Poultry Notes

Evening Star, Issue 21819, 7 September 1934, Page 2

Poultry Notes

[By UTILITYFANCY.]

ANSWERS TO CORRESPONDENTS. “ Inquirer.”—l have no doubt but that the broken glass and .crockery has been the cause of the scouring. Ihe lead in the glare on the crockery is really poisonous. The sharp stones and oyster shell are quite sufficient for the purposes they are given. ... “Gander.” —It is not easy, for a novice to tell the ganders from the geese.. There is a difference—not easy ito describe —between the hiss they make' when alarmed, hut when approached by a dog or stranger it is the gander which generally comes to the front —i.e., he is the bolder and acts as protector. “ Brighton.” —You will see a paragraph in this week’s notes dealing with jshe trouble you mention. It may be 6 lentioned here, however, that the cause £ “ bumblefoot ” or the corn you mention under the foot of your bird Ipty be caused by jumping from too high a. pierch on to hard ground, or throm concussion produced by scratching (amongst rough or sharp stones.. POULTRY PRODUCERS’ FEDERATION. There is a movement on foot to form (a New. Zealand poultry producers’ federation to take the place of the New .Zealand Poultry Association, and, so it is stated, is now in operation throughout the dominion, the greatest activity being shown in Canterbury. Branches are forming in various’ parts of the dominion. The idea seemingly is to form a federation of producers—i.e., poultrykeepers interested obtaining control of marketing, both in the dominion and abroad. An advocate predicts that if producers get solidly behind this new scheme they can make themselves a power; in the land, and can place the industry on a footing it has never held before. EXPORTS TO ENGLAND, Packers are busy at present preparing (eggs for consignment to London, and ;the first consignment will be 2,300 prates. NEW BLOOD. It is reported in the Old Country ’that many progressive egg farmers are having recourse to exhibition breeds to strenghten the vigour of their flocks. {This sounds a reasonable proceeding, 1 jfor there can be no doubt but that the |bad layers we now, have were produced from fancy stock by the process of breeding from the best layers. Every (800-a-year-egger has been bred from an inferior layer to itself. Fancy birds da not lose constitution by being forced for production, but experience is proving that phenomenal production of eggs is a great strain, and results in loss of vigour. More attention should be paid jto selective _ breeding, remembering that constitution in the breeding pen is tof first importance. KEEP. INTENSIVELY-KEPT BIRDS HAPPY. Three factors are necessary for inten-aively-kept poultry—housing so that (conditions are as genial as possible; feeding to give the birds everything they require, remembering that they cannot balance up their foods by ranging: and absolute cleanliness, or disease (will quickly step in. Overcrowding is fatal, and it is better to allow them rather more floor space per bird than (when they have a range outside. In light breeds allow four square feet per bird floor space, and nearer five square feet for heavy breeds. MOST IMPORTANT. You cannot get the best out of your fowls unless you keep all utensils employed in providing for their wants absolutely clean, especially should the water vessels be regularly _ cleaned, and only fresh clean water put into them. A 'dirty drinking vessel means contaminated water, and inevitably in the long run causes disease. It is not suffisient to clean but the water vessels just when you ; happen to think -of it_; it should be done regularly at appointed intervals. Even the purest water will deposit in time slime on the bottom and sides of the vessel, and this slime is ithe happy hunting ground for disease germs of every kind. FOOT SWELLINGS. Foot swellings, generally recognised as “ bumblefoot,” are very apt to appear during the winter months. In any case it is folly to neglect this trouble, for they get worse very rapidly and cause great discomfort; and deaths frequently occur from blood poisoning brought on by neglect on the part of tha caretaker. A swelling that is >‘ripe” can be painted with tincture of iodine and then lanced right across, but one that is still hard should first of all be poulticed so as .to soften it and bring it to a correct condition. The lancing should be done with a really sharp small-bladed knife. Make the cut decisively and quickly, and have everything ready at hand to wash the place clean with warm disinfectant solution. After lancing again paint ■with tincture of iodine and bandage. 'A roll of chemical bandage is the best to employ. Wind it around the heel and between the toes, so that it cannot bo displaced. It is best to fasten by tearing 2in of the end in halves lengthway* and tying these two together around the limb. After a couple of days, providing the wound was washed clean, the bandage may be removed and the wound once more painted with iodine, and again wound* tip if the wound is still moist. The bird should be confined to a coop and placed on clean straw whilst under treatment..

