POULTRY NOTES

Evening Star, Issue 23124, 25 November 1938, Page 3

POULTRY NOTES

By “UTILITY-FANCY”

Contributions and questions for answering should be addressed to “ Utility-Fancy,” Poultry Editor, Star ’ Office, and received not later than Tuesday of each week. “ Utility. Fancy ” will only answer communications through this column. (Advertisements for this column must be handed in to the office before 2 p.m. on Thursday.)

TRY FOR PRIZES AT SHOWS. To realise fully the rewards of ability to produce poultry one must have the same mastery of the arts of exhibiting as of the arts of breeding. The truth of this will be readily admitted by anyone who has even a casual acquaintance with the conditions affecting the winning of prizes in a competition of any kind.

An equally important fact, and so easily apparent when put in the form of a general statement, is that to acquire surpassing skill in the breeding of any kind one must know by experience many things that observation shows are learned only in the keen competition of the showroom.. Show the bird you think is a winner. No one can satisfy you that you are wrong till you see the birds competing against yours. AA’hen you see them you will seldom require ‘ the judge’s decision to show you the faults in your bird. Talking did not convince you, but now you know: seeing is believing and instructive. Theoretically is should be possible for a person with some natural capacity for this kind of work to produce masterpieces without the stimulus of competition. A few oases might be found where breeders are producing wonderfully fine stock. But these are not really exceptions to the rule, for in every such case it will be found that the breeder at some stage of his career learned the lessons that are taught only at competitions. So it is necessay for the breeder who would ■ excel in breeding to show frequently against others of about the same Experience and skill. If one only cares to-have a reputation that will enable him to sell fair-quality stock at a niqdefate profit he may often protect his commencial interests best by showing where he can easily win, avoiding places where he would have a real contest, but those who do will never become first-class breeders, nor will they EvErget much honour among breders or attain a position when the highest rewards may be theirs. The awards of ability to produce standard poultry of high quality are fame and fortune proportionate to the popularity of the variety shown and the prestige of the show at which it is exhibited, and this remark, so thoroughly appreciated by the old-time fanciers who could charge big prices for sittings of eggs, the production of their winning birds, applies also to the out-and-out utility breeder. A winning at the smallest country- show carries with it some credit. A winning at a show of any importance makes one quite widely known as a breeder, and opens the way to the development of quite a business in the sale of eggs for hatching and stock for breeding and exhibition purposes—if one is in a position to supply the demand.

PROLAPSIS OF THE OVIDUCT. The fundamental cause of this condit ticn is weakness of the walls and ligaments supporting the oviduct, which

renders it unable to stand the strain J put upon it by egg production. The result is that if the bird has to strain .in laying a very large egg, or there is some obstruction of the ovi-

duct,' a condition commonly known as “ egg-bound ” or constipation, may result in _ the condition of, prolapse. If this condition is not observed and attended to early, the overfed portion will become infected,

