Professional Documents
Culture Documents
ii ! L Si|//|fi,
Cornell University Library
SF 487.L76 1921
Poultry production.
http://www.archive.org/details/cu31924001685431
POULTRY PR0])U(!T10KJ
BY
LEA
LLP.IGLR ct
ri /S I
f
Copyright
LEA & FEBIGER
Ittl
J- '/ -
/92/
PRINTED IN U. S. A.
TO
MY FATHER
AFFECTIONATELY INSCRIBED
PIJEPACE TO THE THIIID EDITION;
W. A. K,
Kans.vs State AGniccLTURAL College, 1!I21.
CONTENTS.
CHAPTEll I.
CHAPTER II.
Breeds of Chickens - . , . . . 49
CHAPTER III.
CHAPTER IV.
CHAPTER V.
CHAPTER VI.
Housing and Hygiene . ...,... 249
CHAPTER VII.
CHAPTER VIII.
The Feeds . , ...... 329
CHAPTER IX.
( vii)
Vlll CONTENTS
CIIAPTKR X.
CH.VPTER XI.
TORKETS . 418
CH.APTER XII.
Ducks and Geese .,.,..,,.... 429
CHAPTER XIII.
CHAPTER XIV.
CHAPTEI-; XY.
Appendix .... -
, . 523
Index 531
POl'LTKV riKnil'CTlOX.
CHAPTER I.
to other species.
2 (17)
IS POULTRY PRODUCTION
o d C *^
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POULTRY PRODUCTION AND POULTRY INDUSTRY 19
While 90.5 per cent of all the farms of the United States
reported chickens, there was but 0.:> per cent that reported
any species of poultry that did not report chickens. From
1910 to 1920 the number of chickens in the United States
nicrcased 2S.2 jjer cent, while during the same ]>eriod the
number of turkeys, ducks, and geese decreased 1.7, .3.1, and
33.7 per cent respectively.
It should be noted in this connection that the figures of
1910 and 1920 are not strictly comparable. This is owing
to the fact that the 1910 enumeration was made April 15
and took into account no chickens under three months of
age, while the enumeration of 1920 was as of January 1.
The alisolute gain in the number of chickens and guinea fowl
was undoubtedly less than the foregoing would indicate
while the decreases of the otlier species were probably
greater.
The popularity of the chicken is due to the fact that it
furnishes a convenient source of fresh meat on the farm,
and is, almost universally, a greater egg producer than are
other sorts of poultry.
Magnitude of the Poultry Industry. The 1911 report of
the Secretary of Agriculture placed the national annual
income from poultry products at $750,000,000, or approxi-
mately the combined value of the gold, silver, iron, and coal
mined the same year. The report of the 1920 census, places
the national annual income from eggs produced and poultry
raised at a little over $1,047,000,000, leaving the production
of the villages, towns and cities unaccounted for.
"
History has shown that as the population of a country
increases, the hen population outruns the population of other
domestic animals. In the United States, we had two hens
per person in ISSO and a little over three hens per person in
1900 and 1910. In the meantime the number of other (food)
animal units . has decreased 30 per cent."
. .
'
Benjamin: Jour. Am. Assn. Inst. Invest, in Poul. Hush., vol. iv, No. 3.
20 POULTRY PRODUCTION
Tlie lirst ten states in point of eggs and chickens produced are
shown in Tahle II.
in tlie total state income from poulti-y ])roducts (see Tahle II),
she ranks first in the aA'ei'age farm income deri\'ed from ])oul-
try (see d'ahle III).
Table III. The Rblatre Rank of the First Ten States with
Refehexce to thi: AvER\*.;i; F.\rm Income fro.m Poultry. -
329 -S2
2S2 (17
2.'.2 ">9
2:"i0 71
2.i992
. 234 S3
POULTRY PRODUCTION AND POULTRY INDUSTRY 21
.
..........
- . . .
499
97
...
,
Poultry ^
226
Eggs 156
1
U. S. Farnicis' liulk'tiii, N'j. 1IIS2.
22 POULTRY PRODUCTION
6
'A
Si
K
s-
C
S
POULTRY PRODUCTION AND POULTRY INDUSTRY 23
The
reason for this difference probahly lies in the unique-
ness eggs among human foods, their high digcstihihty,'
(if
Table VII.
26 POULTRY PRODUCTION
POULTRY PRODUCTION.
Poultry production includes those operations incident
to breeding and rearing domestic birds for food i)urposes
and for pleasure and in preparing their products' for market.
These are the activities of the breeder, the producer, and
the packer.
Early History of Poultry Production. Poultry raising is
essentially a home industry. It appeared in this country
at least as soon as the first homes were made in Jamestown
in 1607. The entire product of the flock, including the
feathers, was used at home. It has, however, never been a
frontier occupation in the sense that beef production and,
'
For complete statistics of all the states, see Table LII, Appendix.
2 of poultry production are feathers, fertilizer, gizzard
The by-products
linings as a source of commercial pepsin, and egg-shells as a source of pow-
dered calcium carbonate for infant feeding. Of these, feathers are by far
the most important being in the case of the ostrich the primary product.
28 POULTRY PRODUCTION
Poultry anil e^RS have been from the first, for the most part
by-products of general a,nTi<'u]ture. It was not until loiiK
after most of the present-day industries which emanated
from the farm had become fairly well established that
poultry raising with its associated industries began to be
accounted an industry and recognized as of any commercial
importance.
This was largely due to two associated causes. The first
was the high ])erishability of both poultry and eggs and the
second the poor means of transportation in early days.
Commercially the poultry industry as a whole is dependent
upon present-day improved transportation facilities, and
the history of its development has very largely paralleled
the history of the development of the modern common car-
riers and advanced with the improvement of refrigerator
cars. It was not until about ISC!) when the refrigerator
was first l>rought into use for long distance hauling, that
means were afforded from
for transporting poultry products
the farm to distant and jiroduction, Ijeyond that
cities
demanded by home needs, became an ol)ject and poultry a
source of any considerable money income.
Present Organization of the Poultry Industry. The
poultry industry is at present made up of several more or
less clearly defined coordinate industries which have to do
with growing and marketing poultry and poultry products.
Taking their names from the respective industries in which
tliey are employed, the persons engaged in the poultry
industry as a whole may be designated as (!) production-
breeders; (2) fanciers and fancier-breeders; (o) producers;
(4) customs hatchers and baby chick dealers; (5) buyers,
(G) packt'rs and (7) distributers.
While this classification holds true,
it should be clearly
The Production-breeder. A breeder is one who seeks to
improve stock througli proper selection and mating. From
the standpoint of poultry production, with the exception of
ostriches, improvement refers to an increased efficiency in
tlie production of human food. A breeder whose primary
aim is to raise the food manufacturing efficiency of any
species of poultry may
for convenience be called a "produc-
tion breeder". A
comparatively small, but constantly grow-
ing number of breeders are turning their attention toward
production. Their principal function with regard to pro-
duction is to furnish the producer with breeding males of
standard varieties with which to improve his flocks whether
the flocks are mongrel or pure-bred. Pedigree breeding,
the only method by which prepotent males able to sire
eihclent producers can be produced, with any regularity is
out of reach of the producer, who must make his profit by
securing a narrow margin on many birds, rather than a wide
one on a few. The true breeder is a producer in the very
best and highest sense. The producer can follow only as far
as the breeder leads the way.
Fanciers and Fancier-breeders. The term "fancier" refers
to one who keeps poultry for pleasure rather than for the
production of food, while a "fancier-breeder" is one who
breeds poultry for fanciers. At the present time the fancier-
breeders as far outnumber the production-breeders as the
fanciers are outnumbered hy producers.
The preponderance of fancier-breeders over production-
breeders is largely due to three causes. The first is the
elaborate poultry show system in vogue in this country, the
second is the lack of anything like the general adoption of a
merit system in the purchase of farm poultry products, and
the third is a profound ignorance of the laws of productive
breeding.
The poultry show system of America is more complete
than for any other line of live stock. Nearly every city
(and ^ery many of the towns and villages), throughout the
United States and Canada has its annual poultry show, at
which the fanciers from a greater or less range of surrounding
territory exhibit their birds in competition for premiums.
POULTRY PRODUCTION AND POULTRY INDUSTRY 31
' Formerly with tlie Burt.Tu uf Animal Industry. United States Depart-
ment of Agriculture.
-
Principles and Practice nl Poultry Cullure.
' Productive Poultry Husbandrw
POl'!TRY PRODUCTION AND POULTRY INDUSTRY 33
esgs lor the fancy New York market. The Little Coinpton
district of Rlio(le
Island produces brown CKgs fur the New
Fig. 2
Live poultry going to llic marliet. These l.irds would bring more money
ifthey were all alike. An opportunity for community breedmg. (Courtesy
of United States Department of Agriculture.)
Fig. 4
m^^
r^ x^\ n i^?i
The " chirknri-lKtiise" of a Western poultry-packing establishment, given
over entirelj' to milk-feeding and dressing chickens. (Courtesy of Seymour
Pacldng Company.)
ill value, from \ cry many farms wliosc aA'cra<;;e yearly sales
])n>Iial)ly amount to a. f<'\v liundred dollars at nntst. As
indicated in Figiu-e (i, buyer ma>- be any one
tlie original
of several classes of dealers, or the goods may pass through
the iiands of three clashes of buyers before the work of
distribution is begun.
f^'RODC/CER
T
/^^Cy^/EjC?
iyOS0/=?
/~/0 T-.'Z/.. S
/=?7-^/^^/^
CO/ySC/M'/?
Showing routes by which poultry products reach the coiiauiiicr fronj the
producer
Fig. 8
'
Principles and Practice of Poultry Culture.
40 POULTRY PRODUCTION
profit per bird in flocks abo\'e the average size was .SU.'JI),
while the average proflt per bird in flocks below the average
in size was $0.44.
Eight of the flocks were in close confinement and had no
range. The was
in this case $0.99, while
feed cost per bird
the feed cost for those having a limited range was $0.87
for the year. No statement is made of the feeding of these
flocks, and impossible to draw conclusions as to how
it is
rather from the fact that the farm fowls secured gleanings
from grain scattered at harvest and wasted or undigested
by li\'e stock, waste from the orchard and garden, ofl'al at
butchering time, abundant pasture, weed seeds and insects,
as well as sour or unused sweet milk.
During the same period the flock of a commercial poultry-
man residing in town, numbering 333, was kept at an
average feed cost of $0.81 per bird, and returned a profit
of $1.40 per bird. The average egg production was 141
eggs per bird. This egg production which is double that
secured in the flocks mentioned above is the result of greater
skill, better stock and equipment.
<
44 rOULTRY PRODUCTION
I I
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X' XO rr CO o
Ph I !^
O (M OOOO C- C
'
OOOOOOOOCC
C OO
CO t- lO CM -t^ CO CI
~
:2'
-P O to O
CO XO 00 O I- C I
'^ o
,- 5 tfj
"ol^
POULTRY PRODUCTION AND POULTRY INDUSTRY 45
'
Adapted from figures given in Jordon's Feeding of Farm Animals.
46 POULTRY PRODUCTION
Sd 24
Cheese . , ... .>,S 03 .
3.1 per cent (see Table I) hetweeii l'.)10 ami lOL'O, the farms
(leAdtinn' tlieir entire space to chu'k culture increased in
nninher and size. This was particnlai'ly true of certain of
the New England states. "There arc many jilants in tlie
eastern states prowinR from .5000 to 10,000 or lL',000 ducks a
year, a numher growing up to 20,0(10 ,and some with an
annual production of over ;")(), 000."' This has hecn carried
on a relatively large scale on Long Island since ])rior t<i INOO.
That this is possible is largely due to the comparati\el\'
phlegmatic temperament of ducks, so that they are not so
quarrelsome as other sorts of poultry, coupled with their
lack of susce])tihility to disease arising from (ilth in tlicir
food or (jnartcrs.
'
Robinson, Principles an-l Prantirp of Ponltry Cnitnrp.
CHAPTER II.
BREEDS OF CHICKENS.
Fowl. When man lived in a primi-
Origin of the Domestic
and was a sa\age, all animals and birds were also wild
tive state
The first step in ad\'ance came when he began to realize
the value of wealth, to bring animals under control and
develop flocks and herds. He was still a wanderer and a
nomad. It was prolmbly not until the necessity of co-
operative effort in protecting his wealth against enemies,
coupled with the increasing population, forced him to take
up settled life in villages, that birds were domesticated.
Poultry production was from the first, as it is now, essentially
a home industry.
While appears likely that fowls were first captured for
it
Fig. S
'
Races of Donicsfir Poultry.
^ One breed
of ducks, the Muscovy, proViahly originnted in South America.
*Carver, Principles of Rural Economics.
'Principles and Practice of Poultry Culture.
BREEDS OF CHICKENS 53
as follows:
"A petition for recognition must be ])resented to the
American Poultry Association at an annual meeting at least
one year before the annual meeting at whic'h action upon the
application of the breed or variety is taken.
"The petition shall give:
"(a) The name of the breed or variety.
"(h) A description of the breed or variety
and all ascertain-
able facts regarding its and breeding; name and
origin
address of the originator and facts of an educational or
historical nature, all of which must be preserved among the
records of this Association.
"(c) Certificates of not less than five members of the
Association who are l)reeders of the breed or variety and who
have bred it for two years or more, certifying that it produces
not less than 50 per cent (jf specimens reasonably true to
type or variety.
BREEDS OF CHICKENS 57
Fig. 10
l-i.;. 11
the show room a disqualified bird is not allowed to compete for a premium.
60 POULTRY PRODUCTION
Fi.i. 12
[ P.arred
I
White
ltlf
I'U-ni(.uili Hi
-
SiKti- I'el.rille.i
]*;irtri<li;e
!
T'ohimblan
1 i'.lue
Silver
Golden
"White
Buff
Wyanflotto J
I
Black
I. American Partridge
I
[Silver Peneillod
|Columf)ian
f Black
Java
\ Mottled
Dominique U(jse Comb
r Single fonili
Rhode Lslainl Re,l
Ifose (_'omb
I
/ Light
Brahma
\Dark:
fBuff
I Partridge
II. Asiatic Cochin
I
White
[ Black
/Black
Laiigshau
I White
T^
Dark],
JSingle Comb Brown
T^ ,
Comb Brown
}Rose
DarkJ
Single Comb White
Legliorn Rose Comb White
Single Comb Buff
Rose Comb Buff
Single Comb Black
Silver
Red Pyle
III. Mediterranean
Single Comb Black
Rose Comb Black
Minorca Single Comb White
Rose Comb White
Single Comb Buff
[
Single Comb Buff
Orpington
ISingle Comb Black
IV. English Single Comb White
[Single Comb Blue
Dark
Cornish White
White Laced Red
Sussex
/Red
\ Speckled
BREEDS OF CHICKENS 05
V. Polish
VI. Ham
VII. French
VIII. Continental
X. Oriental
m POULTRY PRODUCTION
Thp: Standakd Classes, Bi^eeds, and Vai:iI':tie.s (roiitinued).
Class.
BREEDS OF CHICKENS G7
Class.
68 POULTRY PRODUCTION
Fig. i:.
'
Races of Domcslic Poultry.
2 I'eiinsylvaiiia Bulielin No. S7.
"0 POULTRY PRODUCTION
Fio. ic
v^Kf -3:
FiQ. 17
Fig. is
ViQ. 19
Fig. 20
Fio. 21
^^\r ?
BREEDS OF CHICKENS 77
Fio. 24
Fig. 25
Fig.
nized in this country. Tiie Buffs and Wliites are by far the
most popular in America.
Aside from their averaging a pound heavier in weight,
and carrying the white skin and shanl^s so characteristic
of Enghsli breeds, tliey are quite similar in economic cjuali-
ties to our American breeds. In fact, they have been termed
"the English edition of the Ph'mouth Rock."
Choosing a Breed. So far as the production of meat and
eggs is concerned, it makes very little difference what shaped
comb hii'ds carry, (jr even what the variety color or breed
type is. The real choice is not between breeds but between
classes. If eggs are the product of prime interest a Medi-
terranean breed will naturally be chosen. They are great
rustlers, capable of keeping out of the way of chicken-eating
hogs. They are somewhat difiicult of control under general
farm conditions, however, and do not furnish as attractive
;iiid sizable a, carcass as some of the other classes.
