POULTRY.

Star (Christchurch), Issue 20073, 9 October 1920, Page 7

POULTRY.

NOTES BY “CROWBLACK.”

’ANSWERS TO CORRESPONDENTS. Interested, Woolston.—After care* fully perusing your letter and noting that each of i/ho three hatches were a day or more late, though you rau the machine Bit a temperature averaging easily 103deg, I would advise you k) have the thermometer tested by a clinical thermometer. If found correct, I would nest look to the breeding stock; the moderate results from the hatchings and the first lot starting to die D'fl after a day or two old, points to the breeding stock not being in a hardy condition—too soft and fat, and insutficent exercise, and possibly a shortage of green food.. Beginner, St Albans.—(l) Now is the season to commence the work of spray-ing-before the hot weather sets in. Clean all the refuse but of the house and remove the nest boxes and burn all the Jitter. All cleats which are fastened to the walls to rest the perches on should be removed, as far as possible. A strong solution of keroLor sheep-dip will destroy the mites. The following formula may be used to make a kerosene emulsion:—Shave _ one pound of common laundry soap into a gallon of soft water; steep it until a paste is formed, then add two gallons of kerosene. This forms the stock solution, and when mixed for use should 1)0 used 15 to 1, that is, fifteen parts of water to one part of stock solution. A small knob of washing soda will soften the water. Tho spraying should be repeated every fortnight, until the mites nro destroyed, and after this the houses should be sprayed once a month as a preventative. (2) "Where ducks cannot forage for half of their food they are usually fed In the morning and evening with mashes consisting of: Pollard two parts, bran one part, ground oats one part, lucerne chaff or clovel- - part (scalded with hob water), mixed with liver soup, skimmed milk, or water. They may he given a considerable quantity of boiled meat, if nob confined closely. The food should bo thrown on boards, and the water vessels should be handy to the feeding table. Stock ducks should lie fed a much wider ration, and less meat given. Grit and oyster shell should always be before the ducks.

Air AV. Knight’s three-bird dues team coimpcting at tho Utility Club’s egg-laying competition have been claimed at the catalogue price by a Papanui resident. Entries for the Leeston show, on October 21 must bo made this evening with Air R; Pearce, at tho Christchurch Poultry Club rooms. I understand the exhibits will have to be at the Christchurch railway B shed tho evening pier to the show, between six and tight o’clock." . The Schedule Committee of the New Zealand Utility Poultry Club will meet on Tuesday night to draw up the prize schedule for the club’s egg-laying tests next year* Air J. Ligglns has sold his six White Leghorns which won the Studholme Diploma and Gold Aledal, the Leghorn Challenge ■ Shield, and gained third prize for greatest number of standard weight eggs (1422 eggs in fifty-one weeks) in the 1918-19 competition at Papanui; also his team which gained even greater distinction in the 1919-20 competition, and the White Leghorn cook which scored in the utility section at the last Christchurch show. On Tuesday I had the pleasure of seeing the birds before being railed. They were looking in the pmk of condition, and the Invercargill breeder is - to l»e congratulated on securing one of tho finest breeding pens of White Leghorns sent out of Canterbury. The price paid was a very high one. The next poultry conference is to bo field in Marchj at Auckland* The three ocal organisations have met and draw.i tip. a suggested programme, whichwi.l ho submitted' to The executive 1 of the Poultry Association. Tho northerners intend that the event will be one to be long remembered. ' Tue Canterbury Egg Circle is no.v approaching four hundred members. Lust week’s listings were over twelvethousand dozen. It is affirmed, that had not the Government set aside wheat for the pouL trymen this year; the industry would havo been absolutely ruined, and many poultryraen would have sold off their flocks. During tho last week a poullryman attended two auction sales some twenty miles from Christchurch, for the purpose of purchasing some small lines of wheat, which were to be offered. His trips were fruitless, as even broken fowl wheat was readily claimed by farmers present at 84s and 35s per sack sacks extra. Oats were a drag at one of the sales, good Gnrtons not finding a buyer at 14s per sack. Air J. Baloh, at the New Zealand Poultry Institute, landed a splendid hatch of 414 chicks during the week, from a 500-egg Jubilee. This famous machine has a, record for big hatches that moans much to the poultry industry in New Zealand.

The first prize in the South Island Poultry Association’s Art Union was won by Air E. Chlckett, Invercargill.

