POULTRY FARMING.

Otago Witness, Issue 2273, 23 September 1897, Page 24

POULTRY FARMING.

(By Terror.)

AN INTERVIEW WITH MR F. ROGEN

The appointmfnt of the poultry expert (Mr J. A Henderson), that gentleman's lecture at the opening of the Poultry Fanciers' show, and his pamphlet on "Poultry Breeding" now pablished tend to give special prominence to this subject, and in View of the interest shown by farmers, I was commissioned by the editoc to proceed to the present headquarters of Mr F. Kogen at Evansdale to gather all the information I could likely to prove instructive.

CREDENTIALS

Budding poultry-breeders will, of course, require some information respecting Mr Rogen's claim to be an authority on the. subject of poultry-breeding before being expected to resj>ecS the advice he may give, though this is quite unnecessary to expe-rienced fanciers. First of all, theD, Mr Rogen is well known amongst fanciers as one who has devoted a lifetime to breeding »nd siudymg poultry and other farm stock ; as one who has proved bis possession of sound practical and th«oretical knowledge by his judicious importation?, successful breeding and showing, and as a constant and intelligent reader of ail the current Home and American literature on the subject. Iv the

matter of poultry his aim has always been to discover the maximum in respeot to laying and table qualities. Ho has gained prizes at shows too numerous to mention in detail, but with reg*rd to " one breed of poultry — "i c., ihe Lang«hao, of which special mention ia made iv this report, it miy be well to say that he has been so successful that e wifch tbat he now holds the Ballanoe shield, won by him two yesra in succession, aad which if held for another year will become his own property. As showing tho high estimation in which Mrßogea is held as a breeder on the other side, a writer iv the Weekly Time?, Melbourne, speaking of Langfrhan breeding, s*ya : — "Mr Andrews [Mr Rogen's partner in Melbourne] will soon be, as regatds this breed, in such a position that show competition will ba out of the question? unless Rogen of New Zealand will nov* and aiffcin drop a bomb into the camp with either a Now Zealand specimen or an importation from Etsglan'l during his periodical visits to the eld cuinlry." The explanation is tbat Mr .Andrews hold 3 part of exactly the same strain as Mr R}geD, aud derived from the Crystal PaL-.ce Cup and Medal cockerel referred to below. In Englaod he is also acknowledged as an authority. I find that in oae of h's periodical visits to the old country tha English Fancier*' Gazette, alludiug to » large purchase made by Mr Rogen forex'porr, says :—": — " iVTr Ro^jen is a thorough goo 3 judge of both poultry and pigeons, and the birds he hai collected are all of the very fir.est quality, iaa»y of thorn bavins; gaimd the highest; honours possible in tbe show peo. We searched for an inferior specimen, bu"; all in vain— Al quality everywhere, — and v\e have no htsilatiou in saying that this collection i 3 the very fiuest as well as the largeft that has ever left ouc shore. The subjoined list demonstrates that the ttock has b'vGn procured from many of Ecgl&nd's best breeders, and we are f-ure all will join with us in wishing Mr Hogen God-speed ou his long voyage and * sa.fe arrival afc his destination." The list oC birds referred to comprised 130 fo^-ls and 53 pigeons, and in publishing tbe list of naraei nnd addresses of the breeders thereof the Gazette pri-vci incontesfcably to those capable oc juJgiug tha truth of their allegation that Mr Rogen had dealt with England's (acd Scotland's too for I hat matter) bp.*t> bteeders

II R ROGEN AS A JUDGE,

When in the poultry yard my attention wa* directed to a L^ugsbau cock — a ep'eadid bird. " Th%fc," s*id Mr Rogen, " is a graudsou of the winner of the cup and med^l at (h-j (J*eat Nateoeal Poultry show &t the Crysthl Palace in 1693." "And did you purchase that bird?" ''Ye?, an'l as a matter of fact it was my bird when it won tbe cup, though exhibited in the twins of the bre<d?i* (Me Walker) " Iv reepouEe to my uexfc question as to how it was that Me Walker, who is recoguis^d as the greatest breedtr of Laogsbans in England, o»m9 to pait Tvith bis best bird, Mr Rogftii explained that befoie seeding his purclnsts he was told to overlook four bicd», which had been reeerv* d for the Pal&ce show. Of course he h&d to comply, but when coming to compare his own choice wish the reserve bird", he was of opinion that one of them was betfier in every respect than either ot those picked by (he g^eab breeder. "You "have parttd with your bf st bird,"' said he to Mr Walker, bu*i the BngHsh breeder would nob concur, and w-is not satisfied upon tbe point until, with Mr Rogen's permission, he subsfqupntly exhibited ib »t the Ptlace show, with the result known.

