but all I ever mate to one tom is eight females. The result of this number is that all my eggs prove fertile. When they are yarded and from Page thirty-five eight to ten females are kept, it is bet- ter to have two toms and keep one shut up while the other is with the hens, changing them at least twice a week. When they run at large on a farm they will naturally divide into flocks. Un- der such conditions use one male to no more than six females. CARE TO BE GIVEN BREEDING STOCK March and April are the two months of the year that the breeding hen should have particular care. In the first place, I keep them warm and comfort- able, with a box of sand where they can dust themselves every day. There is no bird that takes such pleasure in dusting herself as the turkey. She will roll on the sand for hours at a time in the sun, and this makes her happy and contented. Page Thirty-six At this time I feed plenty of Marga- ret Mahaney Turkey Feed with Oyster Shells always within reach and a mix- ture of wheat, oats, barley, a very little cracked corn and beef scraps fed three or four times a week. Give plenty of drinking water and three or four times a week put a drop or two of tincture of iron to a gallon of drinking water. This keeps the bird healthy and strong. Take half lime and half sand, make a mush of it and spread it on a board to dry. When it is hard, place it in a box and leave it where your turkey hen can get it to eat at her own convenience. That helps to mature the eggs. She is very tender at this time. All through the laying season she must be kept warm and comfortable. It all goes to- wards making a successful season of turkey raising. Page thirty-seven MATING March is the proper time to mate up your pens of turkeys. I put one tom in a pen with eight hens. I watch my turkey hens very closely to see that they are not injured in any way by the spurs of the tom. If the turkey hen goes around with one wing down, you will know that she has been hurt, and if you take her up you will probably find that her side has been torn by the tom. Wash her carefully with a disinfectant, and if the wound needs a stitch it had better be taken as it will heal quicker: FEEDING DURING BREEDING SEASON In February and March do not feed your turkey hens too rich food or too many beef scraps or food of any kind that will force the hens to lay too early. You do not want any young chicks hatched out before the first of May or Page thirty-eight the last of April. When my turkey hens start to lay I feed a ground feed that is put up under my formula by The Park & Pollard Company of Bos- ton, Mass., which they are putting out under the name of Margaret Mahaney Turkey Feed, and which can be pro- cured of them all ready for feeding. Have plenty of beef scraps and oyster shells within easy reach. Twice a week put tincture of iron in the drinking water, four drops to a gallon of water; allow one gallon of water to each pen. The tincture of iron keeps the birds strong and in good condition, as a young turkey hen is very apt to weaken after her first litter of eggs is laid. Some- times they die if not properly cared for. Keep on hand within easy reach, con- stantly, a mixture of half sand and half lime made into a soft mush. When dry crumble up and leave it where your Page thirty-nine turkeys can get it to eat. They will eat this ravenously and it helps to harden the shells of the eggs. NESTS AND NESTING When the turkey hen is ready to lay she will start in first by looking in all the corners, for if she is yarded up, it is her nature to look for a dark and secluded spot in which to lay. I place to eight turkey hens four good dark nests. I make these by using packing cases with the cover on and the opening turned towards the wall of the house, allowing just enough room for the bird to enter. I put good, clean hay in the box. The turkey hen will be very happy when she finds that nobody can see her in her nest. It will make her very contented, and as we are now breeding turkeys in the domestic state, almost the same as the common hen, Page forty why not give them just the same care? You will find in the long run that you will raise many more turkeys if a tur- key hen is properly housed and kept warm during the cold months of win- ter. The turkey hen begins to grow her eggs three months before she begins to lay, and as we all know that the tur- key is a very cold bird, it is only nat- ural that she should be kept warm. My houses are comfortable, tight and dry, but well ventilated from the south side. When the turkey hen has laid about eighteen or nineteen.eggs she will show signs of wanting to sit. Very quietly take her off the nest, remove her to an- other coop, give her a good range to run in with plenty of Margaret Mahaney Turkey Feed. In the meantime set the eggs under two good common hens. I find that Plymouth Rocks make good Page forty-one mothers. I put eleven or twelve eggs under a good Plymouth Rock hen, and make a good round nest