POULTRY NOTES.

Otago Witness, Issue 3030, 10 April 1912, Page 35

POULTRY NOTES.

By Terbob. "Potatoes," a Southland correspondent, asks if potatoes are a suitab.c iood for poultry, Potatoes have a certain food value if used judiciously. I hey are not an egg-making food. I recommend Potatoes" to read carefully the article by Mr Will Hooley which appeared somo years back in a Home journal, and winch 1 reproduce this week, for it, goes very lull} into the merits and dements of the potato as a poultry food. . A. 8., Oamaru.— "Wasting ' is a form of consumption, and needs persistent treatment to get it out of the system. If the bird is noc valuable, kill at once and burn the body, as it will only cause a lot of trouble. On the other hand, you may like to attempt a cure so as to be ready should a better bird bo attacked. Ihe first thing to be done is to rid the system of any impurities, and this is best clone by giving a dose of Epsom suits (mix in water, and then add to it the soft food). Repeat a | milder dose on the third day. Keep the j drinking water clean and fresh, and add I a little pure sulphate of iron. Feed on wheat meal and oatmeal, with just about a handful of maize meal, and mix this ! with skim-milk. Give Parrish's chemical food to the worst cases, and in about five or six days you should see an improvement. | Always keep a good supply of grit at | hand, and also plenty of green food, the j greater the variety the better. " \£ r A. Ci. Betts, of Nelson, is a fancier of whom I have the kindliest re- | collection, inasmuch as when I was on a I trip north some years back in the interests of this column he could not, in his own estimation, do enough to show me hospitality, and he put himself to no end of trouble showing me all that was to be seen | of fancier.-' yards in Nelson and for miles ; round. I am now glad to learn and to report that Mr Betts is still to the fore | as a silver Wyandotte fancier, and is consistcntly producing show pullets and hens, and has recently won outright the S. W. Championship of the West Coast, and his birds "arc al.-o doing well in the hands of j others. Pressure of business is, however, j compelling him to look out for a fancier , who will 'lake over his present stock, and j is capable of taking an intelligent interest : in a good thing when he ge*s it. In a ! letter to a. Dunedin fancier (Mr Lucy) Mr Betts speaks of a. Mr Leach, who has a | big egg farm about four miles out of Nelson. ' Thin gentleman has just now 7CO pullets iii one large house 150 ft x 25ft, all looking in the pink of condition, and just j about to commence laying. Most of ihese ;..re silver Wyandotte-brown _ Leghorn crosses, and their owner proclaims them id be good lavers and at the same time ■ good table birds. A cross of this kind is, I fancy, the kind of thing that deserves to be boomed, for in the present rage for Leghorns table birds are bt coming a rarity. A note relative to Mi Betts as a <k»' fancier impears in the Kennel Column, j SHELL AND CHIT. Many people confound the use of these two necessities of tin' poultry yard, some supposing that they serve one and the j sane- end, and only supply one of them; , therefoi i. they fail in some important! points of poultry-raising The supply of j shell in the shape of crushed oyster shell, ■ -v.,.,, shells, etc., is for the most part utterly useless tor any other effect than to provide j an extra amount of I'me, with which the i birds can easily strengthen the bones of the body and thicken their egg shells, and as this is an important requirement, one can see the need of placing it in positions where the laying liens and growing chickens can easily obtain it. hi the case of the latter those with heavy and large-boned frames require a greater supply. Where the birds nave .a. free range there is nor. such a need of lime, but it will l>e found beneficial nevertheless to keep a shallow I box of shell available. Should the hens not bf> able to g (, t a necessary supply of : lime they will draw upon their systems until thev are exhausted, and then soft- , shell eggs will result. Trials were recently undertaken at tlie j New York Experimental Station, in which

