Poultry Keeping.

Timaru Herald, Volume XIIIC, Issue 14221, 11 June 1910, Page 4 (Supplement)

Poultry Keeping.

• . A SCHOOL GIRL'S ESSAY. At the recent poultry show at Fairlis prizes were t tiered for the best essays by school children. Twenty-sis were retei\ea, and the iirst prizes was awarded- to the following by Miss Stevenson, of Skloton: —- POILTRY. It is interesting to know that poultryraising has been- an industry from veryearly .times, although it is only of recent'" years that many people have attended carefully to rearing and breeding their fowls. It has been said that the Dorkings were originally introduced into 1 England by the Romans: and we know that the game-fowl lias been. prized ■in England for centuries. Whether, as some say, the Langshan is descended from the wild-turkey, or not,'"does not matter much to us now, ec'long as we know that, like the wildturkey, it is very good to eat, Bantams were first introduced from China, and other'breeds from different parts of the world.

The first duty of any person who wishes to begin to raise poultry, either for his own domestic purposes, or for the market, is to see that.

'»■■ Suitable Accommodation is provided for the poultry he intends to keep. Of course it is easier to provide accommodation for poultry in the country than it is in the town: as, in the -country there is less difficulty "n finding plenty of room where the fowls ca'n run about without interfering with the neighbours. About a farm-house, too, there is generally, not far off. a stream- or pond of water where the dncks and geese can paddle, or the other fowds can get a drink. However, *Ten in the country, a person who keeps fowls should furnish them with a comfortable and well-ventilated fowl-house, which should always be kept verv clean. Both inside and out it should be frequently lime-washed, so as to keep injurious insects away. Proper perches for the fowls to roost on at night, and suitable nests for them to lay their eggs in during the day, should always be provided. Some hay or straw should be kept in the nests. The Best Kinds of Poultrv

to keep are those that will lay the most eggs in a season, and those that are best -suitable for cooking purposes. Some fowls, however, are good for both of these purposes: that is, thev have good, large sweet-flavoured bodies, and they also lay a fair number of eggs. "When we are buying our breeding fowls, therefore, it will perhans be as well to obtain some of each class. Orpingtons, Wyandottes. Minorca*, or •Leghorns, will lie found preferable for laying purposes; Dorkings and Indian ■Game, fov the table; while Brahmas, Langshans. Buff Orpingtons and Plv•Bjouth Hocks, which, if required, can he crossed with one or other of the breeds already named, will be found suitable for the table, and as egglayers. "Keep only Young and well-bred Fowls."

is a rery good rule to follow, and is excellent advice either to give or receive. Experienced poultrv-raisers tell ns, that it does not pay to keen hens beyond-the second season. A hen will rarely lay enough eggs after that to pay for the food she eats. A mongrel eats as much as or more than, a wellbred fowl; but the latter, if carefully looked after, will lay far more eggs than the former, and will be a larger »nd better bird for the table. •r; Hatching and Chickens.

For breeding purposes suitable eggs should be selected from one or other" of the breeds already mentioned. It is perhaps, as a rule preferable to set some eggs so that they will be hatched out' in July, as then "the chickens will be fully developed by the following winter. If this were done a good plv of eggs may be looked fn r in the following May and June, when eggs are" usually at a high price. ■ _ The chickens should not, when possible, be allowed to get wet, or become chilled: as they easily die if care of this kind is not taken. Thev should always be able to get plentv'of freshair and exercise. Clean, fresh water should be kept constantly before them, in'-.such a position that tliev can got at it; hut with their beaks onlv. "They should not be fed for n day or two nfter they come out of the "shell, as they do not renuire- food then. After tlrat.- somp hard boiled oggs, breadcrumbs, and oatmeal, mixed" with milk, will be found suitable for them. The food should not be stir-lev. or slonpv. .and-no more of it should be given than they will eat up clean at a time. This .can- be given them every two hours or bo during the days of the first week; .but after that they can be given a little crushed wheat, barley-meal, and maizemeal, portioned out "at different times. They should also be able to get Teen food frenupnilv. °

