Poultry Farmer

New Zealand Journal of Agriculture, Volume 62, Issue 2, 15 February 1941, Page 127

Poultry Farmer

Notes for the

Contributed by Officers of the

Livestock Division

Culling and Selection of Stock

T~ T ROM now on, the main job of cullFROM now on, the main job of cullJL ing the stock and selecting the breeders for next season’s pens takes place. It is, of course, a busy time of the year for all poultrymen, but it must be remembered that the whole future of the farm depends upon sound culling and the selection only of the best available breeding stock. What Poultry Breeding Means “Poultry breeding refers to the reproduction and inherent improvement of domestic birds. It not only involves the replacing of older individuals with younger ones, but it implies exchanging of the poor, or even the good, for the inherently better. Mere maintenance or increase of numbers can be reduced to a problem of poultry management; but continued progress, through successive generations, towards a desired objective in the way of quality or performance, calls into play all the skill of which a poultryman is capable in applying the science of genetics to the selection and improvement of his flock.” (“Poultry Production,” by William Adams Lippincott.) According to the foregoing it can be plainly seen that the art , (and it is an art) of poultry breeding must involve a continual upward and forward movement. To maintain a highclass flock —that is, not only with regard to laying but also to breed points —a poultryman must, of necessity, have an ideal type in his mind’s eye, because if there is no ideal in view, the whole thing will revert to mere reproduction without the improvement which is so desirable. It is for this purpose that the services of the Department’s Poultry Instructors are available to anyone who desires to improve his stock and who does not consider his knowledge and experience are sufficient to enable him to do this on his own.

Culling Culling should not be left to one particular time of the year, but should be continual, starting from the incubatorand continuing throughout the life of the birds. However, the main period of culling adult stock is during February and March,'and at this time of the year the whole flock should be examined and all birds which it is considered will not be profitable to keep for the following year should be removed and sold. The continual elimination throughout the year of those birds which are not producing must reduce the cost of feeding for the flock, and it is only by watching these feed costs in conjunction with the egg production that a success can be made of poultry farming. It can be readily understood that there must be a heavy drain on the stamina and bodily resources of all birds which have been laying continuously for 10 to 12 months. This drain will begin to tell on the weaker specimens earlier than on the stronger birds, and this is why the early moulter is always culled. All birds of 2| years and over should be disposed of as soon as they stop laying, provided they are unsuitable to keep for breeding for the following season. As a ' general rule, all birds which begin to moult before the end of February should be culled, but this rule cannot, of course, be strictly adhered to in all cases. It may be that the birds have been mismanaged in some way or the moult has been forced through some other factor, in which case due allowance must be made. Any bird which has a small, shrivelled, or dried-up comb, and possibly a yellow beak and legs, is definitely not laying and should be culled; in fact, any bird which is not looking shabby and dirty and dry in appearance should be caught and examined to see if it is laying or not.

Clean feathers on a bird at this time of the year are a fairly good indication that she has not been laying well. Many people have been worried at this time of the year by one of the birds losing the feathers from the bacK of the head, leaving the skin quite red like a good-coloured comb. This, however, is merely an indication of a good layer, and this sign should be of value to a poultryman when he is considering his birds during the culling operations. Every poultryman should learn all he can of the art of culling, because it is only by the continual elimination of the non-producer that he will obtain the best return for his labours. It is easy to pick the obvious culls from a flock, but it is only by practice and experience that the art of weighing up a bird’s good and bad points can be mastered. Selection of Breeding Stock The selection of breeding stock should be undertaken at the same time as the culling, because it is only from what are termed “late moulters” that the breeders should be selected. If this selection is left until all the birds have moulted it is naturally impossible to pick these late moulters. It will be found that the culling and selection of the birds will result very much as follows: —One-third culls, onethird layers, and one-third breeders. This is., of course, an average; in a few cases the percentage of breeders may be higher, but on the average farm there are not more than approximately one-third which should be included in the breeding pen. It is regrettable, however, that the standard by which many poultrymen pick their breeders is either so low or so elastic that many undesirable birds are in-, cluded. There are many points to consider in the selection of hens which will be suitable for breeders the following

