NEWLY HATCHED CHICKS.

Auckland Star, Volume LX, Issue 241, 11 October 1929, Page 17

NEWLY HATCHED CHICKS.

feeding advice. i POINTS TO OBSERVE. ; A correspondent. asks for advice re feeding, etc., of newly hatched chicks, especially incubator ones. The nrst step to success in rearing js not to give them anv food for;, forty-eight hours after they are hatched. I do not mean forty-eight hours after the birds may be taken out of the incubator, lnit from the time of hatching. All that is necessary for the first few days to practically all yoimg things is warmth and sleep. As? regards the chick, Nature has, pro-, vided food until the bird gains sufficient strength to be able tc follow the mother hen in the search for feed, by the chick absorbing the balance of the yolk_ a ' few Hours, before it is This is the natural food, which leaves the bowels :in a healthy., state, the; food is'i given beforei this : ha|,; he en absorbed then irritation is set up.iWhert' the chicks are taken from, the incubator, —and don't be in too great a hurry to do this —place them in the brooder, the ; . floor of which should be sprinkled with fine sand if possible or dry earth.' I; know some people .put down old' ciir\ pets, matting, sacks and so forth. Dry earth or sand is best. ; Clean water should be supplied and nothing else. The chicks will pick up small particles of sand so that their small gizzards are in a natural state and fully equipped to receive" theii- first meal, which should consist of rolled oats just moistened, not wet. If milk is procurable ,uso a little milk for the' first couple of feeds; if not, moisten with plain water, or an egg may be boiled, crushed with a fork or the hand,, and thoroughly mixed with the rolled oats. If bread is used, for the first mGal it should be moistened with ."milk, not water. • Bread and water is apt. to sc<?ur the chicks, milk tends to counteract the effect of the yeast. Anyway, white bread and water can hardly be called a food. Use rolled oats for the first three or four days, then either a chick food can be added or hulled oats may take the place of the rolled oats. In a couple of weeks cut or crushed wheat; may be added. See that the birds have green food in sqme form, either short : lawn mowings or sprouted oats! Later on they can peck at cabbage, lettuce and cauliflower leaves,* in fact fresh refuse from the garden. A chilled chick or a sweated chick is in n;ost cases a ruined chick. A chick which has become thoroughly chilled seldom completely recovers. The same applies to .what is : known as the "sweated chick"—that is where the chicks crowd in corners and those on the outside semi-smother those, actually in the corner. The chicks must be kept occupied. Exercise, eating and sleeping makes vigorous growth. The ground or the litter on which they run should frequently be raTced over to induce them to scratch therein. Water should be constantly accessible to the chicks. If they become really thirsty, when water is given they will probably drink too much, and the, weight of water in the crop will strain or fracture the minute muscles in the skill of the bird, and the bird has a slack crop, with a tendency to sour crop for the rest of its life if it does not die early. Separate the cockerels from the pullets as early as possible, Leghorns, say, at six weeks old. It does not pay to raise cockerels for market on a back yard or on a small section, but it does pay to finish them off by crate, feeding, as I have advocated in this column, for your own consumption. Gradually reduce the temperature of the brooder, but do not be in a hurry to shut the heat right off. If it is a lamp brooder and the day is fine and sunny, the lamp may be put out for a large portion the day, but watch your chicks. If they run about with a contented chirrup they are sufficiently warm; if they sit in a bunch without crowding they are sufficiently warm; but if they try to crowd into corners, then they are chilly , and you must light up at once—in fact you should have lighted,up before they commenced to crowd. If you watch your chicks they will be the best thermometer as to the amount of heat, required. A BALANCED RATION. A balanced ration is one that contains protein, carbohydrates ,-and fat — the elements of nutritiori-r-in the proper proportion, required for the maintenance and activities'; of the; animals to which it is fed. • ' • Protein is the nitrogenous part of the f?od and is. largely used. for growth, the repairing of'waste .tissue and for reproduction.' The-production of eggs and similar products depends largely upon the protein in the food. Carbohydrates.—Carbohydrates are largely starches and sugars, and are used for. the supplying of bodily heat and energy.

Fats.—Fats are frequently classed as carbohydrates. They, serve the same purpose, but are more highly concentrated. An overplus of protein in a ration may be used to replace a shortage of carbohydrates and fat, but as protein is the most expensive element to supply, it is not economical to use it for that purpose. Carbohydrates and fat, on the other hand, cannot take the place of protein, so that a ration deficient ;n protein, no matter how rich in carbohydrates and fat, cannot give gtood results. Ash.—Besides the fchree fore-men-tioned elements, ash, which is the , term used to designate the mineral compounds, is also of importance, ae it enters largely into the formation of bono and egg shells, but as it is present in all ordinary feeds or is readily supplied in sufficient quantity by the addition of grit, bonee or oyster shells, very little attention need be given to it.