J every detail received attention, and which goes to prove that the supply of shell greatly assists hens in their work. Two pens were tested over periods of 10 and ]2 days, preparatory to whioh they received 10 and 23 days' special feeding respectively-. The result showed that in the first pen not more than 16 per cent, of the lime in the shell was derived from the food given, : while in the other 12 per cent, was the greatest amount of lime obtainable from I the food, showin.tr the large, part plaved by I the crushed oyster shell supplied. A very different us c is made bv poultry I of ordinary sharp grit, as the pieces are ; retained m the gizzard only as long as they are large and sharp. The work assigned to | them is simply to grind and pulverise the ! im.'.vl gram and food as it passes through the gizzard, and so render it easilv digestible. It is then clear that fowls "eating a large amount of grain require a largo I amount of sharp hard grit to keen them ;in a healthy condition. Grit liiav be j termed the teeth of the fowl. FUNCTIONS FOR. FOOD NUTRIENTS. may be summed up as follows:-! Water is food and drink used in forming the animal body and products. -Ash or mineral matter principally used in forming bone, but also a very small amount is consumed by all other parts. Fat and carbohydrates (starch, sugar, gum. fat. fibre) are used as fuel for heab and force or converted into fats and stored in the body. Protein is the basis of blood, lean meat, tendons, skin, feathers, and is an essential component of eggs. Protein is the most important food nutriment, and is absolutely essential to life. lo enable those not. familiar with the subject to get a clear idea of the parts ot foodstuffs and the terms representing them as used in food analysis, the followj ing statement is presented":—

I Water Fond « L l Ash I Album!stuff | Dry f P ro t irii noids s | mutter Organic j Amities j mutter Fat | Crude iCarbo- fibre I hydrates ! Slareh Nitr gen I free Sugar j extract Gum

I Carbohydrates, while sometimes present in animal foods, are produced almost exclusively by plants. Familiar forms are arc starch; sugar, and gum. They are stored in the animal bodv as such, but are converted into fat or burnt up to produce heat and energy. —Nutritive Ratio.— This is the term used to designate the proportion of the protein (nitrogenous) to the carbohydrates (non-nitrogenous or carbonaceous) food constituents, or, in other words it is the ratio of the digestible protein to the sum of all tho remaining nutrients in the food. The proper bakincTing of these nutrients is of tho greatest importance, as the economical and successful feeding depends very much upon this. The nutritive ratio varies considerably " for the various kinds of animals, and the purposes for which the animals arc being fed. For growing poultry stock ft is 1: 3.54. For fattening stock it is 1 f 56. For laying stock it is 1: 4.55. Feeding standards are intended to servo as a guide in making food mixtures so that; a ration will furnish approximately the amounts and proportion of digestible nutrients desirable in feeding for special purposes. Unfortunately there have been no comprehensive analysis made of tho different foodstuffs as used in this colony, so that we can only work on average analyses of similar American and English foods. Nevertheless, they form a good working basis, and by feeding to the standards which have proved themselves in other countries the feeder here would ensure much more satisfactory results than are obtained from the common haphazard feeding on the handiest or cheapest food procurable. THE POTATO AS A POULTRY FOOD. —lts Value to the Utility Poultrykeeper.— (By Will Hooley.) Several of our readers have written lately asking the best way to use potatoes as a food for poultry and why they seldom sco it mentioned in any of our articles. ■ —lts Analytical Value. — When the potato is used as a staple article of diet we arc bound to consider its analysis or analytical value, and wo find that the potato contains :—Water 78.9, ash 1.9, protein 2.1, fibre 0.6, carbohydrates--17.3. fat 0.1. To explain this thoroughly, so that it can be of use to all, wo will deal with these headings as they occur in the analysis. First is water, and when wo find that out of the 100 parts that inaka up the whole 78.9 (that is, 78 parts and 9-100ths of a part of the potato is water) it must strike even the most cursory observer that it is a dear food to purchase, and tint if a food contains so much water i; cannot possibly contain much else, a fact which is ampl\ borne out by the figures we give. Tiie nexl ligure represents the. amount of ash, which is of little food value, and is >n small a quantity that ifc can be neglected in this instance. The next is protein, and we ii;i<l that little over 2 per < ent. of the potato is protein. Protein 13 practically another name for albumen, and when we think of albumen we think of the egg, which is composed so very largely of albumen, so it naturally follows that the higher a food is in albumen the better ifc is from an egg-making point of view. In 430 grains of potato there are 9 grains of albumen. Our next figure gives fibre, and as the amount of fibre is particularly small this is all in favour of the potato, as fibre is of very little use in the digestive economy of the fowl, although it can make better use of fibre than can the human being. The next figure, carbohydrates, is the term given to the class of foods which produce heat in the body, and thus sustain life. There are not, however, any carbohydrates in the egg; but apart from producing mere egg we have to think about keeping up tho bodily heat of the bird which produces the egg, and in this respect, the 17 parts of carbohydrates in the potato are particularly useful. The next and last figure is that of fat, which, as we see, is very low, so that the fattening effect of potato is not due to the fat it contains, but to the carbohydrates, which are also fattening, and a!.-o to the ease of its digestibility i.nd its almost total absence, of fibre. Balancing the Rations.— Having finished the analytical headings

