POULTRY INDUSTRY.

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXV, Issue 19931, 27 April 1928, Page 16

POULTRY INDUSTRY.

LAYING STOCK AMD EGGS. SELECTION BY HANDLING. SEASONABLE HINTS, BY G.H. L A thing which every poultry-keeper should know is not only which are his best layers, but which are the wasters, because by getting rid of these I'he food bill can be cut down, while' J.he egg production is affected very littlis. ThG most important part in poultry -keeping is observation. A number of people who are totally unsuited to it, take up poultry keeping. One must have one's heart in it. Directly anyone is interestfed in a thing, his heart enters into the work, and he does well. Handling cannotfc be learned in two minutes. It is a matter of talking the whole bird, and this occupies time to perfect. Something strikes thfi eyes—it may be high tail carriage. -. One may imagine that all birds with this characteristic will be good layers, tut a high tail may mean a roach back. In the case of a cockerel with a squirrel tail, eighty to ninety per cent, of his sons will be squirrel-tailed, and o::ily about five per cent, of his daughters will have it. A large bird, as a rule, will lay a small number of eggs, and a small bird a greater number. An important factor in laying is weight, and this should really come first, but to tell a bird by weight takes a long time to learn thoroughly. A bird which is weighty should be dropped at once; on the other hand, a bird which is too light should also be pul; aside. A Question of Temperament. Temperament i 3 an essentia!!, factor in handling all birds. A good layer will generally be docilt and good tempered, while the bad layers are generally squealers and difficult to handle. There is a type of bird which, when trap-nested, will acquire a good temper. Sluch a bird has all the points of a good layer, but is temperamental or nervous. With gentle treatment, however, she becomes docile. A squealer you will know because you will see fright in its eyes, which are small and sunken. There is the bird which lay is 250 eggs, and then stops. She may be laying her eggs inside. In old hens I ilways look for the frown or worried look, She may, after getting through the mciult, lay 30 or 40 eggs. The others will bij; inside her, and there is a real cause for the worried look. At feeding time it is eafiy to pick out the temperamental bird. She may be at a trough. Another comes near and off she goes. When in an open oox another has only to look at her and the flies off. This is a type common to all breeds. Few people know how to handle them properly, and it is fairly easy for a bird to rupture herself in struggling. Every time a bird lays an egg she stands a chance of " going off." There are five well-formed yolks in the ovary at all times, and as one drops out another falls into the oviduct. The opening is just a. thin skin, and if a bird is too fat, or is flying in fright, the yolk stands a chance of not going into the oviduct. In every flock of 24 or over, there is a bird which is laying her yolks inside. Consideration oi Type. There is much in type. What one should aim at is a compact bird of medium weight, with a long breastbone to support the abdomen. There are four strips of muscles which work to expel an egg. If the breastbone is so short that these muscles have to support the abdomen, in six to eight months it will be down. The idea that a short breast-bone denotes a layer arises because this characteristic allows plenty of room between it and the pelvic bones. A bird with a dropped abdomen will never lay fertile eggs. Abdominal capacity is not a question of four fingers capacity alone. It really means length, depth and width of abdomen. One cannot learn how to handle from the best birds so much as ho can by studying the bad ones. There is the question of deformities. Taking the males, and remembering that eighty or ninety per cent, of their sons carry the same defects, it Vill be seen how necessary it is to have the best cockerels possible. Two minutes' handling will make all the difference to your future stock. You must have a straight back, and particular attention should be paid to the tail. An upright tail may denote a rounded trunk; any bad carriage of tail, such as wry or squirrel tail, is a sign of weakness. Any bird which runs or walks in stilted fashion should be dropped at once. Gracefulness and style denote good type. It is true that £5 is too much to pay for a bad bird, but £SO is not too much for a good one. Building up lor Laying. Weight means a lot of bone, and coarseness in bone is bad; such a bird is usually knock-kneed. A bird with too little bone is a " weed." The width of the pelvic bones tells us the value of a bird. If it has a wide arch it is a layer of large eggs, and had a good breeding frame. The beak is another test. A big, long beak shows too much bone. Texture and capability also govern a bird. If you have capability you are bound to have texture. By texture I mean tight, silky feathers on the back and thigh. A bird varies in ceitain respects, according to whether it is laying or not. Iri yellow-legged varieties, when a bird is laying consistently, she loses the fat out of the legs, and the colour goes also. After moulting, birds should be built up for laying, and pullets coming on to lay should bo similarly treated. Because one happens to commence laying early, do not starve all the remainder, as this will cause them to lose condition. A bird, just before she commences laying, should have plenty of flesh on her. She will lose it shortly if she is a good layer. It is possible to tell how long a bird has been laying by the colour and condition in other parts. Ten eggs will clear the colour from the vent, 30 eggs will take colour from the beak, and if the bird continues laying consistently, she will lose leg colour. There are three chief considerations in selection by handling. Hiey are weight, temperament and type.