in a half bushel box, stuffing the corners well so that the nest will stay in shape, as a good nest is half the hatching. In the meantime the turkey hen having had her run has for- gotten all about sitting, and has started to laying again and I put her back in the mating pen. This process can be repeated three times during the season as a turkey hen will lay three litters in succession. I let my turkey hens sit on my June eggs and these hatch about the tenth or eleventh of July. These make good hardy birds for the coming cold weather. Disinfect the hen with Margaret Mahaney Salve, per direc- tions, before setting on the eggs. HATCHING To go back to the hatching of the turkeys; the eggs that are right under Page forty-two SHUAHLOW LNATIOOXO AMVNW SMOOU HLOOWATId AGNV SdaHu TI the breast of the hen will hatch first. Sometimes I do not wait for them all to come out of the shell, taking them away, say four or five at a time, thus giving the outside eggs a chance to hatch. The eggs which I take away I put in an incubator which has previously been regulated to the right heat. When they are all natched, I have my coop well whitewashed and about six inches of good clean straw on the bottom. I place my biddy in the coop and put the little turkeys all around her. Be very care- ful in giving them drink or water that the little turkeys do not get wet, for they often take cold in that way. FIRST FEED The first feed that I give them is com- mon sting nettle, chopped fine, with a hard boiled egg and a little shake of red pepper. You will find that they will Page forty-three eat the green stuff ravenously, and this acts on the bowels as a regular physic. When they are three days old I begin feeding them the prepared ground feed, —Margaret Mahaney Turkey Feed— with a little wheat bread soaked in milk, squeezed dry and mixed with the egg and nettle. As The Park & Pollard Company carry this ground feed it can be easily had there. I keep this always before them. In the morning I give them nothing but the Margaret Ma- haney Turkey Feed with a good feed of lettuce. At night I give them the sting nettle again with bread soaked in milk and squeezed dry and a little chopped onion, if convenient. You will find that the birds you feed the sting nettle to will throw the red three weeks before the ones that do not have it fed to them. Page forty-four AVOID VERMIN When the little chicks first come out, before you put them in the coop, you must remember to disinfect with my salve on the head and under *". “ings; also give the foster mother the same treatment with the salve, for if there are vermin on the hen they will leave the hen and go to the little turkeys and unless cared for the little birds will sicken and die. If affected with lice the bodies will become very red and irritated. You will find the lice espe- cially under the wings or in the fringe of the wings. When the feathers do not grow evenly on a little turkey (some growing long while others are short) you will know that the turkey has lice, and you should at once “get busy.” One or two doses of my salve will make a marked improvement. I always dis- infect the hen when I put her on the Page forty-five eggs, but never disinfect her after the fifteenth day for at that time there is life in the chick, and you are very apt to kill it, as they breathe through the air cells of the egg. THE SETTING OF THE TURKEY HEN In the wild state the hen seeks the most secluded and inaccessible spot where there is protection from birds and beasts of prey. Security against attack is the main thing instinct prompts her to look out for. ; 7 ‘ * * : fh, ~ ; < . ’ “ROTTEN CROP’? SOMETIMES MISTAKEN FOR BLACKHEAD Another disease very common in tur- keys which is called blackhead and yet has nothing to do with blackhead, is what you would call “rotten crop” in a common hen. When this takes place the crop becomes very foul and heavy. The bird will drink water, which stays in the crop and becomes sour. I have often had to take the bird up, hold the head down and rub the crop gently so that all the water would run from the mouth. With the aid of a long neck milk testing bottle I fill the crop with warm water with a quarter teaspoon- ful baking soda in it, and relieve the crop by massaging the second time. Then I give a tablespoonful of olive oil. Put the bird away from the rest, with very little feed for a couple of days. I never have any difficulty in saving a Page minety-three bird affected with what is commonly called “rotten crop.” If not relieved, however, it will turn into blackhead and the turkey will die. COLD—CATARRH—COUGH—BRONCHITIS All of these are substantially differ- ent stages and symptoms of the same disorder. Exposure to wet and cold is the general cause. Cough is, indeed, a symptom, not a disease, and is connect- ed with the other three. It may, how- ever, attend other diseases, and when its cause is not known, the article pertaining to roup should especially be consulted. Bronchitis