wo can. consider th* potato M «, food- J 1"? general observer will point to the laet that the potato is Tar? W°ly the fooq of the Irish population, frad Ui,oy ffrow into _nne rrion and beautiful women on >*. , but it wo ooasidar the nbiect mow closely, and deal wish all She food these people eat we shall find that potatoes and Dutterrm.K. or poatoss and skim milk, or some form of milt, jreneraliy goes with tho potatoes. | Thus one thing balances the other; the; milk supplies the albumen which is de- j ficienfc in the ootato and tho potato supplies tho carbo-hydrates which are deficient .11 milk. Wo also get tho necessary fat from milk, except when it has been skimmed centrifugal ly; even buttermilk has a higher percentage of fat than centrifugal y skimmed milk. There are also particularly valuable phosphates and bone-forming mattor in milk, even skim milk, as every farmer knows that tho biggest calf and_ the biggest pigs aro those that can bo given milk for tho greatest length of time. Considering so far, then, wo have illustrated the fact that the potato has been balanced by other food for human feeding, and the question that occurs is: Will the same line of reasoning bo applicable to poultry. And we unhesitatingly say that it is applicable to poultry, but unfortunately the general run of poultry-keepers seem to think that Indian meal or barley meal are the best things to combine with potatoes which is a very erroneous arid fallacious theory, and it is simply heaping fiie on fire, and we are putting to tho heat-producing qualities of the potato as much as 66 per cent, carbo-hydrates by adding to it barley meal. And when we add to it Indian meal we add on something like 68 per cent, of the same heat-forming food. Practical experience has shown us that if heat-forming foods are given to excess fat is tho unavoidable result, and if. the poultry-keeper wishes to produce fat lie can do so by adopting such a mixture as the one in question. It is when heseeks to produce eggs by giving food that is entirely fat-forming that trouble begins to brew. The birds may have a capacity of laying, but require plenty of albuminous substance to produce the eggs. and in the winter time they cannot balance their diet by going in the fields and getting worms and'grubs and insects, as the latter are all in their winter quarters, so the bird oats more of tho carbo-hydrates than it would if freely supplied with albuminous substances such as meat, consequently it waxes fat and bv the end of the winter is in a most undesirable condition for tho breeding pen During the summer it begins to lav. and much of this fat is worked oft. hut the damage to the constitution of the bird is a serious one. When the potato is used an atempt should be made _ to balance it by giving any of the following foods. A Very Sensible Ration.— Bran contains more egg-forming matter than many think, a good sample having as much as 15 parts against tho two parts of the potato, and it also contains four parts of fat against a. very small amount in the potato, so a mixture of bran and potatoes is a far moro scr.sible ono than barley meal and potatoes. If the bran is stirred in with boiling hot potatoes, much of the fibre will bo softened, and there will be practically no inclination to cause diarrhoea.' Pea meal is particularly rich in protoid matter; therefore 21b potatoes. £lb pea meal, lib middlings would be a sensible ration, remembering that for tho moment wo aro considering tho diet from an es?g-produoing point of view. If any of the above can be mixed with skim or separated milk, a really very creditable ration will be evolved, and if a supply of offal meat such as sheep s paunches can bo obtained at a low price this U the best of all foods to combine with the potato, in which case lib meat (weighed before cooking), 4lb potatoes, cooked together, and the potatoes will absorb a good deal of the meat liquor, and the whole can be stirred up with Alb bran. 21b middlings. Perhaps our readers may have good rations we have not here Classified, and if they particularly wish to use some part of potatoes, they should try to find in which way it can be balanced, but in such a case the potatoes should not take up more than one-quarter of the whole of tho mash, but as seen in the diet 3 we havo balanced potatoes form nearly half the ration. Other rations aro: Potatoes, 5 parts; meat meal. 2 parts. bran, 3 parts; dried off with a small amount of sharps. Potatoes for Fattening Purposes.— When potatoes aro used for fattening we advise the rations as follows:—3 measures of cooked potatoes. 1 measure of ground oats, 1 measure barley meal, 1 measure ground oats. The potatoes should bo cooked with a, lump of fat. If possible, then mix liquor and ail with the meais. When ground oats oarmot be obtained use fine pollards or middlings. We always, like to bear in mind that in many ease/ fowls are kept with the object jf using Op waste products, and we have Indicated how potatoes may bo given without harmful results! but we cannot gnaran tee thai tney are quite the best method*; where anybody is trying for a largo egg average. At the same time !t mAj be moro profitable bo produce 100 eggs for 3* 6d than to produce 120 eggs at fcs. In ono case tho food is grown on the form, in tho other food would have to bo bought whilst potatoes were wasting on the farm or sold at ridiculous prices AYLESBURV DUCKS. The Aylesbury duok haa a world-wide reputation for rts »Ue, w<f>! largess, tuvd sweetness of its flesh, stoutness of constitution, and it prolincaraoT. It Is, therefore, a great favourite with chose vfoo appreciate a delicate table fowl or a good laying bird. Its progeny arc easily reared and quickly matured, a duckling, if well fed, being suitable for the best table in the Land ai 12 weeks old. Until the last 40 years tho Aylesbury duck was scarcely bred at any i place outside of the vale of Aylesbury, and to-day a tremendous quantity of those favourite waterfowl are still reared in that district for the London market. Owing to tho enterprise of fanciers and ready means of transport, the Ayirabury duck has been "porsonnllv conducted" to almost all parts of tho globe, where tbey havo established themselves as well-oen-ducted and prosperous colonists. If the hand of man is raised against thorn at various festive season? It is not from any racial hatred towards them, but from pure ! love —an overpowering desire to see a wellfed specimen gracing tho tabic on a lordly I dish. ; As I suppose everybody knows, an A»* '• bury duck is a pure white bird, with a I brond. long bill of a flodh colour, j blaolc spots or marWcrs being sufficiently objectionable to disqualify a bird for ex-