The Executive Council of the South Island Poultry Association met on Saturday evening, "Mr CL B. Jeffreys presiding. The Dunedin Fanciers’ dub wrote asking if ib would be possible to grant them a ebampionsbia show next year. The secretary was instructed to write and point out that it would bo necessary for the club to forward a remit for consideration at the ■annual meeting next month to alter 'Rule 39, or that It he suspended for one year. Tho question of convening a conference of utility poultry judges ■during' Carnival Week, was discussed and agreed to, tho excutive being directed to make the arrangements. The question of the allocation of pigeon and canary championships was discussed, and it was resolved that the executive bring forward a' remit at the annual meeting that they be allocated only to clubs holding shows extending over'two or three days; the poultry championships to be equally divided amongst all societies, at at present. Those who are thinking of a change or desirous of improving their strain of Black Orpingtons should read Mr E. V. Arthur’s advertisement in this issue, relating to the trio of Blocks imported from, Mr 11. R. Christie’s famous vards-

During the week I called on Air J. H. Merrelt and found him very busy in the egg trade. He assured me the Canterbury Egg Circle was a big concern and that members were joining daily. He considered that the fixation of the snmfner price of eggs at 2s was a big thing for producers, and be approved of fixing (be price for as long » period in the'year as possible. Ho maintained regular buyers had to pay the increased price during the year ivhile big buyers came in th© flush of tlio season, bought for three months, mid expected eggs at the lowest price, It would make the poultry industry more popular and lead to a groat consumption of eggs if the price were fixed, for at least six months in the year, at one figure. Mr Merrett stat--1 c;d that while in -Melbourne he visited the egg rooms and found that the egg , trade was in a had way, and • ly in tlw) hands of merchants. Ho went prepared to buy for an American firm up to £IO,OOO. but could not get t ie quality he. wanted. Ho maintains .that nowhere m all Iris travels has he n r! marketed better than bv the Canterbury producers. There was a wonderful field for operation if producers would only concentrate and work together. Tn Petaluma they had a huge co-operation concern that was managed in an excellent way. The management was good and producers got, everything m the industry in the commercial sense. There were no faction? at work and' the company see«rilot"mk!c ra j irkets ancl was backed

shall want .on export trade. The whole Taoitic coast is ready lop -us to exploit at payable prices, hut the business can only ho developed by cooperative effort. It would mean thousands of pounds for Canterbury, and I wonder if the producers will rise to tlio occasion and get ready for it. 1 '

UTILITY POULTRY CLUB.

The monthly meeting of the New Zealand Utility Poultry Chib was held on Tuesday evening. Mr A. E. Phillips, tho president, presiding. ♦ Correspondence was received and dealt with from "W. Spence, H. W. Busch, Waitoitoi Stud Farm. G. H. Barnett and the New Zealand Poultry Association.

Air Hawke reported that the laying of the fowls and ducks during September had been excellent. The committee were arranging for a supply of broccoli to bo fed the fowls during the next few weeks.

The caretaker reported that 772 dor. lieu eggs and 56 dor. duck eggs had been marketed during September. The supply of wheat, sharps and meat bad been regular. During the month _ a bird from Pen 95 died, and !\ sick bird in Pens 94 and ' 75 had been treated. The report was adopted, social on the same evening as Air J. B. P'Uey and H. Meadows a farewell • al on tho same evening as Air J. 15. Merrett’s " welcome home.”

VICTORIAN GOVERNMENT POULTRY EXPERTS.

