POULTRY COLUMN.

Dominion, Volume 16, Issue 154, 17 March 1923, Page 20

POULTRY COLUMN.

LIGHT AND HEAVY BREEDS

The number and variety of the breeds of poultry is infinite; so much so that to the would-be keeper, without- anv particular preference, the task of choosing which ho will keep is very complexing. ' From the original jungle ancestors of modern poultry, literally hundreds of different varieties have been evolved, and the owners of each particular breed, all say that their one is the best. That this camiot be true in every case, of course, goes without sayins.

I From the utility poultry keeper’s point of view, however, poultry narrows down to one of several points of usefulness. Are they good layers, or are they good layers and good marketbirds? The question as to the number of eggs which a fowl will lay is undoubtedly the more important. Fowls, whether or not tbev are layers are certain consumers of food. This consumption is a loss unless it is balanced by a production of eggs. This would not be so where chickens are only reared to a certain age, generally about five months, and then marketed for table purposes. In this case, the consumption of food would be balanced by an increase in weight of the bird. Very few people, however, rear birds solely for market purposes at least in this country. The demand for prime table poultry is not sufficiently good. Tho majority of poultry keepers keep their birds, firstly, with the object of obtaining eggs, and secondly, from their value for table purposes. The question naturally rises as to which is the best breed of birds to fulfil the desired object. Where a good demand exists for eggs and a fair price can be obtained, the lighter breeds of poultry appear to fill the bill. Bv the lighter breeds I mean those of lighter weight. The Mediteranean breeds all belong to the latter class, and include among the better known varieties, brown, black, and white Leghorns, Spanish. Andelusians. Minorcas. Anconas. etc. All these birds are of a much lighter weight when matured than the heavier breeds. They are of a nervous temperament. and must be handled carefully. Many people complain that they are too flighty. A cood deal of this is undoubtedly ’ caused through rou"h treatment. Where the birds are treated k'ndlv, they are quite easv to "«t on with, and will be found every hit as tame as any other variety. Tho brown and white Leghorn are tho most popular of these breeds and the popularity of the latter is increasing each vear. The main reason for this is that clever breeders have managed to get the birds up to a truly wonderful state of egg production. Egg records of from 2SO to 300 per year are quite common, and so much has this trait been bred into white Leghorns that in Australia to-dav there are very few of them that, with proper treatment would not lav 200 in 12 months. They, however, have the disadvantage of being very poor from a table standnoint. The hens weigh about 41-lbs. when full grown, and the cockerels very little more. But it must always bo remembered that where a bird at-

tains any great weight, she must be fed for it; so that a heavy carcass means a large consumption of food. This is important from the economic no.nt, because when marketing old hens very little more is obtained for the heavy breeds. From the farmer’s standpoint, however, Leghorns have a n-reat disadvantage, inasmuch as thev are non-broodv. I am speaking now, of the producer with old-fashioned ideas as to the methods of egg hatching. Without any doubt, of course, an incubator is the better method of chick production. However, many farmers and especially their wives arc still of the opinion th-'t chicks are much stronger when brought out in the natural manner. While I cannot respect that opinion, I will allow that where prejudice against an incubator is present then more uniform success will be got with broody hens.

The number of varieties that o-o to make up what are known as “heavy breeds” are many. The more popular are the Orpingtons, Wyandottes, Rhoda Island Reds, and Plymouth Rocks. The best known of all these is probably the Black Orpington. This breed has also, like the White Leghorn. been the subject of much care and skill by utility noultrymen with a like result. Although their egg-nro-ducing capacity has been greath' increased. the birds themselves have degenerated in size in the process. Where the true Orpington is a heavy type, the hens weighing up to 7 or 8 lbs. and over in weight, the egg-laving variety, now common, is almost a light weight. And the result is that the broodiness has been practically bred out, so that for an all-purpose utility bird they are not much better than white Leghorn.

The heavy laying black Orpington,is an Australian production, and to distinguish it from it British ancestor, it is known in England as the “Australorp.” From an egg-laying standpoint, the black orp. is every bit as good as the Leghorn. The black, however, has only lately come to the front, whereas the Leghorn has been noted, for many years in this respect. This means that Leghorns taking them in the mass, are probably far better layers than the Orpingtons. The Rhode Island Red is an extremely useful type of bird, quiet, and a layer of large tinted eggs. These birds aro destined to become very popular, especially among farmers. They make excellent mothers, and are able to withstand the rigors of winter. This particular breed is an excellent all purpose bird; the cockerels mature-to a prime market size at about five, months, and command a ready sale as tablo birds. The hens are also very heavy, and will get top prices in this class.

The other birds mentioned are also good all-purpose birds. The Plymouth Rock is very popular in America, the country of its origin- There are many thousands of these birds in that country ; their beautiful feather marking without doubt adds to their popularity. The heavy breeds are not very popular in America, due to the fact that they lay a tinted-shell egg. There the white-shelled egg is more popular. This is in direct opposition to public taste here. The. cause in America, is that farmers near the large eastern cities have always kept those birds which lay white-shelled eggs. The consequence has been that their eggs have arrived on the market in better condition than those from further back. The public, quick to recognise this, have preferred the white egg; so much -has this been done that a premium of from one penny to twopcsioe per dozen is paid for them.