hibition honours. Tho legs and feet should he of a bright orange colour. The body should be long, broad, and deep, the keel straight, and extending from breast to paunch. Exhibition birds, to preserve tho purity of their plumage, should be kept from the direct rays of the sun. Size is an important item, and good male specimens should run from Sib to 101 b. A pound or two smaller may be used advantageously for stud purposes. SCHEDULE FOR JUDGING AYLESBURY DUCKS. VALUE OF POINTS IN EITHER SEX. —Head and Eye.— Points. General appearance of head, large, straight, and long. Dark and full - ~. 8 —BillLong, broad, and straight, forming a straight line, or nearly so, from tho top of skull. A drake's head and bill measuring about duck's about sJin ; colour of bill pinky white or flesh colour 20 —NeckLong, medium thickness, carried in symmetry with the body 5 —Breast.— -Full and deep. —Keel. — Straight and deep, forming a straight underline from breast to paunch ... 10 —Size.— As large a-s possible. A well-matured drake will measure 36in from end to end of toes when stretched out flat on a table, and weigh 91b or 101 b. and a duck will measure 34in and weigh 81b or 91b. Any excess on these lengths and weights should be allowed for as extraordinary merit 20 —Plumage.— A spotless white throughout, the drake 'ha vine: two or three handsomely curled feathers in his tail 10 —Sy m metry. Large, (straight head and bill, well carried on a long curved neck. Long-, broad, and deep body, with straight underline from stem to stern 10 —Logs and Feet.— Very strong and thick in bone; well set, so as to balance the body in a straight line. Colour bright orange 5 —Health and Condition. — Eye bold and clear. Plumage bright and glossy, having tfie appearance of white eatin. Bill pinky white, and general appearance very lively 12 Total number of points 100 Disqualifications.—Crooked back, wry tail, or any other deformity. Bill any colour than white or flesh colour. Plumage other than white. Ducks so heavy behind that in the opinion of the judge they will not breed.