POULTRY.

Star (Christchurch), Issue 16586, 19 November 1921, Page 11

POULTRY.

NOTES BY e * CROW-BLACK.** Ttie elite? Government Poultry Instructor (Mr F. Brown) left for the south last Saturday. On Tuesday night the Management Committee o? the New" Zealand Utility Poultry Club will meet. A South farmer writes me as follows: “Dear ‘ Crow-Black.’—A few months ago wo had a pair of Rouen, ducks presented to us. Owing to the reputation of Indian Runners, we accepted the gift, because we feared to give offence to the donors, and much. regretted they were not a laying breed. Wo killed the drake and * ate him all up,’ a» our youngest olive branch put it. Rut you cart imagine out regret at dispatching the male when I tell you that shortly afterwards the duck commenced to lay, and up to date has laid &lxty-six eggs with only one miss, which was on the fifty-third day. The age of this duck is not known, but our friends had her for six months before presenting her to us, and she was full grown when they got her.'* Messrs J. and TT. Jamieson, contractors, have donated £5 to the Utility Poultry Club as a special prize For returned soldiers' birds in the next egg-laying competition. Mr Betli R. Whale has also donated a gold medal for competition amongst returned soldiers’ teams. A southern writer advisee poultryrnen to discard early maturing pullets, yet in the same breath recommends the use of oarly maturing cockerels. If like begets like, this advice does not appear sound. I have noticed that the early maturing, precooioue cockerel, apparently full of vigour and health, is frequently undersized, not to say weedy. The early maturing cockerel may be the best stock bird, but, like the Scotsman, “ I hae ma dootn.” Mr D. Y. Gibson, of Glenavy, one of the Dominion's largest egg-producers, has just finished a successful hatching season. Mr Gibeou recently installed a new system of brooders, and he speaks in high terms of praise of its labour-saving features. A country correspondent informs me that Rook pullets hatched by him on January 15 last laid their first egg on June ‘iS, and have laid remarkably well up to the present time. He states that be took absolutely no care with them, and that they were out in all weathers from the day they were hatched, even having to obtain their own living. This onlv envnhasiaes the value of free range. The Frederick Dacre. carpenter, who was convicted of bookmaking on "Wednesday. is not the well-known poultry judge of that name and occupation. EGG-LAY!NC COMPETITIONS There was a slight shrinkage in the egg yield for the thirty-first week of the New | Zealand Utility Poultry Club's egg-laying i competition. The e"g yield in the several contests was as follows r No. Eggs. 4 Heavy breeds single penned . IQ IS Eight breeds, single penned . 96 41 Heaty breeds. 3 birds, s.n. . . IRQ 199 Eight breeds. 3 birds, s.p. . . 1083 25 Single penned dneka . „ , 138 IS Ducks in three flock teams . . 101 59 Pullets, in flocks of six . . .818 72 R.S. pullets, in flocks of six . 350 438 Pullets and ducks . 2256 During the week one of L. Couch's flock teams died. Though a goodly number of the heavy varieties are .inclined to hroodinpflfi. the caretaker has the birds in flue laving form, esneoially the light breed varieties. numerons enmnetitors’ three single birds nggreorntine IA. 19 or 20 eggs fnn the week. The leading pens are as follows: HEAVY BREED SIN GEE HEN CONTEST Weekly Wght. Tl. 112 TI. oz dr. days. J. P. Drewett, 8.0. .4 8 3 3 188 Sprosen and Arthur .0 0 0 122 R. Christie . . . G 12 14 145 J. P. Drewett’s Black Orpington hen has been broody three days, but it will soon be in profit again. LIGHT BREED SINGLE HEN CONTEST. Weekly Wght. Tl. 112 Tl. oz dr. days. C. Ridley, W.L. . . . 