POULTRY NOTES.

Otago Witness, Issue 3595, 6 February 1923, Page 42

POULTRY NOTES.

By

TERROR.

“Beginner.”—Providing the shed gets the sun and is dry and light it will serve the purpose of a fowlhouse well enough. Place the perches well back. Take down the folding doors, and put wire netting in their stead, arranging for a doorway entrance. Whitewash the whole of the inside of the shed before you put the birds into it. - M.—Twelve ducks are too many for one drake. There should be two drakes at least for that number. The soft food should be in a half-dry, crumbly condition; otherwise it will stick to their feathers or accumulate about their eyes. Hundreds of young ducklings have been lost by inattention to this point in feeding them. At. a meeting of the Dunedin Specialist Young Bird Club, held on January 22, trophies were presented by members of the club to the arts, crafts, and hobby show run by the Y.M.C.A.. It was decided thak entries for the young bird show should close definitely on March 10. Mr Peter Sinclair (assisted by Mr R. W. Coombs) was appointed to judge white Leghorns, and Mr Sinclair (assisted by Mr T. H, Dalton) to judge alk other classes of poultry; canaries, Mr S. Gerrie; cats, Mr G. Radford; children’s pets, Mr W. Allen. It was decided to hold an art union in connection with the show. A guessing competition was arranged for, several good prizes being already promised. Mr T. A. Brown was elected superintendent of the show, Mr W. Oniaiid pigeon steward, and Mr W. Esquilant canary steward. Arrangements having been, made with the South Island Association, it was decided to award certificates lor provincial championships in each section of the show. Mr R. Porrett. a distinguished poultryman from South Africa, who has been two months in the Dominion visiting poultry plants and breeders in Auckland, Wellington, and Christchurch, was in Dunedin last week, and granted me an interview. He expresses himself as deeply impressed witn the kindness shown him in all places he has visited, with the quality of stock he has seen here, and particularly with the class of birds he saw at the Auckland and Papanui competitions. The management at the competitions he considers excellent. The Kirkwood Stud Farm, of which Mr Porrett is the proprietor, is situated at Pietermaritzburg, Natal. It is three acres in extent, and carries about 3000 birds, the breeds kept being white Leghorns (bred from Barow strain) and black Orpingtons (of Australian origin). An “Austral Mammoth” ipeubator is installed on the farm, and, in addition to hatching for the_ farm, eggs are received for the production of day-old chicks. The Mammoth is a sectional machine, and the temperature is uniform throughout. It consists of drawers, each holding 150 eggs, and Mr Porrett’s charge per drawer to people sending eggs for hatching is 30s. Infertile eggs are returned with the chicks. The Mammoth is economical as regards fuel. Mr Porrett says the cost in 1920 was only 25s for coke as against £6O the year before for kerosene, when 22 separate machines were used. Mr Porrett shows a great number of photographs of the pens and runs and of birds which have won at shows and competitions, also some of single-penning and others of trap-nesting. The two last-mentioned svstems of selecting layers are carried out at Kirkwood on a lam*e scale, one picture showing 52 single-bird pens. There are three egg-laying competitions run in South Africa, and Mr Porrett holds the best records achieved there. In 1917-18 he put in two teams and won first and second. He holds the highest individual recordsince 1916. In 1919-20 he finished second at FWlara, third at Potchefstroom, and fifth Western Provinces, and was first for. three years in section for breeders’ teams in the competitions. He also got highest honours in shows, getting two or three cups each rear, though only entering five or six birds. The photographs, he shows of birds, taken in groups and singly, speak eloquently of type, indicate great size, and they enable one to readily credit Mr Porrett’s claims as to their productive powers. Indeed his wins are at competitions under Government supervision, and consequently are official. It is pleasing to learn that with such good stock on his farm Mr Porrett has seen fit to make purchases in New Zealand. The leading pens at the Papanui egglaving competition for the week ended January 20 (fortv-first week) wore:—Flock teams ‘ (six nullets) —F Orchard, W.L., 1185; H Whittle. W T. . 1177. Single pen* Lieht breeds —W P. Hern. W.L., 235; P W. Rhacklock, W.L.. 227; S. T>. Beer, W.L. 222. Heavy breeds— -.T. P. Drewett, 80.. 272: Rogen and Christie. 8.0.. 190. Single bird (throe birds same ownerl—Hon. (' TT. Tzard. No. 2 bird. W.L.. 232; H. E. Martin. No. 2 bird. 226; J. Liggins. No. 1 bird. 218. Heavy breeds —J. G'mn. B 0., No. 1 bird. 211; J. P. Drewett, 8.0.. No. 1 bird. 205. Ducks (sinMe bird three birds same owner) —R W Hawke, T .R., No. 1 bird. 27ft; 4. C. Clements. T R,., No. 3 bird' 244. Single bird test —T. Dowth-v-nite, W.T.R.. 263; J. C. Musgrave. F.1.R.. 213. Poultry people are eontinuaDv being cautioned* against overfeeding tbeir hens. Thev are told that overfat hens cannot lav profitably, and. accepting this truth, for it is a. truth, they are verv apt to go to the opposite extreme and undprfeed. The thing to realise is that “overfeeding” does not necessarily mean giving too much food: indeed there is a lot of truth in the cssort.ion that yon cannot give too much food to a laving Tien; but it depends upon the kind.of.food you are giving. With one

