POULTRY NOTES

Otago Daily Times, Issue 22122, 28 November 1933, Page 3

POULTRY NOTES

By Terror.

ANSWERS TO CORRESPONDENTS “New Chum” (Gatlins) writes:—" I bought a gobbler and two turkey hens some months ago. Both hens started to lay. One clucked, and I set her on 16 of the above eggs, and at the end of the time all the eggs proved rotten. When the other hen clucked, I had a setting from another district altogether. At the end of 31 days two eggs were chipped. Next morning another chipped, but for a whole day made absolutely no progress. I chipped the shells a little more from round them, and the polts gave one dive out of shells and immediately walked round the nest. Another two chicks were dead in the shell, and the rest of the eggs were all rotten. These birds were set in the nests they layed in in a shed with straw, and the eggs sprinkled for a few days before the young birds -were due out. Were the nests too dry? ’■ If the turkeys bought had not been mated up before being sold, their eggs would not be suitable for setting till they had been together for a month on their new premises. The nest the turkey was set in should have been on a hol-lowed-out damp turf with a little straw in it. The heat. of the hen’s body would have drawn up to the eggs all the moisture required. Sprinkling turkey eggs is not recommended. As regards the eggs from another breeder, the question is, were they rested for 24 hours before being set? Also, were they sent in a nailed down box? Or, again, roughly handled whilst travelling? Concussions of any kind will destroy the hatchability of turkey eggs. The eggs should have been candled on the seventh day and thereafter left entirely to the hen. Inspecting the eggs at hatching time does no good—it is inquisitive interference with the hen and causes chilling at a vital time. The hen and eggs—in the case of turkey eggs —should be left entirely alone with liberty for the hen to seek food and water as she desires. An experienced turkey breeder tells me that if ever he received turkey eggs for setting in a box that had been nailed down he sent them to the cook at once, considering that they were spoiled for incubation. “Amateur,” South Canterbury, writes: —"I have lost three hens from my small • flock consisting of 11 White Leghorns, five of which are pullets and six are in their third year. I understand the trouble is what is known as white scour. Symptoms are: Hens ceased eating, combs became pale and drooped, they lost weight, and eventually died. My egg return has been poor so far, four or five per day is the highest. I was wondering if my system of feeding was correct —morning meal, mash of bran and pollard; mid-day, scraps; evening, a little wheat. They get a fair amount of green fed and fowl grit and river shingle. I was thinking that perhaps the three-year-olds were past the profitable age. About what quantity per bird each meal should be given not to cause over-feeding, which I understand is injurious? I notice a few of them are on the nests continually without any result. Would that denote over-fat or egg-bound? ” You do not say how your fowls are kept—whether altogether confined to a house, have a small outside run, or plenty of space to range in. .the symptoms you describe suggest that they are able to eat something that is not good for them, such as young laurel leaves or from a privet hedge, or perhaps some poisonous weed. However, it may be that your birds are from a strain bred from great layers, and are consequently lacking in constitution. the trouble may be due to the pollard, bran, or wheat being sour or musty. W’J 11 respect to the river bed sand, if the stream you take it from is polluted in any way the sand should be washed before the fowls get it.

Young Stock It is important to remember that the productive capacity of the young pullets will depend to a large extent upon the treatment they undergo during the growing period. Steady development is necessary, so that a vigorous constitution may be built up, whereas rapid growth and early laying generally result in a short and not very profitable career, Ihe management is not to blame in every case when pullets mature bndly, because one must often go back to the breeding stock, or, further still, to the eggs. I hat is why only selected and hatchable eggs should be incubated, and why the present stock should be healthy and m breeding condition. Weakly chicks are ever a source of trouble, and ,no amount of good feeding or bousing will make them robust at maturity. _ Any attempt at overcrowding, overheating, or overfeeding will certainly ruin the growing chink; which must have plenty of elbowroom right up to the final stage. Many growing pullets are ruined in the making because they are badly reared. Above all, they must be fed for framework, so that the latter will take the flesh that follows. Incubators and Brooders