TWO OFFICIAL VOICES. At the September monthly meeting of the Eastern District ’branch of tho National Utility Poultry Breeders’ Association Mr A. V. D. Hinton!, the chief poultry expert of the Victorian Government, was announced to give an illustrated lantern lecture in the StudioHall (says Hoi spur in the “Leader”). Mr Rintoul was introduced by '’tho president, and after a few preliminary, remarks commenced a most interesting lecture, in which the lantern views were well displayed. During bis lecture, which lasted 'a little over an hour, tho chief poultry expert dwelt at various times on the methods adopted in the stud_ breeding of utility strains. He pointed out that there waa a disposition on the part of some utility poultry keepers to merely mate up the heaviest layers without any recognition of type, character, constitution and closeness of feather, and that it was undesirable to breed on scores alone. Later on, the new assistant Government poultry expert. Mr L. A. Smith, arrived, and after Mr Hinton! had demonstrated on a couple of Orpingtons which had been brought to the meeting, the chief poultry' export called on Air Smith to demonstrate) on a number of other birds in the display pens. Air .Smith has been associated with the Department of Agriculture for some months, and this was the first occasion on which ho has had an’ opportunity to show his qualifications in public, and he seemed diffident about accepting the position of demonstrator on tho "birds before him, and, when rising said:—"lt is hardly fair to call on me, you should have put me wise that I was to be called upon.” After some hesitation, Air Smith proceeded to demonstrate on a Rhode Island "White pullet and a Red Sussex cockerel, and laid: " Well, chaps, I can’t tell you much about these birds, hut this pullet has a good been eye on her. I Tvould advise von to go slow on show points. Lor utility I go on Head and the usual points of layers.” Moving on to the Sussex cockerel, Air Smith staggered the owner of the bird and visitors by describing St as a Rhode Island Red. He then wont on to say: "Any of you chaps around here who have grain going *0 wasto should put your fowls on “6 fields. This bird is the right type of Rhode Island Red. I have a great fancy for this breed, and would advise you to stick to it. The body should be oblong and the head carried forward, colour is not everything, and they should not he leggy - .” Air Smith, unfortunately, was not present when the chief poultry expert gave his lecture, and showed the importance of breeding from stud birds of good tvpe combined with utility quality; and Mr Smith closed his demonstration with a lew brief remarks which were absolutely contra to Air Rintoul’s teachings in lus lecture. Mr Smith summed up Ins views in breeding utility birds by staling that he would pav attention to nothing hut egg pedigrees, while Air Rmtoiil warned breeders against this fallacy. The question now arises, How will the assistant expert fare when he is called upon to assist breeders in ipatmg up flocks of Rhode Island Reds and Red Sussex? It may also be pointed out that the Department of Agriculture has regulations in reward o the Government egg-laying competitions at Burnley, and the pure breeds have to oe identified and passed by tho Government experts before thev are entitled to compete. The poultry industry has reached a stage which is far bevond the experimental, and just now the rime is opportune when the industry calls for a rigorous progressive policy under the guiding influence of ofiioial skilled experts. It is imperative that there ..should not he two voices when Government advice is hemg given on an important industry

eOG-LAYINC COMPETITIONS

PAPANUI. The twenty-second week of the- Now Zealand Utility Poultry Club’s egw. laying competition at Papanui was “a good one tor the birds. ’Hie layinw was as follows: a 24 Single fowls ... PyUets in flocks team of 6 . 954 ; 21 n Sje-pon pallets, team of 3 . 1012 22 Single-pen ducks . . ,148 6 Second-year ducks flock team . 31 437 Fowls and. ducks’ . . , 2264 Possibles were laid bv the following singla pen birds for the- w«eek:—ll ml hams’s, A. F. Reay’s, J. Robert! son s G. Bennett's, M. S. Saunders, Airs Gonnski’si (nil ■ "White Leghorns), J. B. Merrett s and T. FA Oonwa-v’s DJack Orpingtons. the latter’s seven eggs, weighing 15oz. Seventeen of the smg|e pen ducks laid the possible, Lv," r '.mwke s three finishing up with ' ( or .^ le . week. TV- T. Green’s No. 1 duck has laid 156 eggs in the same number of days, and H. Meadows’s jingle duck has laid daily for the lasi r 4 , d FI s -, ■ ril » best individual scores lor 100 days are as follows;

DUCKS. W. T. Green’s No. 1 . . . i|a IV. Knight’s No. 2 ... 154 K. IV. Hawko’a No. 3 . . ]SO FOWLS. T. E. Conway’s Blk. Orp. No. 1 140 S. L. Beer’s W.L, No, 21 . . jgj H. Williams’s W.L. No. 12 . . 125 A. C. Goodlet’s W.L. No. 9 . . 121 "W R, Ward’s W.L. No. 13 . . 122 H. W. Beck's W.L. No. 22 . . 121 The flock teams gave a bettor average than the 225 single penned bird-. Jn the heavy - broods T. Dowthwaito’s mid b. D. Gibson’s laid 33 and 34 respectively. E.| E. ALirsden’s White Foghorns, increased their lead in the light breed flock teams, and: A. 0 Gpodlot's, Green Bros.’ and F. Cole's laid 30, 36 and 37 respectively. Tho best scores in the three-bird teams lor the week were:—T. E Con. wav’s Black Orpingtons 19. J. Robert--3 V\nr Mer . Mrs Gorinski’s eacli ’ '' l lams s White Leghorns IS Tlie weekly laving, with weight of aggregates in the three-bird:teams- are as follows: „■ HEAVY breeds

LIGHT BREEDS.