is but an advanced stage or aggravated form of cold or catarrh. The three are marked by more or less discharge from the eyes and nostrils, sneezing, wheez- ing, and, particularly in bronchitis, coughing and a rattling sound in the throat. To distinguish this from roup, Page ninety-four see whether the discharge is offensive. If it is, roup is to be treated; if not, eatarrh or bronchitis. In all cases of doubt, use the precautions detailed for roup. Turkeys are subject to roup from the time they are babies, more so than com- mon hens, as a cold is the cause of all their trouble. Treatment: Remove the turkey to warm, dry shelter, and give warm, soft food. These measures will usually be sufficient, but the following will be val- uable as aids: For cold or catarrh merely, and no distinction between — them is here made, put three drops of strong tincture of aconite in a pint of the drink. If there is a swelling about the throat, two or three grains of the second trituration of mercuries three times a day will be useful. For bron- chitis, in addition to the measures just Page ninety-five named, give sweetened water for the drink, adding a few drops of nitric acid or sulphuric acid. For both catarrh and bronchitis give some stimulant, such as ginger or cayenne pepper in the food or whisky in the water. Treat catarrh and cold promptly, to keep them from developing into roup. Do not neglect bronchitis lest it run into con- sumption. ROUP Roup is a highly contagious malady which first affects the lining membrane of the beak and then extends to the eyes, throat, and whole head, eventu- ally involving the entire constitution. According to its manifest symptoms, it has been called diphtheria, sore head, swelled eyes, hoarseness, bron- chitis, canker, snuffles, influenza, sore throat, quinsy, blindness, and by other names. It attacks all ages, and will Page ninety-six kill young turkeys in a very short time. Turkeys given poor shelter, and kept in filthy quarters, are subject to roup. Symptoms: — Roup develops either slowly or rapidly, with the general signs of a bad cold in the head, such as wheezing, or sneezing, high fever and great thirst. The discharge from the eyes and nose is yellowish, being at first thin but growing thicker as the disease develops, and very offensive, closing the eyes, nostrils and throat (these parts and the whole head are swollen, sometimes enormously, so that blindness ensues, making the turkey unable to get its food, and thus hasten- ing the decline of the system) ; pustu- lar sores about the head and in the throat, discharging a frothy mucus; the breathing is impeded; the crop is often swollen; the comb and wattles may be pale or dark-colored. During Page ninety-seven the course of the disease the turkey is feeble and moping. A fatal case termi- nates in from three to eight days after the distinctive roup-symptoms set in, and those which are not treated when an epidemic is prevailing will generally be fatal. Upon opening a turkey that has died of roup one will find the liver and gall bladder full of pus, the flesh soft, of a bad odor, and, particularly about the lungs, slimy and spongy. Treatment :—It is of the highest im- portance that the treatment begin as soon as the first symptoms appear. To detect the approach of the disease (and any turkey in the flock should be sus- pected if one has been infected), raise the wing and ascertain whether the feathers beneath it are stuck together, as the turkey has the habit of wiping Page ninety-eight its nose under the wings, and naturally the feathers will become matted and foul. Remove the turkey to a good warm place; wash her head with warm water with a drop or two of sulpho-napthol in the water; dry well with a good soft cloth and rub Mahaney turkey salve on her head, throat and crop; open up her beak and oil the inside of her mouth and throat well with the salve. A little swab can be made for that purpose. Give one of the Margaret Mahaney blackhead pills, three times a day, and make a pill as large as a good sized bean as follows: one-half mustard and one-half sulphur, equal parts. Give the turkey one of these pills every night, and if swollen eyes and head has prevented her from seeing her food, feed her a little bread and milk, soft and warm, until she is able to feed her- Page ninety-nine self. A drop or two of kerosene oil in the drinking water makes a good dis- infectant for turkeys. When a disease of this kind enters your turkey house disinfect your drop- pings boards, and feed five quarts of hot mash from Margaret Mahaney Turkey Feed with one or two onions chopped fine and put in the mash. A teaspoonful of red pepper also given to them every night before going to roost will help to prevent the disease from spreading. Keep your turkey house clean and dry, and if you see any sign of this disease, it is much bet- ter to remove the droppings every day, and if taken in time roup is not a fatal disease. CONSUMPTION OF THE THROAT The