POULTRY NOTES

Evening Star, Issue 19020, 15 August 1925, Page 21

POULTRY NOTES

[By UTILITY-FANCY.]

fish meal and meat meal are added to the rations.” “ I have been closely watching the egg testa which are being carried out, and all I see is that attention is paid almost exclusively to the quantity and not the quality. It may be that by producing large quantities at low prices the importation of foreign eggs will be eliminated, but we must not forget that some clever folk abroad will ono of these days revert to the feeding of poultry with vegetables and cereals | only, and then the British egg will be beaten in quality; and, although the imported egg will be more expensive, the price will be paid nevertheless, as there are people who will pay for the bettertasting eggs.” ! As was pointed out to him, there are ; other considerations which nave to be taken into account, such as comparative distances which the eggs have to travel and the age when reaching the consumer, all in favor of native supplies. Finer flavor as a result of more natural feeding may—l do not say does —account in part for the that in a recent week eggs from lour European countries were higher in values on the London market than English. The correspondent named goes on to say:— • 4 In my opinion it is impossible to produce an egg with a fine flavor when meat meal and fish meal are added to ; the rations, not to speak of the possibility of such eggs being the cause of certain disease. In this respect it would be most interesting for the Ministry of Health to carry out some experiments with the eggs from poultry red on vegetables and cereals, and from poultry receiving rations of fish meal or meat meal. Surely the fish meal and meat meal are not produced from : fresh soles or sirloins of beef I I shall not be surprised if it will be found that I the meat and fish are already full of ) bacteria before being turned into meal, ; and it would be most interesting to see 1 the analyses of the raw materials from j which the meal is made, the meal it- • self, the stomach contents, and the j flesh of the poultry and or the eggs produced.” I I Concluding his own remarks on the foregoing, Mr Brown says that there are producers and producers, as in every department of life, some who take every precaution to secure the highest possible quality, others who do not, may be anticipated. That is not the point, but whether quality is influenced adversely by the use of feeds which are, to say the least, malodorous. i PAPA NTH EGO-LAYING COMPETITION. Leading pens, seventeenth week, ended August 1 (119 days). FLOCK TEAMS iSix birds). —White Leghorns.—

“Curious.”—The hen has only one ovary. It lies on the loft side of the' spinal column. The oviduct leading from it is dilated at the end next to the ovary, and there is another stilllarger dilation near the other exj tremity, which, however, does not open ; directly on the exterior, but into a ' passage called the cloaca. This opening can be distinctly felt on the roof of the cloaca immediately above the rectal exit by inserting an oiled finger into the cloaca. The ovary of the lay-, ing hen is filled with ova in different stages of development, embedded in a . mass of tissue. A mature ovum, when | it is ready to escape from the ovary, ■ consists of a light yellow body cnI closed in a delicate membrane, and having at one point a slightly-darkr ened disc, which, when icrterased, |is termed the germinal vesicle I —cell division and development take i place only in the disc, the yolk serving solely for nourishment. When the ovum escapes from the ovary it passes into the dilated portion of the ovi- ; ducts, where it is fertilised by the sperm cells and passes on downwards. The white of the egg is secreted by glands situated in the walls of the oviducts, and surrounds the ovum as it passes through it. Another set of glands, a little further down the oviduct, secretes the substance that forms the shell. When first deposited around the egg the shell is 11 uii.e soli, wn when it reaches the lower dilation of the oviduct it remains there from twelve to eighteen hours, during which time the shell becomes quite hard. After this the fully-formed egg, surrounded by its shell, is expelled by violent contraction of the walls of the oviduct, and passes through the cloaca to the outside; in other words, this expulsion of the egg is what every good pullet and hen ought to bo proficient in—namely, laying. ! “Noise in Throat.”—This is probably due to an inflammatory condition of the mucous membranes. For a week or so give every night two or three drops of eucalyptus oil in a teaspoonful of cod liver oil, and feed now and i again with meal mixed with honey, i I There are numerous prescriptions for I this trouble, but the foregoing is one j of the latest I have come upon, and I it sounds good. I “Novice.”—lf you are not going to I breed you will not require the cockerel. The egg-yield may be better without him, and certainly not less, and the cost of his feed will be saved. . The chicken-raising season being now on, it is well to remember that the first two weeks is the most important period in the chick’s life. The first requirement of the baby chicken is warmth. If the chickens are hatched iu an incubator, have the brooder ready warmed,and regulated. One day after the chicks are hatched anoint the head of each hen-hatchod chick i with a touch of olive oil. It will kill the head lice. Many of the henbatched chicks are lost by the mother ben. Safeguard the chicks, and prevent this tremendous chicken mor- i tality. Never allow the mother _ hen j to range with her brood until it is at least two weeks old. In the spring the chicks are quickly wet ant! chilled; by the dew on the grass if they are I allowed to forage with the hen. Brood coops should be constructed for confining the broodv hen while her chickens are young. These coops should be built about 2ft square, with board floors. Secure the coops safely at nights to keep out the rats, weasios, and other enemies. Do not feed the chickens for the first thirty-six hours. Gige them a chance to gidost the yolk, which they have absorbed into their intestines before hatching. Then feed them five times a day tlm first | two weeks. Feed a little at a time— l l just what the chickens will eat up I clean. Always feed the grain on a 1 clean spot or ground. Feed the soft feed on clean grass or a clean board. I have seen experienced fanciers drop the soft feed on to a clean piece of linoleum, and after the bird’s have satisfied their hunger, bang the linoleum up on a nail in the wall—thus ensuring that it is dry and clean for the next meal. Give the mother hen a handful of wheat each morning, so that she will be contented. For the first chick feed use pin-head or ground oats or flaked oatmeal. Finely cracked maize is next choice. One or two daily meals of dry bread softened with sweet or sour milk is a fine developing food. Keep the drinking water clean. Much trouble comes from the drinking water having been contaminated by the crickens wading in it, or by food coming into contact with the droppings. Biscuit Meal.—ln the Old Country poultry papers there is frequent mention of biscuit meal—presumably a waste product from the biscuit factories. So far as my experience goes there is nothing of this kind available in New Zealand, although there are several biscuit factories. One can easily imagine that crumbled biscuits would be ideal food for young chickens, and no doubt many people with small flocks break up biscuits-(bought whole) for their chickens. One way of serving this food to chickens, recommended by the ‘ Poultry World,’ is to use it in conjunction with bone meal as follows; “ In the dry state bone meal does not unduly hasten growth, and is extremely valuable as a means of supplying, in an assimilable form, bonemaking materials, thus assisting sturdiness and preventing cramp or log weakness, so prevalent at this stage of growth. About one ounce of bone meal per day should bo mixed with each pint of biscuit meal in the soft mash. “ Feeding to produce exercise at this period is of the utmost importance, and to ensure active employment, grain, consisting of sound wheat and a little maize, should bo scattered in the litter for the morning and evening feeds. “ Three feeds per day are ample, as over-feeding is most inqjurious at an times, ■ • The mid-day feed should consist of biscuit meal, which has been soaked in hot water, or skimmed milk (the latter preferably), dried oft with Sussex ground oats and afterwards mixed to a crumbly consistency. “The soft foods should not be thrown on the ground, but rather served in troughs to avoid becoming coutamin'ated with droppings. Moreover, trough feeding is more economical.” Meat Meal and Fish Meal.—Do they militate against the quality of the eggs? This question is highly interesting, but has not so far i believe been solved. Just now it is being discussed in England, and a communication which has been sent to Mr Edward Brown, F.L.S., as president of the National Poultry Association by a skilled chemist who is engaged in the manufacture of a high-class product in which eggs enter to a considerable extent, the quality . and flavor of which is allpotent, expresses an opinion which is decidedly adverse. A highly-qualified food expert to whom the communication was shown by Mr Brown said that “some fish meals are no better than manure, and have no feeding value. The following are extracts from the communication in question : “ 1 take the liberty) of asking you whether you can show me an egg pro, duced anywhere in this country which in flavor is equal to the eggs which 1 come from poultry fed exclusively on cereals and' vegetables? I am afraid yon will have the greatest difficulty ‘in finding such an egg, simply because

