THOUGHTS FOR NOVEMBER

Sun (Auckland), Volume III, Issue 816, 9 November 1929, Page 30

THOUGHTS FOR NOVEMBER

WHEN once we get into November, the average chickenrearer thinks it is time to stop hatching; partly because he is tired of it, and partly because it is getting late, and December chickens are said not to do much good. It is true that late broods, as a rule, do not grow so well; of course, it is out of season and one cannot then expect any stock to do the same, yet, when properly fed, even if the weather be hot, they grow quickly and soon get their feathers. Some say it is too late to hatch layers. All Leghorns hatched at once should be laying by the end of April, and continue right through the winter, only they will need a warm, dry house, and to be kept inside on wet, windy days, even if not housed on the intensive system.

RESERVE OF STOCK BIRDS The main thing in breeding late chickens Is to have In reserve one or two hitherto unused stock birds —In any case, a fresh young male —from which to breed the late chicks. Perhaps th-re are a few hens available which escaped much early mating by being used as broodies, or there are one or two of the older hens that have not been In lay more than a few weeks, or there are some late pullets of last year that have not been used until recently for breeding purposes. Such females as the above, mated for preference to a vigorous male, are "ho omy ones to breed from for late chicks. GIVE A GOOD START A good start is more than half the battle, and once the November and December chicks are well able to forage for themselves there Is not nearly so much likelihood of their going back afterward. With good weather conditions chicks will get a lot of natural food from now onwards, and the young shoots of grass will help them considerably In their growth. The poultry-keeper who started last July will now see what the chickens are like, and be able to compare with other years, for at the end of October those worth keeping begin to show promise. EARLY YOUNGSTERS The early-hatched youngsters will by now have reached the age and sine when culling can take place. Overcrowding Is most harmful for growing stock, and the weeding process must be governed by the space at the disposal of the rearer. It is a waste of time, money and ground space to keep any culls or surplus voungsters. The expert rearer will be able to tell at a glance which birds will never develop into good adults, so tha . to him. the task of culling or weeding will be simple. Any novice who is doubtful on this important point is advised to call in a more experienced poultryman to look over his early hatched youngsters. GET RID OF COCKERELS If one is to be successful in rearing the pullets to maturity, they must be given every encouragement to make the best growth. If they are allowed to run with cockerels, the latter will get more than their share of food at the expense of the pullets. The rearer must, therefore, separate the sexes directly they can be told, so that the pullets can have sufficient food and ground space and exercise to comfort. There will always be surplus cockerels on the farm, and it is wasteful to keep them on too long. The food bill must be studied in these days and thi sooner the cockerels can be

fattened and marketed the better. Any intended eventually for breeding purposes must, of course, he kept on, but the surplus must be marketed at a profit early for table purposes. As soon as the birds are plump they should be sold. KEEP THEM GROWING If chicken rearing is to be a success the poultry-keeper must apply common-sense methods. It is useless to hatch 100 chickens from 100 eggs if the owner loses 99 of them. The art of chicken-rearing lies in being able to rear to maturity, even more than being able to secure higher hatching percentages. Keep the ycung stock growing all the time. Nothing stimulates growth and ensures health better than frequent changes of run. To the man with unlimited space the providing of fresh runs at regular intervals will be a simple matter, and he will soon reap the benefit such offers by seeing his young stock grow by leaps and bounds. Wherever possible the growing stock should be given a free range or put out in good-sized runs. Some farmers put all the half-grown stock in the fields with a big house for night, where anything up to 100 can roost, and in many ways this is a good idea. A few thousand can be put on a farm like this, and not cause a great amount of labour, because ten lots can as easily be fed as 100 divided . into tens when kept in runs, and yet this latter is the method for growing the stock. On range the birds can find some portion of their food, and they are always on the look-out for any tit-bit around, but while the exercise keeps them fit, they never grow the size unless they have plenty of good food without a lot of labour. Exercise is essential for good health, but the birds will forage around and work off the effect of the food they find, so that to promote growth they must have enough food during the early stages without having to worry or be always on the roam. As already stated, the birds in runs will require more attention when it comes to numbers, but when kept in flocks of ten or 20 they can receive more care than if left in flocks of hundreds, where individual birds are lost. When in small flocks the feeder can see at once when a bird is missing or when one is out of sorts, and he can then attend to it or see that it is properly cared for. There is nothing better than the small flocks if you want size and good healthy stock. CLEANLINESS ESSENTIAL Remember than cleanliness is essential in every detail, but this labour will be well repaid by the condition of the stock. No matter whether on range or in the run, the house must