special symptoms of consumption of the throat are a frequent cough, Page one hundred roughness of the voice, and often a failure to partake of food either from loss of appetite or from pain caused by swallowing. Attacks of fever, fol- lowed by shivering, are more or less regular. For treatment keep the bird in a very warm atmosphere, chop up onions very fine and mix in the feed, also give a teaspoonful of olive oil three times a day with one to two drops of aconite to a cup of water. I generally have what is commonly called a hospital for sick birds; that is, I set aside one coop, keep it warm and have it heated with an incubator lamp, a large one. The temperature should be kept around 70 degrees, until the bird ceases to cough. CONSUMPTION OF THE LUNGS A distinct feature of consumption of the chest or lungs is a tubercular de- Page one hundred one posit in the chest, liver and bowels. The first symptoms are a thinning of the voice and occasionally sneezing. When the sneezing comes on in the morning and continues during the day, the lungs have become involved, and eventually a puffed appearance will be manifest in the chest. Give the same treatment for consumption of the chest as given for consumption of the throat. Add a few drops of tincture of iron (four drops to a gallon of water) to the water each day until the appear- ance of the bird has improved. Light, ventilation and pure air are three of nature’s most potent agencies in counteracting disease. Every tur- key should have a liberal allowance of sunlight, though the power and direct- ness of the rays should be determined by the climate, which is only natural. Among those that need frequent sun Page one hundred two baths are the wild birds of the air and as the turkey was originally a wild bird, in the very nature of things, it demands a great deal of sunlight. It makes no difference how hot the day is, the turkey will lie in the sun and seem to enjoy it when the temperature is even up to 100 degrees. This is the reason I keep my turkeys warm and comfortable, as it is a preventive of consumption or any disease of that nature. A good dirt bath should be provided for a turkey all winter: light sand, half clay, with a measure of air-slacked lime. The turkey will wallow in that for an hour at a time, thoroughly enjoy it and seem so much brighter after it. If turkeys are allowed to run on the frozen ground and roost in the trees all winter, how can one reasonably expect them to remain in a healthy condition Page one hundred three when they positively need warm, com- fortable quarters? If suitable houses are provided for turkeys, warm, clean and comfortable with plenty of lime, grit and charcoal during the winter months, it will be found that there will be very little trouble with blackhead during the summer and consequently less tendency to consumption and other diseases in the colder months. SWOLLEN HEADS Swollen heads in turkeys seems to me to be the prevailing disease this spring of 1913. Complaints have come to me from all over the country, also sick birds have been sent to me to treat. I do not know whether it would be called roup or canker, but the appear- ance of it is that of a common cold, a watery discharge from the nose, eyes half closed, and sometimes wholly Page one hundred four closed, with a large projecting forma- tion in the orbital cavity under the eyes, which, if left there, will cause the death of the turkey after the turkey loses its sight. Press your hand gently on the formation. If the formation has not become hard, but is still in a spongy condition, press firmly on both sides of the nose under the eyes, and force out the thick, foul discharge which has gathered. Wash the head with Sulpho-Napthol or Presto Disin- fectant, dry well, and then disinfect with my salve. Repeat this every day until the turkey is well. In the mean- time the turkey will have a little hack- ing cough that is caused by a watery discharge from the head, which flows down inside the nose and drops on to the windpipe. A human being has a chance to relieve the head and throat, but the turkey does not have this ad- vantage. Page one hundred five If, however, the formation in the orbital cavity has become hard, an operation is necessary. Have some one hold the bird gently on its side, with its wings close to the body in nat- ural form, for in the struggle, the bird is very apt to break its wing. Wash the head with Sulpho-Napthol or Presto Disinfectant and dry well. Have ready a good sharp operating knife, thor- oughly sterilized, and also sterilize your hands. About one-fourth inch below the eye you will find one or two leaders. You must try to avoid cutting through these. Always try to avoid cutting through any veins. Make a clean cut about one-half inch in length, running straight down the orbital cavity to the beak so that when it heals up it will leave no scar. If the turkey is in good blood and a male bird, they are very apt to bleed quite a little. I