POULTRY NOTES

Nelson Evening Mail, Volume LXXII, 22 December 1938, Page 11

POULTRY NOTES

POTATOES AS A FOOD The nourishing substances contained in potatoes are easily digested, and their passage through the intestinal canal takes place in relatively short time. Physiologically, the feeding with potatoes can be supplemented by the use of mixtures of grain and albuminous foods to obtain the proper calcium proportion. In the case of layers, freshly-steamed; or sour potatoes can be given up to 70 ; grams per day per bird. Potato flakes can be given up to a 60 per cent, pro- : portion of the food mixture without j detrimental influence on the laying; capacity, food assimilation, fertilisation and hatching. Even in the raising of pullets a 60 per cent., ration of potato flakes has no [ effect upon the commencement of thej laying period or on the normal weight! development.

For the fattening of young poultry ducks, geese, and turkeys, potatoes in every form may be made an essential part of the feeding as a supplement to, and a partial substitute for grain fodder.—“ Victorian Poultry Journal.” Leg Weakness in Chicks. Referring to reports of chicks going “off their legs” when a few days old, the English authority L. Robinson, writing in the official journal of the Scientific Poultry Breeders’ Association, sa3 r s the trouble at this early stage could hardly arise from faulty feeding, for the chick should have absorbed sufficient vitamin D in the yolk to give it adequate protection for the first fortnight. or if there is a deficenc}', the condition resulting from it should not become evident as leg-weakness during this stage. It is, of course, quite probable that in some instances the chicks start life heavily handicapped owing to malnutrition of the breeding stock; hence the importance of paying atten-

tion to the feeding of the latter, in order to ensure, so far as possible, that their eggs contain everything necessary to produce a normal chick. Rickets usually makes its appearance during the third or fourth week. At first one or two chicks may be seen a little wobbly on their legs. They are disinclined to walk, spend a lot of time sitting on their hocks, and eventually go right off their legs. The shanks have a dry shrivelled appearance the feathering is poor and loose, and growth is arrested. In some cases the beaks are affected: they come soft and rubber-like, the chicks being unable to pick up their food. At the first indication of something wrong immediate steps should be taken to ascertain the cause and remove it. The first point usually considered when investigating leg-weak-ness is that of feeding. In some cases suspicions may be well founded but in others the trouble is not directly nutritional, though it is frequently due to poor assimilation of the food as the result of factors already mentioned. Where chicks do not receive an abundance of direct light, the absence of cod liver oil may be responsible, or, if present, it may be of low vitamin potency, so that the chicks cannot obtain sufficient vitamin D to enable them to assimilate the mineral matter necessary for bone formation. Unfortunately, it is not possible to ascertain the potency of a given sample of cod liver oil by merely looking at it and as there is oil of low vitamin content retailed, care should be taken to obtain a certified oil.

Treatment of Leg-weakness. The treatment of leg-weakness, Mr Robinson explains, resolves itself into the removal of the cause. Until this has been ascertained, we are working in the dark, for obviously there is no specific remedy. A laboratory examination will probably throw some light on the problem, but pending the receipt of the report, the composition of the ration and brooding conditions should receive attention. Should there be any doubt as to the former, give the chicks skimmed milk to drink; see that they have oyster shell or limestone grit,; and procure a mash containing cod liver oil of good quality. Whether these suggestions will arrest the trouble it is impossible to say, but at least they will do no harm. A type of leg-weakness occasionally observed in chicks from four to five weeks old is often attributed to lack of exercise, because the bigger and more forward chicks are affected, particularly young cockerels. Poultry keepers say these chicks have done too , well; therefore they restrict mash consumption, and give grain in the litter to encourage exercise. This treatment is frequently successful, though it is doubtful whether the cause is as simple as the cure. Thorough investigation would probably indicate other factors at work. Possibly for these particular individuals the ration is too stimulating or otherwise unbalanced owing to some difference in the chicks’ powers of assimilation. The fact that no two individuals are exactly alike in all characters must not be overlooked.