POULTRY INDUSTRY.

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXV, Issue 19891, 9 March 1928, Page 14

POULTRY INDUSTRY.

SECRETS OF SUCCESS.

PERSONAL QUALIFICATIONS.

NEED FOR CLOSE ATTENTION. BY G.H. The secret of success —what is it ? There have been many solutions offered. Hundreds cf books have been written explaining how success in poultry-keep-ing may be achieved, and doubtless others will appear But for the individual to follow entirely ;n the footsteps of others cuts no ice, and is a slow business. What is needed is imagination and foresight, to sock new paths and better ways of doing tho old jobs so that every possible economy can be effected and tho fullest progress mado.

In poultry-keeping there is no faculty which bears such au important part as imagination, and it is safe to say that wherever progress has been mado, this characteristic id the poultry-keeper has been most pronounced. Unless one uses the knowledge he has gained, coupled with imagination, 0119 will bo unable to grapplo with Nature in any shape cr form.

Reasoning involves a good deal of knowledge: it is cool calculation, the placing of one thing against another, and is always slow in arriving at conclusions. Imagination, according to the dictionary, is the forming in the mind of an unsolid or fanciful opinion, but it arrives at a conclusion quickly and frequently that is right. Foresight Ana Sympathy.

Where work is concerned there is many a person with very little scientific knowledge who comes to the right conclusion through imagination. Take, for example, the man with just a few fowls, which are attended to almost as though they wero members oi the household. He may. not know what percentage of water there is in the egur, but if the. weather is hot that man is thirsty, and not only does he have a drink, but ho sees that his birds get an extra one, too. His birds lay well, whereas it is very possible that tho person with knowledge alone, who keeps to the regular hours for watering, and has no sympathy or imagination for tht birds, finds that the egg yield falls of.f under the same circumstances.

One of the troubles in research work is that the scientist must have exact facts, and therefore he must work in a very limited way. It is not possible to get exact facts of any animal from a large herd; it must be from a small number, where a man will get the little details before he can come to any conclusion.

lu the matter of toe-pecking, this has bfeen stated to be hereditary, but I have found it to be due to something else. One year my flock was greatly addicted to it, the chicks pecking each other's toes even while in the drying box, but the following yeai, though breeding from the same stock, there was no recurrence of the vice. The trouble was caused by the exceptionally hot and dry season previous to Us outbreak, the lack of moisture and of insect life in the soil. The trouble may be overcome by placing in the run a heap o! well-rof,ted manure, which is full of worms. It gives chicks occupation and provides the animal life that is lacking. Gape worms in chicks have also been cured by giving them a heap of manure to scratch in, but no doubt in this the ammonia present performed the necessary duty. How Eggs Are Produced.

Feeding provides an instance where imagination is very useful. To-day much discussion is taking place on vitamines and the different grades of them. A few years ago nothing was known on the subject, but poultry-keepers were able to supply what their fowls needed. Again, nobody likes meals off a dirty plate, and, applying the same thought to fowls, there is no question that dirty food does not encourage the best from them. See that no food is left over to get trampled on and keep the troughs clean.

The last feed should be a liberal one, so that 'the birds may go to roost with « full crop. If a certain hen has devoured the ration hungrily, and the birds are looking round for more, give it to them. Imagine their feelings when they are hungry and have to wait until the next morning before they have another meal. The egg yield is sure to suffer under such circumstances. Food, first of all, goes to make warmth in the body and to repair waste tissues. Any surplus makes eggs. The duty of the poultry-keeper is to see that there is a surplus available. The most extravagant way of feeding birds is to give them only just sufficient to keep them alive, for theu they will be non-pro-ductive. Reason Rather Than Regularity. Do not frighten your birds. In their sight we all must bo monsters, and it is only by gentle treatment that they learn there is nothing to fear. The trap-nest may instil considerable fear in pullets; they walk into a quiet nest, and when they want to get out, they find the way is barred. The poultry-keeper can overcome this by releasing the birds immediately and handling them gently. Tho question of cooling eggs during incubation also provides another instance where imagination will help. It is distinctly inadvisable to adhere rigidly to a set period for cooling, without consideration for the weather, neither should the drawers be opened to a cold room without some covering, so as to avoid a sudden shock to the embryo in the eggs. It is not everyone who can stand a cold bath every morning. Tho requirements for the breeding stock are hens that are healthy and vigorous, with neat bodies, and whose trapnest records bear looking into. Of course, if these birds have good capacity, good wide backs, and plenty of depth of body, ,so much the better, but do not judge solely on the latter. Heads must be neat, eyes bright, and the birds used should be active and always on the alert. Profit In Turkeys. Where turkeys are kept with other poultry they do not do so well, and only when there ia sufficient spaco for them to be separated should they be kept on the poultry farin. A " clutch" of turkey eggs, hatched and reared by the amateur poultry-keeper on a limited grass run, may be worth whil6 fo secure birds for his own table, but tho proper place for turkey-rearing is tho farm, where wide range can be given and a sufficient number can bo reared to warrant special attention. •. The care necessary for the successful rearing ot the young birds involves close attention, but the larger flock does not increase the timo needed proportionately. This justifies the recommendation that turkey-rearing, if undertaken on the farm, should be made a special feature. Providing flie conditions are favourable, e.g., a genial, quick-drying soil and natural shelter from high winds and driving rains, turkeys are a most profitable adjunct to the farm.