THE POULTRY YARD.

New Zealand Herald, Volume LIX, Issue 18244, 10 November 1922, Page 14

THE POULTRY YARD.

DUCKLINGS AND CHICKS. METHOD OF TREATMENT. 1 BX S.H.S. Don't let us forget that chickens and ducklings, to a great extent, are- like babies,, and must be attended to as such. It ia because of this fact, that there arc so many failures in the poultry world. If ona cannot rear successfully the number of young stock required to replace slock that have outgrown their profitableness, or to increase one's stock up to ,a number required, he had better give up the idea of poultry-keeping for a livelihood. It is very nice to cce big lots of healthy, growing .chicks and ducklings on a poul-try-keeper's farm, who knows his business, but the experience of knowing how to hatch' and ' rear those healthy looking chicks and ducklings has bad to bo paid for. There are many people who are specially adapted to the hatching and rearing of live stock on the poultry farm, and it is a labour of love to them. ihey give all their time to details so necessary, and success follows. Success in poultry-keeping, to a yery great extent, is attained by paying strict attention to details. To many the trouble of attending to the hourly and daily need of young stock on a poultry farm is monotonous, and just when things aro going well those sort of people get careless and tired, and let the chickens and ducklings take pot luck as it were. Ihey neglect to feed at regular times or to provide feed enough so that the chickens may develop or, perhaps, to save time, as "they think, they givo an over-supply of soft mash, and the chickens, having taken their fill, leave the rest to sour. This is done several times, with tho result that the chickens' digestive organs are upset. Then again the water tins are allowed to get empty, and with ducklings this is fatal. Tho ducklings are allowed to get a big thirst on, and when water is provided they gorge themselves, and an attack of staggers usually causes heavy losses. Details ia Chicken and Duck Rearing. There are a hundred and one details in voung stock rearing, right up till the birds are fully matured, that must be attended to, and one who intends to bo a successful poultry farmer must be prepared to devote time and experience to the business. Poultry keeping is a business, and those who are thinking of taking it up aa a business must be prepared to master the small details that mean so much to the well-being of the growing chicks and ducklings. As I stated ou opening these notes, young stock on a poultry farm are similar to babies in many respects, and must be looked after every hour of tho day until they can find foi themselves a bit, then it only means regular feeding, good housing, and, of course, at all times until fully grown, protection from vermin, such as rats, weasles. etc., in the night, and at times in the' day. In many districts the hawks are troublesome, and this means keeping the young stock close to the homestead, where chicks are reared on free . range.

Maltiog Sale Houses lor Birds. There are many ways of making a chicken-rearing shed safe from visits of rats, weasels, ferrets, etc. Before a building is erected a foundation should be laid all around the site of the proposed ehed, underneath where the plates and studs will set. The foundation may consist of concrete or bricks, the former preferred, and should .go down to a depth of fully 2ft. This will stop all vermin from burrowing underneath the plates. Of course the other part of the building must also be ratproof. It is no use stopping the iats from getting underneath the plates if openings at other places are large enough for even young rats to get in and out. Also, one must not forget to shut doors after them. If left open for a few minutes after dark it may mean the loss of a score or more of your best chicks, especially if there are large numbers of chicken-eating rats about. Tho losses caused by vermin each year is enormous, and if one has a building already erected and wishes to make it ratproof, let him bury to a depth of 2ft. sheets of corrugated iron or * to : 2in. • mesh wire netting. It is no use making a concrete floor without stopping the chance of rats accumulating, as they will do by breeding underneath the concrete. lam not an advocate of concrete floors for poultry houses, because unless one sinks the foundation made of concrete or bricks some 2ft. in the ground, it is going to be a huge breeding ground for rats and such like vermin that burrow. Many town councils make by-laws that hit poultry keepers and do no good. Poultry keepers are forced to put concrete floors in their poultry houses, so that they may be kept clean, and not attract rats, etc., whereas tho law .to make the concrete floors has the opposite effect, rats dearly love to make their nest and sleeping quarters where no cat or dog can find them. What better place than right under a thick flooring- of concrete? I well remember having a shed with a concrete floor, and I found rats were increasing at a rapid r>ate. and could not understand it, as I kept- a good look out. I was forced- to break upjthe concrete, and killed, young and old, some seventy odd rats. A good earth floor is far preferable to a concrete floor, where rats can burrow under and breed as many as they like. Let us protect young stock as they should he protected, is my advice. S.H.S.