7 14 15 165 E. J. Merriman, W.L. .7 14 9 162 G. H. Bradford, W.L, ,6 12 S 158 W. E. Ward, W.E. . .4 8 12 157 C. Ridley’s and E. J. Merriman's singles are laying solidly, and their eggs are well over standard weight. LIGHT BREED SINGLES. Competitors to enter three pullets. Weekly Wght. Tl. 112 Tl. oz dr. days. W. H. West, No. 3 . .7 14 13 191 I. H Penrose. No. 3 . 6 12 14 174 Hon Izard, No. 1 . . 6 11 7 177 G. H. Bradford, No. 1 . <» 12 3 173 C. P. Bradford, No. 1 . 6 12 10 171 P. R. Whitford, No. 2.7 13 7 170 R. W. Coombes, No. 1 . 6 12 4 169 C. lader, No. 2 . . r l I*l2 169 J. Gunn, No. 1 . . . 7 14 2 167 By laying a possible again last week, W. 11. West's White Leghorn has a better score by one egg than Lady Cornwall for the same period. This bird’s eggs are now showing a marked improvement in weight. The leading aggregates are (subject to each of the three birds laying 2oz eggs or over from July 3 to December 31:— Green Bros. , . 165 164 164 C. A. Inder . . . 159 169 15G I. Penrose . . » 162 137 174 Tracey King . , 153 161 159 Hon O. Izard . . 177 i‘2B 129 Mrs Gorinski, No. 1 . 159 145 163 R. W. Coombes . . 169 163 160 P. H. Whitford . . 162 137 174 J. Gunn . . . 1(37 148 144 Mrs Gorinski, No. 2 . 147 161 147 The last-uame(V four teams of three White Leghorns are at present laying the standard weight. No. 2 bird in Pen 41 is broody. HEAVY BREED SINGLES. Competitors to enter three pullets. Weekly Wght. Tl. 112 TI. oz dr. days. A. G. F. Ross, No. 1, 8.0. 5 30 3 17G J. B. Merrett, No. 1 . 3 5 12 161 T. H. Lovell. No. 1, S.W. 6 11 13 168 Hon Izard. No. 3, 8.0. .1 2 0 158 T. King, No. 3. R.W. .4 .3 0 166 R. R. Christie. No. 3 .5 11 3 149 A. Hounsell. No. 1 . . 6 11 3 149 The broodies in this section are:—Pen 121. Birds Nos. 1 and 3: Pen 122. Nos. 1 and 3; Pen 124. Nos. 3 and 3; Pen 12S, Nos' 1 and 3. 1' LOCK TEAMS (six White Leghorn pullets). Weekly Wght. Tl. 112 Tl. oz dr. days. Green Bros., W.L. . . 37 60 0 877 Verrall Bros., W.E. . .34 69 8 835 J. Liggins, W.E. . . 32 64 8 793 H. William e*. W.L. . . 28 54 8 793 RETURNED SOLDIERS (six pullets). Weekly Wght. Tl. 112 Tl. oz dr. days. J. C. Musgrave, W.L. .39 76 3 963 E. L. Rice, W.L. . . 29 5C .10 203 E. Orchard, W.L. . . 21 49 0 860 P- Whitford . . . 35 69 0 849 The ducks continue to give an excellent ®B's? yield. R. W. Hawke’s No. 2 duck has a total of 214 eggs for 217 days,- W. T Green’s No. 3, 203 eggs: and T. Dowthwaite’s No. 8, 3.89 eggs. J. C. Wilson s White Leghorn again laid eight eggs for the past week. In the returned soldiers' duok contest, : J. H. Hannah’s six ducks have a total of , 332 and T. J. Richards’s SOI. W. T. Green's third year flock team laid 80 eggs last week, AUCKLAND (thirtieth week). SINGLE DUCKS. „ Eggs. J. O. Law’s No. 2 . . . 202 Mrs M’Oullough, No. 2 . „ 198 HEAVY BREED SINGLES. W. TimeweH’s No. 1, 8.0. . . 377 G. Shaw’s No. 3, 8.0. . . 176 LIGHT BREED SINGLES. G. E. Moody's No. 4, W.L. . . 175 It. M. Smith's No. 4, W.L. . . no The leading aggregates for the four bird teams are.-—Heavy breeds—R. J. Roberts, 656. Light broods—W. R. Frithey, 6D9’ Ducks—S. H. Scott. 623SOUTHLAND (thirtieth week). SINGLE PEN BIRDS. Daily Tl. to Lay iug. date. Charles Thomson . . mini— 7 igo D. F. M’Dougall . . Hill 11— 7 i? 3 J. White . . . - . lllllll— 7 172 F. A. Williams . . lllllll— 7 168 FLOCK TEAMS of six birds). Tracey King . . . 4355654—3-2 933 A. E. Morris . . . 6535555—34 980 G. J. Scott . . . 4233453—24 825 DUCK TEAMS. Alexander Peat . . 5655555—36 888 Alexander Peat . 5565664—37 7SG During the week the 237 fowls and 42 ducks laid 1431 eggs—an average of over five eggs per bird. WOOLSTON (thirty-second week). The eighteen dry mash-fed White Leghorns in the Woolston experimental tpst laid 101 eggs for the week. H. Taylor’s bird is in the lead with 174. J. Campbell’s next with 173 and J. Evans's third, 155

