POULTRY.

New Zealand Mail, Issue 838, 23 March 1888, Page 18

POULTRY.

Poultry Scratchings,

Preserving Eggs. —Much is often said with respect to the preservation of eggs, and many ways have been proposed for affecting this very desirable purpose. There is, however, one thing which is seldom regarded, namely, the state of the eggs themselves which are to be preserved. We (Live Stock Journal) do not mean so much the freshness of the eggs, for it is generally agreed upon that they ought to be as fresh as possible for this purpose, but whether they contain within them anything which is likely to stimulate decomposition. We are inclined to think that fertilised eggs are more likely to decompose when the germ has died than are unfertile eggs. It is a well-known fact that eggs which have never been fertilised do not become actually rotten, as do addled eggs. We have proved this in some hundreds of instances, both under hens and in incubators. The rotten egg has contained a living germ, which has died from one cause or another, and thus set up decay, whereas the unfertile egg simply dries up a little, and in process of time, if subjected to inoubatory conditions, become fusty. Poultry Management. —How often we see a well-managed farm with its cattle in splendid condition, and other items to match, but with its poultry-yards and feathered occupants in sorry plight. A

rooster worn with the work cf four summers, hens small and badly grown from ill food and late hatching • thus worked it is no wonder we hear the cry, ‘ Poultry don’t pay. ’ Taking the average number of eggs per hen at 120 each, weighing lgoz, we have the result of 131 b of rich and wholesome food from each hen per annum. The quality of these is largely affected by the food supplied to the laying hen. Variety is truly ‘the spice of life ’ to the feathered occupants of farmyard. An early morning feed of ground oats and barley, with a slight taste of pepper, mixed warm in a crumbling mass ; fresh green food every day ; broken bones, eggshells ; continual access to clean and fresh water ; a feed of sound wheat and oats at dinner-time, the same at night, with an occasional throw of buckwheat, will amply repay poultry-keepers, not only by the refreshing view of bright and healthy plumage, but by the more profitable result of a wellfilled egg basket. Abundant egg production is hereditary, and should be cultivated. The writer has of late produced all his eggs from one family, and these sealing per half scare from a pullet, laying almost daily. Kerosene a Poultry Yard Requisite.— Here is what the California Cackler says on the subject :—‘The many uses that it may be put to iu the yard makes it an indispensable article to be charged to the expense account, and no other article will so enhance the profit of the poultry yards as kerosene diligently and intelligently used. For painting the inside of nest boxes for sitting hens, there is nothing equal to it, as it surely kills all vermin with which it comes in contact, and prevents other vermin from entering the nest until it is entirely evaporated, which, if the crude oil is used, will give the hen ample time to hatch her brood. A few drops in the drinking water occasionally has a good effect upon the general health of the flock, and for colds or roup there is nothing better if carefully applied. Scaly legs may be cured by simply wetting the legs of the fowls affected occasionally, and the crude oil is best in this case also, as it takes a much longer time to evaporate. When the crude oil is not readly obtained, some kind of heavy oil or grease should be mixed with the kerosene to stay evaporation. As a remedy for cholera it has been highly recommended.’