(84)
77/7? BREEDING OF CHICKENS 85
Fi.
spread out bencatli the ovary in such a way that the mouth
of the tube faces the ovary. Tlie mutual relations of the
abdominal viscera are such as to virtually form a pocket in
which the o^ary lies. This walling ofl:' of the o\ary is of
such a character as to tend mechanically to direct detaclied
ova to the mouth of the oviduct." There is no organic
'
Maine Bulletin No. 205. Iblel., No. 176.
86 POULTRY PRODUCTION
Fio.
The oviduct of a hen in full laying, shon-ing the funnel at flic upper part
of the photograph. (Courtesy of Raymond Pearl)
'
Development of the Chick. '
Maine Bulletin No. 206.
' Lihie's description in "The Development of the Chick" is followed.
THE BREEDING OF CHICKENS 87
enters the egg in this -way it is much more fluid than the tliin
albumen of the laid egg. The fluid albumen added in this
'
Pearl and Curtis, .Journal Experimental Zuolngy, vol. xii, No. 1.
- Lillie. Tire Development of the Cliiek.
'
Rettf;er, Storra Bulletin No. 75.
THE BREEDING OF CHICKENS S9
the thin layer of the laid egg. The thhi albumen lajer, how-
ever, does not owe its existence in any sense to this dilution
factor, but to a definite secretion of a thin allnmien by the
glands of the isthmus and uterus. The addition of albumen
to the egg is comi)leted only after it has been in the uterus
'
Pearl and Curtis, Jourzial Experimeotal Zooloiiy, vol. xii. No. 1
- Jour. Am. As?n. Inst, and In\-('st. in I'oul. Hu^li., v(.i. lii. No. 9.
Fi.;. 31
THE BREEDING OF CHICKENS \y.\
Fk:.
Fia. 33
^ __ -'is--'
'"-'li^MSf
Fig
Making Capons.'
"Caponizing
is a simple operation. Any
careful person can soon learn to do it successfully. The
fact that a. bird's testicles are hidden away inside the bod\'
has caused most people to suppose that the operatiiin of
removing them is at once difheult and dangerous While
the percentage of loss is somewhat larger than results from
the castration of the larger animals, it need not run much,
if any, abo\'e 5 per cent for the begimier. (hw of the reasons
whv the uiunber is as large as it is, may be that the bird
'
Lippincott, Kan iil.ar No.
TII1<: BREEDING OF CHICKENS 07
Fig. 3.5
Fig. 37
Locating the last two ribs and making the incision. (Courtesy of Kansas
Agricultural Experiment Station.)
waiiteil is something that wiU bold the Iiinl tiniily and well
stretched ont, at a coinenient height. The hird is usually
Fig. 3S
THE BREEDING OF CHICKENS 101
Fig. 39
ViT'
iK
k9> t3l^
Tearing awaj' the iiiemlDranes. (Courte-s^' of Jv: :l^ A.^I li'illl LHal
Experiment Station.)
Figure 42.) Then pineh tlie skin with the thiniih ami fore-
finger to drive out as much blood as possible. Now make the
incision, being careful to follow the space between the riljs.
If the bird has been properly star\ed, there will be no danger
of cutting the intestines. The first incision net'd not be oxQV
a half-inch long. Then take the sjjreaders and insert as is
being done in Figure 38. Be sure to see that each hook of the
spreader is against a rib. Spread the incision as far as possible
Fig. 40
Fio 42
^^>' ^
"
In Figure 41 the si)oon forceps are grasi>iiig the testicle,
which is still in jjlace. The care with which the operator
grasps the organ without also grasi)ing the bloodvessel, or
the tissues surromuling it, constitutes the \\ hole trick of the
operation. Having grasped the testicle, twist the forceps
around a couple of times and pull them out quickly. Remove
the spreaders and allow the skin to cover the opening between
77/7? BREEDING OF CHICKENS 105
'
Maine Bulletin No. 168.
2 IVlaryland Bulletin No. 157.
3 Jour. Am. Assn. Inst, and Invest, in I'oul. Husb., vol. iv, No. 5.
THE BREEDING OF CHICKENS 107
^ O w o ^ o o
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cc CO ^-^ c-t> O CO o
C] CO Ol 'C C]
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Ci -^ 'C CI O
O -f' 'C ^ CI
v: cc c: y.
-^ -o -o ^^ o o
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c3
I
>
rUE BREEDING OF CHICKENS 109
BREEDING METHODS.
In general, breeding is carried on in the hope of securing
FiQ. 45
GRADING CHART
Fig. 4G.
Mongrel hens, mothers of puhets sho^\"n in Figure 47, ]>y a
S. C. W. Leghorn sire. Egg lecords and lines of descent are shown in
Table X\\ (Courtesy of Kansas Agricultural Experiment Station.)
Fig. 47
First generation of S. C. W. Leghorn grades. Daughters of
mongrels shown in Figure 46 by a S. C \V. Leghorn sire. Mothers of
pullets shown in Figure 48 by a S C. \\\ Leghr)rn sire. Lines of descent
and egg records are shown in Table X^'. (Cointes\' of Kansas Agricultural
L^.\periment Station.)
Fig. 48.
Second generation of S. C. W. Leglujrn grades. Daughters
of females shown in Figure 47 by a S. C. W. Leghorn sire. Mothers of
pullets shown in Figure 49 by a S. C. W. Leghorn sire. Lines of descent
and egg records shown in Table XV. (Courtesy of Kansas Agricultural
Experiment Station.)
Fig. 49.
Third generation of S. C. W. Leghorn grades. Daughters
of females shown in Figure 48 by a S. C. W. Leghorn sire. Lines of descent
and egg records are shown in Table XV. (Courtesy of Kansas Agricultural
Experiment Station.)
Fig. 46 \
Fi.'^. 47
IMI!.
f r, 49
iin POULTRY PRODUCTION
1^ t~ o
c^ O-? to
r^ rt ro
H -~
CD CO j^ to CO <;0 rO
O
^
--0 0^ Oi O
^^ =i "^^ '^'5
CO o
^"^
^"^
h -^
>
THE BREEDING OF CHICKENS 117
Fig. 50
FiQ. 53
CNPRATIOMS
Vvw fowls are fully fertile and fewer still are both fertile
Fig 54
Traii-iicsts. Mudelcd i>n tlic plan nl' the I'uram; iirst. Dm r in top
(ijiuns into wire receptacle for keeping eggs until collected for the (lay.
((.'curtesy of Kansas Agricultural Experiment Station )
with the aid of the trap nest, of the luiniher of the hen hiyiii:;
it,of so arranging tlie eggs in tlie incuhator liy means of
j)e(hgree travs, small eovered wire haskets, or saeks of nios-
Ki.
ti- '_i ^ 1 _- _
Fig. 57
Making (he incision for the wing b.ind in the web of the wing of a newly
hatched cliiclt, (Courtesy of Kansas Agricultural Experiment Station.)
Fiu. .58
Tig. .59
\\ingliaiiii ;i^ i1 appuar^ in 1 lir wiiii^ "I tlii' a<liilf lowl. li Ik ai> ilie }"car
date of hatching as wcH as tin; (--luck's niiiniirr. As if nanains in place
throughout life, Iho'aec n[ the lurd can al\va\s \n- Inld. (('(jurtcsy of
Kansas .Agriciiltuial I''xp(ainicnt Station.)
and the numbers of the chick's sire cand dam must I3C recorded.
For this purpose a printed form as illustrated in Figure 60
is most useful.
At the ujiper right hand corner of each sheet of this " Chick
and Mating Index" is entered the legband number of the sire
of all the chicks recorded on that sheet. The legband number
of the dam of each chick is recorded on the same line with
the chicks wingband number. These sheets therefore serve
not only as a record of the parentage of the chick, but of the
females nuitcd \\'ith any given sire, which produced offspring.
Tlii'v also give the exact date of hatching.
\\'hcu the chicks are mature enough to go into the laying
house or Ijreediiig pen, the\' are legbanded. \Vhile the wing-
baud remains in ]jlace thi-(.)Ughout life, it is covered by the
long feathers of a mature Ijird. The ]egl)and is resorted to
and should be jnit on upsiile down so that it may be easily
read in handling the bird without Inning to turn the latter
upside down. The legband muuber should be recorded on
the same line as the wingband number. The numbers on the
wing and legljands are not necessarily the same.
While the Chick and Mating Index gi\'cs all the facts
necessary for tracing a given bird's ancestry, it does not give
them in easily accessible form. I'or this pui'pose it is
desirable to have a second blank called the Mock Ureeding
Keeord, as shown in Figures (31 and (j2. In the columns
hea<led "Legband Number" are entered in serial order the
legband nimibers of all birds reaching maturity whether
the iu(ll\'iduals arc retained as layers or breeders, or sold for
breeding purposes. These numbers may run fi-om 1 to o()(H),
or 10, 000 anil even higher, dc]X'nding upon the t'xtcnt of the
breeding operations carried on. On the line with each leg-
band number and in the column headed "Mating Numl er"
is gi\-en the mating number of the individual represented.
H - Ci
^i ^
u
4^
4aL
^ ^1
-I cN ^
gi\'cii as 17iM207 because tlie sire is 17M and the clam is 207,
this information having been transferred to the Flock 15reed-
ing iiecord from a sheet of the Chick and Mating Index not
shown in the accompanying figures. If the numbers ran
higher and it was found tliat the mating number of 10,012
was 115M200(1 (Figure 01 lower left hand corner) the fact
would be clear that the sire of 10,012 was 115M and the dam
was 2006.
The Flock Breeding Record bears the same relation to the
flock of the individual breeder that the herdbook does to an
entire breed of cattle. It enables the breeder to readily trace
the ancestry of any individual in his flock back to the parents
of the individuals with which the record was first started.
Thus, whenit has been found that the sire of 10,012 is 11.5^1
and that the dam is 2000, it may be easily determined by
looking u]) 115AI in the Flock Breeding Iiecord (Figure 62)
that its sire and dam are 85M and .519 respectively. In
the same way it may be disco^'ered that the parents of 2006
are 85M and 505. She is therefore a half sister of her mate.
The further ancestry may be traced back to the first birds
recorded as shown in Figure 63.
When individual egg records (see Figure 64) are kejJt for
all females used as Ijreeders the nuiting members of the
* to
1
^?O
o
5 5
<
D
oc
O
o
lij
o
UJ
_J
<
D
o
>
Q
Z
a.
>
o
z
>
<
-J
132 poni/riiY PRODvcrioy!
Yu: r,-,
PURPOSE OF SELECTION.
The purpose of selection is to jjrevent the birth of indi-
viduals not suited for production. In pursuance of this
purpose the points to be selected for in the order of their
importance are (1) constitutional vigor and capacity, {2)
hatching power, (3) egg production, (4) longevity, (5) early
nuiturity, and (G) breed and varietal characteristics.
With the producer, from the nature of the case, selection
is confined to the first and the last three points. In most
cases it will be confined to the first and the last. For the
second and third he must depend upon the breeder. If
grading is carried on, selection so far as the producer's own
flock is concerned is further limited to females.
Constitutional Vigor and Capacity. Tlie appearance and
n;anifestation of maxuniun \igor and \italit\' can only be
present when all organs of the bod\' that ]ia\'e to do with
digestion, circulation, resi)iration, and the nervous system
which controls all, continuously perform tlieir full work.
Tliis maxhnum efficiency of all organs makes up constitution.
That constitutional vigor is the foundation of good i)r<j-
duetion cannot be o\"erem])Iiasi/,cd. The best inheritance
ct)nceivable, with regard to all otiier points of selection, is
useless unless there is physical stamina as a foundation.
Without it, inheritance is as heljjless as a dynamo that has
no conducting cable to coimect it with its motors. It is the
134 POULTRY PRODUCTION
of feed, beyond that needed for the hen herself. In the case
of persistent and continuous reproduction there must be a
very large excess.
In order to realize on an inherited tendency to quick
growth and early maturity', there must be good digestive
power to prepare for assimilation large amounts of materials,
Fi.i. 66
ShovviiiE the (lillurence in the olTapring of strong and weak hens. These
chicks had the same sire. (Courtesy of Kansas .^Ki'icultural Experiment
Station.)
Fig. 68
Single Comb White Legliorn laying 295 ey:j;3 in first la.\'iiij: ^'ear. Note
body capacity. (Courtesy of D. Tancred, Kent, Wash.)
Fig. 6!)
obvious.
Assuming good vigor, actual infertility, by which is meant
the lack of a vital union between the sperm and the ovum,
is usually caused by sterility, or aversion on the part of the
those inrlividiials which molt late in the fall also lay late and
usually lay more eggs during the year than the early niolters.
It is of course the female which combines the most of the
favorable factors mentioned above which makes the greatest
layer, other things being equal.
In sjiite of the great complexity of the ])roblem, as the result
of studies involving thirteen generations and several thousand
individuals of the Barred Plymouth liock breed, Pearl' was
able to reach rather definite conclusions concerning the
result of selecting for egg production.
Fi.i. 70
Showing the difference in Ijarring of Plymouth Rocks that are full brother
and sister. (Courtesy of Kansas Agricultural Experiment Station.)
and dam, while the female inherits it only from her sire.
A summary of Pearl's conclusions' are as follows:
1. "The
record of fecundity of a hen taken by and of
itself alone gives no definite reliable indication from which
the probable egg production of her daughters may be pre-
dicted. Furthermore, mass selection on tlie basis of fecundity
records of females alone, even though long continued and
stringent in character, failed completely to produce any
steady change in type in the direction of selection.
2. "High fecundity may be inherited by daughters from
their sire independent of the dam. This is proved by the
numerous cases . .where the same proportion of
.
1 Jour. Am. Assn. Inst, and Invent, in Poul. Husb., vol. v, No. \0
2 Kansas Bulletin No. 223. 'Loo. cit.
THE BREEDING OF CHICKENS 147
May
June
.,,,..
.
....
, , . .
50.0
41.
15.50
12.54
.July 34.7 10.75
August , .... 24. 1 747
September 19. 5 73
..,.,, . , . I
October 11.1 3 44
110.03
' New Jersey Bulletin, No. 329.
148 POULTRY PRODUCTION
Lewis' lias also calciilatoil tlie average p*-'i' t'ciit egi;' produc-
tion for earh month from the records of all the laying contests
in American during the years 1912 to llUO, inclusive. The
result of his calculationis shown in Tahle X\ III.
TABL^;X^1II, The Average Per Cent of Perfect I'iioduction Duking
THE Diiieue.\t Mo\ths OF THE Ye\hs 1912 TO lyiS IxiLr^^IVK FOR
All of the Layi.\g Contests in A-meuica. (Piust Laving ear (.InlyJ 'i
THE BREEDING OF CHICKENS 149
not laying.
The eye-ring formed by the iimcr edges of the c> e-lids
loses its pigment a trifle slower than the A'ent. The earlobes
of the Mediterranean breeds bleach out somewhat n:ore
slowly than the e>'e-ring so that in these breeds a white ear-
lobe on a vigorous liird usually' means that kn ing has been in
progress longer than does a bleached vent or eyelid.
The color disappears from the beak beginning at the base
and remaining longest at the ti]). The lower beak bleaches
more rapidl>' than the upper one. AVith the a\eragc yellow
skinned bird a bleached beak means that la\ing has been
in progress for from four to six weeks.
The shanks are tlie last to lose their <-olor. iilcaclicd
shanks therefore indicate a much longer period of ])roducti<in
than does the Ijleaeliing of the other parts. The ])igment
disappears from the front of the shank first and finally from
the l)ack. A bleached shank usually indicates a, continued
egg production for at least fifteen to twenty weeks.
White I.K.niuux Hk\s Ski.kctkd (iv the \sls of Vext, Beak and 1'.
Color Shanks.
class.
Pale
Mclniiii
\'rll..w in:;
ICiilire ilock
THE BHEEDINO OF CIIICKENH Ml
the alidomen used m> Ijy laviiit;', so that tht' alxhnniiia.l sl^ill
is
Projicr way to hold a hen for tiiiding the distance between the pelvic bones.
(Courtesy of T. S. T(vn.sley, Uniyersity of Missouri.)
Fig.
Shuwiiiy the way to fiml tlie dist;ance from the pe-Uic iHinc-i to thi
Courtesy of T. S. TowiKsley, Urii\ersily (if .Mi-s.juii.)
o
154 POULTRY I'liODCCTlOS
\ ^ '?