would then Page one hundred six stop the blood with cotton batten, or by bathing with water mixed with a little alum. Leave the bird for that day. The next morning open up the cut, take out the canker, which you will find to be a yellow, cheesy substance, with a very bad odor. Remove all this canker, wash out the cavity with peroxide of hydrogen, dry well, fill the cavity with Margaret Mahaney Salve, which keeps the head soft and clean. Wash the head lightly for a few days. When the wound heals up you will find a sort of dry core in the wound. Remove this, wash out, and your turkey is all well. Trust the rest to nature. If you find that the lump under the eye has become hard and white before you operate, and that the blood has flowed back from the head, there is no Page one hundred seven need of waiting for the wound to stop bleeding. You can remove the canker at once.* In the meantime, in the feed put a half teaspoonful of sulphur each morn- ing for a week in a warm mush made from Margaret Mahaney Turkey Feed. This will keep the bowels in good con- dition, and hasten the recovery of the turkey. This canker is sometimes found in the rectum of the turkey. Syringe the bird with warm water in which has been dissolved a little piece of Castile soap. Add to one quart of water a half teaspoonful of boric acid, and after the bird has been thoroughly washed out, wash again with the above solu- *For the operation above described I have been i Ho oe using of late, and can- nae NOt recommend too highly, a knife which may be procured at Park & Pollard’s, called a Killing Knife. Page one hundred eight tion. Dry the vent thoroughly and sponge on a little sweet oil. Do this for a few days with sulphur in the feed, and you will find that the bird will be all right. Use about 14 teaspoonful of sulphur to 14 pint of feed. SORE EYES AND HEAD The eyes may become sore from dust, excessive heat, dampness and other causes, and give out a watery discharge. The whole head may be- come involved in the inflammation. Such mild afflictions are to be distin- guished from canker and roup, but it is always safe to keep a sharp lookout for the latter when the eyes are sore. Wash the parts with a weak solution of white vitriol (sulphate of zinc) or with alum-water, or with a solution of alum and camphor. If the discharge has become gummy or hardened, re- move it with warm water and Castile Page one hundred mine soap, followed with alum and water. Dry the head well with a soft cloth, and then rub gently with Margaret Mahaney Turkey Salve, as it con- tains all the ingredients that heal and cleanse. To about four turkeys put one-half teaspoonful of sulphur in the feed with a shake of red pepper three or four times a week, and a little tincture of iron in the water (about four drops to a gallon of water). CONSTIPATION IN TURKEYS Constipation is caused by indiges- tion, taking cold, too close confinement, too much dry feed and too little green, a deficient supply of good water and the like. It is indicated by frequent attempts to evacuate the bowels, either wholly unsuccessful or resulting only in hard, dark droppings. The turkey is uneasy and perhaps staggers. Page one hundred ten Give an abundance of green food and a soft mixture of bran and oatmeal and ten drops of sulphate of magnesia to a pint of the drinking water. Along with these directions for the feed, it will be well to give two drops of aconite to a — half glass of water, giving the bird a teaspoonful of the solution every hour until the fever disappears, following this with a solution made of two drops of nux vomica to a half glass of water, giving a teaspoonful of the solution every hour until well, or if a cold is the cause, use two drops of bryonia in the water instead of the nux vomica. I have often had this disease in my flock when the turkeys are about three months old, just before I let them out for a good day’s ramble, so that is why I always recommend plenty of good let- tuce. It keeps the bowels in good con- dition, keeps the intestines cool, and makes up itself for all fever remedies. Page one hundred eleven DIARRHEA. This disease is often mistaken for blackhead in grown turkeys. It may result from an excessive use of tainted food, mouldy bread or mouldy grain, impure water, extreme heat, exposure in damp weather, filthy quarters and general indigestion, poison, or any in- flammatory affliction of the intestines or the stomach. The symptoms are loose droppings of different colors which befoul the feathers, lassitude, and a loss of condi- tion. In dysentery which results from a diseased condition of the intestines, the droppings are more frothy and mingled with blood, and attended with rapid prostration. A form of diarrhea essentially dif- ferent from the two described, occurs in an old female turkey in which a white discharge comes away more or Page one hundred twelve less constantly, often dribbling out, and keeps the feathers about the vent in- crusted with a