P Contribution* and questions for answering should be addressed j to “Utility-Fancy,” Poultry Editor,- ‘Star’ Office, and re- [ 1 reived not later than Tuesday of each week. " Utility-Fancy « j will only answer communications through this column. J

Advertisements for thi* column must be handed in to the office before 2 p.m, on Thursday.

PULLETS FOR EGG PRODUCTION. Now that the hatching and brooding season is in full swing it is timely to remind poultry keepers that the pullet chicks should be moved on to copiers as soon as possible after about four weeks in the warm brooders. If the pullets are intended for egg production they should be allowed out on to the grass as soon as possible and whenever the weather permits, so that they have every chance to develop normally before being transferred to the laying quarters. . CHICKEN REARING NOT A “ MUG’S ” GAME. A’ correspondent writing to the ‘Poultry World’ says: “There is no hard and fast system for the rearing of and certainly it is no mug’s game! Reliable rearing will only be assured from mature and tested stock: cheap stuff is often nasty. The first ten days are critical days. Do not overheat or overcrowd. Ventilate well if the right assimilation of food is to -take place. Get your chickens on the land as soon as possible, but do not bo a fanatic about this. Constant shifts during the rearing stage on fresh ground will ensure good development of frame, etc. Do not overfeed the birds; a period of starvation, when the intestines are completely emptied, will assist in keeping the birds healthy. TO MAKE OLD. BIRDS TENDER. The following is said to be a good way to make an old hen or cock bird tender enough for the table:—Soak in cold water overnight, and then roast next day in the usual way. The second day steam thoroughly—not boil—for two hours, adding a little milk to the water. This is said to be better than boiling first and then roasting. - A LAYING TEST. Heavy layers are heavy eaters, and one can easily find which pullets are laying by feeling their crops when the birds are bn the perch. Those birds which have a small crop plus a thin breast , bone are not only poor eaters, but poor doers as well, and should be culled out from the flock. SOME REASONS FOR NON-LAYING. If your birds are not laying as they should here are some reasons:—(l) •They are not receiving enough food; and (2), they are not being fed on the right food; and (3), you are giving them too much grain. Otherwise you are housing them badly or they have slight colds, which you have not noticed. If it is none of these then just check up how they are bred, for they cannot lay well if they had parents which were poor egg-layers themselves, or parents I which lost constitution through being forced for eggs in their pullet year, USE OF THE HOT WATER BOTTLE. A novel use is made by some of the hot water bed warmers. , They have been found useful as heating units for brooding chickens. Especially is this the case with the electric hot water bottles. Hot water bottles have reared many chickens in the past, and even to-day the hot brick, of the last generation is still used. BROODY HEN’S REEAST feathers; After the hen has brought off a hatch of chickens examine the breast feathers. Sometimes these are matted together by dirt and egg matter, and it is not an uncommon sight to see a broody hen walking about with a chicken hung by the bead. The chick, whilst under the hen, is apt to get its head caught between feathers that are stuck together, and before this attracts attention the chick is strangled to death. OLD ENGLISH GAME FOR CROSSING. It is pleasing to find someone other than a “.game ” fancier singing the praises of the Old English Game fowl for crossing purposes. Captain G. T. A. Howson, secretary of the _ Royal Welsh Agricultural Society t in his poultry report in the society’s journal deal-' ing with the production of the half-a-crown and 3s 6d chicken, remarks that the experience of Messrs Sainsbury (who are described as the proprietors of England’s biggest poultry stores, and have well over 200 producers) would appear to be that, as with the large joint, the day of the large fowl has passed—so far as the mass of the consuming public is concerned. And, if that is so, then it behoves those who would give table poultry production a trial to endeavour to produce the type of fowl for which there is the largest and most consistent call, and it is for them to evolve the means of doing so at a cost which will leave a reasonably remunerative return. With this end in view numerous breeds and crosses have been advocated, but the claims of one breed have not been advocated to the extent to which they deserve to be, and that breed is the Old English Game. The Old English Game of the true type—not the oversized befeathered one'seen at the majority of shows—has no equal in its purity for the proportion of edible meat to offal which it carries, neither has 'it any equal in ability to reduce the offal and increase the flesh-carrying capacity of the progeny of anything with which it may be crossed. “Probably it is found in greatest perfection in. cocks up to 6ilb to 61b in weight alive, when fully grown, and in hens of 41b to 4Jlb or thereabouts. It is hardy and easy to rear, and carries a quantity of fine-textured flesh