Rogers and Thomson, 8.0 32 64 4 491 A. W. Beck, 8.0 28 60 7 854 Philip Bailey, R.I.R 32 66 5 347 SINGLE HEN STANDARD TEST (For Light and Heavy Breeds). —•White Leghorns.—

LIGHT BREEDS SINGLE HEN CONTEST. (Three birds, same owner). White Leghorns. Tl. H. Williams, No. 2 ... ... 110 C. H. Izard, No. 3 ... 96 H. A. Dawber, No. 2 05 J. Liggins, No. 2 93 Miss M. White, No. 1 ... 92 H. Williams, No. 3 ... 91 G. Betteridgo, No. 3 91 A. E. Adams, No. 2 90 SINGLE HEN CONTEST. (Three birds same owner, restricted to certain breeds). Heavy Breeds, C. Bennett, W.W ... ... 103 C. Bennett, W.W ... 06 H. Williams 8.0 94 Hopkins and Sevonson, 8.0. ... 90 SINGLE DUCK CONTEST (Three birds, same owner). —lndian Runners.— Tl. L. B. Mouncell, No. 1 ... ... ... 105 J. G. Greenslade, No. 3 ... 102 J. G. Greenslade, No. 1 99 J. W. Thomson, No. 2 94 H. P. Slater, No. 3 94 E. W. Hawke, No 1 92 J. W. Thomson, No. 1 92 FLOCK TEAM (Six ducks). .—lndian Runners.— Week’s Eggs. Tl. H. W. Beck ... ... 41 648 H. A. Dawber 87 453

Contributions and questions for answering should be addressed to 44 Utility-Fancy. ’’ Poultry Editor, 4 Star ’ Offioa, and received not later than Tuesday of each week, 44 Utility-Fancy ” will only answer communications through this column. Advarttsomanta for this column must be handed in to the office below 2 jua, oa Friday. 'L , Jf

Week’s Weight. Eggs. oa. dr. Tl. W. E. Ward ... 32 87 6 490 0 , II. Bradford 35 73 0 466 M. 0. Craig ... 26 55 1 461 Green Bros. 34 72 2 460 Calder Bros. ... 33 60 6 442 E. Sequa ... ... 31 67 5 438 —Heavy Breeds.—

Week’s Uggs. Weight, oz dr. Tl. W. Newall .. . 6 12 2 98 G. H. Biadford 6 Id 3 91 W. Barrell , 5 10 15 88 Green Bros. . 5 10 7 83 J. Liggins . 6 13 14. 88 —Heavy Breeds. H. W. Beck, B.O. ... „ . 7 13 14 78 G. W. Black, B.O . 6 13 5 61 C. Bennett, B.O . 5 11 0 59