POULTRY NOTES.

Otago Witness, Issue 2666, 19 April 1905, Page 32

POULTRY NOTES.

BX TSRBOB.

— Mr Hendersoi/s Lang^hans at the For bury are progressing wonderfully to true show form. He has both cockerels and pullets superior to anything ever seen here previously, bred from his Piercy hens and last year's winning cockerels. In both sexes the young stock are extremely neat in appearance, -being tight in feather, resplendent with green sheen, erect and aristocratic in earriarse. good in eye, and developed in "body points as only the modern Langshan can be. Mr Henderson has for several generations now bred for special point?, and, to my mind, he has this season put on the finishing touches. I like clean, tight feathering throughout in this breed, and this season Mr Henderson's birds are surprisingly correct in this respect. The thighs are clothed -as with a sock to the hocks; the leg feathering is neat, not too heavy 3 and nioely to the side to the end of the outer toes — elsewhere the shanks and feet are as clean as possible, and the bone fine. * — Mr Wilson, of Musselburgh. invited me to inspect & mob of silver Wyandotte pullets hatched about September last. I found these from the utility standpoint looking healthy, and otherwise promising, but hard to cull from for show-breeding purposes. Though not of show type, however, it is in mv opinion quite possible with careful selection to breed from sueli a. stock as this in due time birds fit for competition — far easier, indeed, than it would be from unrelated stock of correct feathering, and I recommend this fancier to try his haud. His first step, I fancy, srculd be to breed only from the hens dark in the back fluff, put back to the last season's sire, he being more correct than the hens previously mated to him.

Mr Pater so .1, of Reid road^ South Dunedin. has a pen of silvers from Tindall's (Canterbury) strain! Tiiese are of good type, und one cockerel is wonderfully laced and barred on the wings. He is a pietuye just row, but it is doubtfal whether he will last till show, the tendency being to go too light. — Not only for the purpose of keeping the eggs in evidence during the winter months, but in order to escape roup and all the hundred and one disasters attributable to breeding from roupy birds, attention should be paid to the matter of properly housing poultry. Fowls may visit the dunghill and its sloppy surroundings during the severest weather, and though subjected to wind, snow, and. rain during the day, escape roup, swelled heads, stuffed nostrils, and bunged-up eyes, and even lay. providing they are housed at night free of draughts and leakage from the roof. — Notwithstanding the foregoing, however, it is undeniable that whilst health is a first consideration eggs are, as a rule, the ultimate aim of the poultry keeper, unless he happens to be a fancier pure and simple, and as such prefers to see his birds take a seasonable rest from laying, and thus recuperate for nevt breeding term. Where the object in keeping fowls is for profit in eggs the birds niust be kept laying throughout the winter, and to achieve this they mu't not only be comfortably housed at night, but protected from at least the extreme weather conditions. Let there be no doubt upon this subject. The man who succeeds in getting eggs in dear seasons, notwithstanding the- fact that he takes no precaution to protect them from continued winds, rain, or snow, does so either because his birds find natural shelter without his providing, or because he is lucky in the possession, recently acquired, of birds from stock bred through generations to lay, and in this latter case they cannot last Qut under adverse conditions more than the one season.

— Birds may be kept laying, and at the same time healthy, providing only that in severe weather they have protection both day and night. A commodious scratching si ed adjacent to the rcost and nestingboxes, upon the floor of which is strewn a considerable, depth of litter into which the grain is thrown, will force the fowls to tr*-? exerci&e necessary to health in confinement.

— This April promises to be a record n>ontii at the Government poultry depot. Mr Burk, the grader, is employing more hands than were ever previously engaged in Dunedin plucking fowls, and the- birds are cominjg in in sufficient numbea* to keep all busy. The only complaint is that the bulk of the bids arrive towards the end instead of the beginning of each week, with the result that there is invariably a great rush to get all through to the cool stores before Sunday. As a matter of fact late consignments have frequently to be left over till Monday, at needless expense in the matter of feed, etc. This week, at anyrate, in view of the Easter holidays, farmers should try and arrange their consignments with some consideration for the convenience of the hand® employed at the depot.

— Commencing with next month we shall have opportunities presented by the egglaying competitions, starting at Blenheim and Canterbury, of estimating the laying capabilities of New Zealand strains of fowls. Up to the present it has only been possible to /gauge this by the biassed and nncheeked reports emanating from breeder's own yards, and when these have been particularly favourable the natural feeling has arisen that possibly the desire to attract buyers may have> tended to swell the imagination of the advertisers. In many cases this suspicion lias no doubt been unfair, and consequently harmful to all concerned. Now that we are to have records of the* laying of our various strains from relialjle and unbiassed sources it is to be hoped that they will be creditable to New Zealand breeders, and they will certainly be so providing that those entering birds for competition do so knowing that they have good laying strains. For one, I am prepared to believe that if a p-en of birds at Lincoln College or at the Marlborousrh iarta «&= exceptionally well, thax would

have done even better in the hands of the breeder who e^tablitjhcxl the strain.

