POULTRY-KEEPING.

New Zealand Journal of Agriculture, Volume XL, Issue 6, 20 June 1930, Page 422

POULTRY-KEEPING.

Feeding the Breeders.

A correspondent has asked for advice in regard to feeding his prospective breeding - hens. He states that they are the pick of the late monitors which have produced heavily throughout the year, and he would like to know how to feed them in order that they may resume laying and their eggs may be available for the production of early-hatched chicks. The addition of such forcing food to the ration as meat, meat-meal, milk, &c., will tend to promote early laying, but I could not advise the adoption of this course. Obviously a bird which has just come through a heavy and forced laying-season, followed by.the bodily strain entailed by the moulting

process, must necessarily be in a more or less exhausted condition, requiring a rest. It will not be in that vigorous condition necessary to produce eggs having a strong germ—the seed of good constitutional stock.

In selecting the breeding-hen it is not so much the egg-yielding capacity that should be studied as the power to transmit desirable qualities, and if a bird is not in the best of condition she will not be able to impress these qualities upon her offspring. It is certainly true that if a hen proves to be a persistent long-season layer she must possess a good constitution but where eggs for reproduction purposes are required it would be much wiser were she given an opportunity of regaining her strength by plain, feeding, instead. of forcing the time of production by means of a rich diet.

The Laying Type.

It is now quite an established fact that there is a laying type of fowl, and just as there is a desirable type of table bird, so there is also a type indicating by general appearance egg-laying capacity. As there are exceptions to every rule it sometimes happens that a bird of rather a different build to that looked for will prove to be highly profitable. This does not prove that the laying-type theory is not correct, but rather that our knowledge of it is not as extensive as it should be, particularly when applied from a breeding standpoint.

Many who are now realizing the value of a particular type as indicating laying-power are naturallywith that enthusiasm common to progressive poultrymenlooking for anything which will guide them in their search for knowledge on this subject. It may be that they happen on photographs of birds published to illustrate type and the exceptions mentioned. I would urge poultry-keepers not to place too much reliance on such photographs, for probably there is no domestic bird or animal which when photographed illustrates its true type less than the fowl. It 'is common for a photographer to wait patiently for hours to secure a good picture of a high-type layer, and then not succeed. On one occasion I tried to obtain a faithful picture of a champion layer, and the three photos secured were so different one from the other that any one unacquainted with the facts would have refused to believe they were of the same bird. Sometimes it is possible to picture a bird by means of the camera just as it should appear, but more often than not a photo of a fowl gives a flat contradiction to the saying that the camera cannot lie. It is therefore well not to attach too much importance to photographic reproductions in judging type.

In regard to laying type the main point to be considered is the securing of breeders, and the fact that a freak type bird may prove to be a good layer is no guarantee that its descendants will be equally good layers. If used for breeding purposes the progeny of such a bird will probably be of all shapes and sizes, with nothing to distinguish them for production capacity. The aim of all successful breeders, no matter what the class of stock, is to develop if possible a uniform type of animal in flocks or herds from which they are breeding. Type is the first essential, and uniformity in that type is the next consideration.

With fancy poultry— is, any breed conforming to approved fancy standardsit is easy enough for the breeder to judge the quality of a bird ; but with utility poultry, when egg-production is the chief consideration, it is difficult for any one to judge the quality unless there is a standard laying type from which to work. Very much importance attaches to the question of a utility standard. It is not every one who has a natural eye for form, and even men who have had long and successful experience with utility poultry quite often fail in picking out the laying type ; whereas with a definite recognized standard with points apportioned for each desired quality it is possible to attain fair success after patient study and sufficient experience. It must be admitted, however, that no matter how perfect

the system adopted (and the most satisfactory method is by awarding points for essential qualities) the judging of fowls is more or less a natural gift. In setting the desired standard the man who has a natural eye for the laying type can. indicate how his judgment has been arrived at.

The Impending Hatching-period.

Where a good egg-yield is .desired during the late autumn and early -winter months (which should be the case on all plants if a maximum profit is to be made) the chickens which are to produce these should be hatched ■out by the. end of July or early in August. The poultry-keeper who has neglected to have everything in good order preparatory to this important period will now suffer the results of his neglect. While it is never advisable to breed from pullets if hens can be obtained, the fact remains that on most plants there will be insufficient adult birds in the necessary productive condition to enable a desired number of chicks to be hatched out at this period of the year. Hence breeding from pullets must be resorted to. Where it is necessary to use pullets they should be well-matured birds hatched 'in the early spring, and be the progeny of hens, not pullets. It is far better to delay hatching operations than to breed from late-hatched or poorly-developed pullets. Where the. natural mother is depended upon the drawback to timely hatching is becoming more acute each year, owing to the difficulty of securing broody hens when required. As the laying type develops the broody tendency weakens, so that the more profitable the stock from an egg-laying point of view the greater will be the difficulty in obtaining broody hens. The most popular bird at the present time is the White Leghorn, and with the best-laying types of this breed broodiness has almost disappeared. Where the plant is a small one and an incubator is not used the difficulty is a serious one. There are two alternatives—either to have ■eggs artifically hatched by persons who have the necessary plant, or, better ■still, to secure stock as day-old chicks from a breeder of repute.

F. C. Brown,

Chief Poultry Instructor, Wellington.