DUCK CULTURE. (Conclude d.)> Mr Cussen said that goin® around the South Island the last t*sreive> months he had been impressed by tue increased interest taken in duck farming. Farmers were beginning to realise that ducks could be kept very profitably on free range, owing to not i having to erect expensive housing ac- i cominodation. Only a small enclosure • was wanted, where they could be fed. ; every night and morning, and also for : them to lay their eggs at night-. During the day they can be aJlcJwed t® roam about the farm, picking up any j stray insects, worms, or refuse they may come across. He believed this in- j creased interest was duo to the mar- ! velloua performance of an Indian Run- j ner last year laying 863 egg* in 965 j days, and also tho average laying of the ducks in the egg-laying oompeti® j fcion at Dapanui, when eggs were atj their highest price. These results were certainly encouraging enough to many people to keep a few' Indian Runner ducks for an experiment. Mr Oussen said it depended entirely on tho environment whether ducks did well or not. If given plenty of shade, plenty ot* free range and water, os well as good mash, dusks would thrive and lay eggs. Some people were successful with ducks on a small place, but it was essential that they be changed about each year on to fresh soil, otherwise tho groujud would become sour. The first fact on tho subject of hatching and rearing was the fertility and fcbo vitality of the eggs. Just because the eggs were fertile, it was not to say that they would hatch; the gertn must be strong. It seemed to tho speaker that where access to water was concerned, the fertility was better, especially if the ducks had a creek to swim in. The ducks must be kept ill good breeding condition. Do not- feed grain. Mash, consisting of bran, pollard, crushed oats and greenstuff was the best food—fed morning and night, with plenty of shell grit and clean water available. In breeding pens of heavy breed ducks, four or five was sufficient to mate with a drake, while with Indian Runners ten could be put with a drake. Mate your ducks early, as you cannot depend upon the first few eggs being fertile. You can hatch ducks from I September to the end of November, and get very good results from them as regards eggs. Tho best time to market ducklings was when they were about ten weeks old. When fattening the ducklings for the market they should be confined—not allowed a big run. Referring to natural incubation, Mr Oussen said : ‘ 1 Select a broody hen of fair size, without scaly legs, or feathers on its legs, and free from insects also dust the hen two cr three times during the period of incubation. If the hen is sat in a box see that she has plenty of ventilation; make the nest on the ground if possible, and put in plenty of nesting material, as the ground is cold. The eggs should be sprayed with a little water about four days before hatching time. The ducklings should be kept near the hen the first week, as they need as much warmth as possible. After that time they begin to look after themselves and become very knowing, and will thrive if looked after.” For artificial incubation Mr Cussen advised following tho maker’s instructions, as each machine was run a little differently. During the first few days the duck eggs should have less ventilation and less heat—lo2 deg. the first week, 103 deg. later and 104 deg. av hatching time. The eggs should be heated up slowly, and not put in a*i incubator at a temperature of 104 deg. straightaway. Turn the eggs after the second day and Up to the twenty-fifth day and cool right up to the time oi pipping; spray tlie eggs from the seventeenth day. In brooding ducklings give them about 85 deg. cf heat tor a start 1 then gradually reduce it; after about two weeks they will not require any heat. Ducklings can do without heat earlier than chickens. Dry bedding must be provided for the ducklings; sand is rather cold by itself. If a cold brooder is used, plenty of straw must be put in as the