(of the best quality conceivable) which must be seen to be believed, and it carries it just where it is required for table purposes, and that _is on the breast. When it can be given a free run it will find a large proportion of its own living, and is in prime condition from a very early age. “ Fortunately, as already indicated, the breed is exceptionally impressive, and is capable of transmitting its virtues, in a very marked degree to other breeds, and, in conditions necessitating some degree of confinement it would be difficult indeed to find more suitable material for converting into the rapidly maturing ideal light-weight table chicken than that provided by an Old English Game cross. Moreover, should they be required for keeping purposes the cross-bred pullets will, in most instances, prove admirable layers. THE BROODY HEN. Care should be exercised in the selection of the broody hen. It does not follow that because a hen runs round with ruffled feathers, making a great deal of noise, she is to be relied upon as a sitter. Rather should the choice fall on a gentle, docile hen which takes to the nest directly she becomes broody and “ croons ” softly when approached. Although light breeds, such as Leghorns, Anconas, etc., have been known to do very well as broodies, they should be avoided and “ general purpose ’ breeds —Wyandottes, Sussex, Rocks, etc. —chosen. The nest should be away from other fowls likely to cause a disturbance. A small hen will cover about ten ordinary eggs, and large broodies up to fourteen, beyond which number it is not wise to go. The broody should be taken off the nest once a day, and corn (of which a large proportion should be maize), grit, and water set before her. She should be allowed off the nest, for fifteen to twenty minutes, and it is desirable that she should relieve herself at this time. If any eggs are found to be soiled they should be cleaned with warn water and replaced. If all is well some eggs will _ be chipped on the nineteenth or twentieth day of incubation, and unless the hen shows any inclination to come off the nest for a few minutes she should be left to hatch the chicks in her own way. All that is necessary is for the empty shells to be removed so that they do not fall over any of the remaining eggs, and so lessen the imprisoned chicks’ chances of hatching. Newlv hatched chicks should not be. taken from the broody and placed before the fire, as is the custom with some; they are far better left to Nature’s cilre.

30th ANNUAL PAPANUI EGGLAYING COMPETITION. Leading Pens, Twenty-first Week, Ended August 31 (146 Days). Test I.—J. H. Shaw Memorial Challenge.

Test 3.—Black Orpingtons and Australorps. (Owner enters three birds.) Week’s Grand Totals

Test 4.—Any Variety Light or Heary Breeds Other Than White Leghorns or Black Orpingtons.

—Experimental Tests!—* For Light and Heavy Breeds. Test I.—White Leghorns and Black Orpingtons. Week’s Weight. Eggs. oz. drs. Tl.