^
*(,-" v-^i-i '*-
^ >*.wiftt Iv. Jd'^ y
'^'"-* .^-,
Fig. 74
,-00 2-0'-' -
Two 4 51rdp
I
IS'
:*;jiM,t
^it
;h
Zl
nr
%
ML J ^-
P2
a "^
IT-
THE BREEDING OF CHICKENS 157
Fi,
A common (lip iK't is vciy convenient I'or caLching single birds. [( 'oiirtesy
of Kansas Agricultural Exijcriment Station.)
Comfort and Egg Production. There is a very direct
connection between the functioning of the reprijductive
apparatus and the comfort of the hen. This is to be expected,
for it is the law of the field and of the breeding pen that
organisms reproduce themselves most often when the con-
ditions are most fa\'orable for the race. Egg protluction is
reproduction. The happy hen is the laying lien. Fright;
improper food; damp, cold, or excessively hot weather;
the irritation of vermin; too close confinement; or an\' otlier
15S POULTRY PRODUCTION
Fig. 77
FiG. 7s
S.C. \V. Letliorn, Kansas AS, nith a fiiurth-.viMr laying recmd of 22('i of;g
Note button leg band whoso numlier can he seen for some distance.
(Courtesy of Kansas Agricultuial Experiment Station.)
Fia. 79
RIGHT LEFT
11
102 POULTRY PRODUCTION
the chicks were smaller when they were hatched, grew more
slowly, and more them died from chick diseases than was
of
the case with chicks hatched from eggs laid by the mature
fowls."
Table XXI."
Hens. Pullets.
Total number of egga incubated
less those cracked in turning 1094.00 871.00
Average weight of eggs per hundrerl 12.96 pounds 11.19 pounds
Total number of chicks 840.00 591,00
Per cent hatched of eggs incubated 76.7 67.8
Average weight of chicks per
hundred when removed from
incub;itor . . . . 8.28 pounds 7. 12 pounds
Average weight of chicks at second
weighing, per hundred 29.56 pounds 23.07 pounds
Total number of recorded deaths 42,00 85.00
Per cent, of chicks which died 5.00 14.5
Fir,. SO
HO
z
o
I- 51)
u
:d
o -1"
z
LU
"JO
cr
UJ
10
0-
THE BREEDING OF CHICKENS 163
Fig. 81
70
GO
z:
o
h60
o
40
h30
Oo,
20
J
"10
104 POULTRY PllODUCTION
Iiiniswere used, never less than ten montlis (if aire and from
that np to fourteen months. Stewart and Atwood, on the
other hand, refer to their pullets as early hatched. I'he
three-year-old hens, they state, were st'leeted on the liasis of
vi,i;-or. It is ([uite e\-ideiit that there is need for more exteii-
5\\Q records from all the breeds than is now availahlc.
' .J'jLir. Am. As^n. Iii^t, and Iinr^t in I'oul Husli., No. .'),
vol iii.
2 Utah Bulletui, No. 14s.
^ Cornell Countryman, March, 1913
THE BREEDING OF CHICKENS 1G7
Average
Grouped Average Average Average
,
'
151-
168 POULTRY PRODUCTION
MANAGEMENT OF BREEDERS.
The aim in the management of breeding stock is to secure
a maximum of thrifty chicks. It involves the feeding, housing,
incubating, and rearing of the stock intended for breeding
purposes as well as the (juestions of exercise, the number of
hens to be mated with one male, care of the breeding male,
and the forcing of breeding hens for egg production. The
more general (luestions of feeding, housing, incubating, and
brooding are ap])licable to laying stock as well, and arc treated
in chapters bearing these headings res]3cctively. These further
questions concerning breeders specifically are important and
should be given due consideration.
Exercise. The relation between the activity of a bird and
his or her breeding ])ower is very marked. This is witnessed
by the fact that in the breeds that are naturally very active,
more females may be mateil with a single male with good
results than in the less active l)reeds. Those breeds that
are not naturally rustlers must be encouraged to exercise
freely. The free range ollVrs the ideal op])ortunity, of which
vigorous birds of any but the heav-iest and most iihlegniatic
breeds will not be slow to take advantage. If free range
is not available, the birds mu.st lie compelled to exercise
THE BREEDING OF CHICKENS 109
Alternating Males.
Two practices resorted to for tlie pur-
pose of securing good fertility with as few males as possible
are the alternating of males and stud-breeding. With the
former, twice the number of hens that would ordinarily be
mated with one bird are confined in a single pen. With these
two males are used, but on alternate days. One is allowed
to run with the hens for twenty-four hours while the other
is confined to a coop. The following day an exchange is
made and the second male is gi\en the freedom of the flock,
while the first one is confined.
The theory of this practice is based on the supposition of
favoritism on the part of males. It is generally believed
that there are certain hens in most breeding fiocks that are
slighted by the male. By alternating males it is hoped that
if favoritism is shown it will not be to the same hens.
'
Jour.Am. ami Invest, in I'oul. Huslj.,
Assii. Inst, \'i)l. v, No. !.
Fin. H'2
blasfoclerm
cuticle
shell
\.^oul('r-sheJ/ rnmiirdne
^rcell
i_ chalaza
inner shell membrane
^.^dense ivhile
liquid v.hife
dark yolk
L iK^ht Ljolk
vitelline membrane
Farts (if an e^
12
178 POULTRY PIlODlCrlON
Fig. S3
Fig. 84
Ill an iiK.'iiSat'
Slali.iii )
aiiii'les to the long axis of the whole egg, the anterior end of
the enihryo direeted to the left when the sharp end of the egg
is held ])oiiiting away from the <)l)ser\er."'
Via. S6
Fig. 89
Fig. 00
Embryo chick, fijrty-eiglit hours ohi, with the Ijeart located outside the
body, IMagnified. (Courtesy of Iowa 7\^riciibural Experirnont Station.)
Fig. 91
When formed the chick is placed in the egg with its head
L)ent forward beneath the right wing and the legs brought up
toward the head. The end of the ui)per mandible of the beak
is equipped with a horny cap which bears a sharp point, and
l)ath around the large end of the egg, at the same time
Jour. Am. A.san. Inst, and Lue.st. in foul. IIuslj., vol. vi, No. 2.
THE INCUBATION OF HENS' EGGS 187
Fig. \)2
Fig. 93
muscle system
off this is ]ii-(>l);ilil\' aropiratory reflex, not
dependent on demand lor o\\-,n'en, l>ut dependent on disten-
EmVjriO chick, iuu<1\-.-i\ li'ims did, Mm' wihl^ ami Icl; Ihi'U ciw] lli^- rail
fold showing plainly. The liruil i^ .si ill loi-aii'd cii[|.,iile the limly. ^C'ol^tcsy
of Iowa Agricultural l^xpri imrnl ShLtidii.)
'/)
101) POULTRY PRODUCTION
'
West Virginia Circular, No. 2.5. 3 Purdue Bulletin,
No. 19U.
THE INCUBATION OF HENS' EGGS 101
males in the long run give about 50 per cent females, and
that the short, round eggs supposed to produce a preponder-
ance of females, when hatched in large numbers produce a
little above or below 50 per cent of males.
Time of
Holding Hatching Eggs. Holding eggs for incuba-
ting purposes is a necessary evil to be practised as little as
Per
Cent
70
G5
GO
bL>
Id
3&
30
2S
ao
15
10
194 POULTRY PRODUCTION
12.5 per cent more vigorous chicks, than tlie washed eggs.
Where eggs are broken in a nest and their contents smeared
over other eggs in the nest, it is very likely to prevent the
latter from hatching. In this case, washing appears to be
the lesser of two evils.
In cases where it seems advisable to disinfect hatching
eggs, they should be dipped, instead of sponged or washed,
and allowed to dry without being rubbed.
Resting Shipped Eggs.
Persons shipping eggs any distance
for hatching, frequently furnish instructions to the effect
that the eggs are to be unpacked, placed in a normal position
on their sides, and rested twenty-four hours before setting,
for the purpose of allowing the germ to resume its normal
position at the uppermost point of the yolk. Such resting
does no harm beyond increasing the holding period by so
long, but it remains to be proved that the eggs cannot rest
just as successfully in an incubator or under a hen as in
any other place.
Apparently the only data on this point are those given by
Gowell- who shipped two similar lots of eggs a distance of
514 miles. From the lot of 65 eggs which were rested twenty-
fovir hours, 15 chicks were secured, while from the other lot
put immediately into the incubator 22 chides were obtained.
The numbers are too small to be conclusive but there ap-
peared to be no marked advantage at least, in resting the
eggs.
Warming Hatching Eggs. Under natural conditions all
eggs but the one laid last are of necessity held for hatching
for a longer or shorter time. Jackson^ observed that very
often the oldest egg in a clutch was frequently the first to
hatch. He further noted the fact that in lajing, the average
time spent on the nest was approximatel_y sixty minutes.
As a result of two j-ears' work, he found that by placing
eggs, being held for hatching for a consideratile time, under
has been strong and vigorous for years and without serious
outbreak of disease of any kind. It should be recognized as
simply a precautionary measure to eliminate any disease
germs that may be on the outside of the egg, and not in any
measure a sure preventive of chick diseases.
Incubation Periods.
The number of days necessary for
the incubation of the eggs of the various species of poultry
are as follows: chickens, varying from 19 for light breeds to
21 for heavy Ijreeds; turkey 28, varying from 20 to 30; all
ducks except the Muscovy 28, varying from 2() to 32; Mus-
covy ducks 33 to 35; goose 30, varying from 27 to 33; guinea,
varying from 26 to 30, and pigeon 17 from tlie day tlie second
egg is laid, but varying at times from 1(> to 20 days.
Relative Hatching Efficiency of Hens and Incubators. The
time has passed when the cjuestion of the desirability of
having an incubator on a farm where upward of one hundred
and fifty chickens are raised annually is any more debatable
than the desirability of having a cream separator, seed
tester, or any similar piece of modern farm equipment.
Hens are uncertain hatchers. Broodiness depends very much
upon the season and the condition of the hens. A late spring
means late laying, late setting,' and hatching. The time of
hatching determines C(uite largely whether jjuUets are in
laying condition by the following winter. And further, it
is usually difficult to secure enough broody hens at one time
"For more than ten years past all chicks in the Maine
Experiment Station's poultry plant have been hatched in
incubators. There has yet to appear any reason for going
back to the old system of hatching with hens."
Payne/ on the other hand, found in contrasting natural
and artificial incubation that several interesting differences
occur. The incubator according to his data appears to be
more efficient than the hen during the first week of incubation,
judged by the number of embryos dying, but is conspicuously
inferior during the last week.
Natural Incubation. The principles involved in natural and
artificialhatching are the same. While the effort in artificial
hatching is to furnish the conditions found in nature, it should
be recognized that nature rarely furnishes optimum degrees
of all conditions at the same time. Recognizing the proper
conditions of successful hatching, one may assist nature in
combining all conditions at their best.
Kind of Hen to Set. The best hens for setting are those of
medium weight, such as are found among the American and
English breeds. They are fairly persistent setters, but are
not so heavy as to be clumsy, nor so heavily feathered as to
make the eradication of vermin difficult. The Asiatic breeds
are very persistent setters, but are so heavy and clumsy that
the loss of eggs from breakage is considerable. Their long,
heavy feathers furnish a safe harbor for lice.
The Mediterranean breeds seldom become broody. Such
individuals as do take to the nest are unreliable and likely
to leave it permanently with little or no provocation.
The Hatching Nest. The nest for hatching should be
roomy and secluded, and placed where it is cool and the
ventilation good. It should be at least sixteen inches square
by six inches deep, and placed where the hen will not need to
fly or jump into it. If placed on the fioor there is little danger
of broken eggs if the nest is made right.
The nesting material should be of such consistency that it
will neither pack, as does dirt, sawdust, or planer shavings,
nor become tangled with the hen's feet so that she is likely to
1 Jour. Am. Inst. Assii. and ln\L'.st. in Puul. Huslj., vol. \ i, No. 2.
THE INCUBATION OF HENS EGGS 109
eggs, and the ])rocess re])cated at the end of the first and
second weeks of the incultating i)criod. It is unsafe to dust
the hens just before hatching because some of the commeri'ial
powders are of such strength that they will kill chicks under
a week old.
Care should l)e taken to be particularly thorough in w'orking
the powder well into the feathers, under the wings, and the
fluff around the vent. These are the regions which usually
show the heaviest infestation.
It is always a safe precaution to grease tlie heads of hen-
hatched chicks with lard, in order to preclude the possibility
of head lice.
Isis. The methods used from the earhest times are still in
use.
The firs-t account of these methods is given in The Voiage
and Travaile of Sir John Maundeville, Kt., written before
1356 A.D. A Frenchman, Reaumur, in a treatise on The
Art of Hatching and Bringing np Domestic Fowls, published
in 1750, gives a detailed description of the Egyptian incuba-
tory, which tallies ciuite closely with that of the United
States Consul-Cieneral Cardwell, of Cairo, made in 1890.
Fig. 97
basis. From the fact that two chicks are usually expected
from three eggs, this method is evidently fairly satisfactory.
Incubator Sizes.
Most farm incubators range in capacity
from fifty eggs to four hundred and fifty. The sizes ranging
between one hundred and fifty and two hundred egg capacity
have trays that may be conveniently handled and are not
so large as to have great dilferences in tem])eratnre between
opposite sides or corners of the egg chamber.
Where the capacity runs much above three hundred lliere
rilE INCUBATION OF HENS' EGGS 205
Table XXVIII.
2 i
3
I
THE INCUBATION OF HENS' EGGS 207
Table XXIX.
Hon 102.2;103.0 103.5 104.0 103. S 10.5.0 104,6 104.5 105.0 105.0
Egg 98.0100. 2 100.5 100.5 100.4 101.0 101.8 102,5 101. C 102,0
16 IS
Hen 104.8 105.2 104.5 105.0 105.2 105.0 104 104.8 104,5 104.5
Egg 101.8 102.2 102.0 102,5 102,0 103.0 102 4 103,0 103,0 103.0
XXX.
Table XXX.
Inc'b 102.0 102.0 103,0 102,0102.5 103,0 102,5 102,0 103.0 103.5
Egg 99.5 100.0 101,0 100,5 100.5 101,0 100,0 100,0 101.0 101 5
Iiio'b ,103.0 103.5 104.0 103.5 104.0 104.5 104.0 103.5 104.0 104 5
l']gg 101.5 101.8il02,0 102.5 103.0 10,3.0 103,0 102,.''- 102 5 103,5
' ,Jour. Aru. Assn. Inst, and In\cst. in Fowl llusb , \ol. i\-, No. i).
14
210 POULTRY PRODUCTION
Fig. 100
19
18
]7
16
15
14
13
12
11
JBATINC; WITH AND
THE INCUBATION OF HENS' EGGS 2]?>
'
Utah Bulletin No. 102.
^Poultry Management at the Main Statiuu, lUl.'i.
' Utah Biillelin, No. 92.
THE INCUBATION OF HENS' EGGS 215
growth
Eycleshymer^ took two incubators having similar venti-
lating systems, which were believed to be inadequate. One
was left as it was. The other was provided with two one-inch
intake pipes which extended outside the building, and were
so arranged that there was a continuous current of fresh
air passing into the egg chamber. Eggs from the same hens
were placed in each machine. The former hatched 44.3
per cent of fertile eggs while the latter hatched 85.7 per cent.
\Vhile the foregoing shows unmistakably that there is a
ventilation problem it does not solve it. Common expe-
rience rather than experimental evidence must be depended
on in formulating our practice in ventilation. This is done
in the suggested routine of management (see page 2l'5).
Position of the Egg.
It is generally understood among
poultrymen that the position of the egg during the period
of incubation has a profound inlhience upon the development
of the chick. It is a matter of common knowledge that the
head of the chick normally develoi)s at the large end of the
egg. As a usual thing, both in the nest and in the incubator,
the large end of the egg is uppermost. This is due to the
shape of the egg itself and possiL>ly by the lessening of the
specific gra\'ity of the large end as incubation proceeds, due
to the increasing size of the air cell.
reaches under her body and rearranges the eggs with her
lieak. i'ayue's'' recent obscr\'a,tions of setting ht'iis in glass
nests ha\-e shown that the eggs wei'e turned at least e\'ery
July
220 POULTRY Ph'ODrCTlOX
111 luitclies aA'fr;i,n'iiig aliout 50 ])ct i-ciit (if lutal ru.i;^ srt,
(irst thirteen days of inculiation and alxjiit CiO ])er cent die
between tlie fdurteentli and twent\"-iirst da\^ imdusixe.