season. The first and most important is body-size. If a bird has not sufficient size she should not be considered, regardless of what she is like in other points. Once the 'selector is satisfied with the size, then the other points, such as good comb, strong beak, bold, bright eye, good body carriage, prominent crop, deep abdomen, and in general all those points which go to make up good type, can be weighed up. In . considering a bird, the laying ability must not be forgotten; a good layer is active, more alert, and yet at the same time more easily handled than the poor layer. She is among the first off the perch in the morning and among the last on it at night. When not on the nest she is busy and business-like, scratching or ranging in an eager search for feed. The appetite of a great layer is seldom satisfied. It is these small points which all go to make up the ideal breeder. A further point for consideration is the age of the breeding stock. Except in the hands of the experienced breeder, pullets should not be included in the breeding pen. Opinions differ on the question of the age to which hens may be retained for breeding purposes. Longevity, or liveability, is an important factor, but in general practice it is not advisable to retain hens over four years of age. After this age the marked decrease in eggs produced during the breeding season makes such birds uneconomical, while the number of progeny obtained is further reduced by the lowered hatchability of eggs from these older birds. Some experienced breeders go as far as to claim that the progeny from really old breeding stock lack satisfactory stamina. As a guide, it is suggested that only birds of exceptional merit should be retained for more than two breeding seasons. - When selecting breeding stock, just as much attention must be paid to the male birds as the females. . Many poultrymen select their hens well, but neglect the males by not being quite so particular. It would probably make a big difference if each poultryman realised the influence of the male bird on the progeny. When a breeding pen is made up it should be done with the knowledge that the laying ability of the pullet progeny will be affected by the male bird in the breeding pen, not the hens. The hens’ laying ability will be passed on to the cockerels reared from the mating, and then passed on to the pullets’ chicks the following season through these cockerels. Thus it will be seen that pullets of high-laying power cannot be expected from a pen of good laying hens if the cockerel or cock bird is from a poor laying strain.

Rearing Cockerels The necessity of the good rearing of cockerels cannot be sufficient emphasised if the chicks and resultant stock from the following season’s matings are to come up to expectations. Many people look after their pullets well, giving good food, good attention, and possibly free range, and yet neglect the cockerels. Where the breeding hens have been reared well it is reasonable to assume that the resultant progeny will be good, but in many cases this, assumption has not been realised simply because the cockerels have been overcrowded and reared in a house with a small run and with perhaps insufficient food. Any expectations of good results from cockerels reared under such conditions are foredoomed to failure. The poultryman must realise that the male bird is half the breeding pen. Answers to Correspondents Growth of Young Pullets A.J.H. (SOUTHLAND):— I should like some advice about , our young pullets. They are now 12 weeks old, and have developed and feathered excellently. Some are showing red in the comb. We were wondering if they are developing too fast. They have been fed with the best of grains and mash and greens, and have a big run where mixed grasses and oats are growing. We do not want them to start, laying until they are strong enough to stand the strain. We have weighed several of them, and they vary from 2 lbs. to 2| lbs. Their dry mash consists of pollard, bran, maize, meal, oat-meal, oyster shell meal, bone-flour, buttermilk powder, and codliver oil. and they have had milk made from the powder before them since they were hatched. Their grain is hulled oats and wheat mixed. I shall be glad if you could advise me through the pages of your “Journal” if we should cut down anything if they are developing too fast. POULTRY INSTRUCTOR:— Your pullets appear to have done well as regards growth. It is to be regretted that you omitted to state the quantities of the ingredients ' in your mash, and because of this omission it is impossible to say whether or not you have been forcing them too much. However, your best plan would be to eliminate the meat-meal completely, and also to give more grain to eat and close up the dry mash hoppers except between the hours of 10 and 2 o’clock. This reduction in dry mash should

not stunt their growth provided the pullets are given sufficient grain to satisfy them. Selection of Ducks “PUCK” (Featherston):— As I want to run some ducks on this property I would be glad if you could advise me as to the best breed. Egg production, of course, is of great importance, but the birds must also be a good table bird. The conditions here are apt to be severe—heavy winds, and cold weather in the winter, and sudden changes from warm to cold: Ample running water is available, and swampy ground, but good dry. quarters can be provided at night. Thanking you for a reply in the “Journal.” POULTRY INSTRUCTOR:— While your local conditions do not appear the best, I am of the opinion that the Khaki Campbell breed of ducks would be most suitable for your requirements. This particular breed is one of the heavier- varieties, and is regarded as a dual-purpose bird. Besides being suitable for table purposes, they are prolific layers, and generally do well in any locality.