POULTRY-KEEPING.

New Zealand Journal of Agriculture, Volume 54, Issue 2, 20 February 1937, Page 118

POULTRY-KEEPING.

Systematic Culling.

As to cull means to separate anything from the rest because of inferiority the importance of the work or art of culling to the poultry-keeper cannot be overestimated. The process may be said to be a continuous one with the successful man. It commences when eggs are being set, and is continued with his birds throughout the year. To start with, only eggs of a good size, shape, colour, and texture of shell should be set. In this connection it may be mentioned that three times each year a certain number of the eggs laid by each bird competing at our local laying competitions are judged by officers of this Department for shape, colour, size, and texture of shell, and prizes are awarded accordingly. Though some owners take a keen interest in these judgings, results seem to indicate that many breeders fail to appreciate the importance of this matter. If a comparison was made each year of the points awarded for size of eggs and texture of shells, it should serve as a very useful guide as to how the vitality and constitution of one's strain is being maintained. If smaller eggs are being produced and less points are gradually being awarded for texture of shell, it should be taken as a warning that the body is gradually getting worn out, and steps should be taken to correct matters. It must be remembered that the hen is not a machine, so when nature sends out these first distress signals every breeder would be wise if he took them as warnings that the exertion and drain of sustained and forced egg-production has been carried far enough, that greater care is needed in the selection of breeding-stock, and that some fresh blood is required. A person desiring to purchase a bird or birds from a laying competition would be well advised to ascertain the number of points awarded to their eggs, especially for size and texture of shell. When chickens are hatched, only those showing strength and vitality should be placed under the brooders, while it is better’ to destroy those showing any weakness. As the young stock grow those showing want of constitution, poor development, or any deformity should be eliminated. Where such a systematic culling is practised it will be found, in some cases, that when it comes to the end of the first laying-season up to one-third or even more of the pullets hatched have been culled, but the poultry-keeper who adopts such a system gets the very best return from his plant, and maintains a good strong vigorous flock which is seldom attacked with any epidemic or outbreak of disease. There are, however, many poultrykeepers who fail to see the necessity for such hard culling, and some who from want of better knowledge or perhaps lack of interest in their poultry do not practice culling. It is the desire of the Department to assist poultry-keepers in keeping up the quality of their birds, and if those requiring advice make application to the Department arrangements will be made, if possible, for an officer to visit their farms and give a demonstration. Undoubtedly the best way to keep a flock on a good paying basis is to adopt a regular system of culling throughout the twelve months, but, if this is not convenient, at

least once a year a really systematic handling and examination of all birds should take place,- and about the best time to do this work is during February, or just before many good birds go into the moult.

In order to make the best job of culling a flock the operator must know something about the birds he is to handle, in order that certain points may be given due consideration. For instance, if birds have been recently moved from other pens, underfed, or mismanaged in any way, one must be very careful in applying the usual culling-tests.

The age of the birds should be known, and much more satisfactory work is likely to be done when the one-and-a-half-year-old birds are kept in different pens from those of the older birds, but, where this is not possible, the different ages should be marked so that the younger birds can be dealt with first. Generally speaking, one-and-a-half-year-old hens that began to lay last February or March will not lay as late into this autumn as the older birds that did not start laying until July or August last. The usual matters to take into consideration when a flock is to be culled are—First, the early moulter, for, as a rule, the first birds of a given age to moult. are those of weaker constitution and should be culled. If one has plenty of room to accommodate the stock it is generally safe to say that any one-and-a-half-year-old hens that are still laying and have not started to moult by the middle of February will pay to keep for a further year. Exceptionally heavy hens for the breed they represent are usually poor producers, and can with safety be put out. Birds showing want of vigour and vitality should be culled, and as physical activity is one of the chief characteristics of health it may be said that sluggish birds and those that spend a great deal of their time on the perches are of poor vitality, and should be discarded, together with those very light and poor in condition. Age to keep. " A great number of hens are kept long after the age when they have the physical ability to produce sufficient eggs to pay for their upkeep. This is more noticeable amongst many farm flocks and where poultry are kept, but where there is a lack of interest taken in the birds. Most hens when they reach the age of about two and a half years have come to the time when they are no longer profitable commercial eggproducers, and therefore should be sold. However, if the poultry-keeper is breeding his own stock and some of the two-and-a-half-year-old hens are of exceptional breed type and still show vitality, they should most certainly be retained and specially marked for the breeding pen,, for experience has shown that such hens are amongst the most valuable breeders. . As there is no way of definitely telling the age of a hen, all birds should be leg-banded. If all pullets were leg-banded, say, on the left leg just before they come on to lay, and if a second ring was placed on the right leg at the end of the first laying-season, there would be no difficulty in picking out the different ages and culling them when their term of usefulness has ended. The Late-hatched Pullets. Although the loss occasioned from keeping hens that have passed the age of usefulness is very considerable, it is safe to say that the greatest weakness in the industry to-day is the hatching of late stock and the lack of proper culling of growing pullets. It is true that to be able to cull successfully a flock of healthy growing pullets calls for extra skill and experience, but on many farms no young stock are culled until the autumn of the year, with the result that many weedy pullets that never pay their way and are a danger on the plant are kept. Pullets hatched much after the end of October seldom start laying until well into the winter, or until early spring, and as eggs are then getting cheap such late stock have not sufficient time before the moulting-period begins in February or March to produce enough eggs to repay what they have cost.

It is safe to say that it pays well to cull up to <lO per cent, of wellreared pullets before they start laying, but with poorly reared, weedy, or late pullets the culling should be much harder. . Body Type. A bird to be a good layer must have a well-balanced body showing ample capacity, which is estimated by the distance from the pelvic bones to the end of the breast bones, and also by the length and width of back—in other words, by the'cubical content of the body frame. The chief characteristics of a cull Abdomen small and tucked up, but if large it feels coarse with layers of fat underneath the skin. The comb is usually small, more or less hard, and cold. Head coarse or small and weedy ; eyes small, listless, and sunken. The pelvic bones are usually thick, coarse, and stiff, with less than two fingers’ width apart. 1 Vent dry, small, and puckered. Over-fat Leghorns or other yellow-legged breeds can usually be picked out by their yellow legs and beaks at this time of year. The continuous striving for increased egg-production is likely to cost the industry dearly unless every effort is made to maintain vigour and constitution ; even to-day some -keepers are finding that financial success depends largely upon their being able to combat disease. No producer can afford to overlook or underestimate the best means of protection, which is to master the art of and adopt systematic culling throughout the year.

C. J. C. Cussen,

Chief Poultry Instructor, Wellington.