white, chalk-like deposit. It is doubtless due to some derangement in the shell-making function, and can best be treated by promoting the gen- eral health and ane the means noted below. Treatment: Have your pharmacist make up pills made of a mixture of five grains of powdered chalk, five of rhu- barb, and five of cayenne pepper, add- ing a half grain of opium in severe cases. Give two pills daily. Another good remedy is camphorated spirits of barley meal, three to six grains for each bird according to age, or ten to twenty drops of the same may be put in a pint of the drink. For mild cases and in the early stages of others, powdered chalk on boiled rice may be sufficient. The remedy last named is recommended Page one hundred thirteen for the white discharge of old females, for which the pills described above should be used as well as a little lime water, made by allowing about 14 tea- spoonful air-slacked lime to % pint water for a bird. Dissolve and then pour off the liquid for them to drink instead of plain water. Restrict the drink in all forms of these disorders and put into it a little tincture of iron (four drops to a gal- lon of water). 7 Dysentery with blood discharges is a serious disorder. It is best to give a teaspoonful of castor oil, followed with three to six drops of laudanum every few hours, supplying an exclusive diet of mild food. It is important that the afflicted bird be kept quiet and apart from the flock, especially in dysentery. Isolate the afflicted bird when you are at all doubtful regarding the nature Page one hundred fourteen of the disorder. Give a couple of table- spoonfuls of ground chalk to a pint of warm mash made from Margaret Ma- haney Turkey Feed. This will also be found beneficial at any time to the laying turkey hens of five or six years old. Allow one pint of mash to four turkeys three times a day. A little camphor, about the size of a good sized bean, to four turkeys will hasten the recovery ; dropped in the drinking water once a week, will help to keep the birds in good laying condition. Diarrhea in Little Turkeys Diarrhea in a little turkey is white, something the same as that trouble in a common chicken, and if you look very carefully you will see that the little legs are dotted with white, and the little turkeys will be lifeless and not appear- ing to thrive. That is the time to give them Mahaney pills (four to a quart Page one hundred fifteen of drinking water for 10 or 11 young turkeys). Boil a piece of meat, grind fine, and put in the feed, and that will help them get back their vitality. A drop of aconite in the drinking water on damp days will help to prevent fever of any kind. GAPES There are many remedies for gapes, but the following is always beneficial and dependable. It manifests itself first by the birds gaping around just as a person would yawn. Fill a common, long-necked oil can such as is used for oiling a sewing ma- chine, with kerosene oil; open the tur- key’s mouth and wait until it breathes in order that the windpipe may be open, then inject a good spray of the kerosene, perhaps a teaspoonful in all. Three doses will usually cure the turkeys of the gape worm. Give treatment three Page one hundred sixteen times a day, in the morning, at noon and night. Shut the turkeys up in their run for about a week, then move them to new ground. TAPE WORM The tape worm is an entirely differ- ent thing and is rather more serious, and will produce substantially the same symptoms as indigestion. If they are in the bowels, costiveness or diarrhea may be more marked, while the turkey will be uneasy and picking at the vent if they are in the lower part of the in- testine. In all cases there will be more or less loss of flesh and often diminished gloss in the feathers, while the bird has either an impaired or a voracious appe- tite. The only unmistakable symptom is the presence of worms in the drop- pings when they first pass out. An unhealthy condition of the diges- tive organs is the main cause. The Page one hundred seventeen treatment for this is a teaspoonful of eastor oil followed by a light addition of sulphur to the feed, and this may expel the worms and restore the gen- eral health. A little cayenne pepper in the feed and tincture of iron in the water will aid the cure. The use of four drops of oil of ferm to a table- spoonful of water is beneficial in a case of this kind. Give in the morning be- fore the bird has eaten anything. I had one bird this last year which had a tape worm. I noticed the worm in the droppings first. I took the bird away and put her on a board floor and gave her a good dose of castor oil. She had only passed half of the worm at one time, and I watched her very closely until she passed the head. In a case of tape worm the droppings will be more or less white and limy. A turkey requires a great deal of lime. Page one hundred eighteen I have even seen turkeys pick at an old wall where it had been plastered. Lime, mixed with sand, should