POULTRY-KEEPING.

New Zealand Journal of Agriculture, Volume 43, Issue 3, 21 September 1931, Page 218

POULTRY-KEEPING.

End of the Hatching Season.

A matter of special concern at the present time is that of getting the last hen eggs for' the season under the incubation process, in order that the young birds may be given an opportunity of attaining a complete development while the days are long and the weather conditions favourable. In the case of the latest-hatched stock a special effort should be made to prevent any check in development. This involves good feeding and careful management. •

It is always a waste of time to try to rear weakly chickens. Not only do they frequently acquire the habit of huddling, but they also induce the stronger birds to do so, and cause much mortality., In nature it is only the fittest which survive to maturity, hence only the strongest birds are permitted to perpetuate the species. A point to be remembered is that constitution is the basis of heavy-producing and disease-resisting stock. It is therefore obvious that to waste time over a weakling is not only inviting an outbreak of disease, but is decidedly unprofitable. The wise poultryman will not even waste time in putting weaklings into a brooder, for even if they come to maturity they will probably never pay for the cost of keeping, and will be a constant drain on the profits of the plant.

Feeding the Laying Birds.

Now that the season has arrived when fowls produce their maximum of eggs, many of the hens are apt to seriously decrease in weight, owing to the great demand on the body-fat for the formation of yolks, which largely consist of fat. Especially is this the case with pullets which commenced their period of production in the late autumnsay, in April. Thus, if the birds are to be maintained in a healthy thriving condition, sound and liberal feeding is imperative. If the birds are not well supplied with the elements necessary for the formation of eggs not only will the egg-yield decrease, but the eggs that are laid will also rapidly become smaller, while the yolks will not be of the desired rich colour.

The good laying bird when in a heavy-laying condition is always a heavy feeder, and those who advocate keeping her on a scant ration have probably had little or no experience in profitable egg-production. The day has gone for saying that hens are too fat to lay, particularly at this period of the year. If they become too fat it indicates that the food supplied is of the wrong kind, or that they are of a poor laying-strain, or that as a result of old age they have passed their best period of production. An egg is one of the most concentrated and richest food-products known, and obviously a hen cannot be expected to lay day after day a 2 oz. product if kept in a state of semi-starvation.

There are no set rules that can be laid down as to the daily ration required by a laying flock. If the best results are to be obtained the poultry-keeper must use his powers of observation and his judgment in anticipating the birds’ requirements. There is no danger of overfeeding the laying bird with food of the right quality, providing she is given ample opportunity to exercise.

In successful poultry-keeping the aim must be to provide a ration that will return the greatest profit over cost of production, and not necessarily one which will produce the highest number of eggs. Care must be taken, however, that this principle is not carried too far. For example, the present low price at which potatoes can be purchased has induced many poultry-keepers, as a means of cheapening the food-bill, to adopt the plan of including a large quantity of boiled potatoes in the mash and moistening the latter with the water in which the potatoes were boiled, and, as a result, the birds have not laid up to expectations. The feeding of potatoes tofowls of any age does not tend to promote heavy egg-production, especially during the winter months in the case of pullets, but to use the potatowater for mixing the mash is simply inviting, trouble not only from am eggproducing point of view, but for the health of the birds as well. For growing stock, or for fattening purposes, a small quantity of boiled potatoes may be included in the mash as a means of reducing the cost of food, but even for this purpose they will do more harm- than good if the water is not well drained off before using.-

Brooder Troubles.

Asking for information in regard to several details in connection with brooder management, a correspondent raises some points of general interest to which it may prove instructive to refer. He states that during the early season his chickens generally thrive and do remarkably well, but as the season advances heavy losses are experienced, although the young birds receive uniform food and attention at all times. Mention is also made of the fact that the breeding-stock are maintained in a highly desirable breeding-condition throughout the season. As the correspondent has failed to mention the class of brooder used, or to give any advice regarding the local conditions surrounding the stock, a definite opinion as to the cause of the trouble cannot be well expressed. It is safe to assume, however, that the chief cause of the mortality is due to subjecting the chickens to extremes of temperature, and to failure to regulate the degree of warmth and the amount of ventilation to suit the particular season of the year. It is common for poultry-keepers to work their brooders in exactly the same manner, say, in October and November as during the early season. This is a mistake, as during the early season the weather conditions are more uniform than is the case later, and because of this uniformity the desired degree of temperature and ventilation demanded by the chickens in the brooder can be easily controlled. With the approach of summer, however, extreme variations of climatic conditions are often experienced, and it is these that must be guarded against. It frequently happens that a warm night follows a cold one, and that is where the chief trouble lies. This is chiefly because the chicks become overheated at night, and when leaving the brooder next morning the extreme change of temperature proves too much for them, resulting in chill and its consequent troubleswhite diarrhoea, droppy wings, &c. It will thus be seen that as the season advances the greatest care must be taken to ensure that the young birds are provided with a uniform degree of warmth and the necessary fresh air for their welfare.

Where the canopy style of brooder is being used, which is heated with coke or electricity, it is important that methods of management be amended to suit the climatic conditions at this period of the year. These brooders give off a high degree of heat, and with ordinary care they can be relied upon to give good results, particularly during the early season ; but with the approach of summer special care must be taken to provide ample ventilation in the brooder-house, in order to prevent the chickens from getting into overheated sweated condition, which is always fatal to their welfare. »

■ It has been found at the Wallaceville Poultry Station when chickens which were being reared under highly heated brooders failed to make desired development towards the end of the season were transferred to canopy lamp-heated brooders, enabling the brooder-house to be maintained at a much lower temperature, the young birds immediately commenced to thrive and do well. This strongly suggests that overheating and insufficient ventilation are the chief causes of the heavy losses that frequently take place among brooder chicks when warm weather conditions TWA-vail _ _ _ _ ’

F.C. Brown,

Chief Poultry Instructor, Wellington.