Buying Perching Pullets for Household Poultry Flocks

New Zealand Journal of Agriculture, Volume 81, Issue 3, 15 September 1950, Page 253

Buying Perching Pullets for Household Poultry Flocks

MANY household poultry keepers prefer to buy pullets at the perching stage rather than dayold chicks, and most commercial poultry breeders cater for this trade. Though perching pullets call for a larger capital outlay, frequently they prove cheaper than chicks when the total cost of each successfully reared pullet is calculated. In this month’s article for the household poultry keeper W. L. Mclver, Poultry Instructor, Department of Agriculture, Hamilton, points out the advantages of buying perching pullets and gives advice about the points to be watched to ensure that good-quality stock is obtained.

EVERY job requires its special tools if the best result is to be obtained, and chick rearing is no exception. If any class of livestock suffers a setback in growth in the early stages of rearing, usually many months of subsequent good management are needed to make up the leeway, and in some cases the animal or bird never overcomes the initial setback and deteriorates into a cull. Artificially reared

chicks require a suitable brooder, proper accommodation, and a carefully planned diet in their early stages. Disadvantages of Chick Rearing Even chickens brooded under a mother hen need considerable attention and a planned feeding system, as the hen in confinement is limited in the scope of her activities and powers. She can do some things for the chicks, but she cannot go further than the householder permits. The big disadvantage of rearing chicks under a hen is that if the mother bird has lice, mites, intestinal worms, or scaly leg, or is a carrier of an infectious disease, she is almost certain to pass the complaint on to the chicks. The average householder has neither the equipment nor the accommodation to rear chicks. Usually he has insufficient time for the work and, even if he has the inclination, a large degree of willingness will not counterbalance a makeshift brooder, an unsatisfactory brooder room, and running the growing pullets when they are off the heat with the hens because a separate run is not available. After 6 Weeks the Best Age If the mortality rate of the chicks is high, the survivors must carry the cost of the dead birds and can well turn out to be more expensive than birds bought as perching pullets. The most dangerous period for chick mortality is during the first 3 weeks, and the next period of danger is the following 3 weeks. After 6 weeks the likelihood of mortality is very much reduced, despite danger from a few infectious and contagious complaints. By or before 6 weeks of age the pullets are weaned off heat, and soon afterward they learn to perch. That’s the safest time at which to buy themabout 8 weeks.

Pullets younger than 6 weeks are not adequately weaned from heat in almost all districts of New Zealand and are seldom trained to perch. Even at' 8 weeks of age all will not be perching, but if the seller values his business he will cull out the backward pullets for further care and attention, selling the more forward ones, which will advertise his future wares. At 4 weeks old pullets are not weaned or perching and selecting the best for sale is far more difficult, so householders are not well advised to buy pullets at this age. After 8 weeks of age birds increase in price considerably for each extra week the rearer keeps them, and when he has successfully reared them past 3 months of age he will seldom sell them without high remuneration. If the householder is an experienced chick rearer, or if he has good luck with low mortality, rearing day-old chicks is the cheapest way of providing replacements. If not, he is better advised to buy perching pullets. Hatching Dates for Winter Layers To ensure obtaining quality stock that will give good winter egg production and an adequate annual total of eggs the householder must first understand something about maturity and intensity of laying. Earlierhatched chickens mature more quickly than those hatched late in the season, but young pullets which begin to lay in late summer or early autumn cannot be expected to maintain their intensity of production through autumn and winter. Pullets hatched in late winter or early spring nearly always go into a neck moult, if not a full moult, about the following April or May and are off the lay for 6 weeks or longer.

j BUYING PERCHING PULLETS I RATHER THAN HAVE BOUGHT PULLETS I SENT HOME. THE BUYER SHOULD GO AND I COLLECT THEM SO AS TO BE ABLE TO ' EXAMINE THE BIRDS OFFERED. HERE ARE- , SOME OF THE POINTS TO BE* WATCHED.

In general, birds of heavy breeds hatched during the latter half of August and of light breeds hatched during the latter half of September can be expected to begin laying during the follow March and to continue laying all winter.. Therefore . the householder should place his order with the hatchery in adequate time to obtain delivery of 8-week-old heavybreed pullets in late October or of light-breed birds in November, even if that means placing the order a year ahead. Light breeds hatched in early October and heavy breeds hatched in early September are likely to be better winter layers than those hatched a month earlier. June and July hatches are unlikely to be good winter producers, and late-October or November hatches will not begin to lay until winter is well advanced.

Ensuring Quality of Birds The merits of heavy and light breeds were discussed in an article in the June, 1949, issue of the “Journal”. Not only should pullets have been hatched at the desirable time, but they must be healthy and of good quality. A careful customer makes certain that the quality of any purchase is correct for . the price and that it will do properly the job he wants it to do. That applies to buying pullets. If the customer is satisfied with the previous lot of pullets, he should go back to the same farmer; if he is not, inquiries should be made about a recommended source of supply. Several of the articles in this series have dealt with the culling of poortype birds and the selection of profitable types, and the illustrations on this page show some features to be examined when judging the worth of a bird.

Collecting pullets from the . seller’s farm is. best, but if they are sent through‘ any transport system, they should be examined carefully as soon as they arrive . If the buyer is dissatisfied with the birds, he should feed them, water them, and send them back promptly, and communicate with the seller, who. in most cases will appreciate a proper complaint being made at once so that he can look into the cause and endeavour to rectify the position, The P urchase of Quality sck should be treated as on the , first step m setting up, a dependable ■ pen of layers. Housing and feedf * uronerlv are euuallv in s inem property are equally important. Poor management can ruin even the best birds.’ —«-♦

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