Vl<:. 101
rilE INCUBATION OF HKNS' EGOS 221
Fiu. 102
Fi.;. nirt
When the play has been taken up and the damper raised,
the thumb-nut should be cautiously loosened, the amount
being governed by the rise in temperature necessary to bring
it to 101 F. on a level with the top of the eggs. When this
temperature is reached the flame should be so adjusted that
the temperature will be maintained with the damper disk
hanging an eighth of an inch above the heater. This allows
a reserve of heat for the regulator to make use of in case of
a drop in the incubator-room temperature. This condition
should be maintained for at least twenty-four hours before
putting in the eggs, in order to make sure that everything is in
good running order. The eggs should then be put in and the
incubator left closed for two days.
224 POULTRY PRODUCTION
'
West Virginia Bulletin No. 98.
THE INCUBATION OF HENS' EGGS 225
bloodvessels its legs. The live germ floats about freely in the
contents of the egg when the egg is rotated before the tester.
The dead germ may be recognized by the absence of the
bloodvessels, its adhering to the shell, or by the cjuite typical
pink ring surrounding it which is called the blood ring.
The second test is commonly made at the end of the second
week. If the first has been accurately done there will be
104
A
lamp tester. Tliere are many styles of testers but all wi.rk on the
principle of shutting off all light from the eye except that which passes
through the egg, thereby showing whether (here is a live embryo or not.
only dead germs to test out. The live embryo at this time
appears to nearly fill the egg. In the one or two light spaces
which are usually present, bloodvessels will l)e noticed and the
embryo chick will frefpiently be seen to move when the eo-o-
is rotated.
The dead germs may vary in appearance from typical
blood rings to embryo chicks of nearly normal size." The
THE INCUBATION OF HENS' EGGS 227
Fio. lor,
Fi(i. 106
tected a wire screen that the chicks cannot get into them),
liy
and the aj)ertin-e through which the chicks drop down into
the ntu'sery, opened. The incubator should then )je closed
and left closed until the hatch is well over. The temperature
should be carefully watched at this time, because the heat
generated by the struggling chicks is often sufficient to
raise the temperature beyond the limit of the regulator's
ability to act. It should not be allowed to run above 105 F.
Fig. 107
After a normal run the hatch will be well over by the end of
the twentieth day in the case of eggs from iNIediterranean
breeds, and the twenty-first day in the case of the American
breeds. With the Asiatics it frecpiently takes eight to
twelve hours longer. If the temperature runs low the hatch
will be delayed, and if it runs high it will be hastened. When
the hatch is well over, the egg trays should be remo\'ed and
the shells and unhatched eggs burned.
THE INCUBATION OF HENS' EGGS 22!)
Natural Brooding. The essentials of natural brooding are
comparatively few. They consist of a quiet, motherly, broody
Fig. 108
hen or capon, some sort of cooj) that will protect the niuthcr
and clii<-ks from the weather and from enemies, and a fair-
sized, grassv, shady range.
( 2M )
2:!2 POULTRY PRODUCTION
hens which are best for setting will usually lie found
Tlicise
to make the l)est mothers. The coop may be of almost any
size and shape. The " A" shaped coops with a small protected
run sliown in Figure 109 will be found con^enient, serviceable,
and inex])ensive.
Ca])ons are sometimes used as mothers, but are more of
a curiosity than a success. In inducing them to take
the chicks, confine them in a roomy nest box with a
low roof and place the chicks under them at dusk. If on
examination in the morning it is found that the capon
Fig. Ill
Temperature. There no general agreement among
is
'
'%
Slmwiiig method of conducting fumes out-of-doors from a portable hover,
(Courtesy of Cyphers Incubator Company.)
Fig. nS
Larjj;e rulou^' liiooder, coal hcMtcl, ( 'apacity 500 chicks. (Coiirf 'sx' of
Kafisa.s Agriciiidiral ]^x|iorimcnt Station.)
Kic
Front view
Plan of colony Ijrooder house. (Courtesy of Missouri Agricultural
Experiment Station.)
I'l.;. 117
Cross section
]M;iii of (o]l,n^ liror-drr lirniso. (( 'ciiilrsy of Miss'iiiii Alo iculturnl
l'"\l>iTiliiflil Si ;ili()li )
run out in quite cold weather, provided they can get warm
quickly whenever they desire. Even after all artificial heat
Fid. lis
Floor plan
Plan of colriny brooder house. (Courtesy of Missouri Agricultural
Experiment Station.)
has been done away with, and the chicks well feathered, the
brooding apparatus should be held in readiness against
240 POULTRY PRODl'CTION
I-'i.;. 119
is to he ke])t sweet.
Darkness. "Forthe very hest results the liovcr should
he at least partially darkened. The reason for this is e^ident.
Not only does tlie chick normally seem to enjoy seclusion,
hut when anytliing occurs to frighten him the first thhig he
wants to do is to get out of siglit. In natural hrooding he
THE B HOODING OF CHICKS 243
mom for the cliicks, and ((\) protection asi'ainst their enemies.
To this should be added that abundant shade is a necessity
as soon as the chicks arc out of doors.
Preparing for the Chicks. A brooder whicli has ever, at
any time, been used, should be carefully cleaned and thor-
oughly disinfected in every part, including the thermometer,
drinking fountains, and feed troughs, before attempting to
brood a new group of chicks. The house in which it is
located (in the case of an indoor brooder) should receive
the same treatment.
It should then be leveled and the heater started. A new
machine, or one with which tiie operator is not familiar,
should be recpiired to hold a fairly uniform temperature
of 100 for at least two days before trusting chirks to it.
The floor beneath and surrounding the ho\-er should be
covered with a fine litter of some such digestible material as
fine-cut alfalfa or clover. Where indigestible material is
used, such as chaff, cut straw, sand, and the like, there is
Fig. 122
Fio. 124
The necessity
constant watching during the early
for
weeks is fortunately made
possible by the frequent feeding,
wiiieh is an essential of good feeding practice for little eliicks.
It is considered good practice to get the cliicks out onto tiie
ground just as soon as possible. This may be done as soon
as they have the hover sutficiently well located so that they
may be allowed some distance away from it with reasonable
assurance that they will come back to it when they feel cool.
It will be sooner with some bunches than with others.
FiQ. VI--,
'
Races of Domestic Poultry.
(240)
250 POULTRY PRODUCTION
Fiu. 126
A simple and der\'icfaliU.' house nia,\' l>e inaili.' [rniji piano hoxcs. (Courtesy
of Kansas Ai^ricuil ural Kxi)eiinient Stati'jn.)
Fifi. IL'7
I'l^
v^-5^ gj ' ^
,
if
1!D .4...
54 B^C-1*:_ <
'J^^'-^
Fig. 129
'Ja&w- j,^.^.
-i ~i -J _J b'
A cliickon house urar a corn lif.'ld is i^'n\ fi.ir t)ic corn aiiil a^ofnl i>>v ihe
cliickcns. (.Courtesy of Turdue Ai^ricultura! Experinieut Station.)
HOUSING AND HYGIENE 253
Air Drainage.
Poultry liouses are sometimes placed on
low ground Ijecause of the shelter afforded by the higher
ground, or for reasons of convenience. Cold, damp air
settles in low places and frosts appear there earlier in the
fall and later in the spring than on the surrounding higher
131
A comfortaljle liuuse witli a iiriard, glass, and muslin front, cuvered with
straw. (Courtesy oi Reliai^le Poultr3' Journal.)
Fig. 132
* Phj'sics of Agriculture.
HOUSING AND HYGIENE 259
Fig. 134
Fig. 13o
MakinH a noiiil pniiltry liouse out of a poor one (FiKure 134) l>y providing
ventilation by means of a cloth-curtain window and a straw loft.
Cow 2804
Horse . 3401
Hen 8278
'
Physics of Agriculture.
260 POULTRY PRODUCTION
of eggs were verj' much better when tlie breeding was done
in a curtain-front house, whicli furnished an abundance of
fresh, pure air, than when it was done in what was formerly
considered to be a highly desirable type of heated house with-
out curtain front, but with a supposedly adequate system of
indirect ventilation.
Ventilation and Drafts.
It is difficult to so house fowls that
they will have as full advantage of fresh air as they have in
the tree and at the same time be protected from drafts.
While a fowl can roost all night in a tree when it is blowing
a gale and not take cold or suflfer any other noticeable ill
effects, it will take cold very quickly if compelled to be in a
draft inside of a house. Colds frequently form the beginning
of epidemics of roup, diphtheria, catarrh and other kindred
ills. While ^entilation should be ample it must be without
drafts.
Artificial
Warmth versus Fresh Air. A moderate tempera-
ture one of the conditions of spring which is conducive
is
to high production. The question arises whether it will be
profitable in the broad sense to furnish artificial heat even
at the expense of ventilation. There is not nearly as much
evidence on this point as there should be, but such as we
have seems to point decidedly to the conclusion that to ha\'e
air fresh is of far greater importance than to have it warm.
Sunlight.
An essential of the best success of a chicken-
house plenty of sunshine.
is Nothing helps more in the
effort to reproduce spring conditions in the hen-house than
flooding it with sunshine. The hens like it, and it helps to
moderate low temperature and to keep the house dry.
It helps to prevent disease as well. It is one of the most
efi'ective germicides that can be made use of. Other things
Ix'ing equal the house that admits the most sunshine in the
'
MaiuR Bullflin Ko. IGS.
HOUSING AND HYGIENE 261
winter time will be the one out of which comes the greatest
production. As Dryden dryly remarks, " Sunshine is a germ
destroyer and a better egg producer than red pepper or other
condi]nental foods."
Fig. 136
'mmm.
A "lean-to" that was converted into a most satisfactory poultry-iiouse.
Poles were placed inside to form a ceiling and the loft thus made was filled
with straw to add to the warmth of the house. (Courtesy of Reliable Poul-
try Journal.)
Fig. 137
A shed wilh the end toward the south that was converted into a satis-
factory poultry-house by cutting a large opening. (Courtesy of Reliable
Poultry Journal.)
70
HOUSING AND HYGIENE 2G3
climate is such that the fowls will seek shelter part of the
year rather tlian go outdoors in the yards and fields, more
space should be provided, say four to five square feet per fowl.
Halpin' says that a flock of fifty hens should usually be
allowed about five square feet of floor space per hen. He
further calls attention to the fact that "One hundred hens
will thrive in a pen 20 x 20 feet, that is, four square feet of
floor space per hen, but one hen will not thrive in a pen two
by two feet. As tlie number of the flock becomes less the
irio
Via. 140
' *A -s :^ ^
as Agllcullui'ul lOxiirllliirlit
Im.;. 1-12
A ijoai'l-iloor lumso set on roincnt, ])locks. The cloth curtains are ai ranged
to slide ui> and down instr^ad oi" lieing swung on hinges. (( 'ourtesy of
Purdue Ai^rieultLiral Kxperinie'ut Station )
Fid. 143
Fig. 144
eNo virw
FiQ. 115
/VESTS Afjn s/Pooay coop
W/A'Z? eArrLR
y^'A .f-r
<-
4
ft
"S-
HOUSING AND HYGIENE 273
Fig. 146
,'j
n
I
;
Roosts-
II
m RRCTPT ti ri , zip:
, 4"; ; Si Ms ; ; a'-o" Ce
COL
Plan
^
HOUSING AND HYGIENE 275
I'lQ. MS
?^^7 ;
\ -^
^ &.. ,t ^j.
^^'^
A perinauent farm poultry house, with slatted front and scratching basement.
(Courtes3^ of Missouri State Poultry Experiment Station.}
Fig. 149
mMf
two feet deep. Doors or windows open into the lol't so tliat
there may be a good eireulation of air aljove withont ereatinji;
a draft in the pen Ijelow. The straw alisorhs any dampness
there may be in tlie air below tlirougli tlie ()])enini;s lietwcen
tlie boards. On clear days the doors or windows in the loft
are opened and the current of air passing through dries out
the straw.
The straw loft also tends to make the house warmer in
winter and cooler in summer. It acts as an insulator between
Fig. 1.51
"W...
-v.- *
Showiiii^ \"e utiiator (intir unilrr ra\'c,^ and \\ iniiow .s \nr liL'liiiim llu; Hour
uinlcr the droijpirj^ boaixia. ^(.'olirtL'S^' of PurLlLU; A^riuLiltui ai l^xijuriuifiit
Station.)
Fk;. 154
?'S?S^BS
-rL- 's%':
Fig. 1.57
Fi.i. 1.5S
L+s 8"/ 10
Perspective -- FRAr-iiN
Rioqe: Pole I'-
t leal c -
ii i
^WddirKj
re
no=.r;r.^
Note :-
^S
/b'nch riaa;^
e:
6:. 6"5t'^d^3E-
Rear Elevation
Showing the details of construction of an "A" shaped portable colouy house
suitable for hauling about in an orchard. (Iowa Bulletin No. 132.)
HOUSING AND HYGIENE 287
'
Poultry Breeding.
288 POULTRY PRODUCTION
Fig 103
<
Showing rrjetliorl of uiiitiut; coldiiy liims.'s. ( 'ourtc-sj- 'j[ Gnriiell
A^riciihiiral t^xiiciiinriit Station.)
Fig. 161
Large i>orla,blo colony houses, having window for a dust bath. (Courtesy
of Kansas Agricultural E.xperiment Station.
and south, rather than east and west. The monitor allows
the morning sun to find its way into the west side of the build-
ing and the afternoon sun to reach tlie east side.
Aside from the special case just noted the particular style
of roof does not have much to do with efficiency. The shed
roof is the simplest to build, throws all the rain-water to the
Fig. 102
Fig. 163
Two-story Houses.
A rather infrequent style of house, used
with marked success in a few cases, but not fitting in with
ordinary general farm conditions very well, is the two-story
house. It has some advantage in the cost of construction
as compared with one-story liouscs for the same number
of hens. It offers the same evils of congestion that the
continuous house does. If advantage of this style of house
is taken to house a considerable number of birds under one
Yards and Fences. For profitable farm poultry production
there should be a minimum of yards. Insofar as is prac-
ticalile, poultry slrould be fenced out rather than in. There
will be far better thrift if the hens are fenced out of the
garden and the door yard and allowed the range of the farm.
Stewart and Atwood' found that when all other conditions
were as erjual as it was possible to make them, eggs from
Leghorn hens on free range gave a fertility of 91.5 per cent,
wdiile eggs from those confined in yards 15 by 100 feet gave
a fertility of 75.6 per cent. At the same time, 83 per cent
of the fertile eggs from hens on free range hatched, while
but 07.5 per cent of the fertile eggs from the jarded hens
hatched. Bushnell and jMaurer- found that range, as com-
'
West "\'irgiiiia Bulletin.
"
Uiipiiblislieil data, Kansas E.xperinient Station.
292 POULTRY PRODUCTION
Fig. 165
North yar<l8 are frequently piled high with snow while tlic birds are dusting
themselves to the soutli of the house.
Fig. 107
Pnultr\' Breeding
2'.6 POULTRY PRODUCTION
'
See Tables XXXIV :iii.| XLI
THE NUTRIENTS AND NUTRITION 299
THE NUTRIENTS.
Every constituent of the feed that can yield heat or energy
or can serve for the production of body tissue is called a
nutrient. All poultry feedstuFfs are composed of one or
more of the following groups of nutrients: (1) water, (2)
ash, (o) proteins, (4) carbohydrates, and (5) fats. For con-
venience, these nutrients may be classed as follows:
Water (1)
Inort^anic nutrients
(1) Ash (2)
and Loew,' found that feeding liens with potato and l)arley
alone caused the shell of the egg to disa])pear. After about
three weeks laying stopjx^d, apparently due to the ash
deficiency in the ration.
The principal ash elements required in poultry feeding,
aside from oxygen, are cah-ium, ])hosphorus, sodium, potas-
sium, silicon, sulphur and iron. Calcium and sodium salts
are essential for muscular contraction. Calcium as a car-
bonate forms nearly the entire shell, or 11.4 i)er cent of the
new-laid egg. In combination with phosphorus, calcium is
an important constituent of bone. Phosphorus is found in
the eggs, where it forms 0.27 per cent of tlie edible ])ortion.