be kept clean. If there is a drop board to the house, this could be scraped, say twice each week, and the litter must be cleaned out as occasion demands. Suppose the birds had a run out, and the weather be dry for a fortnight, the inside will not become So dirty as in two days of wet, when they have run out and back again with wet feet, all of which means the freqjient cleansing. The houses in the runs must be treated in the same way. It is easy to make a [ set of rules as "to when and how the house should be cleaned, but no such rule is needed to the attendant, who will use a little common sense and judgment. Birds on heavy clay ground become more wet than those on sandy soil, and it is no use saying clayey soil is no good, because' if some people keep gowls at all they must be kept on clay. Never overstock wet ground. You cannot hope to be successful on a clay soil unless the chickens are provided with a dry house. GENERAL NOTES The Taranaki egg-laying test has now reached its 30th week and from reports to hand from Mr. Don Stewart, the manager, the birds are healthy and looking remarkably well, with practically every bird doing its best io maintain the reputation of its owner. The results to date are as follow: In the White Leghorn section the leading hird, belonging to M. Scanlon, laid the possible for the week, Gibbons Brothers’ and R. Cannon’s birds, which occupy second and third positions, each laid six eggs. A. J. Lacey’s bird in the Rhode Island Red section also laid six and is 23 eggs ahead of her nearest competitor. Gibbons Brothers’ team of Golden Wyandottes are laying well, as are their team of White Wyandottes. D. M. Waddell’s hen in the Black Orpington again laid the possible bringing her total number of eggs laid to 214, her nearest competitor in the whole of the competition being J. W. Carrick’s Khaki Campbell duck ■with a score of 192. In the remainder of the breeds represented, first pla -e is occupied by F. W. Walker’s Brown Leghorn. The Taranaki test, has, so far, differed from most. tests in so far as the laying of the ducks is concerned. We usually find th ! ,ying in the duck section well ahead of that of the hens, whereas, at Taranaki, with the exception of J. W. Carrick’s Khaki Campbell, the fowls have laid better. In the three-bird teams (light breeds) the leading teams, R Cannon’s White Leghorns, and Gibbons Brothers’ Golden Wyandottes in the heavy team test laid 19 and 16 eggs respectively. White canaries are increasing in popularity in England. At one of the leading shows held recently in London entries were double those of last year.- • Big preparations are being made for the holding of next year’s World’s Poultry Congress at Crystal Palace, London. The Canadian American and British breeders are woi-king to have effective representation in the way of delegates and birds. It is expected that from North America alone over 1,000 delegates will attend the congress, and something like 1,200 exhibits are being sent over from Canada. According to reports from “Feathered World,” interest on the part of the Continental countries is just as keen. Substantial areas of space have been booked by Britain, America, Canada, for the staging of national exhibits.

Holland alone has booked 3,000 feet of floor space, Germany having applied for 1,500 feet, whereas France, Spain, Denmark, Belgium and the Netherlands have also booked space in this section. It is also evident that the space allocated to the poultry section will be taxed to its uttermost. Mr. J. B. Merrett is representing Australia at the conference. So far I have not heard of any delegate having been appointed from New Zealand. Mr. Fred Brown, chief Government expert, should certainly be sent to represent this country. Writing in the Winsford “Guardian,” "Chanticleer,” Mr. F. S. Burington, says: “Trap-nest records have proved the salvation of the poultry industry.” Who will deny him? Light Sussex in the Notts (England) test averaged 37.88 eggs a bird for the first two periods, against 32.06 credited to the White Leghorns. This will be good news for Sussex breeders. PERSONAL NOTES Mr. Roy Hanson, Epsom, who had the best stud of Black Peking bantams in the Dominion, informs me that practically all his birds have been stolen. As Mr. Hanson had not hatched any chickens from the birds shows during the coming season will suffer from lack of entries in this particular variety. Mr. Fred Blacklock, Avondale, has several promising English White Leghorn chickens hatched from his recent importation. When the birds arrived from England, they were in poor condition, having suffered on the voyage; consequently Mr. Blacklock did not expect hatching any chickens this season. The birds, which were entrusted to the writer’s care, quickly responded to feeding and change of conditions, and have now been laying remarkably well for several weeks.