IN THE POULTRY YARD

Timaru Herald, Volume CXXXVII, Issue 19512, 10 June 1933, Page 10

IN THE POULTRY YARD

POULTRY CULLING. Much loss is sustained by poultrymen through keeping hens on the plant beyond the age when they are profitable—this in spite of statistics which have shown that it is only the exceptional bird that can more than pay her board in her third year. Discussing this point, Mr. James Hadlington writes as follows in the "Sydney Morning Herald’’:— "Poultry farmers with any considerable experience should have no illusions as to the age at which hens become liable to lay fewer eggs than will pay for their keep and return a profit; or when to expect a resumption of laying after the moult. Good judgment on these points enables a decision to be made as to when hens should be disposed of. Naturally, the cost of feeding and the price of eggs ruling at the period will be two main items in the calculation.

"There are, however, thousands of small and novice poultry keepers who In the aggregate keep many thousands of hens that are not likely to return even their cost of feeding, and who for many months are expecting their aged hens to lay. Hence the frequent query ‘My hens are moulting. When may I expect them to come on to lay?’ The usual expection is that Just as soon as the hens are over the moult they will resume laying, but for the most part they do not. Particularly are the hens that have moulted early expected to lay early, but only a very small percentage come up to this expectation; moreover, they are just as likely to go into another partial moult and be off laying even longer than those hens which moulted in their proper season, say March, April, and May. Generally speaking, very little production can be expected from hens on the winter side of August. “As a general thing it can be accepted that a good flock of pullets will be profitable even without any culling. A bad flock, however, may require to be gone over and have many of the weedy ones eliminated. First-year hens, i.e., hens having completed only one year of laying, should, if of good average physique, be profitable to keep for another laying season. These are then regarded as second-year hens, and with very little culling should be good for nine or ten dozen eggs per hen before next moulting time.

"Only those individual hens that have been exceptionally good layers and are still in vigorous health are worth keeping for a third year of laying. This is usually a small per* centage of the flock, and from these seven or eight dozen eggs per hen is all that can be expected.

“A good deal of confusion exists among novice poultry keepers as to what is meant by first, second, and third-year hens, and lack of a proper understanding in the matter often results in hens being kept over the age at which they are likely to be profitable.

"The significance of this will be better understood by a knowledge of the probable production in the different ages. The expectation from a flock of average quality pullets is that they lay an average of about 14 dozen eggs in their first season of laying, i.e., by the time they are about 18 to 20 months old, according to the time they were hatched. This is allowing six to eight month's growth, and perhaps a little desultory laying before they settle down to a steady rate of production. It is here when the misunderstanding mentioned comes in. It should be explained that a female bird Is regarded as a pullet up to, not over, 12 months old, but her first season of laying extends to when she is 18 or 20 months old. For productive purposes they then become second-year hens, and It is expected that they will lay about 10 dozen eggs each in their coming season of laying. This will bring the hens to approximately two and a half years old. With comparatively few exceptions, and at the present cost of feeding, and price of eggs, this is the end of their profitable life. •

"The normal production from a farm composed of half first and half second-year hens of fair average quality and physique should therefore be about 12 dozen per hen. Very few farms are stocked only with pullets for the simple reason that it Is found impracticable to rear sufficient pullets to replace the whole of the laying stock in one season; many cannot even do that, and the result is that hens are often kept beyond a profitable age.” Mating Up. Now that the prospective breedinghens—the late moulters—have renewed their feathers and are preparing to commence their season of production, it Is well to mate them up without delay. Mating up the breeding-pens Is undoubtedly one of the most important phases in the poultry-keeper's year and one which calls for his keenest judgment if profitable stock are to be secured. It is often considered that the incubation and brooding stages are of chief importance, but these are only links In the chain of management. The quality of the parents is the chief consideration in successful breeding of all stock rests. The ABC of this is that like produces like, and that no stock can be too good to place in the breeding-pen. Too much importance cannot be attached to the fact that if a heavyproducing strain is to be built up or maintained It is imperative that the breeder shall have an ideal type to aim for pictured in bis eye. and select birds conforming to this type accordingly. Egg-record alone will never achieve this end. as the most productive hen is not always the best breeder If this were so the breeding of birds to a desired egg-produc-ing standard would be as s.mple as it is now d.fllcult It is never a wise course to place in the breeding-pen a Ircak tjpe of bird, however good a