Every incubator and brooder that is now out of use for this season’s hatching and rearing should be carefully cleaned and disinfected before being stored. Find time for this work now instead of having to attend to it just before the machines are again required for use, otherwise there may be the temptation having other things to attend to —to say: Oh, they look clean enough.” There can be no question but that much trouble in hatching by incubation is caused by neglect to overhaul them at the end of the previous season, or that brooder chicks are lost because the brooder was not properly prepared for them. Another point to remember respecting incubators and brooders is that they should be stored carefully in some place where they will not be required to be shifted in order to get at some other equipment of the poultry yard. These machines cost money, and the more carefully they are handled the longer they will last in usefulness. Orderliness in the storeroom is very important. There should be a place for everything, and everything should be easily got at.

A New Manure Dryer A machine which is simple in structure has been invented in England for the purpose of drying poultry manure. It is said to require fairly constant attention when in action (roughly 10 minutes per hour), and in the case of a 1000-bird farm it would perhaps best be run for one day a week. In the space of eight hours it should deal with such a farm’s total output—which, according to the inventor’s statistics, will be about 7cwt of dried manure a week. This will amount to —at a very approximate estimate —nine tons of manure a year dried, thus yielding £27 (at £3 a ton). In England Mr Young (th e inventor) is prepared to offer £3 to £4 per ton (according to the nitrogen! content by analysis) for any quantity of manure dried by it. In fact, he makes the proviso that anyone buying the drier must sell any dried manure not used on the purchaser’s own farm to him direct. He grinds up the material and sends it out in neat 31b cartons, or in 71b, 141 b, 28lb, and 561 b bags made of white linen and attractively labelled as “ British Poultry Guano.” He has no lack of customers, and many corporations and estates testify, we are told, to its efficiency. The idea is a simple one, and there should be a similar method adopted in this country to turn poultry manure to profit.

The Surprising Turkey Commenting on the recently-published statistics respecting the poultry industry in England and Wales, which showed an increase in farms over one acre in extent an increase of 3,410,000 fowls or 6 per cent, over the previous, and which brings the total number to 61,163,000, Sir Edward Brown says: “The most surprising development was in turkeys, which have increased in one year by 258,000, or 47 per cent., and have reached a total of 811,000 for the whole country, which is by far the largest number during the last 11 years. Norfolk is the largest turkey-rearing county in England, with a total of 95,000, while Suffolk has 50,000.” Liver Disease One of the most common complaints in the poultry yard is due to overfeeding and the feeding of unsuitable foods, either or both of which errors results in derangement of the liver. Liver troubles, we are told, however, is hereditary and contagious, hence great care must be taken to eradicate such birds as contracted it from the breeding stock. If diagnosed in time the disease is amenable to treatment, but too often, unfortunately, the symptoms do not declare its existence until too late for remedies. The remedy exists rather in prevention than cure. Drugs in any case can only ameliorate the condition. Thus the whole management of the flock must be directed