be left in all the corners of the farm for tur- keys to eat, as it is a sure preventive of worms. PERITONITIS Peritonitis in turkeys is often mis- taken for blackhead. It is a very diffi- cult disease to treat, and it is only with the milder cases that success can rea- sonably be expected. The affected bird must be kept quiet, protected from any current of air, and opium in doses of one (1) grain every four hours is recommended to quiet the pain and reduce the movement of the intestines, or mix three or four drops of aconite in a half glass of water and give a tea- spoonful three or four timesaday. In- jections of tepid water are recommend- ed to counteract constipation. Take a Page one hundred nineteen hot water bag. Do not have the water so hot that it would be uncomfortable for the turkey; wring a flannel out of warm water and lay it over the hot water bag, and then place the bag against the wall of the abdomen. Re- new them as often as necessary to keep up a moist heat. This treatment should be continued from a half hour to an hour. Repeat three or four times a day, drying the surface of the wall afterwards so that the bird will not take cold. If there is a great weak- ness, one or two drops of ether, or four or five drops of tincture of camphor may be injected under the skin as a stimulant. In case the disease is due to rupture of the oviduct or perforation of the intestine, treatment is useless; if it has followed inflammation of the intestine, the treatment for enteritis should be combined with that for peritonitis. Page one hundred twenty On opening the abdominal cavity of a turkey which has died from peri- tonitis, the lining membrane is found to be a deep red in color, and is some- times covered by an exudate, which may consist of a thin, transparent layer, or it may be thick yellowish or reddish yellow. The abdomen may contain more or less liquid which may be transparent or it may be turbid with a yellow or reddish color. If the trouble is due to the perforation of the intestine, the liquid will have a very offensive odor from the multiplication of the putrefactive germs. If it has resulted from the rupture of the ovi- duct, the egg, either intact or broken, will generally be found in the abdom- inal cavity, and the ruptured place in the wall of the oviduct is easily dis- covered. Page one hundred twenty-one The writer had two cases of peri- tonitis in her flock of turkey hens just around the laying season. One died and the other I succeeded in saving by the breaking of the bound egg and washing out the rectum with a syringe. For a wash of this kind four or five drops of iodine should be added. It is good to relieve pain and acts as a stim- ulant for the bird. The bird must be kept very warm and comfortable after a thing of that kind for three or four days. It is well to feed the bird on stimulating food and keep her away from the breeding pens until she re- covers her strength. Page one hundred twenty-two a : na THE BRONZE TURKEY ) / ia be Wh , HT 7 av ale ) iS WH i) Wea age yt THE BRONZE TURKEY THE ORGANS AND SIZE HIS variety holds the place of honor. It probably originated from a cross between the wild and the tame product. Its beautiful, rich plumage and size have come from the wild progenitor. To maintain this quality, crosses are continually made. In this way the mammoth size has been gained. Their standard weight ranges from twenty, thirty-six to forty and fifty pounds, according to age and sex. Probably more of this variety are grown each year than all the others. They have been pushed on all sides, almost to the exclusion of the others. Until within a few years, if possible, Page one hundred tweny-five the bronze turkey has been developed too much in the direction of size. While size within reasonable limits is to be desired and encouraged, when it is con- fined to length of thigh and shank, it is a gain of weight with but little ad- ditional value. COLORING The coloring of this variety is a ground of black bronze, or shaded with bronze. This shade is rich and glow- ing, and when the sun rays are reflect- ed from them, they shine like polished steel. The female is not as rich in coloring as the male, but both have the same color and shade. Much of its richness and color is lost by inbreeding, and it is improved each year with the wild specimens. Of all our domestic fowl, none suffer more from inbreed- Page one hundred twenty-six CUPATION G AND HEALTHFUL OC STIN i) RAISING IS AN INTER TURKEY ing than the turkey. This should be guarded against at all times if it is hoped to gain the best results. SELECTION OF BREEDING STOCK Naturally the bronze turkey should be the largest in size, the most vigorous in constitution and the most profitable to grow. This would be the status of the variety at present were it not that too little attention has been given to the selection of the females for breed- ing stock. It should be fully under- stood that size and constitutional vigor come largely