Mr Henderson's lecturh and pamphlet

Mr Rogen was disappointed with Mr Henderson's lecture. It lacked real iuslrucfiou to farmerp. Tbe whole purport of it appealed to be to tell the farmers of Ot*go aad S-ufcbland that ha was the poultry expert appoint*- d by Government. With regard to the pamphlet, it contains a good many useful hints, such, however, as may be foand in any book published on the subject.

HOUSING

Mr Rogen'u idea of a henhouse is by no means an « xpennive structure. He believes in a sound roof, lime-wasbed walls, low, strong perches, an entirely open *wired-netted front, facing to tbe cast, if possible, and clescrl in only by the* door entrance. Most important of all, the flo? muit be well rais-ed above the surrrounding level, and composed of loo'e carth — a sandy loam for preference. Don't have more than 70 or 80 birds in oae horn* together. There is no fear of trouble amougsb birds if they gei plenty of ventilation wV'en bouted. If closed in, they get baked during the night, and take chill in the morning when they go out.

CLEANLINESS.

" This is a DOfctter of vital importance," said Mr Kogen, " and it is to this end I advocate limew&vhed walls and a raised, loose soil floor. A wooden floor retains lhe damp and ammonia from the eecreta, and is un-uitab!o in ev»ry way ; but an earth floor, if raised, in always dry, open, and friable, and if the droppings are sifted out weekly, is always cloan, and forms an excellent bed wherein the birds can scratch, dust, and cleanse themselves."

The vessels used at Evansdale were of the syphon pattern, the same as supplied for small bird cages, only of course much larger, and made of tin. These provide a continuous supply of clean water, and cannot be tnrned over, with the resulting waste and dampness of surroundine soil.

For chickens tha best possible food is stale bread soaked in new milk, mixed with oatmeal to a consistency rendering it pjgsible to handle and throw conveniently. Milk is, in Mr Rogen's opiniou, preferable to the hard-boiled egg recommended by Mr HendereoD, giving both bone and stamina. It is the very best possible food for chick* from tbe t^ell till three or four weeks old. A little wheat rr ay be added at night. For grown fowls boiled turnips or mangels mixed with pollard shonld be given in the morning, with grain — wheat and short oa*s — changed about, at night.

The farmer a? a rule neglects in this matter more than in anything else. Birds cannot be kept in good rendition without grit of some kind ; they want it for ph&ll formation and digestive purpeses. Sea shell pounded np is best of all, but any old bottles or crockery smashed up will make a good substitute, and they need not be ground up so terribly small either — about the siz-j of a pea will do. Just hera I will mention a little episode told me sices I saw Mr Rogen by a Mr Arthur, manager to Mr Petersen, grocer, in this town. It wa« about nine years ago, when Mr Rogen was probably making one of his first trips oat

here with birds. A number of his protegeo were suffering from want of grit, of which the supply had run oat, and their crops were stunVd and choked so th»t some of them died. Mr xßygen saved the remainder as they were attacked, by opening their necks and cropa and cleaning them thoroughly out with spoon and aponge, and afterwards sewing them up with needle and cotton. When he arrived at his first stage — i.e., the Gape, he went ashore, not to stare about, bub to gather lacks of dints and shells which he poanded up on deck, and thus provided against a recurrence of tha trouble. ►Mr Rogen will be surprised to see this Account of his trip in the Coptic years ago. " FANCY " BIRDS ! Mr Rogen does nob understand the meaning of this term used by Mr Henderson. It in neither a farmer's nor a' 1 fnncier'a term. They know only of purebred and crossbred birds. CROSSING. The Government expert sitys th*t Hamburgs, Leghrrnp, Minorcas, and Houd&ns make good ficst crones, and he advises farmers not to breed from a eros-bred cock. Mr Rogen **ys, •• Stick to the pure ! " He is sura that there are n«j crosses equal to the purebreds as LAYERS AND TABLE BIRDS, and for all-rouud purposes he strongly recommends the Lang^hansaa the beot. Ib does not pay a farmer to breed biid^ for table only, therefore ha mast lookout for a bird useful all round — that is, »b a l»vor aad a table bird. Lingsha.il pullet* average 230 eggs in the 12 months, and Mr Rogeu has had them laying tight through; moulting by being well fed and housed. thb arxrrc to set. If hutched in July -or August JLaogsbans -will start layiug at Easter, and continue laying as regularly a!l through the year as a Leghorn would in the summer. From the foregoing it will be seen that Mr Rogen does not endorse tho opiuion expressed -by Mr Heudecson that* farmers should " s*»t their bens from th<* beginning of June to the end of Novembrr." Says Mr Rvgen : "If birds are hatched in November tbey are nob worth having, but if hatched in June, July, or August they will bring in to *. firmer twice as much ss they would if batched in November." LERHOttNS PLYMOUTH KOCKS, AND MINORCAS. With regard to the expert's idea thab Ltghoroa are good winter layers, Mr Rogeu says ho has b«.d both Englisa and American imported birds, and never found them good layers. Nexh to the Langshans Mr Rog:-n advises fanners to favour Plymouth Rocks xad Minorca?.

