POULTRY NOTES.

Otago Witness, Issue 2817, 11 March 1908, Page 35

POULTRY NOTES.

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— The English expert, Mr E. T. Brown, writing on the subject of "Winter Eggs, draws attention to the fact that it is more profitable to keep a hen which produces the bulk of ite eggs during the winter months than a hen which lays'the bulk of its eggs in the spring and summer months. It requires no elaborate arithmetic, he says, "to calculate that it is preferable to have 2Q eggs worth 2d each than 30, or even 40, worth 18 or 20 a shilling." This is, as a. matter ol fact, the theme of all poultry authorities, and poultry scribes m Australasia are perpetually impressing the truth Of Mr Brown's contention on their readers ; yet how seldom one hears poultry-breeder 3 Crediting a bird or pen of birds for its , winter resulfe; all boasting »s about the | yield per annum. i — The really profitable birds are those which lay the bulk of their eggs' when eggs are dear, and to get winter eggs should be the aim of every breeder. Fowls may not be laying well just now because they are moulting or preparing to do so, but the fact that the birds are taking, a spell is no good reason for relaxing attenSon to *K<em- Extra att&ntion, and not less, is what is now required. Feed all the usual dainties, including the green bone or cooked liver; supply sunflower seeds if obtained, and all the kinds of green food available. Whilst refraining carefully from overfeeding "ring the changes" in theii feed as much as possible, for -variety tends to satisfaction for both the birds and their owner. Whilst the j moulting is progressing be untiring in matters of cleanliness about the roosting quarters, removing by sweeping with a hard broom, not only loose feathers and droppings, but all dust, a great deal of which is being thrown off by the birds along with the feathers. If strict cleanliness is not observed at this time vermin and disease are more than likely to, invade the flock, resulting in a set-back at the vital moment when steady and continuous pro- j gress can alone result in winter eggs. | Fowls over two years old eve, generally I speaking, poor winter layers, and birds j under, that age will lay poorly, no matter how. peifeet. all. other conditions may be, if overcrowded... lf the birds can be got to start .laying .by . the middle of May they may.be .kept going, throughout the winter, but if started much before that time the probability is that they will stop when the cold weather sets in. Much, of course, depends- upon locality es regards time of starting. • ■ An- earlier date than the middle of May might be more satisfactory in South Otago or Otago Oentral, but from Dunedin northwards and along the coaat I think the date mentioned) early enough. The Asiatics and made breeds, such as Wyandottes and Orpingtons— all layers of tinted eggs — are the most safely depended upon for winter eggs if properly attended to, but there are many strains of Mediterranean breede which are favourably reported upon as layers in the dear season. No matter, however, what the strain or i breed may be winter egg yield is out of the question unless the closest attention is ! given to supplying summer condition and cleanliness. I — One of the most common complaints amongst ducks is sore eyes. This is more particularly prevalent during the warm weather. The slight discharge from the eyesf becomes dry, and sticks to the feather ! close around the eyelids. This, in time, 1 farms a hard substance, which reaches to 1 the eye, and causes irritation and a profuse I discharge. The cure is- to waeh the eye in water fairly warm, taking care to soak j the substance well. Thus it can be removed ! easily. After the eyes are cleaned tho- I roughly they should be washed in a solution of boracic acid. The lids may then be rubbea with vaseline. Repeat the treatment two of three times a day until the irritation^ is removed. The cause of the complaint may Tae want of sufficient water. If pYenty of water ie available the complaint w.ill generally, be obviated. ' — .When chickens, .do not seem to get on very.-.well, and there appears to be no other reason, than . want of stamina, some good niAT be done by giving them a good tonic daily. Some of the advertised tonics and condiments are very suitable for the pur- \ pose, but, of course, the dose is much less than for grown fowls. Roughly speaking, a quarter of an adult dose is about right for chickens a fortnight old* and a sixth for