from the female, and to have this influence to the fullest extent, well proportioned, vigorous females in their second or third year should he selected as breeders. Do not select very large specimens for this purpose; those of a medium size are usually the best. Discard undersized females at Page one hundred twenty-seven all times, as they are of little value as producers. Length of shank and thigh, if out of proportion, should not be mis- taken for size. Full rounded body and breast indicates value most clearly; size and strength of bone indicate con- stitutional vigor which should be main- tained through the selection of the very best at all times for producing stock. When especial care is given to the selection of breeding birds, and the grower bears in mind those profitable market characteristics — compactness of form, length of breast and body, and constitutional vigor, the most satisfac- tory results may be obtained from the growing of this variety, but no matter how much care may be given those con- ditions, only partial success will come if inbreeding is permitted. The use of over-sized males with small females Page one hundred twenty-eight is of less advantage than the use of smaller males with well matured, me- dium sized females. MARKETING Of course, we cannot all sell our turkeys for breeding. That would en- tirely rob the table of its Thanksgiving luxury. After the turkeys are grown and ready for market, quite as much care and attention should be given to the killing and shipping as to the proper growing. When these things cannot be done to good advantage, it would be better to sell them alive. Buyers who are prepared to kill, dress, pack and ship turkeys and to save the feathers, should be in a position to pay what they are worth alive, and should be able to handle them at a profit better than can the grower, who may not be prepared to do this work to advantage. So Page one hundred twenty-nine much depends upon marketing them in the best condition that small growers should either dress and sell to their home market or, providing it can be done at a fair price, sell alive to some- one who makes a business of handling such stock. Kill nothing but well fat- tened stock. It seldom pays to sell ill- favored stock to the market. Do not give any feed to the turkeys for tweive hours before killing. This allows their crops and entrails to become empty and avoids much of the danger of spoiling. Full crops and entrails count against the value; they often taint the meat, and prevent it from being kept for any length of time. DRESSING Dry picking is always to be preferred when preparing fowl for market. When in fine condition, nicely picked, and sent to market without having Page one hundred thirty been packed in ice, the turkey is at its best and consequently commands the highest price. When the fowl is plucked, hang its head down in a cool place until all the animal heat is gone from the body, being careful not to hang it where it will be exposed to the cold as it is likely to freeze. Do not re- move the head, feet or entrails, but have the whole carcass, including the head and feet, perfectly clean. SHIPPING For shipping, pack as closely as pos- sible into close boxes or barrels, nicely lined with white or manila paper. Do not use brown, soiled or printed paper. Have the package completely filled so as to prevent the poultry from shifting. Have all the heads laid one way, breasts up. Do not use hay or straw for pack- ing as it marks and stains the fowl, de- Page one hundred thirty-one bs / tracting from the value. The above method can only be used when the poul- try is sent to market without being packed in ice, and when this can be done in safety either in refrigerator cars or for a short distance in cold weather, it is by far the best. The greater part, however, must be packed in ice. When necessary to do this, use nice clean barrels, cover the bottom with broken ice, then put in a layer of turkey, then a layer of ice; con- tinue this until the barrel is packed full. Always use perfectly clean ice for pack- ing. Head the barrel tightly, and mark its contents plainly on the head. Never ship mixed lots of poultry in the same package if it can be avoided. Page one hundred thirty-two * . 5 in} 12 z , Sf } « hw oe : 4 Q ¥ ~ - 5 7 f \ shy ane s “i —/ * n> Zz ? . 5 3 x . bs : 7 7 > a : —_ } P 4 i 4, iy Zz oy i i é * 4 I pie we Cae aah Dre Hi A fot Bas ¥ . ; . SF a ‘, , y ; a : ~ \ = Wy ae 3 ae a. 7 ; ‘ A us bd ’ ‘ ¥ r ae r > 1 % y oa «Aa : ; : a Cone ne) ; re 1 - N a) ay tal 8 7 gath gs Jab oe i vag Py ha A Ta ta lp 6 45 2 , j - f ; i i ~, 48 j { ; : va i" q e, LA Lar ‘| oe bis iP : i po AY ; it ‘* ai +. - 7 : rit p, . el . a ; hug? tO ee , ; : " 4 a ‘ Ons ‘ ap : ¢. Dad . . Wy i , ~ < pa? ae : neers Ae ih rr % ¥ V * . = \ 2 ; a ‘ pm lene tee a = le ey ater = cn he 2 ae ‘ : * ) 5 3 - 1 . ; . n ‘i | _ - } | | } | " 4 ¥ \x. { j y | | : . | | 3 . ae : é ) $ 4s . = : ; LIBRARY OF CONGRESS i 0 002 | 1 72.4 f