GORE FANCIER’S RECORD. “ I think every fancier should read your pigeon notes, as there is nothing like them, printed in any other paper I know,” writes Mr H. Holland, a Gore fancier, who, since taking up the hobby of pigeon fancier some seven years ago, has achieved hundreds of successes with his birds, which have established him to he recognised as one of the biggest fanciers in the province. Recent shows where Mr Holland has displayed his birds with success are Nightcaps and Dunedin. Competing at the Dunedin Fanciers’ Club’s annual show with six birds, he won the class for cock bird flown 275 miles, while the special award for the best bird in the show was accounted for by the same bird. A hen bird flown 196 miles secured first in its class, and also collected the special prize for a bird flown from fifty miles to 200 miles. Another first award was secured with a plain blue cock, while seconds were awarded Mr Holland’s birds in the class for pied hen and the section for cock birds flown 600 miles. The cock bird which was awarded the special for the best bird in the show accounted for the South Island championship. With five birds at the Nightcaps Poultry and Pigeon Club’s show Mr Holland secured .six prizes. He was awarded first and South Island championship with a young homer hen, which also was adjudged as the best flying homer in the show, for which a special prize was awarded. Miss Grace Holland’s birds secured first for hen flown 200 miles, first for hen flown 100 miles, and second placing in the young hen bird championship. The judges at both sh'ows commented very favourably on Mr Holland’s birds, especially those that accounted for the South Island championships. Mr Holland’s latest championship success brought his total to seven, which were secured at _ shows as far north as Waimate, while his birds have competed with success from Nightcaps to Christchurch. Mr Holland has won in every championship class that has been possible with flying homers. Besides winning hundreds of prizes ho has won four handsome silver cups and two gold medals. Last year Mr Holland’s birds had forty-seven successes, while this year nine of his pigeons have accounted for twenty-five awards. FOREST FIRES AND THE PIGEON. Among the most valuable of all Canada’s natural resources exploited up to the present have been those of her forests in British Columbia, Ontario, and Quebec, which have been the_ framework on which Canada’s prosperity and greatness has been built. Forest conservation is therefore necessary, especially during the summer months when the fire hazard is very real. These forest areas are, in general, uninhabited, isolated from_ settlement, and inaccessible except to aircraft, and these areas are constantly patrolled throughout the summer months by aeroplane for the detection of fires. Fires which prior to the introduction of aircraft burned for weeks, owing to their inaccessibility, without anyone knowing of them, aro now fought and are

mastered in their incipient stages before damage is done. The racing pigeon has done extremely good work in these operations, having been taken up in the patrol aeroplane, and, when a fire was detected, released to fly back to the loft at the base, with the information required by the forest ranger, who could then take steps to fight the outbreak. Within a few minutes of the bird’s return to the loft, and if the fir© was nofreadily accessible from the forestry bases, the fire fighting crew, pumps, hose, and other gear, would be loaded into big aircraft and flown to the scene of the outbreak. Racing jngeons were also an essential part of the equipment qf these suppression aircraft so that the fire fighters could keep in touch with their base. The pigeon was often released when the aeroplane was in flight; before release a strip of cloth was wrapped loosely round the bird so that it fell clear of the aeroplane before commencing flight. Another method was for the aeroplane to land in a suitable place near the scene of the fire and the pigeon then released with the message for the forest ranger. This sometimes spelt disaster for the bird, as when it Was getting its height before shaping its course for return" to the loft at the base it would sometimes fall an easy prey to the hawk, which abound in the forests of Canada, so it was necessary to duplicate the message and send ofl: two birds to ensure that at least one of them got through. There was an amusing instance of a racing pigeon being the cause of bringing a wrong-doer to justice. A settler in a remote valley called at the nearest police station and confessed to the operation of an illicit still. He admitted that the game was up because he had seen an aeroplane looking for him every day for ’the past week, and that particular day he had noticed a pigeon released from the aeroplane, and he was certain that it was carrying a message to the authorities of his wrongdoing. The pilot had, of course, no knowledge of his operations. Owing to the development of th© radio telephone which is now installed in'fire patrol and suppression aircraft, the pigeon is not so much used for this class of work, but, nevertheless, th© forest fir© fighter of Canada will always remember the pigeon as a bird that has rendered loyal service in the combating of the forest fire. STRAY FEATHERS. The Dunedin Homing Pigeon Club will open its season to-morrow with a race from Timaru, the distance being 109 miles. Splendid entries, including some from new members, have been received. The birds will he liberated at 11.30 a.m., and twenty-one clocks will be commissioned. Six racing clocks have been ordered from England by the Dunedin Homing Pigeon Club, and will arrive in time for the young bird season. It is ilnderstood that some of the clocks will be hired out to members, the charge for voting birds being 5s and for old birds 10s. ' . , Now that the season is under way, tlie first fixture being held to-morrow, racing enthusiasts under twenty-one aro reminded that, subject to written permission being obtained from a parent or any other responsible person, guaranteeing adherence to the club’s rules, junior members may participate in races*