Sulpliur and iron, which are essential constituents of the
proteins of the body, are also found in the egg. Silicon is
found largely in the feathers.
In the ordinary farm feeds, enough of all tlie ash elements
\\\\\ ordinarily be furnished with the exception of calcium and
I
New .lerscy Pmllrtin, No. 205.
^ Chemistry of Food and Nutrition.
Protein,
THE NUTRIENTS AND NUTRITION 305
Carbon, hydrogen,
per cent per cent
Starch 44.44
Stearin 76.85
33.3 per cent. The fats in both the eggs and tlic carcass are
cliielly pahnitin, stearin, and olein.
Fat stores energ>' and acts as a non-conductor of lieat,
the siihcutaneons deposits being a very efficient protection
against ci<ld.
Mutual Relations of the Nutrients. The elements, carbon,
hydrogen, and oxygen, are always present in all three of the
nutrients. These alone are found in the carbohydrates and
fats, and the practical difference between the two classes is
the greatly increased proportion of carbon in the case of the
fat. It has been found by careful experiment that fat has a
fuel and energy value about 2.25 times as great as does the
carboliytlratc, ])rinciiially because of this greater pro])or-
tioiial amount of carbon. That is to say, a pound of fat will
generate o\'cr twice as much heat as a pound of carbohydrates,
nr will furnish the power for more than twice as much muscu-
lar effort. It may therefore be said to have a feeding value
2.2.') times as great.
was shown by Voit and Lehmann (as reported by
It
Lusk'), in experiments where rice was fed to geese, that almost
one-third of the carbon was retained in the bodies of the
geese in the form of fat, and that this fat must have been
built up out of the carbohydrate (starch).
The great difference between the foregoing and protein is
the presence of nitrogen in the latter. While fat and carbo-
hydrate are mutually interchangeable in feeding practice
to a considerable extent, neither of them can be fed in the
place of protein. Protein, on the other hand, may to a limited
extent replace either or both of the other two. This is be-
cause of the fact that it contains all the elements to be found
in them (carbon, iiydrogen, and oxygen), and by wasting the
nitrogen may lie made by the body into energy, or fat.
Fio 1 IIS
Science of Nutrition.
308 POULTRY PRODUCTION
THE VITAMINS.
In the past the feed has lieen regarded chiefly as the source
of the material necessary for the constructive processes going
on in the body and
of the energy required to support its
This aspect i)f the matter has been promi-
A'arious acti\'ities.
nent in the ])receding paragraphs.
liccent investigations, however, are bringing into promi-
nence another class of influences exerted by the feed upon the
organism. The study of the \itamins is rendering it increas-
ingly evident that quite aside from its value as a supply of
structural material and of energy, the nature of the feed n^ay
]ir<>foundly influence the results of feeding.
It is clear that the vitamins influence the nutritive value of
a feeding stuff in an essentially dift'erent way than does the
(|uantity of ash, ])rotein and energy which it supplies. The
latter limits the anidUiit pnuluction which the feeding stuff
(if
'
Atter Jalfa, California Bulletin No. 164.
THE NUTRIENTS AND NUTh'lTION 309
Fig. 100
A Barrrtl Fl^iiiouth Rook mali', tJuwii on his Jt'g.s Ijocaii.^'' '>t a di'liciiricy
water soluble B (I'npubhslied photograph l;ni(II.\" fuiiiisiied
in his ration.
by Hughes an<l Fox, Kansas Agricultural Fxperiinent Station.)
Fig. 170
A I'.iUlcd l'l\-l]loull] \\nrk hi'Ii wlili'li Ii;m1 Iii'i;ii I(m 1 (Hi ;l r:U lull L- tl U IL' U t
(.1
ill 111! si.liihli' A. Xniiii- llic ^Mrl .>.. 1 I' 11 |M il ili>l ici I iiliolumapli kindly
Iuiiii-,Ih(I l.y ll^lL;ll(^ ainl I-'.iX. Kiiiisas Am irul I iinil Ex| .rriiiinit Station.)
fow Is. Its absence from the ration ])i'e\ eiits or limits grow th
inyoung stock and brings on ner\'ous disordt'rs in botii young
and mature indixiduals, jiarticularly the paraly>is nf the
peripheral ner\es. The latter condition is usually referred
to as polyneuritis. In growing stock the lack of the water
soluble causes the a1i'o])hy, or at least pre\cnts the develop-
ment of the internal organs oi' sei;retion, including the
testis and probably the ovar\'.
THE NUTRIENTS AND NUTRITION 311
DIGESTION.
Definition of Digestion.
Digestion is the process, accom-
plished by the crop, glandular stomach, gizzard, pancreas,
liver, and intestine, of so dissolving and chemically changing
the material taken into the alimentary tract that it can be
absorljed l)y the l)lood and used by the body.
The Digestive Tract. "The structure of the alimentary
canal of the bird suggests that the digestive process is rapid
and that it partakes of features associated with both the
carnivora and herbivora. Thus the relative shortness in
length is a carnivorous characteristic, while the character
of the diet and the thorough comminution of the food in the
gizzard are features more akin to the herbivorous type."'
Mouth Parts} The distinctive character of the mouth
of birds is the absence of lips and teeth, these parts being
replaced by a horny mandible on each jaw and forming the
beak of the land fowl and the bill of the water fowl. With
land fowl the beak is short, pointed, thick and strong, the
upper mandible curving over the lower. In w'ater fowl the
bill is longer, less firm, flatter, widened at its outer end, and
Fig. 171
LOWER MANDIBLE
T0N6UE
6IZZAR.D
PANCREAS
DUODENAL LOOP
Glandular Stomach. Beyond the crop the gullet contracts
until well within the body cavity, when it expands somewhat
to form the glandular stomach (proventriculus), from which
itpasses immediately into the gizzard (ventriculus bulbosus),
an involuntary sphincter muscle separating them.
The glandular stomach, which is little more than a thick-
ening of the gullet wall, does not appreciably detain the feed,
but surrounds it with an acid gastric juice which passes with
it into the gizzard. It is supplied with but one type of com-
])lex cells, which secrete jjcj^sin ami acid. The pepsin reduces
the proteid to peptones, which are further reduced by the
jtancreatic juice. Besides furnishing the proper medium for
the action of the gastric juice, the acid acts as a solvent for
sucli mineral matter as is not in assimilable form, thereby
making its absorption possible.
num, the sides of which are parallel and inclose the pancreas.
The pancreas, though it does not come in contact with the
food material, plays a very important part in the work
of digestion, and
is relatively longer in birds than in animals.
' Shaw, Jour. Am. Assu, lust, and Invest in Poul. Hush ,
vol. i, No. 2.
' Shaw, American Journal of Physiology, vol. xx, No. 7.
3 Bureau of Animal Industrj-, Bulletin No. .5lj.
THE NUTRIENTS AND NUTRITION 315
'
Shaw, American Journal of Physiology, vol. xxxi, No. 7.
- Bureau of Animal Industry, Bulletin No. 56.
316 POULTRY PRODUCTION
Bacteria
and Digestion. It is probable that bacterial
action responsible for a part of the digestive process, though
is
'
Rhode Island Bulletin No. S4.
318 POULTRY PRODUCTION
'
Brown, Bureau of Animal Industry, Bulletin No. 56.
320 POULTRY PRODUCTION
Combinations of Feeds. Some feeds are more digestible
when combined with certain other feeds than when fed
alone. Thus Bartlett' found by combining 7 per cent bone
meal with a ration made up of 200 pounds bran, 50 pounds
corn meal, 50 ])ounds linseed meal, and 100 pounds gluten
feed the organic matter was rendered 4.6 per cent more
digestil)le.
Sometimes combining certain feeds adds to the palata-
bility,thereby inducing a greater consumption of feed, but
not actually rendering the feed consumed more digestible.
This is very possibly the case in adding salt to the ration.
Kalugine (as reported by H. J. Wheeler") is authority for
the statement that fine gravel, when fed in combination
with a ration, increases the coefficient of digestibilitj' of the
nutrients.
Amount and Frequency of Feeding. There is no direct
experimental evidence bearing on these points. There is
no reason to believe, however, that, even taking into account
the involuntary grinding on the part of the fowl, poultry are
an exception to the rule for other animals, that when large
amounts of food are consumed the work of the digestive
tract is not so thorough and the coefficients of digestion of
at least some of the nutrients will be smaller. With other
animals this difference is noted with all food constituents
exce])t fat.-'
supphed.
W. V. Wlieeleri found tliat witli 10 lots of chicks, G lots of
immature pullets, 2 lots of young hens, and 2 lots of old
hens, fed contrasted rations which were as nearly alike as
possible, except that all the protein was of vegetable origin
in one case and -10 to 50 per cent of animal origin in the
other, with every two lots contrasted, the results were
nuirkcdly more satisfactory '\\here the aninud feed was the
source of jirotein. The chicks having the animal feed ration
consumed 12 to 3 t per cent more feed and made 22 to KJO
]iercent faster gains.
The pullets fed the animal-feed ration consumed 13 per
cent more feed and laid 30 per cent more eggs than those
restricted to protein of vegetable sources, while the old
hens having the animal protein consumed 15 per cent more
food and laid 30 per cent more eggs.
Xempster- rci)orts that he could find no e^'ide^ce that
vegetable proteins alone or in combination with feed of
animal origin increased egg production. Lewis' found that
])rotcin from a vegetable source, even when supi)leniented
l)y feeds rich in availalile ])hosphoric acid was not efficient
for growing chicks or laying hens.
There is much further evidence bearing out the above
from numerous sources.
A possiljle partial explanation of this may be in the fact
that the jirotein in the plant is surrounded by cellulose,
while in animal products it is surrounded by the more easily
digested fat.
Concentrated Feeds.
Poultry are able to digest little of the
bulky feeds, such as the cured hays and fodders. The con-
centrates, such as grains and their by-products, they digest
with a fair efficiency. It is possible, however, to secure a
feed of so great a concentration that the digesti\e tract will
'
New York Experiment Station, Tn-enty-sixth Annual Report.
"
Missouri Bulletin, Xc>. l.^.l.
' New Jersey Bulletin, No. 2G5.
324 POULTRY PRODUCTION
of millet was 05. SO for ducks and 91. SO for geese. There
'
West Viri;ini.a Bulletin No. 130.
Pennsylvania Bulletin No. 87. ^ Maine Bulletin No. 184.
' Bureau of Animal Industry, Bulletin No. 50.
326 POULTRY PRODUCTION
has been very little work done with any species of poultry
besides the chicken, however, and it is not possible to draw
general conclusions on the meager data available.
Nutritive Ratio.
In order to quickly and conveniently
see the relation between the protein that is digestible for
poultry and the digestible carbohydrate and fat, what is
termed the "nutritive ratio" is made use of. The nutritive
ratio is an arithmetical proportion stating the amount of
digestible carbohydrate and fat (estimated as carbohydrate)
that fall to one part or one pound of digestible protein.
It will be seen by referring to Table LIII, that 100
pounds of corn contains 8.4 pounds of protein that can be
digested by chickens, 64.29 pounds of carbohydrate and 4.4
pounds of fat. hs previously noted, fat has a feeding value 2.25
times that of carbohydrates. It is possible to estimate the
fat as carbohydrate by multiplying its weight by the factor
2.25. For the purpose of securing a simple proportion, the
ecjuivalent of the fat in carbohydrates may be added to the
amount of carbohydrate found in the corn, giving the pro-
portion of 8.4 pounds of protein to 74.19 pounds of
carbohydrate In order to simplify this proportion and
make it comparable with all other similar proportions, both
amounts are divided by the amount of protein, giving t^e
porportion of one to eight and eight-tenths, and expressed
thus: 1: 8.8. This is called the nutritive ratio of corn for
chickens. Expressed arithmetically, the process is as follows:
Digest, fat Digest, cai boliydrate
(4.4 X 2.26) + 64.29
= o.o
Second factor of
,
Table XXXVIII. A Comparison of the Nutrients Consumed on
AN Exclusive Diet of Corn, and the Nutrients Digested Per Hen
FOR Birds Weighing Between Three and Four Pounds, on the Basis
of One Hundred Pounds Live Weight.
THK FEEDS.
CLASSIFICATION OF FEEDING STUFFS.
Barley.
This grain contains less fat, fiber, and ash than
oats, hut more protein and carbohydrates. It does not rank
as high as wheat in digestible protein and contains more
fiber. It is not as palatal)le a feed as corn, wheat, or oats,
but is a good one to arid to a ration by way of variety.
Tlie amounts of digestible nutrients found in 100 pounds
of whole barley as determined by digestion experiments
with chickens are 9.3 pounds of protein, 1.2 pounds of fat,
and 58.4 pounds of nitrogen-free extract. It contains 2.5
|)ounds of ash and has a nutritive ratio of 1 to 6.6 for
chickens. The crude fiber content is 4.2 pounds.
Buckwheat. Owing to its large proportion of crude fiber,
Fig. 1
White Leghorn coekerel at eight months' of age which liad Ijeen fed only
corn and salt mixture. (After Hutihes.)
'
Fields and Ford, Oklahoma Bulletin No. 46.
THE FEEDS 333
pick up.
The amounts of digestible nutrients found in 100 jiounds of
millet as determined by digestion experiments with chickens
are G.S pounds of protein, 3 pounds of fat, and 01.59 pounds
of nitrogen-free extract. It contains 2.8 pounds of ash and
has a nutritive ratio of 1 to 10 for chickens. The crude
fiber content is S.l pounds. Having a comparatiA^ely large
germ it carries enough fat soluble A to support nearly normal
gi-f)wth.
Oats. The general nutritive value of whole oats for
poultry appears to be less than that for ruminants and horses.
This is because the crude fiber seems to be of insignificant
feeding value for domestic birds. Oats, including the hulls,
possess the largest amount of fiber and nearly the highest
of ash of all the cereals, while the percentage of fat runs
nearly as high as in corn. Hulled oats are similar to wheat
in composition, except that the fat content is higher.
The relative amount of hull and kernel governs their
desirability for poultry feeding. Light oats have a poor
feeding value because of large per cent, of hull, which is
about as digestible as straw. Heavy, clean oats are relished
by chickens and add variety to the ration.
Hulled oats seem to be especially adapted for growing
chicks because of their oil content and their stimulating
efi'ect on the nervous system.
'
Bureau of Animal Industry, Bulletin No. 56.
336 POULTRY PRODUCTION
22
338 POULTRY PRODUCTION
h>'(lrates, of wliich 4.8 pounds are fiher, ami 7.4 imhiikIs are
fat. The amounts digestible for chicl<ens are unknown.
Condiments. The advisability of feeding stimulating foods
like pepper and mustard a point upon which opinion is
is
amino-acids.
Fish Scraj). Dougherty ^ found "that a gooil grailc of fish
scrap gave as good results as commercial meat sera]), and
when properly fed ilid not in an}' way taint the eggs laid."
Philips^ found that when the feeding value of meat sera])
was $23.92 ]ier hundred pounds and of skim milk was $2.04
])er hundri'd pounds, fish sera]) had a feeding value of $27.05
Meat (Fresh). Fresh meat is undouliteilly tlie most palat-
able feed of animal origin excejjt that furnished in nature
inthe form of insects and worms. It may be ground fine
and mixed with a wet mash or it may be fed separately. An
idea of its feeding value may be gathered from the discussion
of meat scrap.
Kionka, as reported by Brown/ found that an exclusi\e
diet of meat increased the uric acid output of chickens 550
per cent, as compared with an exclusive diet of barley.
Each fowl receiving large quantities of beef (150 grams daily)
developed symptoms similar to gout in man, and autopsies
revealed uric acid in certain of the joints and tissues. This
same result would probably prevail in the case of overfeeding
meat scraps and possibly any protein of animal origin.
Meat Scrap. Meat scrap, quite commonly called beef
scrap, is composed of the meat trimmings, including some
'
Indiana Circular No. JO.
- Purdue Hulletin Ni>. 1S2.
" I'urdu^' liull.'lin, X.i Til.
THE FEEDS 345
'
Unpublished data, Iowa State College.
346 POULTRY PRODUCTION
fiber, protein, and asli and more carbohydrate and fat than
bran. Very many markets do not distinguish between sliorts
and middlings.
