POULTRY-KEEPING.

New Zealand Journal of Agriculture, Volume XXVI, Issue 4, 20 April 1923, Page 254

POULTRY-KEEPING.

WINTER MANAGEMENT. . In anticipation of cold winter weather it is well to remember that if fowls are to produce a good return in egg-yield everything must be in their favour. This is not to imply that they should be coddled in warm, ill-ventilated quarters. They should be intelligently handled, especially as regards being protected from extremes of weather. A necessary provision is that the house should be roomy, with an open or partly open front as a .means of admitting sunshine and fresh air, those great essentials to the well-being of the domesticated fowl. Of course, it must be draught-proofthere must be no cracks in the sides or back walls — colds, roup, and other troubles may be expected. . With such a house the birds can be fed inside during wet weather, and fed early in the evening, so that they will not be moping about with wet plumage waiting for their evening meal to be thrown down in a muddy yard. ■ All whole-grain food should be fed in deep litter as a means of inducing the birds to exercise as much as possible. There should always be odd grains of food in the litter, in order to keep the birds busy scratching for it. Every endeavour should be made to discourage the birds from resting on their perches by day, as this is apt to cause an overfat condition —a state which does not tend towards promoting heavy egg-production. This does not mean that the ration should be reduced in order to check a production of surplus fat. On the contrary,' it means liberal feeding, but by a . method which ensures that the birds are made to work to secure at least the greater part of their food. In the long nights of the winter months the birds have ample time to rest without doing so during the day. The life of the laying hen should be a busy one, and only in this condition will she prove to be really profitable. In dealing with colds (which young birds especially are liable to take at this period of the year), the best advice is to look for the cause and remove it at once. If any birds'become affected a simple method of checking the trouble is to place sufficient Condy’s crystals in the drinking-water to give it a pink colour. The most common causes of colds are exposure to cold and wind, and ill-ventilated or draughty houses, while damp, dirty, overcrowded quarters are

often responsible. The symptoms are sneezing, eyes watering, nostrils closed, breathing deep, and offensive breath, while generally a bird thus affected also has an unthrifty appearance. EGG PRODUCTION AND SUPPLY. ■ ; The fact that fresh eggs were being retailed in Wellington just before Christmas at is. 2d. a dozen, and gradually increased in price to 3s. a dozen by the middle of March, has caused considerable comment by the consuming public, and many are asking themselves if this great difference in price over such a short period is justified, and whether the extreme fluctuation in prices was based on the law of supply and demand or on manipulation of the market. Whatever the answer, the fact remains that the great variation in price during the period mentioned was far too great to be of much real benefit to either the producer or the consumer.What is required is a more uniform price throughout the year as an inducement to keep the public eating eggs. This can only be brought about by poultrymen breeding more of their pullets to produce autumn eggs, or by a proper system of co-operation among producers for the purpose of cool-storing some of the summer surplus in shell for table use during the less productive seasons. It is only when poultrymen realize the necessity of making the best use of the refrigerator (as is done by the dairy-farmer) as a means of holding any summer surplus for use during the scarce season that consumption will materially increase and the market become stabilized. True, much has been done in this direction by placing in the freezer egg-pulp for winter use by confectioners and other large consumers of eggs; but this in itself is insufficient if the desired reforms are to be brought about. The table-egg trade must be considered as well. ■ By adopting this course the winter prices would be reduced, but the summer prices would be increased. Such an increase in the price of the abundant summer eggs would be a great factor in making the business the profitable undertaking it should be for those engaged in it, and also in inducing people to take up poultry-keeping. Much is being said in regard to the importance of establishing an export trade in eggs, but it is questionable if any market in the world offers better possibilities at the present time than the local trade, if the latter is catered for in a more intelligent manner. By all means let the industry test the oversea market, chiefly for the reason of ascertaining whether there exists a profitable outlet for any future surplus of supply that may be brought about. The marketing of not only the egg product but the table bird as well is the most vexed problem facing the poultry producer to-day. The problem will never be solved under the present general system of disposal. What is wanted is a sounder system of organization and loyalty among producers than exists to-day, as a means of bringing about the disposal of poultry under co-operative effort.

—-F. C. Brown,

Chief Poultry Instructor, Wellington.