kind of food, or mixture of foods, you can oveifoed, while with another kind of food or mixture of foods a greater quantity supplied would not overfeed, but tend to eggs instead of fat formation. Every poultry-keeper should know that some foods are rich in fat-forming elements, and that others are rich in proteids, and that to get eggs in abundance the fat-formers (carbohydrates and fats) should not overbalance the proteins beyond a certain ration. In four parts one at least should be protein. This leads to the remark that although fowls kept extensively should be made to work for their grain in loose and deep litter, they should have a satisfying meal at least once a day. Those whose business it is in thecUnited States (Government inspectors and others) to handle great numbers of birds report that at least 90 per cent, are underfed, and in all likelihood it is the same here as there. Reilly’s Central Produce Mart, Ltd., report:—A very fair yarding of poultry came forward for our sale, ducklings and young cockerels being in keen demand. Hens, geese, and pigeons met a good sale, the following prices being secured: —480 hens at 2s 4d, 2s 6d, 2s Sd, 2s lOd, 3s, 3s 2d. 3s Bd, 3s lOd. 4s, 4s 6d; 346 cockerels at 2s 6d, 2s 3d, 2s 10d, 3s, 3s Bd, 4s 4d, 4s 6d, 5s 2d, 5s lOd, 6s, 7s; 2i2 ducks at 5s 6d, Vs 6d, Bs, 8s Bd, 9s 2d, 9s 6d, 10s 6d; 27 geese at 7s 6,9 s, 10s; 24 pigeons at 2s; all at per pair. Eggs—During the week though there has been no material advance in prices we have been able to clear our consignments of eggs at full market rates. —Cock-a-doodle-doo! In an editorial the American Poultry Journal tells us, very prettily, something which we all know—viz., we owe much to the methodical fancier of yester-year. The beauty standards that ho fixed to appeal to the eye and gratify the senses command admiration in what are to-day known as the ornamental breeds. The thought and care that he bestowed upon his birds rivaled the keenness of interest displayed by his predecessor, the old cocker. Money might buy his finished products, but only a genius possessed by the few could produce the birds whose many niecties fulfilled the dictates of the eye. The fancier was a breeder-artist, greater than the artist who paints a picture upon canvas, or the sculptor-artist who makes a model in cold, dumb stone. The breder-artist put into a living thing the bright and beautiful colours of the painter, and working with the invisible and none too well understood laws of heredity shaped the plastic material with which he worked into his ideal. To-day a new kind of breeder makes his bow and bids for the patronage of all those millions who keep chickens for what they are worth. He has essayed for himself the job of taking the breeds and varieties and, after preserving the health and vigour which were the aims of the old cocker, after preserving the beauty and symmetry which were the aims of the early fancier, adding to these things his own contribution of usefulness. That is the job, the opportunity, of the modern poultry breeder. Call him fancier if you will, he is more than that—he is a constructive improver of one of the most valuable forms of live stock in the whole system of animal husbandry. If an egg breed, his job is to produce good type and colour, in combination with an inheritance for high egg yield, that he may sell standard-bred cockerels that will gear up the egg production of the pullets tie sires, although they will eat no more feed to produce the extra eggs. Fie breeds a 3ilb female that will open the fountain springs of her nature and produce os much as 351 b of eges in a year, ten times her own body in weight in eggs. In short, he has learned how to breed and produce those qualities which are at once practical and efficient, in combination with vigour and beauty, and his w r ork is commanding a new attention and a new value. He is proving the worth of his birds in the show room and in the egg competition. We must recognise both these agencies. —“How many rearers of white Leghorns ever trouble themselves to fatten their cockerels?” This question is asked by an Old Country poultrymaJi, who claims that by fattening the cockerels in addition to selling eggs he has managed to make money. He started with 50 fowls, and now has 3000, has purchased his farm and a house in town in addition. It is certainly a great drawback to poultry people that 50 per cent, of the chickens hatched may be cockerels, and more profitably killed directly the sex is identified than allowed to live. It ought to pay to keep and fatten these cockerels for eight or ten weeks. The present practice is wasteful, and anything in the nature of waste is a crime. As has often been pointed out, it is the little things that are wasted which wipe out the profits in some businesses. It may be argued that there is no market—on suO'* cient demand —for dead poultry to warrant the preparation of surplus cockerels for the table. To that the answer is create the demand! Here in Dunedin more than one business venture has proved successful although the majority of the citizens “knew” it were not warranted, and that there was no demand for it, and, consequently, that failure was inevitable. Those who were courageous enough to start these businesses, however, as experience has proved, knew better. A public can bo educated to appreciate a good thing, »and a plump young cockerel is a very good thing when properly served up A lady poultry keeper once showed me three or four young Leghorn cockerels—no larger than pigeons —already plucked and cleaned ready for cooking, and she remarked: “How will those do for a pie.”