causing blood poisoning and resultant death. A cause not mentioned above is the feeding of irritants—spices, etc.— which results in straining, but in this case it is more likely to be the intestine which protrudes rather than the oviduct. In the treatment of this condition one should first of all ascertain if possible the cause. In the case of constipation an injection of warm soapy water into the cloaca should be made, and this should be followed by a dose of Epsom salts by the mouth. Any protruding parts should be carefully washed with warm water containing some mild disinfectant such as 1-1,000 bichloride of mercury or boracic acid. The protruding parts should then be well greased with vaseline or other ointment, and an endeavour should be made to replace them by gentle pressure. Then the bird should he kept in a small coop under as quiet conditions as possible for a few days, and the food should be very light and stimulating, with plenty of green food. If the condition is attended to early enough it can be cured, but otherwise it is best to destroy the birds, as advanced Cases are likely to prove fatal sooner or later. CULLING. The novice poultryman who reads any poultry literature and meets with recommendations to cull and keep on culling will no doubt welcome some information on the subject. The idea of culling is not to find the birds worth keeping, but to discover the birds which will be unprofitable as layers so that they may be disposed of. Let it be understood, then, that culling is a most important part of the breeder’s art, You must set a standard—that standard is merely comparative. Granted that you have studied the breed—the average quality of your flock will give you an idea of the grade. If of high class, then you would cull out 15 to 20 cent. If the type, size, etc., showed a very mediocre lot, you should cull out half or even more. ! —Encourage Abnormally Large Ones.— In Orpingtons discard small specimens—just above medium size—avoiding the over-large show,type. See they are characteristic. In White Leghorns insist on good, fully-red eggs, discard light eggs especially. There are many points—desirable and undesirable—and not every poultryraan knows. First of all, discard all cripples and other obviously unfit specimens. Include deformities and bJemishes. Then see to the standard you aim at. Remember that due regard to breed characters is important. In the case of Leghorns and Minqrcas do not countenance undersized specimens. ~ A fine head, strong beak, and bright, full eye are 'generally seen in a good specimen. Constitution is a most important point, more especially in a commercial fowl. Egg production is a ■ great strain on the constitution. Birds lacking constitution lay moderately for a short time. Then they break down. Colloquially, they “go to the pack.”

At moulting time birds with poor constitutions have a shrivelled comb, shrunken eyes and face. Cull these forthwith. Birds with strong constitutions have bright eyes and red heads even when moulting. Round worms are prevalent. A fortnight before culling begins, treat the birds for worms. Sometimes good birds are worm infested and look like culis. Proper treatment brings them back to health. A novice (one who has never culled before) should seek the aid of an experienced poultryman at his first attempt to cull. COCCIDTOSIS OR FOWL PARALYSIS. Dr H. P. Borgen, answering a correspondent. gives some information which may prove instructive to some of my readers. He says:—“ 1 confirm my wire to the effect that your two fowls had not been suffering from fowl paralysis, but eoccidiosis. As a matter of fact, notwithstanding the scare that has arisen about fowl paralysis, the average poultryman has much more to fear from eoccidiosis than fowl, paralysis. Coccidiosis will, if neglected, simply wipe out a stock in the course of a few seasons; fowl paralysis can, and has been, repeatedly rooted out in the course of a couple of seasons. I find that in my letter of the 16th inst. I told you how to deal with eoccidiosis; and may add that again your pullets showed those black guts w'hich are the outcome of various harmful additions to the drinking water; I wish I could have shown you the microscope slides , made this morning with thousands and thousands of coccidia gqrms in every piece of the csecal pouches; so much for the result of medicines for curing eoccidiosis.” LONGEVITY. What is the largest egg score put up in the life of, a single hen? The longest official record that we have heard of has been registered recently by a White Leghorn on, a poultry farm at Emlichheim, Hanover, Germany. This remarkable hen, hatched in 1925. died 11 years Jater in 1936, having laid 1,395 eggs. Her full sequence is worth recording: —279 eggs (averaging 2Joz), 220, 192, 176, 148, 132, 55, 112, 77, 4. Yet this record is by no means outstanding on j a farm which has made a special study I of longevity in connection with stamina. I The farm is not only concerned with poultry. The proprietor, Herr Val ten Brink, also breeds pigs and cows and uses 30 acres for arable. He has 80 acres and employs a staff of 40. He has been a breeder since 1903, and has been line breeding White Leghorns since 1923. He sells over 100,000 chicks yearly, and at the same time maintains a flock of 6,500, and replenishes his stock yehrly from 350 to 400 special White Leghorn hens mated in single pens of 15 birds. In order that he may "know exactly what progeny these 400 liens produce, he does not sell any daughters from these particular birds, and only a limited number of cockerels. He gets an average of 15 daughters from each hen—in spite of the fact that these hens are from two to nine years old—and in some cases they produce up to 30 pullets.— 1 Feathered World.’