DUCKS. W. Knight, LR. . , 20 58 11 443 R. W. Hawke, I.K. . . 21 61 9 406 W._T. Green, LB. . . 20 56 14 399 1. Dowtmvsito, I.E. . .19 63 i gso WOOLSTON. The following are the results for tho month of September, and total laying for six mouths:—

854 766 i . 1770 E. Izvine’s pullet captured the prize, for most eggs in six months. On October 6 E. Irvine’s bird was still in the van with 136 eggs; G. Black’s 134 and J- . Farrar’s 133. J. Grafton's pullet lias been laying eggs averaging over oOoz to the ’dozen for tho past five "weeks.

For some time Victorian breeders hare been commenting on! the poor results obtained sn the South Australian Government competition at Paranelcl, and have been wondering why the scores have been so shockingly poor m_ comparison with other tests. Prominent breeders competing at p ara . held are Messrs H. B. James, W. A. Sheville, E. A. Lawson (Victoria), to say nothing of the local experts, and the scores of the first named aro 43 and 39 respectively for 133 days, whilst •**“ Bendigo competition their scores are each 119 for 131 days. The Adelaide tress has taken tho troubles at Paraheld up and Mr C. B. Bertelsmetcr, a south Australian competitor, writing on the Parafield test, says:-The ques” tiqn, What is wrong at Parafield?” lia * bemi put to me so often that T made two special visits there since the start of the 1920-21 test, and on both occasions felt very dissatisfied. To give some idea, 1 will go right back to the start of the 1919-20 test, lily birds were taken up to the competition grounds on Harcli 31. To mv surprise, on arrival I learned that, the birds had to bo weighed singly. This was being done, and each bin! was placed on a bare scale p ate. The, flighty bird that nould not stay on bad her wings plaited, and was made to stay on till her weight was taken to the ounce. "Worse still was the lot of many birds fm as they were taken off th’e* scales and examined they were held by the few heads hanging down. The pen of sfx pullets just before niy turn came were earned to their pens quite a long distance, each pullet by one leg and one swinging, heads down. These bird« when put in their pens, sat down, and ater limped oft. T also saw a number oy birds earned to their pens bv one wing. Being disgusted at the way my first-bird was handled T asked for the birds to lie treated in a proper manner, winch was done.

After tlm birds were put in the pens the first thing noticeable was the bare cement floors of the teams 1 houses. 1 asked if the floors were to be covered with any litter and was told “ No.” I then drew the expert’s attention to tour eggs laid by Mrs Chambers’s birds on the cement, all four badly cracked, and one in my own pen (No. 33) also broken. . . . The water vessels stood on the floor, and on a later visit, being a not day, I was not surprised to see a number of the birds cooling their feet in the vessels. Another Tiling very noticeable was the number of eggs laid outside the houses in the grit tins which went to prove that tho nest inside is not too enticing. ... On the first Wednesday in September I a"a in paid n. visit to the competition ground imooe 1 J eo i ndl T , l ons “iwed as in the 1919-20 test. How the birds have fared [Ol Hint dust bata so much advocated is haul to say. On those cold cement floors the birds must have lived in misery during tbe wet cold days, and many of them showed it plainly Iwr shown the so-called wheat on which the birds were being fed as an cveniim meal, and such stuff [ bad never s-mn fed to poultry during my thirty-efeht years experience with birds. ’

T. E, Conway, B,0. . , Eggs. or., dr. • 39 87 33 Tt], 363 ,T. B. Jferrett, B.O. ■ 37 Si 6 -8$ K. Christie, B.O. . . .13 80 8 273 H. W. Beck, S.W. . .12 22 6 237

S. Dick, W.L. . H. Williams, W.L. , . 16 . 13 29 OJ 0 337 320 320 0. II. Izard, W.L. . . 16 R9 11 Mrs F. Goringki, W.L. , . 16 35 2 320 318 316 John W«hh W.L. . , 16 32 3 Smart Bros., W.L..,. i , 15 81 0

G. Black J. Grafton . « 9 Eggs. . 26 . 17 or. dr. 69 5 13 H Ttl, 129 123 G. Swansttou . 23. 60 6 67 G. Randall . 0 0 0 33 A. M’Conchie . 20 44 6 103 H. Taylor . 21 11 4 60 T7 Sagger* . 12 22 14 73 A* Bound? . 22 48 10 100 j. Grcon . . 20 40 6 116 P. Mauser . . 25 61 0 79 E. Irvine . . 21 48 4 131 ,7. S. Campbell . 22 45 13 100 Wright . . 23 54 18 75 G. Morrison . IS 39 8 121 S'. H. Loader , . 24 47 13 I'M Tait , . 23 52 1 $1 G. Russell . . 11 25 7 119 J. Farrar , . 21 39 8 128