THE LANGSHA.N. He summed up hia advocacy of the Laugsban os follows :—": — " Why I recommend these bird=> so strongly is becvu^o they arc suitable for any climate or soil atid do weil in aoy p*rfc of the Australian colonies, and -besides b«iog gOJd layers they come next to the Indian game a3 table bitd* " HOUDA.N3, DORKINGS, AND COCHINS. As regards Houdans aud Dorkiugs, they cannot ha reared except upon sandy loancu "Yon bave heard, Mr Rogen," said I, Mr Henderson importing HoudaUß from. France and of his alleged intention, to import Cochins, from China?" 'Yea," was the reply, "and I bave only to s»y thnfc I have had Hcudaos' fioni all tie best y»rds in England, and my experience is that the chickens are Vi-ry delicate lo start witb. Tbey are nob winter lajers, though good table birds. They are a breed that will ctand les« inbreeding tbaa any breed, of poultry you caw have." A» regards Cochins from Chii< a, Mr llogeu understands that ib ha» talo n the English fanciers a hundred years to bring the raw article from China to its present fifcatc of perfection, and he smiled at the idea of New Zealand farmers beginning the performance ag&iu on their own account. TIME TO KILL 'PULLET.-). Mr Henderson Hays: "Keep pullets to the second seaton* On tbe contrary. Me Rogen ftayn that tbe pullet hatched in July or August 1897 should be ki)l d iv th? first week of. Match 1899. Hia reason for this advice i* (hat it does not pay to ke ep feeding a pullet through, the whole of the winter, !oc she will not lay early the second year — not t»H July or August ab the exrlieot, when everybody's fowls are laying aud egga are at their cheapest. f»TOCK FOR EARLY CHICKS. The ouiy ttook kept should be a d«.z«n of tha bast layers, to be paired up for the followiug year's breeding. These if kept in a good run, well housed at night and in w«ii weather, and well fed, will lay in ihe beginning of June or July, thus providing sittings for early chick:*. IKCCBATOttS. With regard to incubators »nd Mr Henderson's recommendation that farmers ehouid go in for them, Mr Rogen bluntly alleges that thesa machines would drive the formers and their wives stark staring mad on account of the close attention they demand. He Btroogly recommends farmers to have nothing to do with them

uLD HK.NS. Another great mistake made by farmers id the keeping of hens till they are five or *ix years ef age. They feed as hsaviiy as young birds,' and only lay half as many egg?, and when at last kilted they are worthless for table purpos s.

YOUNG COCKERELS. These should be sent to the market as soon as they are &\ for they will fetch a fair price. Langehans at this stage should fetch at least 3s per bird.

BREEDING. To get strong stock the farmer should always breed from cockerels from 12 to 14- mouths old. Never keep a cock a second year for breeding. You must have a young bird for good table or laying s'.oelr. - Ib does nob matter, however, about the hens being a second year old. MB HO SEN'S PRESENT STOCK. Mr Rogen is now proprietor of the IDvansdale Hots!, just beyond Waitsti, and in the bustle of other matters his not quite settled down to kennel and poultry business yet ; but though bis birds are at present only temporarily housed I could not fail to see that he practises what he trachea to the letter ai regards securing the comfort of his stock I only saw four or five specimens each of Indian game, Wyandottes, and L&ngshans, but they were in my humble opinion show birds in evf ry respect. I also saw two broods of Lings-hin chickens — ainong3f; them, doubtless, the prospective winner of the Ballance Shield at the next Wellington show. They all looked wonderfully well set up, strong, and premising, the wiDg feathers alivady showing strong and vigorous. Several hens were busy sitting oub tbeir eggs in quiet corners. My remarks upon Mr Kogen'* dogs will be found among the Kennel Notes. CRUSHED OR BROKEN BONES FOE POULTRY. Following ap my communication of last week on the above subject, 1 may inform you that some lime since I imported from Melbourne a movable iron boce-crusher. The bottom is about 12in square, of heavy malleable cast iron, and part of this is a sheet iron square funnel, which fits on to the top of it and is easily removed ; at the same time it keeps tha bones from flying out while the heavy rsuanaer is in use. This should be placed on a plot of

folid ground, and is then equally efficacious as the one described last week, but not as cheap. For leg weakuess in poultry there is uothiog better than small crushed bones or bone meal mixed with their food. B. J.