The average amounts of the nutrients found in IdO i)ounds
of wheat shorts are 10.5 pounds of water, 4.4 jiounds of ash,
17.4 pounds of crude protein, 62.8 pounds of carboliydrates,
of which 6 pounds are fiber, and 4.9 pounds are fat. The
proportions of these digestible for chickens have not been
determined. It contains less \'itamin than l)ran.
7V(?i/i-(;f/f. riiilips^ used common
"digester" tankage in
comparison with commercial meat scrap in feeding Wliite
Leghorn pullets with excellent results. lie rci)laced the
meat scrap in the following ration with '> ])ounds of tankage
and secured an cfpially good egg production.
GUAIN. Masii.
10 pounds of cfini 5 poiimls of l.ran
10 pounds of whi'at 5 pounds of sIimiIs
5 pounds of oats 4..5 pounds of nii^at srraj)
for mashes.
The amounts of digestible nutrients found in 100 pounds of
wheat bran as determined by digestion experiments with
chickens are 11 pounds of protein, 1.4S pounds of fat, and
24.79 pounds of nitrogen-free extract. It contains 5.8 pounds
of ash and has a nutritive ratio of 1 to 2.5 for cliickens. The
crude liber content is 0.5 jiomids. It is high in the ^\ater
solubji.' but low in the fat soluble.
to do so. Alfalfa meal, fed in the mash, dues not take the
place of a succulent feed. At the same time, it must be re-
membered that kale, cabbage, lettuce, etc., if fed beyond
theamount necessary for hygienic or physiological purposes,
become an expensive form of nourishment." Besides having
a desirable effect on the digestive tract, it serves as an
appetizer, adds variety to the ration, and tends to give a good
color to the >'olk, owing, according to I'ahner and I\emi)ster,'
to the -xanthopliyl the green feeds contain.
It now appears probable one of tlie reasons for its great
desirability in the rations of both growing stock and layers,
is that the green lea\es of ])lants are a sjjlenditl source of fat
soluble A which is deficient in the grains.
During the spring and summer months, fowls that run at
large will findan abundance of succulence, and the problem
of its supply arises only during the winter. A supply of
succulence is distinctly a spring condition.
Alfalfa {Green).
It is frequently claimed by commercial
egg men that green feed, and particularly alfalfa, is responsible
for an undesiraljle condition in eggs which appears in the
spring, known as "green whites," or "grass eggs." \V. P.
Wheeler^ states that, while the orange-yellow color of the
yolk varied in intensity in direct proportion to the amount of
clover hay and green alfalfa in the ration, the greenish
color of the white also varied, but not so regularly.
At the Kansas Experiment Station, RIaurer and Harris
kept six Barred Plymouth Rock hens in an alfalfa field for
several weeks. Tiie eggs from half the hens were subjected
Although infection
to careful cjualitative bacterial analysis.
was frequent, no pigment-producing organisms could be
isolated. Alternate eggs from the rest of the hens were kept
for four weeks at room temperature and blood temperature
respectively. They were then broken into a white porcelain
dish and carefully examined for greenish discoloration. No
grass eggs were found. Until further data on the subject is
accumulated, no statement on the point is possible.^
^
.Tournal of Birilii^ical < 'ln-iiiisti>', \"ol. xxxix, Nc -.
^ Jordan's Feeding of Animals.
A pigment-formini; onianisin lias recently
'
fteen isolated from green
wliites by the Bureau of Clieniistry.
350 POULTRY PRODUCTION
Bone {Green Cvl). Fresh bone trimmed from meats in
butcher sliops are run through a green bone cutter and used
for feeding poultry. This is a palatable and nutritious food,
containing a high percentage of ash in the bone and easily
digestible proteids in tlie meat which clings to the bone,
and is especially good for egg production. This food cannot
be shipped or kept for any length of time before it spoils.
Therefore it is usually prepared directly on the farm, or in
the market for a local trade. Although fowds are more fond
of meat in this form tlian any other, care should be taken
not to feed an excess or any that is tainted in the least.
When fed at the rate <if one ounce jjer fowl e\er>' other day,
no hariu residts and it is decidedly palatable. Too higli a
l)riee sliouid not be ];>aid for this feed, liowcver, as it contains
but about LS per cent ])rotein and sliould be purchased on
the protein basis, using first ciuality beef sera]i as a standard.
The Massachusetts Exj>eriment Station"^ report bowel
'
New York Bulletin No. 242,
' Twenty-sixlh Annual Report, New York Experiment Station.
356 POULTRY PRODUCTION
Per cent.
Caiijon:itc of lime
Carbonate of majjriesia
.......
.... ...
.93.71
1.39
Phosphate of Hmc
Organic substance . .
........
.... .
0.76
4.24
AV. P. Wheeler' found that where oyster shell was the only
mineral feed given hens, aside from tliat contained in the
grains, in one case 84 per cent, and in another over 88 per
cent of the lime of the egg shell was tuiaccounted for by
any feed given aside from the oyster shell. When broken
glass was substituted for the oyster shell, fewer eggs were laid
and the shells were thinner.
CanP has shown that the correlation between the mmd)er
of eggs liiid and the amount of oyster shell consumed is \'ery
high i.N7L'f .IKIT'.I). Tliat is to say, the consumption of
shell iiicreascil or decrciiscd directly as egg ]>roduction in-
eiX'ased or decreascil.
Oyster shell contains 95 per cent carbonate i)f lime. One
poimd of oyster shell contains lime enough for the shells of
sc\'en to eight do/.cn eggs. Like grit, shell should be fed in
sizes to suit tlie size of the ^toc'k. ( 'lam not so highly
sliell is
I
.[.iUr. .\)ii. .\s-ii Iii-I. an. I ln\r,l. in I'muI Mu-I.. \>,\. ili, Xc. ,3.
The Liquids. One of the marks of recent progress in
feeding practice has been tlie increasing attention given
to supplying all classes of stock with abundant and suitable
drink.
l)e\'elopnients in connection with feeding under artificial
lights\m\e emphasized the necessity of ha\ing drink always
aA'aiiable,winter as well as summer, whenever the l>ir(ls are
off the perches. The growing knowledge concerning the
vitamins has given a further impetus to the use of milk as
a regular feature of rations for growing, laying and breeding
stock, as well as for fattening stock.
Alilk (Butter).
Buttermilk is similar to skim milk, but has
a higher feeding \alue.
still The amounts of digestible
nutrients found in 100 pounds of buttermilk, as estimated
from digestion experiments with skim milk with swine, are
3.84 pounds of protein, 1.05 pounds of fat, and .3.92 pounds of
nitrogen-free extract. It contains 0.7 pounds of ash and has
a nutritive ratio of 1 to 1.6. It contains no crude filjer and
an abundance of both vitamins. Dried and send-dried
i)Uttermilk are finding their way into the market but their
value for egg production has not been determined The
semi-solid milk is used in large quantities at packing houses
each 100 hens. lie further found that when all the milk
the jjullets would drink was added to a. ration consisting
entirely of grains, it was at 30 cents per hundred, slightly
more expensive to feed than meat scraps at 12. .50 i)er Inmdred
jiounds.
In later experiments with White Plymouth Pock ))ullets
he found the feeding \ alue of skini milk to l)e Sl.CJl per
hundred ])ounds as compared with a meat scrap Aalue of
$20.03 per hundred pounds. Pullets fed on a standard
Figure 17G).
In the northern and central states a constantly available
supply of water during the winter also presents its problems.
The recognition of its importance, however, is bringing into
use water heaters of various styles so designed as to involve
slight fire hazard and heat the water sufficiently to prevent
its freezing in the coldest weather.
CHAPTER IX.
FEEDING STANDARDS.
Hens of 5 to 8 pouriiJs
weight . 3,30 .20 0.6.5 2.25 .20 1 to 4 ,
Hens of 3 to 5 pounds
weight 5,50 ,30 1,00 3,75 .35 lto4.6
REQUIREMENTS OF A RATION.
In the feeding of poultry we may regard the fowl as a
physiological machine which manufactures eggs and meat.
The ration is the raw material from which the desired product
365 POULTRY PRODUCTION
24
370 POULTRY PRODUCTION
'
Kansas BulleUii No. 104. ^ Jordan's Feeding
of Animals.
' Unpublished data, Iowa State College.
^ Bureau of Anitnal Industry, Bulletin No. 146.
THE COMPOUNDING OF RATIONS 373
'
Maryland Bulletin No. 157.
374 POULTRY PRODUCTION
Fig. in
81if.)\\iiig effect oil (lie vulk (tf feeding a fat .stain (.Suilan III)
tu layinj; liens.
tlie greatest economic returns. This does not mean either the
greatest returns or the cheapest ration. The greatest returns
might be obtained only from a ration tliat cost more than the
product is worth, and the cheapest ration might result in
such limited production that it would be as unprofitable
as the most expensive ration. To find the most profitable
means betweeu these two unj)ro(itable extremes is the nice
problem which confronts e\ery ])ractical feeder.
It is customary to rate feeds on the basis of their digestil)le
protein content, because protein is an essential nutrient for
Uiipublisheil (lata. Iowa State College.
I ni'ul ilisliril ilala, Kansas Ai^i-ieull ni al l^x eiinii 111 station.
THE COMPOUNDING OF RATIONS 375
$0
$0 010 ..... (
(I.I)'
7.-,- 075
0(5
[9.O' 0.09
Ij U U',1
0.015 .
j 7.5 0. 1125
i
9.0 0.135
fO.O 0.12
0.020 ... . . 7.5 0.15
[9.0 0.18
fO.O 0.15
025 7.5 1.875
[9.0 0.225
[
(J 0. \>^
fo.O 0.21
035 , , . . . 7 5 0.2(j25
19.0 315
CO 0.2i
... ...
(
fO.O 0.27
0.045 ; 7.5 0.3375
I
9.0 0.405
[CO 0.30
05U ...... [9.0
7.5 375
0.45
U.O 0.33
0.055 ,,...,. ^ 7.5
9.0
0.4125
0.495
(
0.0 0.36
0.060 , . . ] 7.5 0.45
[9.0 0.54
' The amountof feed necessary to produce one dozen eggs by Loghorn.s
whose average normal production was 155.5 eggs.
^ The amount of feed necessary to produce one dozen eggs .\ineric;in l.'.\'
farms whose stock was aljout 94 per cent Leghorns and whose' a\-erage
production was 109 eggs.
376 POULTRY PRODUCTION
Fii,\ iTr.
"
Grit . - 2.0
Charcoal 2.4
Clover . . , . , 10.0
380 POULTRY PRODUCTION
'
ScieDce of Nutrition.
FEEDING PRACTICES AND APPLIANCES 383
Fi(
384 POULTRY PRODUCTION
Ghain. Mash.
G poundb cracked corn (sifted; 2 pounds bran
4 pounds cracked wheat 2 pounds shorts
2 pounds "steel cut" oats h pound charcoal
All of the sour milk or Ijultermilk
the chicks will drink.
All the j^reen feed the clucks will consume. Grit and s^ranulated
bone before them all the time.
Fig. 177
Chickens relish sour milk and thrive on it. (Courtesy of Purdue Agricultural
I'^Kperiment Station.)
they are having only whole wheat and cracked corn. The
steel-cut oats are too expensive for long use and the unprepared
article is not safe on account of the husks.
"A mash may be used about the eighth to the tenth day.
This may be fed dry or wet. By 'wet' is never meant a
sloppy mass, but one which is just sufficiently moistened to
make it adhere in lumps or appear crumbly. The difference
of opinion in regard to the advantages of these two mashes
may be due to the fact that a careless feeder can produce
bad results in his chicks by cramming them with mash
that is soft and slopp.y and handled with difficulty by the
digestive apparatus. If moistened with skim milk the mash
wiil be more palatable as well as more nourishing.
"The mash can be made from various materials, and the
two presented below are offered as samples of many that may
be equally good:
I. II.
I part charcoal
J
i
Bran
Corn meal
.
or barley meal
..... Parts bi'
2
3
w Lit:lit
Gluten
Daisy flour (or any low-grade
.
flour)
.
...... 1
1
Beef scrap = . = ...!
This mash is fed until the chicks are six to eight weeks
old. It is kept in the hopper before the birds all the time,
FEEDING PRACTICES AND APPLIANCES 389
and they also have access to ground oats, fed from the
hopper or flats.
After the eighth week the composition of the mash is
varied to suit tlie needs of the birds, as inthcated l>y their
stage of development. This change is generally made by
decreasing the proportion of gluten, as indicated:
Parts \jy weight
Bran . 10
Corn meal or barley meal 15
Gluten .
2J
Daisy flour (or any low-grade flour) 5
Beef scrap . 5
Further Directions.
1. Provide finf grit, charcoal, shell, and bone from the start.
2. Give grass range or plenty of green food
3. Have fresh, clean water always available.
4. Feed only sweet, wholesome foods.
5. Avoid damp and soiled litter.
6. Test all meat scrap before feeding.
7. Keep chickens active by allowing Ihem to become hungry
once daily.
8. Feed moist mash sparingly.
9. Keep dry mash always before the chicks.
Feeding Broilers. Wlien the young males are to be dis-
posed of as broilers they are frequently forced a little more
rapidly than the jjullets or males intended for breeding
purposes. Tlie feeding of broilers may for convenience
be divided into three periods: (1) growing, (2) forcing, and
(3) fattening.
The growing period is generally about four weeks, its
length varying somewhat with the breed, the time of hatch-
ing, and the size at which it is desirable to market them.
The earl>'-maturingbreeds are usually forced somewhat
earlier than the slower-growing kind.
During this growing period a regular growing ration is
fed. It should be continued until the chicks ha\'e become
well established physically and are well past the danger of
the ordinary little chick ills.
The length of the forcing period is also variable and for
the same reasons as the first period.
The forcing ration usually difi'ers from the growing ration
for chicks of the same age by carrying a larger proportion
of protein which may be accomj)lished, as Philips suggests
FEEDING PRACTICES AND APPLIANCES 391
25 pounds 13 J pounds
'
nilil.3 to Poiiltrynien, vol. ix, Ni. 1
Purduf; Extension Bullcliii Ki. 10, and Purdue Bulletin No. 218.
FEEDING PRACTICES AND APPLIANCES 397
Corn meal
Wheat bran
.,,,..- 3J pound
5J
....
.
Meat scraps 2^
ceases during the molt the feed may be cut down. Yoit (as
quoted by Lusk^) showed that the metabolism of a pigeon
may be doubled after removing its feathers. In a late
general molt when the weather is cold, it seems reasonable
to suppose that this condition is somewhat approached by
hens. This certainly does not call for a diminution in the
heat-supplying foods. The feathers themselves are largely
protein, and demand a generous supply of protein for their
growth.
It is considered good practice to furnish an extra amount of
oil\' feeds such as old-process oil meal, or sunflower seeds,
careful not to supply more than the birds will consume, or,
in case of an oversupply, removing what remains just before
the birds have had all they desire. The development of that
judgment which enables the feeder to sense when the birds
26
402 POULTRY PRODUCTION
are almost through eating and remove the feed just before
they secure the last mouthful, which they desire, is the mark
of the skilled fattener.
The number of times stock is fed daily,
practice as to the
varies. It may
be either two or three times. P^or the
beginner, three times is probably advisable.
Average ,
'
Unpublished data, Iowa State College.
2 Ibid.
404 POULTRY PRODUCTION
FEEDING APPLIANCES.
The feeding appliances found in general use are supply
cans, feed hoppers, feeding troughs, and watering pans.
Via. 170
supply and will hang about the granary waiting for feeding
time or watching for an opportunity to fly in. On most
farms this constitutes a nuisance.
If the poultry is fed at the poultry-house, as the practice
should be, at least two trips from the granary to the chicken-
house become necessary. These may lie axoided by having
a supply of grain at the cliickcn-house and at the same time
will result in tlie hens gatliering at the proi)er ])lace at feeding
time.
400 POULTRY PRODUCTION
proof, a coxcred ))ox hung on the wall will ser\'e the i)ur]X)se.
It should have a sloping to]), so that the fowls cannot roost
on it. Sueh a hopper, of proper size to hold 200 pounds of
grain, is shown in Figure 179.
Feed Hoppers. Hopper feeding is finding its \\ay into
all lines of feeding practice with the excejition of crate
Fig. 180
Fi.;. isl
Fig 183
Fig. 184
ShoHiua the banic liopiJiT as in Figure 1S3 ni.riird f.jr tbi' lol to (.-at.
