Poultry Notes

Wanganui Chronicle, Volume LXXXIII, Issue 19840, 14 May 1927, Page 21 (Supplement)

Poultry Notes

WATER. 1 Some poultry farmers and cottagers ■ have water laid on and running through 'the houses The expense of doing so is IsmaU, and the benefit There is ino carrying round the buckets, no openling nua shutting of doors and gates, |no rinsing out the water tins, and last ■ but not least, no sickness from stale (water or dirty appliances. I Many flocks of hens have less than i one-half of the amount of water they [need for body maintenance and egg (production. When it is known that one (dozen medium-sized eggs contain about [a pint of water, and that 55 per cent, [of the body weight is water, the im(portance of liberal quantities of frosh, (dean water cannot be over-estimated. Water is necessary in the crop of the ihcn to keep the food, which is stored [there, from becoming congested. This would result in a condition which is I sometimes called “crop-bound.” Plenty

iof fresh water keeps the food soft, 'which allows it to pass uniformly down the gullet into the stomach. In the [glandular stomach quantities of digestive juices arc poured on to the food, I whence it passed on to the gizzard. I The action of the gizzard grinds the contents into a very fine past*. From [there it goes down through the intestines, receiving digestive juices at dif- ■ ferent points until it is a soft solution [in the large intestines. Absorption of the food into the (blood stream occurs while it is in a [liquid state in the intestines. The absorbed food is carried to all parts of ,the bdy in the blood stream. Water is t necessary for every one of these processes. Many flocks produce few eggs 'because they lack water. TIMELY SUGGESTIONS. ! Clean, dry dust must be used in th® : dust bath. I Frosh eggs are-always cash, and are never unsaleable. A continuous growth is what all poultrymen are after. Never keep the basket of eggs neaz any strong smelling article.

Work to secure special customers for eggs and dressed poultry. Lice and mites are over present where cleanliness is neglected. Where roosts are easy to reach young birds are more ready to use them. Breed only from the most vigorous breeding stock that can be secured. Good health in the fowls is the foundation of successful poultry husbandry. The fact is that one breed will do about as well as another, if given the right care. A good active, ]>roperly growing chick will seldom be troubled with leg weakness. Keep doubtful eggs at home, as a bad egg may result in the loss of a good customer. Keep your hens busy. The hardworking, always digging hen is the best egg-producer. Continuous, regular, liberal feeding brings the most profit and the best practical results. There is something in oats that gives speed to the horse and gives material for eggs to hens. There is no variety of fowls that can be so quickly placed upon the market as young ducks. One of the most difficult things for a beginner in poultry raising to learn is to cull closely. The fruit of careful feeding and housing is young stock ready for market while prices are good. Poultry, like anything else, has no best side. It all depends upon the man jwho is to run the business. If your hens are shut up arc the? getting plenty of green food? It is necessary if you want good results. To many farmers and poultry raisers are prone to feed whatever they raise the most of, particularly maize. With the open-front poultry house, let the building be reasonably deep from front to back, with the roosts to the rear. Wherever it is possible, the colony

house system of housing poultry is strongly recommended for the general farm. It costs but little, if any more, to grow a pound of poultry than a pound of pork; the price per pound of each speaks for itself. Pullets are the best layers. Ohl hena bring the egg record down. Sell off the old hens to make room for the. maturing pullets. Hens fed on one kind of grain rxIclusively will not lay as satisfactorily las those that have been fed on a variety of grains. j Have your birds properly fattened before sending them Io market. They are the kind that look good to city I people, and the city is your best market. Give the hens good feed, clean water, a dust bath ami clean, airy comfortable quarters, and the egg supply is reasonably certain. Oats make an excellent grain for laying hens. Th<\y furnish the essential food elements, without increasing the fat on the hen. If you will practice these four things —cleanliness, punctuality, perseverance and carefulness—you will receive a good profit from poultry.

PASTURES IN WINTER

VSE THE HARROWS. Much can now be done to assist the pastures in recovering from the effects of a severe summer’s grazing. Where the. pastures have been top-dressed they will surely be eaten close, and (where they have not so been treated no ! time should be lost in giving them a [dressing. The chain harrows should | now be used or sheep droppings should [be worked in. This means that much [ valuable fertiliser is made full use of land it also means that the whole pas- ' ture will be cleaned and freshened. Once a month is not too often to chain harrow the pastures, and it is best done after a shower of rain or a heavy dew. 'Phis is a job which can be very profitably attended to even when it is too wet tu work the land. It may be that little improvement is noticeable after the first one or two strokes, but persevere—each stroke leaves the ground and the grass bettor than it found it, and it is surprising how soon the pasture takes on a more lawn-like appearance. All those rank patches will soon disappear, and stock will be induced to graze more evenly. Where the grass grub has been operative durling the summer to the extent that barn patches are appearing, attention should be directed now so that the grass has a chance to recover before next spring.