— Quite 75 per cent, of the broodies I hove scci or heard about are buff Orpingtons. Perhaps this may be accounted for by the undoubted popularity of the buff Oipingtou, or buff fowls which pass as such, or, as I am much afraid, it indicates that th^ sitting- instinct is yearly increasing m the buff& in the same way as it did in the blacks, to their great detriment as a popular fowl. jsut this in passing, for no doubt l-jany hcn= of other sitting breeds which have bceu forced on to winter laying have wanted to go to nest, to the annoyance of their owners. For when you have gathered together half a dozen bens worth anything from £3 to £4 upwards, which after laying a score of eggs apiece want to sit on them, you gradually find yourself with a number of very costly incubators on hand, and the supply of guinea sittings of eggs upon which you were relying to recoup yourself is etopjed. Thu> it is pretty evident that the hens of the breeding pen cannot as yet bo afforded a rest from their labour of egg production. By the exercise of a little foresight the supply of eggs need only suffer ior a very short time. The rule to follow is to prevent the hen taking to her j-:<?st as soon as she shows any inclination to do so, and before she becomes thoroughly broody. A hen which lays l?te in the day. stays a long time on hor nest, and begins to eluok should forthwith be shut up alone in a pen, an ordinary show-pen standing in some outhouse, with no sign of egg or nest. eggs she may lay — and very probably there will be some — should be taken awar at once ; they may be used for sitting purposes just the same as if they were laid in the run. In a day or two she will stop, and in a few more days her broodiness will leave her. when she may be returned to the breeding pen, where phe may i-ecommence laying at once. — J. P. W. Marx in the Feathered World.

— There are two methods, says MiArthur Little, an English authority, by which you can commence line breeding : (1) By bm-ing into a good strain, and sticking to it ; and (2) by establishing one yourself from your present birds. The former method is necessarily the more expensive, but by following it you reap the benefit of the j-ears of labour and thougfht, etc., of the breeder from whom you buy, and you start from almost the same standpont as he himself has reached. I say almost, for although you have the same" quality birds, you have not perhaps his experience, and this you must acquire with the least possible delay. Don't be in a hurry when purchasing, but buy the best you can afford, and if you buy a pair make sure they are from the same strain. Examine them thoroughly, get their i>edigrees, see their relations, and the flock from which they come, find out with what objects they have been bred, if their qualities and characteristics are stamped on the strain and flock of which they are a part, and if .their individuality is the same as that of their relations. If you decide to purchase one only, cay a male bird, follow the same procedure. I say, find out all this before purchasing, and if you are not satisfied, go elsewhere. But if you can safely make youir purchase with a tolerable certainty, that the progeny which you will raise from this pair (which, by reason of years of careful line breeding, you know have certain qualitites bred asd stamped in them) will have the same characteristics as their parents, then do so. Study carefully both parents and progeny, and us© strict common sense and judgment. It matters not for what you are breeding — fancy or utility qualities— the methods are the same. Buy into a recognised good strain, one with the maximum of strength and vigour at the back of it, and stick to it ; if you buy one bird here, another there, and a few eggs somewhere else, or in any way mix two or more sti-ains, you will never succeed and get neai the top." If you wish to e-tablish a strain from the birds j-ou have, it will necessitate, of course, the expenditure of more time and labour than if you bought a pair from an established one. And don't expect to got good results the fir=!t year. You will have to be content to wait for from three to five years before these are obtained. We vsill suppose that you have a large, strong, healthy, vigorous, purebred male (a female will do as a foundation, but a male is better). Such a bird is of great value. He will be of use for fancy or utility purposes, or both, and a^so give promise of a long life, in order to build up your strain for several years to come, as you may possibly have to try different matings with him for several seasons before you obtain the results you are. working for. Shape is the next consideration. Pay particular attention to this in chosino- your foundation bird; remember that shape makes the breed, and colour the variety. Would anyone with any commonsense. who wishes to succeed, and who has the good of the breed he keeps at heart, let colour have the prior claim and shape the secondary one? I think not. for instance, the characteristic beautiful beetle green colour of the pure (Croad) Langshau should, of course, be striven for in breeding it. But you, could neither say that it was a typical Langshan nor that it was the handsome bird it is if accompanied by knockknees, a shallow flat breast, an apology for a tail, etc., instead of, as it should have, strong, sturdy legs, well set apart, a deep, full, well-rounded breast, and a large spreadv tail, with plents' of side hangers, etc. Therefore, be most careful in choosing for good shape in every section when establishing a strain or line. Then, having secured this, with strength and stamina as a foundation-, pay attention to colouringHaving selected your male, (proceed to choose his mate, taking care to have her good in the qualities in which he- falls short. If their progeny are not satisfactory, try another female later ; but if they produce a, good daughter or daughters, mate them back to their sire : if a good son, mate him to his mother. Then put the best granddaughters back to your original male, and the best grandson baok to youar original female. This is line breeding, or. in other words, the breeding- or mating 1 in a direct line from on© pair of ascestors, which have certain characteristics, and the careful selection in each generation to intensify these characteristics: and the better and strongeT the birds which form your foundation are, the sooner will the desired results be obtained. Pedigree, or line breeding, is not necessarily in and in breeding, and there 13 no doubt that given strong, healthy, vigorous birds for a foundation, and br always choosing such in future matings, it is the best and surest method. How often do we hear of persons asking for unrelated 1 birds, or talking about introducing fresh blood ©very year or two. How on earth can they expect to stamp certain characteristics mto their flock, or have any vestige of uniformity in it?

— AT-p=srs Waters, "Ritchie and Co. fpei* Mr B, Reilbl,. report i_— The_j?,ast w.cek has

been a busy one in oin- poultry department. producers now s>cuding forwaid freely all classes of poultry, met of the eon-igmnent w.selv being consigned •'Poultry for cvpoit." and "thu« avoiding railage. Our export prices still continue the same— mz.. hi&t grade hons 3*. second grade 2s 3d : fir-t o-rade roosters 3s 3d, second 2s od ; ducks Ss &d per pair. Locally, prices remain unchanged, wo placed, hens 3s 3d. ducks 3s 9d and 4s 3d. turkey gobblers Bd. hen's 6d, geese (off sale) 4s 6d to ss. Eggs in keen demand, guaranteed fresh Is Bd, preserved Is 2d to la 3d. Pniobi-ed poultry from 3-- to E^ each, for pullets; halfbred pullets 2s to 3s each.