. ._ T. se of Tncubators. Artificial iiipuhators are verv useful for those who go in properly for poultryrearing, hut they are not verv well suited for ordinary people, as iliev require too much time "and attention." •With them, however, eggs can he set whenever a sufficient nunifier is accumulated; also the difficulty- of havinrr to procure sitting hens before the eggs "are spoiled is avoided. ** Sitting Hens. Nest-boxes should he ke-->t ready for Bitting hens. Half fill the "box the lien is- to sit in "with slightly moist earth. Beat the centre of it down until it is shaped something like a saucer, so that the eggs when placed in it will tend to roll towards the centre. This will help to keep them close together. Sprinkle a little lime over the%arthi nind place on it a thin laver of bay or straw." Keep the nest slight] v dampened; and. wjien the eggs are placed in it, and you are satisfied that the hen will sif, place her on the eo-gs. She i 3 fietter away from the other fowls, and should be fed regularlv with hard corn, meat, and bread, with >ilentv of water where she can get it easily. " Do not, however, allow her to sit too close, fca a little fresli air is necessarv. and ' the. eggs-must not get too warm. Tf the eggs are in a dry place, it is better to moisten them occasional! v with a little warm water so that the inside ekm will remain soft enough for the young chickens to peck "their way through.

Hen-houses. Always see that your hen-house is kept well-ventilated: hut f ree from draughts. As well as heinir limewashed, it should be thorongrhlv cleaned out at least two or three times a week. If the fowls are shut un during the day, their run should lie well supplied with gravel, lime and occasional servings of food. If possible allow them a run of an hour or two towards evening.

Food. Fowls that are not running about outside should lie fed about three times a-day. They should be neither underfed, nor over-fed. In the morning they should be fed on pollard, bran, boiledi potatoes, bread, or any kind of meal, as such kind of food gives them nourishment immediately. Hard food such as wheat, oats, or barlev takes a much longer time than the former t<i get' staked in the crop and ground in the gizzard: and is therefore better adapt•a fr>r the evening meal. A light meabii consisting of tahle-scrans can be givenjji about mid-day. If the fowls, however J are running ahout outside all dav. the 4 morning and the evenine meal will bei found quite sufficient. Alwavs see thatf' they can get plenty of water, and re-1 member that thev renuire a varietv of* food. " " »[ Other Poultry. ] Ducks, turkevs. and geese will also! be found profitable to breed when,'thj*re is suitable accnmnicdatii n for tlwm Ducks and geese are easily reared/; but ««rk*7» reo.uirs more attention, 4 and 1

care. They thrive best on high and dry land, especially where there is plenty of scrub. With proper attention, -duck-raising is a profitable- enterprise fas the ducklings are little trouble to rcir, and are ready for market when they are twelve weeks old.

SECOND PRIZE ESSAY. T!ie second prize was awarded to Miss Dines, of Kimbell (aged 14) who wrote ■as follows on the subject:— Many people go in for keeping poultry fowls, ducks, etc., though all do not keep them for a hobby. - Even great and wealthy men, take an .interest in poultry farming. To-day there are hundreds of people, men and women, taking an interest in it, some for a hobby, others for their utility.

How .we get fowls, is, we set eggs, and in. a few weeks, chickens pick their way out of the shells. Now. I will go on and say what an egg consists "of. -On the outside of an egg is the. shell. which consists of a hard, brittle substance. Then comes the white, and then the yolk. The chicken is. formed out of the yolk, while the white-is for the chicken to feed on when it is formed. If the chicken is a pure- | bred, and the man puts his fowls m shows, it will be kept, but if it is a mongrel, it will be killed, because mongrels are not- wanted for showing purposes. When a chicken is hatched it is a small, delicate, and fluffy thing, and care must be taken of it or it woidd die. People who want good fowls, must have good houses for them, so that their fowls will not get diseases. The place where tho house is heing built, must be well drained, dry overhead, and underfoot, and the fowls must not be crushed, for room. A man keeping fowls for shows must have purebreds, this is why he kills off the mongrels, a few weeks, after they are hatched. There are numerous kinds of fowls, such as "Wyandottes, Buff Orpingtons, Leghorns, Andalusians, and many others. We do not keep fowls for showing only, but for their utility also. The eggs wa get from them are useful to us, for putting in cakes, puddings, and many other things. If it was not for eggs, we would not have many dainties. Then the fowls are also useful for other things, for, when they are stuffed and cooked they are delicious. Fowls, ducks and geese, are not fond of water, and when it rains, run for shelter. If you watch ducks and geese, when it is raining, you will see them fishing after worms, and thenfeathers are never wet like a hens. This is because a duck's or goose's feathers are oily, and the water runs off them, leaving them dry. Now I must go on to the feeding of fowls. which is one of the most important subjects, and which needs great attention. If fowls are over-fed, they grow fat and lazy, and will 7)ot lay! A hen, fed moderately, will lay more eggs than one over-fed. Then hens need plenty of gri.t. if not. their eggs will have soft shells, and also, because grit helps them to digest their food.