Light and Heavy Breeds. ; Week’s Weight. Tl. White Leghorns Egga 05!. drs J. H. Jones ... ... 6 12 5 116 E. E. Butler ... ... 4 7 15 114 W. Turner ... 5 9 13 111 J. Ibbotson ... 6 11 15 109 J. Brennan ... 5 10 8 107 Green Bros. J. Hughes ... 6 ... 5 12 14 10 1 107 105 T. S. Dove .... 6 12 14 105 Test 2.—White Leghorn, Single Hen Test (owner enters 3 birds).. Week’s Grand Totals

eggs. to date. Miss H. Keddell 5 6 6 105 123 119 J. Ibbotson 3 15 103 119 113 H. Williams 5 5 5 116 115 108 Miss H. Williams 6 6 6 109 115 108 G. Miller 5 5 6 109 103 111 J. T. Hazelwood 6 5 5 100 99 122

eggs. to date. T. Smith (A.O.) 16 7 85 118 138 S. Brumby (A.O.) 6 6 6 113 111 111 J. A. Campbell S. Barrett ... 5 6 3 4 5 5 109 115 86 95 108 96

Week’s Grand Totals. Totals. Mrs . V. Crowther __ ... (M.) 4 4 6 86 87 8U A. W. Pritchard (Buff 0.) 5 14 59 90 93 S. W. Adams ... (S.W.) 4 3 4 69 104 44 Test 5.—Flock Teams (6 birds). Week’s Weight. Eggs. , oz. drs. Tl. Green Bros. ... 28 56 5 576 Miss H. Keddell 32 64 5 570 W. E. Ward ... ... 31 63 9 561 J. Liggins ... 30 62 15 531 Smart Bros. ... ... 22 46 12 504 E. P. Anderson ... 32 47 14 500 Test 6.—Single Ducks. (Owner enters 3 birds.) Week’s Grand Totals. Totals. F. Ashworth, No. _ _ 2 (K.C.) 5-6 6 125 122 110 F. Ashworth, No. 7 5 5 128 104 90 1 (K.C.) \V ■ E. Pollard (i.a.) 7 4 7 113 135 51

H. Williams 6 13 2 118 A. S. Barrett (B.O.) 6 n is 118 J. Still 6 13 .7 117 Miss F. Kerr 6 11 .3 113 D. A. M‘Kie 5 9 13 104 L. J. Glasson 6 12'll 103 W. Stephenson 6 12 10 101 Test lb.—Any Variety, L. or H. Breeds Other than W.L. or B.O. A. Dalziel (Lang.) 6 IS 9 110 A. W. Adams (S.W.) 5 10 15' 94 Locky Griffen (Barn) 4 8 7 84 Test 1c.—Single Ducks. J. W. Thomson (W.R.) ... ... , ... 0 16 4 125 F. Ashworth (K.C.) 4 9 14 90