Fig. ISo
of waste with the dry. For httle cliicks the hitter may l)e
aecomphshed hy putting a piece of half-incli mesli lianhvare
(h)th into the to]) of tJie tray, as shown in Figure 190. Tiic
chicks are able to eat through this, but cannot scratch out
the feed and waste it.
Watering Pan. A perfect watering device should l^eep the
water clean and cool in warm weather, and be of such
construction that it may be easily cleaned and freezing
will not injure its usefulness. To keep water clear the water-
ing arrangement should be high enough so that straw will not
be scratched into it, and at the same time so situated that
the fowls are not likelj' to perch on the edge and contaminate
Fig. 186
FEEDING PRACTICES AND APPLIANCES 411
Fig. 187
Fig. 18S
Fig. 1S!I
Vl:,. I'.t')
FEEDING PRACTICES AND APPLIANCES 413
the pan. A tomato can and a pie tin will stT\e the same
purposes.
This arrangement gives a constant supply of water and
prevents tlie chicks from getting into tlie water. Jt does
Fig. 191
Fig. 192
not i)reclu(le the scratcliiiiK f)f litter and dirt into tlie pan
or a^oid sonic sl()])])ing and s])illing. Tins may 1)0 accom-
]ilished, li(i\\e\er, by the arrant^enient shown in Figure 124.
Where suificicnt care is taken to keep the pan free of
dirt these devices prove very satisfactory. While they
are not so shaped as to \\ithstand freezing, they are not
lilxciy to lie in use in freezing weather.
lllli lllfF
U^:^..
'^i
4>
. f ,r. I fe a 1 A t
*' ' ^ ^ fiiiSiii ^tlg:' ^^S^tS fe^.
s a [ Is J S t '
P '
. II { h\\\\
416 POULTRY PRODUCTION
Fig. 19.5
Fig. 196
Cramming machine.
TURKEYS.
Turkeys were first discovered on tlie American continent
in 1.518. They are still found wild in a few sections of
North America and over wide areas in Central and vSouth
Fig. 197
are records that indicate tliat thev did not rcacli Germany
until 1580.
In this country the Bronze and Wliite Holland varieties
have proved \>y far the most popular.
Fro, 1!)8
Fig. 200
Tiiikc:! a sax'cd this .alfalfa crop. The noi^libuiiiiy fluids were takeu b.v
jiras.shoppL'rs. Tlie owner of this field marketed the grasshoppers in the
form of turkey meat. {Courtesy of Kansas Agricultural Experiment
Station.)
'
Jour. Am. .\.ssii. In.st. ami Invest, in Poui. Husli , vol. ii, Nu. S.
126 POULTRY PRODUCTION
it does how, and how much, they are fed. Particular atten-
tion should therefore be given to his method.
" After collection from the nests, hatch the turkey eggs in
fourth month one quart may be given for eacli twenty liin.is,
each morning and night.
"During tlie second month, which is the critical period for
the young birds, the feeding is continued about as in tlae latter
part of the first montli. But, after the age of about six
weeks the number of meals per day may be reduced to two.
Green food in the form of chopped carrot tops, onion tops,
or lettuce sliould be given in abundance; it should comprise
at least one-half of the ration for each meal. The time limit
remains at about t\vo and one-half minutes.
"When the poults are about six weeks old the nest or
brooder coops should be replaced by larger houses made of
laths and covered partly with roofing paper. Such a house
may suffice until the poults are about three or four months
old. These may be about three feet by five feet and three
feet high at tlie apex. Family houses should then be given up
and all the poults, wdth their mothers, be brought together in
a single roosting shed.
"The feeding for the third month is like that of the second
except that the amount of sour milk is gradually increased
and that a grain mixture of equal parts of cracked corn and
wheat may be gradually substituted for the chick grain.
"As the autumn months advance and tlie insect life dis-
appears, the time limit may be lengthened to three or three
and one-half minutes. In rainy weather the noonday meal
may be added and a four-minute period allowed. liolled
oats may Ije omitted and the ration made to consist of the
grain mixture with an occasional feed of rolled oats or bread
and milk. A mash may now be added containing some
beef scrap.
"Before Thanksgiving tlie breeders for the coming s(\ison
should be selected and marked. Tlieir feeding for the winter
may consist of the following grain mixture fed at the rate of
one quart for six or seven turkeys each night and morning:
Cracked corn
Barley .
......
..,.,.... .3
2
parts
"
Wheat . . 2 "
Oats 1 part.''
42S POULTRY I'liODVCriON
Feeding for Market. As soon as the supply of feed on the
range fails the turkeys begin to bang around the buildings
more. Unless the birds are penned up it is practically im-
possible to do much in the way of fattening until they quit
ranging, which is hardly early enough to get them ready
for Thanksgiving trade in most sections.
Bolte' found that while greater gains could be secured by
crate-fattening than by corn-feeding on range, the increased
gains were not great enough to pay for the extra labor
invoh'cd.
Blanchard^ tried feeding turkeys in darkened pens for two
weeks, admitting light only at feeding time, and could secure
no gains. Other birds fed the same ration and confined in
roomy pens having a runway of twenty by fifty feet gained
two pounds to ten and one-half pounds each in two weeks.
The ration consisted of 6 parts corn meal, 2 parts wheat
middlings, 2 parts meat scrap by weight, moistened with
milk. No statement is made as to the cost of the gains.
Where i)enning is impracticable they should have all the
corn they will consume and be gi\en a liberal allowance of
meat scra])s. The birds that are not in condition at Thanks-
giving should be fed out for the Christmas market.
1 Rhode Island Bulletin No. 120 ' \Vasliint;ton Bulletin No. 90.
CHAPTER XII.
'
Lee, U. .S. Bulletin 697.
_ ,
, ,
,
(429)
430 POULTRY PRODUCTION
Fio. 201
Tig. 202
w?^ .,
-
Fig. 208
DUCKS AND GEESE 431
Table XLV -DicfistibM'] Isu iTrEN i--^ Ry':QurKKD pkk Day fo:; Each
]i)0 Pounds Live W^:lliHT of Gkowino Ducklincs.
484 POULTRY PRODUCTION
vent the I)irds from getting into the dish. Water in which
tlie l)ir(is may swim is not necessary, althougli ducks kept
Fig, 204
Fig. 2n
scraps. All the green feed in the shaj)e of cut alfalfa, c]o\'er,
or chopped roots that they will clean up should be ,<;i\'en.
Grit and water should be available at all times. Jf tliey
are kept confined in the pen until eight o'clock in the morning
nearly all eggs will be laid upon the floor of the house ratlier
than some in the yard, as ducks usually lay in the early
morning.
Feeding Young Ducklings. After the ducklings are hatched
they should be kept without food for thirty-six hours,
either in the incubator or under a hen. x^fter removal
to the brooder or after thirty-six hours under the hen without
the feed for the first week may consist of equal parts of
fecfl,
for grit, fed fi\e times dail)'. After tlie third day, .^) per cent
of siftedmeat scrap may also be addetl, and green food in the
form of chopped lettuce, alfalfa, or clover should be fed freely.
x4fter the first week a good growing ration is 2 parts wheat
bran, 1 part wheat middlings, 1 part corn meal, i p^irt meat
scrap, 5 per cent sharp sand, scalded cut clo\er, alfalfa,
or other green food, as much
as they will eat. Feed four
times a day.
At the beginning of the eighth week the young ducks sliould
be moved into the fattening shed or kept in a shady place
and fed for three weeks on a fattening ration of erjual parts
wheat bran, middlings, corn meal, and 10 per cent of beef
scrap, 5 per cent sharp sand, and green food. It must not
be left before them at all times, ho\ve\'er, as it is rather
concentrated, and they are liable to tire of it.
Special care should be taken that young ducks are not
exposed to a hot sun without a chance of shade, nor allowed
out in a rain-storm before they are feathered out. Rain while
in the downy stage is oftentimes fatal.
Fi.- :(ifi
Fio. 207
^
LamftD and Lee, Faniiers Bulletin, 7ti7, U. -S. Dept. of Agric.
DUCKS AND GEESE 439
in a warm place. The.y should I)e kept away from the nest
until the yomigest goslings are several hours old, when tliey
may be given back to the hen. If this is not done the hen
is likely to become restless and leave the nest with the older
Fig. 20S
BREEDS OF PIGEONS. i
1
This classification is the one offered by Long in "The Poultry Bnolc."
( 44o )
444 POULTRY PRODUCriON
Fig. 2(19
Two eggs arc laid al:)Out thirty-six liours apart and usually
hatch betweeji sixteen and eighteen days after the last egg
is laid. When the eggs are first fiatcluMl sex cannot be
determined, but if both eggs are hatclied and pro\'e to l:)e
a pair the cock will usually liatcli about twehc hours earlier
than the lien. WJiere two squabs hatch in the same nests
of unecpial size they should l.)e chaugi'd from nest to nest
so that the pairs are evened up in size. If tliis is not done
the earliest hatch or largest Ijird will crowd the smaller one
so that it is likelv to die.
PIGEONS AND GUINEA-FOWL 445
Fig. 210
J ) II
- ^'
Interior of pigeon pen showing a feed hopper, roosts, nest boxes, and different
kinds of nest pans. (Courtesy of Bureau of Animal Industry.)
Feeding Pigeons. During the first da}s of its Hfe the squab
isfed a clieesy substance regurgitated from the crop of both
parents for a period of five to seven days; for tlie subse-
quent two weeks partially digested grain is fed in the same
448 POULTRY PRODUCTION
manner. After they are three weeks old they can usually
be fed the same ration as the old stock. This should con-
sist of a variety of feed, such as corn, peas, and red wheat.
White wheat seems to have an injurious efTect upon the
diocstive tract and to cause bowel trouble.
Fig. 213
of Animal Industry.)
GUINEA-FOWL.
Guineas arc quite similar to turkeys in tlieir habits and
management. They have never become fully domesticated,
are impatient of restraint, preferring to roost out in the
Fill. 214
Nf>\eiuber . .
725,332
Decemb.u- 639.088
Fig. 215
454 POULTRY PRODUCTION
Fig. 216
jAn rtB fUR APR May Juhe Juli Ah, Cfi'T Oct nov Pec
PREPARING POULTRY.
Mostof the poultry ])roduced on general farms is sold
ali\'eand is ])repared for consumption by the packer. The
tendency appears to be for home killins; for general consump-
tion to be less and less practised and for the preparation to
be made by some one other than the producer. I n some cases,
however, home preparation is profitable and for private
trade is usually necessarj'. It consists of dressing and pack-
ing if intended for general consumption, and may consist
of dressing, jjacking, trussing, and, infrequently, boning
if intended for private trade.
Dressing. A fowl said to be "dressed" when it has been
is
Fig. 217
W"^'
D OF BEAK
Fig. 219
Correct grasp of head at angle of jaw and position of small knife when
cutting vein. (.Courtesy of Bureau of Chemistry.)
460 POULTRY PRODUCTION
very inferior. Tiie flesli loses its firmness sooner; its flavor
is not so good; the odor of stale flesh and finally of putrefac-
Fi.;. 221
With frame
picking, the head is held exactly as in bench
picking, but the shackle holding the feet, conies from
above and is weighted in such a way as to hold the bird's
body up off the bench, thus giving the benefit of both
methods.
The question of the relative merits of these methods
of dry picking is one upon which packers and investigators
are not agreed among themselves. The bench has grown
in popularity rapidly, because somewhat faster work can
be done on it than on the string, and the feathers more
easily sorted and saved. The bird is seldom smeared witli
blood, as in the case of string picking. On the other hand,
the government investigators have found that even when the
bench is padded, the carcass is more or less bruised during
the convulsions that follow the sticking and in flop]:)ing a
l)ird over on its breast to pick its back. It is claimed that
these bruises are not noticeable at first, but that if the
carcass is held or stored they become breeding places of
bacteria which bring about deterioration. Some of the
largest packers in the country, however, whose pack of
poultry stands at the very top for quality, use the bench
method. With string picking, there is, of course, little chance
for bruising, though the picker and the carcass are often
covered with blood, and the method does not appear so
sanitary. In just how far the frame picking \\i\\ displace the
otiier two, remains to be seen.
With either method, the greatest care must be used not
to tear or even scuff the skin. In the superficial nuiscles of the
breast taken from a carcass whose skin was neither torn nor
rubbed there are very few bacteria. In both the superficial
and deep breast muscles of a fowl with a torn or even a
rubbed skin, such numbers of bacteria will l)e found within
twenty-four hours, that a marked change in the chemical
composition will already have taken place.
In a well-organized conunercial ])icking room the work of
picking is divided between roughers and ]>inners. The
roughers bleed and brain the bird and remove the wing, tail,
and larger body feathers. The pinners finish tlie jilucking,
carefully removing all pin feathers.
464 POULTRY PRODUCTION
Fig. 222
should.
Faults in Dressed Birds. At the central packing plants,
birds are discriminated against for the following reasons.
When the producer markets his own products he can elimi-
nate each of these defects:
1. The birds are not properly finished. If two birds both
weigh 4 lbs., but one is plump, well filled, and thick-fleshed,
30
466 POULTRY PRODUCTION
Drp33- Truss-
No of Live Dresynd iiiti, Trussed ing,
liirds. weiglit, u-eiglit. pnr rt. weight. per ct.
'I'tital .
I
311 3357.0 3038.8 90. G 2509. G 74 S
(J.
Wdiilc
Bro II
I,ef;li(irn
Lcyhuiii
22
35
I'll 8S :;
129.0
7N
110
S.S
89 5
3 02
90.4
1 70.3
09,
the upper lialf of tlic neck. The breast and l)((ly sliould be
plucked clean up to the large tail feathers. Tick the entire
underside of the wing; pick tlie upper part of tlie wing,
from tlie shoulder to tlie first joint. Leave tlie rest of the
Fio. 2L
feathers) ......
Rooster tails, long fancy (free from stiff
. 1.00
PREPARING POULTRY PRODUCTS 471
Fio. 224
H ^ (^UNDRAWN (23G)
^ ^t^UNDRAWN (10,790)
^ i WIRE DRAWN (82,l,4ri)
.]
"I
f; |3 BOSTON DRAWN (341.1:50)
..'FULL DRAV/N 19,623,000)
UNDRAWN (103,170)
^ BOSTON DRAWN (
'
Saddle feathers. ^ Primary wing feathers.
' Bureau of Chemistry Circular No. 10.
472 POULTRY PRODUCTION
'
Bureau of C'Lcmistry Circular No. 10.
PREPARING POULTRY PRODUCTS 473
Grading.
Gnuling ran hardly be spoken of as (Mie of the
really necessary stei)s in preparing ])oultry for consumption.
In commerce, liowever, uniformity is so universally demanded
is a hen (female oxev one year old), or a pullet tliat show s too
T> ,
n. / 1st grade
Broik-rs . , ,
, 24 pounds and under1 1 1
'
. ,
n , or to
i or, / 1st grade
Broilers . . 2.5 29 pounds 1
i
,
2j gp^jg
, .
oo 1 or pounds 1 / 1st grade
Chickens ,
30 to 35 2^ grade
^o oc to
i J / 1st grade
lo pounds
Chickens ,
30 42 <
gj grade
^
Roasteis ...,, .^ .^
43 to 48 pounds
, 1 f
<
1st
^^
grade
j^
;,o / 1st grade
49 pounds and up
1 1
Roaslers . . - :
^j grade
weiiihts.
XXX Springs unworthy to grade XX, all weights.
^^* ^'"^'^''
Fowl . . . . . . 36 to 42 pounds | 2d grade
^o i 4o / 1st grade
Fowl 43 to 4b pounds
I
I 2d grade
,
,.^ , / 1st grade
I* owl . 49 pounds and up
^
,
< ...
[ 2d grade
, ,
weights.
XXX Fi.iwl unw'iithy to be placed in grade XX, a)I weights.
Packing.
In the Ijroad sense, packing refers to all of the
operations incident to |)re])arinn; and preser\'ing poultry for
use as food. In a more restricted sense, it refers to wrapping
it or placing it in suitable ].)ackages for shipment or storage.
'
Pool Publishing Company, Mason City, Iowa.
476 POULTRY PRODUCTION
six liirdswith breasts uj); six hinls with hacl^s up; lieads
Iirou,i;litforward and turned sideways so tliat tlie eyes sliow.
A box paeked in this style has tlie same aj)])earanee on both
top and bottom.