chickens younger. Give the tonic daily while it is requited, but no longer, as it will lose its effect after a while. In the case of tonics to be added to the drinking water, the same proportion as for ouult fowls should be used. The chickens, of course, di-ink less, and so the proper dose is adjusted. — Cramp is one of the diseases chickens are peculiarly subject to. A queer gait in walking is usually the first thing to attract attention, when a closer examination will reveal that the toes are more or less constricted, sometimes being quite curled up. Chickens kept entirely on boards without sufficient 6oil to cover them, or on ground which has become trodden down very hard, are the most liable to cramp. Plenty of loose, dry soil — preferably of a candy nature — should bo placed on the boards, certainly not lees than 2in deep, and this should be sifted at least once a week, and entirely renewed every month. Hard beaten ground ia almost squally objectionable as bane boards ; loose soil or a grass plot are decidedly the best, though there is no objection to rims on a boarded floor if sufficient depth of dry soil is placed upon it. The only thing to be done in cases of cramp is to rub the feet with a little turps or eucalyptus oil just 'before the chicks go to bed at night and to give a -tonic daily. — Vertigo is dizziness or swimming of the head. It is often caused "by increased blood supply to the brain due to indigestion lor some other cause of irritation. It is recognised by the shaking of the head, unsteady gait, walking backward, sideways, or in a circle. The fowl eometimes fails, and there may be stupor. A too heavy or fat fowl is most likely to be troubled in , this way. To treat conditions in a case of this kind we must first find the cause. The heart's action must be reduced by emptying the portal circulation. Give a 1 strong saline purge (Epsom salts) ; give one-drop doses of tincture of aconite. A brain sedative is needed (bromide of potassium in one to three grain doses), if the trouble is persistent. Cold applications to the head is good treat- , ment to reduce the blood supply. *Last, but not least, the diet must be correct, and the food must be light, easily digested, and the fowl must have light but increasing exercise. If the hen 'is not a valuable one, treatment is hardly worth while. The flesh is likely to be all right for food/ Such troubles ate usually caused by close cooping and over-feeding, but are sometimes a sign of feeble stock. — Go at night to the roosts with a light. The birds that show a polish, or glint, on the feathers have the constitution, and are fit. — Use, as a breeder, the cockerel that is always scratching about, and that dusts himself well, the other desired points being there also. — The active, singing, scratching hen is the one you want as a breeder. Watch for [ —An occasional run brightens up the confined birds wonderfully. | — Prevention is better than cure. Keep i everything clean, and feed good, clean food. If you keep fowls, do it proper \y. —At this time of the year Epsom salts are good. Mix a packet to 15 fowls in the mash, because none will be wasted I then. —If you have any spare fruit or. vegetables boil them, up, and mix with the mash. Don't waste anything. — Good, clean wheat is about the best grain to feed now. Only use maize and barley in the winter. — Don't push your pullets on too fast. I*et them get the frame before you ehoyc them. You will get more out of them in the long run this way. — How to stop precocious pullets from laying is a big trouble. If bred from a long line of layers you can't stop them when they want to do it. No one can check a tip-top pullet when she wants to — Although he has been dealing with the subject for over 22 years, the poultry expert (Mr D. F. Laurie) at times manatees to import 'a bit of humour into his talks about egg 3 and fowls. He was in capital form at the Crystal Brook Conference. Mr Laurie hits hard when he is referring to the marketing of bad eggs. He is confident that the annual loss of £50,000 could be reduced by an important margin. "I was in a country shop one day," he eaid, "and without, the lady keeper noticing it I smashed an egg, which I had selected from a basket. I complained to her. Of course, she didn't like it. 'What do you know about the business?' she inquired indignantly. 'I kept fowls 30 yeare before you were born.' I said I had not the slightest doubt about that. She looked it — (laughter),— and evidently the eggs were laid about the same time." — (Laughter.) 1 The sentiment of colour, remarked Mr Laurie, was losing ground. This was owing to the fact that waiters in English restaur rants, when asked for brown eggs and had none in stock, boiled them m strong tea or ooffee.— (Laughter.) One speaker at the conference complained that the age of eggs for export— four days— was too severe a limit. The expert replied that if a farmer said they were only four days old they might bo sure the eggs were eight , clays, apd if eight, then 16 days.—(Laughter.) It was a question of the oscillation of conscience.— (Laughter.) They must stick to the four days' limit. Some had told him that the eggs wore half-cooked during the hot weather. The majority of those were laid in iron houses, which were equal to tho cooking qualities of a fryingpan. — (Laughter.) — Messrs Reilly, Scott, and Gill (proprietors Central Produce Mart. Limited) report for week endinar Saturday, 9th inst: — Poultry are coming forward in fair numbers, and excellent prices are obtained for all well-conditioned birds. At our sale on Wednesday hens brought 2s 6d to 4s per pair; pullets, 5s to 6s 6d; young cockerels. 3s 6d to 5s lCd; ducks, 3s to 4s; and ducklings, 3s 6d to 4s Bd. Eggs are in good demand, and prices firm at Is 3d per dozen. Butter has good inquiry at lOd to Is Id ; honey' at "4d to 4Jil ; pigs, 5d to 6d; beeswax, Is 4d' to Is 6d — per lb ; prime rendered fat, 18s to" 24s; and rough, 16s to 18s per cwt.