against the contraction of the disease, and the principles of breeding and maintenance directed to this end. The chief causes arc improper and overfeeding. especially on condiments and maize, inbreeding, overcrowding in confined runs, want of green food, and sharp grit, sudden changes of temperature —i.e., from a too warm house into the open—all these are conducive to liver disease, if not actually the first source. Symptoms of Liver Disease Symptoms of Liver Disease. —The birds mope about, the face is pale and yellowish, instead of bright coral red, as it should be in full health. The.cye s are dull, thev dislike soft food, and are inactive and stiff in their movements. Remedies.—Kill the affected birds, and introduce untainted fresh stock. It may be a great sacrifice, but it is cheapest m the long run. Prevention—Avoid inbreeding, overfeeding, especially on maize, and overcrowding, give great attention to ventilation and diet, as improper diet and bad air are aggravating causes to the complaint. Two Hands Better Than One? At certain shows in America (remarks Poultry World) judges and exhibitors argue out the awards jointly! If you can persuade the judge against all the detects pointed out to him by other exhibitors m the class that your bird merits the red ribbon . . . well you win. It ought to be plain sailing for any gangster. Tidyness Erect standards, tighten wire-netting, clean paths, tidy store room, and clean utensils impress the visitor and draw custom. Warm Weather and Coccidiosis Wc are told the warm summer weather is an important condition for the development of the coccidiosis germ, while moisture is also required, and an English poultry man suggests that since it is the droppings that are responsible for the transmission of the infection frqm afflicted birds to the healthy ones, our principal effort should # be directed toivards rendering these innocuous. It ia not sufficient to clean out our houses daily, for the minute parasites remain on the floor and droppings board, in spite of all, and our birds walk in the fresh droppings or take their dust-baths in them. Wire floors seem called for whenever birds show symptoms that arc attributable to coccidoisis, a larger mesh being used than in the case of smaller chickens that are treated for B.W.D. Under this wire floor old newspapers may be laid, for they are easily removed and destroyed by burning, or buried deeply after being disinfected. . • The most dangerous spot is that occupied by the water pot. just because these parasites require moisture as well as warmth for their development. It is also a spot that is much frequented by all the birds, with the result that .the droppings accumulate rapidly near it.

What is Quality? Jack Milton, a well-known correspondent to Home poultry journals, says;— All-round quality is a relative term—with me it has always meant the very best” that could be produced. But is there such a thing? The old saying, “Many men, many minds,” is truly borne out by poultrymen, who speak of “ all-round quality in their stocks. Beginning with eggs, there is the “quality of quantity, the “ quality of size,” and the quality of eoluor.” These features are regarded by the utilitarian as “quality,” whatever particular feature his strain of fowl is bred for. The owner of a big-egg strain will claim that the mere factor of egg size alone will make pullets raised from his stock more profitable than any others. The prospective buyer _ looking for a large-egg strain must decide on one particular strain over another. Price alone should never be the deciding factor it some “ quality ” feature is desired. Low prices for chicks and eggs do not mean much in any advertisement, but what does appeal to a buyer is something which may read like this: “Study my birds and the records they have made in laying contests and you will find the prices listed eminently fair for the quality Another may claim that his stock has u fipizzeri^ktulll/ , which is another word for “ pep.” It means that Ins birds are full of inherited vigour, bubbling over with perfect health, and full of vitality. So full of vigour that they cannot fail to lay and produce chicks that will Him e and .be free of disease.” The breeder-exhibitor regards quality” in a different light—lie cares nothing about egg-laying records, size or colour of eggs. Something other than mere eggs is his idea of quality. He is out only for “feather quality and good type or shape. ... The breeder-exhibitor breeds carefully for type and colour, shows what he produces, and is not particularly keen to sell.

Reilly’s report: A nice yarding of poultry came forward for our sale on Wednesday. Good values were secured for chickens; in fact, for all kinds of killable birds. Hens: 22 at 6s 4d, 27 6s 2d. os 6e 12 5s lOd, 13 5s Bd, 14 5s 6d, 11 5s 4d' 19 5s 2d, 29 ss, 10 4e Bd, 13 4s 6d, 5 4s 4d, 12 4s, 3 3s 4d. 2 3s 2d. Chickens: 9 at 5s 2d, 12 4s 2d, 12 4s, 21 3s lOd, 13 3s 2d, 8 3s, 2 2e Bd, 5 2s 4d, 16 2s, 40 Is Bd, 42 Is, 18 8d Bantams: 2 at 3s. o2s 6d 4 Is. Ducks: i at 5s 4a. Pigeons: 5 at Is 4d, 22 Is 2d (all at per pair). One hen and 9 chides. 15s.