ducklings require some comfort. Mr Cussen recommended feeding the ducklings after they were thirty-six hours old. Feed them on bran, oatmeal and pollard to start with, mixed with hard-boiled eggs, with o per cent coarse sand or fine oyster shell grit and a little charcoal added: this is fed four times a day, in quantity all that the ducklings will pick up. After the first week feed bran, pollard, oatmeal ana rnaizvemeal. Finely cut green food should be fed separately after the first week, and 5 per cent minced meat after the first ten days. Mix a little skim milk with the mash. The food should be ut on a board or sash, and any left should be removed after each meal, as sour mash will soon do the ducks much harm. As the ducklings develop give iheni plenty of Jreenj food, say, ~o per cent, but animal food and green food should be stopped during the last few days when fattening ducklings for the table. Always have water before the ducklings, otherwise they will over-drink themselves when they do get access to it. Ducklings intended for market should be made to gain weight from tho shell to maturity ; they must be ker>t quiet and not frightened—the least check means a set-back and a reduction of profits. A number of questions were answered by Messrs Drown and after which Mr Deck moved a hearty vote of thanks to the speakers for the valuable information they had imparted that evening, and trusted the club members would have the opportunity of hearing them again f at some future time. The* motion was seconded by Mr J. T. M’Harg and carried by acclamation. ' Messrs Drown and Cussen thanked the ! members for their vote. CO-OPERATION. On Tuesday evening Mr H. D. Ac- ! J and delivered an interesting address to j the members of the New Zealand Util- ; ity Poultry Club on ;; Co-operation in 1 Denmark.-' Mr A. Smith presided j In his opening remarks the speaker j outlined the various methods from ! which our present day commercial me- j thuds evolved. Ho showed how by i law all illegal acta of plundering ceas- , ed, but this was replaced by legal J methods of business bv which combines ! and trusts governed by capital were able to take the profits that should go j to the producer. Mr Acland related the different ways in which co-operation in Ireland and Denmark had benefited the poultry farmers. He paid a high tribute to Sir Horace Plunket’s work i in Ireland in providing fer the small farmers. In Denmark the poultry j farmers -were all joined up to societies ! that undertook to market eggs and i poultry. The eggs were gathered, graded and packed at branch societies, and ! forwarded to the central society that j attended to the marketing of the products and the purchase of ioods. By this method better grading, better prices, and cheaper foods were obtain- I ed. The whole of the products were pooled, and under co-operation prosperity had followed producers. Union was the key to success. Though Denmark was only the size cf Canterbury, over 6b societies were at work. Qunl-

ity was the watchword of the producers, and every egg sent to the market was candled and stamped so that only the best reached the consumer. The eggs packed for London averaged 26oss to the dozen, and realised top prioes. Aa they were delivered to London within 96 hours after being packed, ib gave Denmark a great advantage over New Zealand- Mr Acland said th« co-operative method was the only fail and equitable method of business, an< by this means tho producer got besl i ©suits. In private enterprise men were used to got dollars for capital. In co-operative methods capital waa used to get best results for produce**. He considered poultryrnen in New Zealand needed more unity, and urged them to pull together and work for each other's good. At the close of his address, Air Acland answered several questions. A hearty vote of thanks was aoooxded Mr Acland.