3. Standard Rixnirr Style.
All liea\y fowl and turkeys
should be packed in this style. Some capons are alsc) paeked
in this style. Boxes lined with parchment pajier. Heads
\vrai)iied. Pack twelve birds to the box in two layers. I'arcli-
ment pajier l)ctween layers. Bottom layer heads and feet
up. Top la,yer heads and feet do\\ii. Both layers ])acked
Fi(
Upper layer lireasts up, heads and feet down. Both hirers
packed butt to Ijutt.
G. Standard Capon Style. Use deep box. Tweb'e to the
box in two hiyers. Line box. Wrap lieads. Parchment
paper between layers. Lower layer, breasts down, heads
and feet up. LTpper layer, breasts up and heads and feet
down. Legs crossed with those of the opposite and feet buried.
Stencilling. If one is marketing a superior product it is
decidedly advantageous to the name of the producer to have
his name neatly stencilled on the box. In time one may gain
a reputation for good goods and his products come into
demand. Tliis is particularly' true if one comes in close
touch with the consumer. If one deals through a jobber,
he will ])robably prefer to place his own trade mark or name
upon the goods.
For each class of poultry there should I)e a corresponding
number which should appear at the upper left hand corner
of one end of the box. This tells the person selling the goods
exactly what to find in the box. For instance, the number
5 in the proper corner might indicate that the box con-
tained fancy broilers weighing under 11 pounds apiece. The
number 43 might indicate fancy spring chickens between 4
and 5 pounds' weight. The figures representing the number
of pounds net weight should always appear in the lower right-
hand corner of the end of the box:
43
PREPARING POULTRY PRODUCTS 479
the dotted line, as shown in Figure 227, and then loosen the
skin from the neck, as well as the gullet, croji, and wind-
pipe, pulling the latter out from the body as far as possible
before pulling them free. Then cut oft' the head, leaving the
gullet and wind-pipe attached to the head, and loose neck
skin attached to the carcass.
Now slip the knife down close to the base of the neck, as
shown in Figure 228. Cut it on both sides and then across
the top. If the ligaments surroimding the neck are carefully
cut it can be pulled oft' easily.
4sn POULTRY PRODUCTION
Fig. 221
Via. 2 'J
Fig
Fir.. 231
Drawing and Trussing. 'I'lie Mnl should he drawn hy
first making an incision at the side of tlie vent and cutting
Fig. 232
Fin. 23:;
Trussed (or the ruastiiit; pau, li't;s .-.lipped tliic.ii;j,li inei.^i.jii in skin
(Courtesy of Iowa State College.
out the ojicning made by the removal of the neck and wish-
bone. This a\'oids the unsightly tearing which must occur
\\hen the gizzard is removed from behind. The oil sac
should then l)e removed from the base of the tail.
All that remains to put the bird in shape as an extra-fancy
roasting bird is to fold the loose skin of the neck up over the
back and lock the ings over it as shown in Figure 2.31'. The
di-ui)isticks may
be slipped through a couple of incisions
iiiaile in the skin close to the tail as shown in Figure 233, or
Fig. 234
A r;ibO liMliUny; tliirt\' i.lijzeii egj;s i.s tlie wliolesalo commercial unit. If
Iiniperly protected with excelsior before being covered, an egg case is a safe
and efficient carrier wlicthcr the haul is over country roads or by rail.
(Courtesy of Kansas Agricultural Experiment Station.)
PREPARING EGGS.
Anegg is among the most perishable of food products.
It never so desirable for consumption as when it is first
is
Per cent
Dirties. ..,.,,. ... 2.0
Breakage .
2.0
Chick development 5.0
Heated and shrunken 5.0
Rotten eggs
Mouldy and badly flavored eggs .... 2.5
0.6
Total . . . 17.0
'
Bureau of Animal Industry, Circular No. 140. ' Ibid., No. 160.
4SS POULTRY PRODUCTION
'
Unpublished data, Kansas At^riciiUuial )']xpeiiment Station.
PREPARING POULTRY PRODUCTS 491
GRADES OF EGGS.
The different kinds and degrees of deterioration met with
have led to the classification of eggs into generally recognized
commercial grades knowm as firsts, seconds, checks, leakers,
spots, blood rings, and rots. The grading is done by means
of a "candle." Candle is the name given to an egg tester
when it is used in connection with market eggs. It operates
on precisely the same principle as the lamp tester usually
sent by incubator manufacturers, and usually consists of a
tin can with a hole in the side and an electric-light bulb
inside, as shown in Figure 2.35. The use of such a candle
necessitates a dark room.
Firsts. A
the nearest approach to a fresh egg that is
first is
known Besides being new laid, it must be
to the egg trade.
clean and unwashed, average very close to 4.5 pounds to
> Pennington, Open Letter to Buyers and Shippers of Eggs, August 6,
1913.
492 POULTRY PRODUCTION
Fiii. 235
Appearance of ll new-laid egg when l^roken uiit. Xnle Imw the t!ii(;k
albiinien "stands up" as compared witli the thin alhunion whiidi co\"ers the
bottom of the dish. (Courtesy of University' of Missouri.)
Fig. 2;!7
2. Shrunken Eggs.
These eggs are easily distinguished
before the candle by the size of the air cell. The shrink is
caused by the evaporation of moisture through the shell.
This may be caused by a eomparati^ely short holding in a
PREPARING POULTRY PRODUCTS 495
Fig. 2:iS
Fig. 2:;9
A Ii\'e fertile egg afUT inniliadn^ f' irt \--iii;;lit Ikjuts. (C'ourLosj- of Bureau
of Aniiii;il linliistr}'.)
Ftg. 240
green feed.'
Checks. Checks are cracked eggs. Those in which the
crack is small and the contents of the egg is still retained
are called "blind checks." Where the contents is escai)ing
Fig. 241
Fertile c^ ;
after seven (la\'s of incubation. (Courtesy of Bureau of
Animal Industry.)
Blood Rings. Fertile eggs in which the embryo has so far
developed as to show considerable blood and then died, the
blood is usually left in a more or less imperfect circle sur-
rounding the germ. Before the candle this appears as a ])ink
ring which from its nature has given the name "blood ring"
to eggs containing dead germs. These eggs are declared
500 POULTRY PRODUCTION
Fia. 213
^
^M^^^i
Rots.
Eggs that are so far decomposed througli the agency
of mould or bacteria as to be totally unfit for food are termed
rots. The appearance of rots varies with the kind of organism
causing its decomposition. They are severally designated
as black, white, pink, and blood rots. All are equally unfit
for human consumption.
PREPARING POULTRY PRODUCTS 501
'
Bureau of Animal Industry, Bulletin No. 160.
502 POULTRY PRODUCTION
crock or glazed jar and the eggs iiiinierscd as they are gathered
every day. At least, two inches of tlie solution should always
be above the to]5 layer of eggs. The eggs should be placed in
the solution with the large end of the egg uppermost, so
that the contents of the egg will not rest on the air cell and
rupture the inner shell membrane. Piercing the air cell
with a coarse needle just before cooking will prevent tlie
cracking of the shell caused Ijy the ex])ansion of the air cell
upon boiling.
While this method is fairly successful for home preser-
vation, such eggs are not considered desiral)le for general
market ])ur])oses, because they are unsuitcd for prescr\'ation
l:>y the ordinary commercial methods after being preserved
in water glass. In most states it is inila\\ful to expose them
forsale without labelling them "pickled" or "])reser\'ed" eggs.
chaptp:r XV.
Maintenance of
Health. Tlie (onser\'ati()ii of vh^ur and
niaiiitenance (if health are fuiidaniental proljleins of poukry
production. In tlie last these constitute but a
aiial\sis
single problem, for great vigor only an alinndant liealth.
is
The preceding chapters ha\e been gi\'en nj), for the most
part, to discussing mcthoils of maintaining liealth, under
such divisions as breeding, feeding, and housing.
In proceeding to a biief and practical discussion of the
more common i)oulti'y diseases, it cannot be too greatly
emphasized that constructi\'e breeding, with rational feeding
and management, is the fii\-,t and principal line of defence
against disease. This corresponds in a general way to the
construction and maintenance of a. firei)roof l)uilding. Elock
treatment to ])revent the si)read of disease that has somehow
gained entrance to the fl<jck, corresponds to the efforts of
the firemen to save other buildings in the block, for even
"fire proof" buildings sometimes burn. I<]ndea\'oring to
cure a diseased individual corresjxinds to the efforts to save
a badly damaged building from complete destruction, with
this very important difference, that while fire in a building
may be entirely put out and the damage completely repaired,
a bird sick with contagious disease is seldom so completely
cured that it does not constitute a source of danger to its
flock mates, or so Cjuickly cured that it is capable of complete
self repair. A sick fowl may usually be considered as
permanently damaged for pi'odnctive purposes. Comparing
the small value of an individual fowl with the serious menace
to the entire flock of a l)acillus-carrying, cured bird, it is
questionable whether it is ever advisable to attempt the
cure of birds infected with a contagious disease.
(503)
504 POULTRY DISEASES AND PARASITES
.....
. ,
...
. .
i
i "
"
i
1
pound
"
Vaseline . . . . . 1 "
Liver Enlargement.
This condition is sometimes some-
what the ordinary producer to diagnose in the
diflicult for
live liird. It is usually accompanied by an increase in the
fowl's weight and frecjuent evacuations of dark yellow semi-
liquid feces. It is sometimes accompanied by excessive
thirst. ^A'itll postmortem examination, however, the liver
will be foimd enlarged, mottled in color, easily torn apart,
and greasy. This disease is most likely to occur toward the
end of winter when the supply of green feed has been deficient.
The treatment consists of feeding the whole flock liberally
of succulent feed of some kind, first giving the birds a wet
mash containing a teaspoonful of Epsom salts for each
bird in the flock.
Mites. There are more species of mites than lice, but, as
in the case of lice, it is not necessary for the practical poultry-
I
Farmers' Bulletin, No. 801, U. S. Dept. of Agric.
514 POULTRY DISEASES AND PARASITES
"It apjjears that while fowls are not very likely to contract
tuberculosis from domestic animals or from man, yet fowls
that ha\'e the disease are a serious menace to other animals
on the farm as well as to the poultryman and his family."
Avian tuherculosis is exceedingly difhcult to recognize in
its early stages. As the disease advances, however, pro-
gressive emaciation may be noticed, accompanied by a
feverishly bright eye. This is likely to be accompanied by
general weakness and a ravenous appetite. It not infre-
quently happens that there are timiors, ulcers, etc., and if
the disease is localized in the joint there will be lameness.
Where is suspected it is always well to kill a
tuberculosis
suspected case and examine the li\er and spleen. In a great
majority of cases these will be covered by numerous raised
nodules. With many forms of sickness the liver is afl'ected,
and may be blotched, but these blotches are usually depressed
or raised very slightly. There is a tuberculin test now being
used with poultry which is somewhat similar to the tuberculin
test used with mammals. A supply of the tuberculin is
not likely to be at hand, however, and it is usually advisable
as soon as tuberculosis is suspected to ship two or tliree of
the live suspects to the bacteriology laboratory of the State
Agricultural College, where the disease can be definitely
diagnosed. If the difficulty is pronounced as tuberculosis
it is the part of wisdom to dispose of the whole flock, as uj) to
State.
Alabama
Arizona
Arkansas
California
Colorado .
Connecticut
Delaware
District of Colunibi
Florida
Coorgia
Idaho
Illinois
Indiana
Iowa
Kansas
Kentucky
Louisana .
Maine
Maryland
Massachusetts
Michigan
Minnesota
Mississippi
Missouri
Montana
Nebraska
Nevada
New Hampshire
New Jersey
New Mexico
New York
North Carolina
North Dakota
Ohio .
(Oklahoma
Oregon
Pennsylvania
Rhrule Island
S.iuth Carolina
S(H]th Dakota
Tennessee
Texas
IIf;di . . .
Veimont .
Virginia
Washingtcjn
West Virginia
Wisconsin
Wyoming
POULTRY PRODUCTION 527
Table LIII. The Amounts of Digestible Organic Nutrients,
Total Ash and Crude Fibre, in One Hundred Pounds of
THE Common Poultry Feedstuffs.'
528 APPENDIX
'A
>
POULTRY PHODrcriON 52!)
=2 12 2? "^
'^'-'J CS,'-0
^^O
"O 01 JO CO o cK-o r-
O) COCJ O O CO O CO '-D
c/D
--C
H^ ;j^
C-J C-l
rococo r-ns-o
Ol OJ 00 no OJ CO
CO rH-ffcoln^^-M-fi
O O t^ .-H O y-. CO
.
ooDiocoi^a:r^aio
--"X) rxi O -H .o CO 01 O o
t- O
-+<
.-HlO-HCf -
CO
rfHco
d P N o r- -^ rn
coo t-__QO_co_^r--_-r CO co -h c-
^-^.^.'^.COOCft':OcocCii:^ O _^
ooooiococj.-iOia>cor~i-Sr~
-^lOr-lOCCOt^OCO'fiCOiO
iQOlCOO'OCO't'OOO'OO
CM__ai # C'l^Tf O lO CO CO CJ
'-' rfl
C-l t^ OCO ^ Tf^"|-"rH
O iOl.-HOOIt^-^C-HOOO'-iO
CI CI CI O --"1- Ol O O) O iC o
CC 00 O
1
IC 0_ CO OD
--__ h- -' Ol
C-1 ^-O
': CO yj iio"a)'>o'io''^':j5io'uo >r /:*
i-H CO M
lO CO CO c-q -< iQ CO o) f t ~
CO t^ Ol -ti t-^
2 a o
CO I yj o
^-^ "O r-< o] -i)
'O
t-l
a
'O o CO '^ '-' CO t-*
1
S'l
.V
5,30 APPENDIX
Table
fear.
INDEX.
H
Hamhurcs, 62, 65 Impaction of the crop, 244, 506
Hardening the chicks, 228 Impregnation, 171
artificial,
Hatch, taking off the, 228 influence of previous, 107
Hatcher, customs, 34 Improvement by selection, 133 ff
Hatching, pedigree, 124 Inbreeding, llSff
power, 139 ff Incubation, 175 i'f
Hen as a food manufacturer, 45 Chinese and Egvptian method
versus Jersey Cow, efficiencv of, 201
of, 318 cooling of eggs, 20S
Hens, breaking up broody, 200 comjiarative reliability of nat-
feeding of lireedmg, 399 ural and artificial, 197
hatoliing with, 197 ff date of hatching, 217
INDEX
Incubation, history of, 200
natural, 198
normal moisture loss in, 210 .Iavas, 03
periods, 197 .lunglefowl, dcscrii)tion of, 50
testing of eggs, 225
turning and cooling of eggs,
194, 208, 210, 224
Incubators, 175 If
best means of supplying mois- Kafir, 332
210
ture, Killing, knife for, 458
crowding eggs into, 215 methods of, 57
disinfection of, 221
efficiency of hens as, 197
firstAmerican, 203
hot-air,204
hot-water, 204 La Flecue, 05
humidity in, 210-224 Langshan, 08
insurance restrictions on, 229 Layers, routine in feeding of, 392 ff
S
Tapewokms, 521
Salt, 355 Temperature for brooding, 233 if
Scald picking, 400 for incubation, 181, 205, 224
Scaly leg, 517 Tendons, pulling of, 481 ff
Scratch feed, 390 Testers, egg, 225
Screenings, wheat, 330 Toe picking, 248
Selection, purpose of, 133 punching for identification,
Sex glands, 84 ff 161
description of, 84, 95 Tolrnan house, 2S9
function of, 91 Tom, numlier of hens to one, 423
Shade and shelter, necessity of, 251 Transportation, facilities for, 45
Slianks, removing of, S3 ff 'i'roughs, 400
Shed roof poultry house, 283 ff Trussing, 485
Shell, formation of, 89, 175 IT 4'uberculosis, 518
layers of, 170 Turkeys, 07, 418 IT
membrane, 88, 170 blackhead, 425
construction of, 177 Bronze, 67, 419
oyster, 350 decline of raising, 18, 419
Sliorts, wheat, 340 domestication of, 418
Shrubbery, use of, 253 farm production of, 420
Skim milk, 357 feeding of market, 428
Sick birds, care of, 503 infectious entero-hepatitis of,
Silage, 351 425
Singeing, method of, 479 nesting of, 424
Slii)S, classification of, 473, 474 number of, IS
Soil, 253 of hens to tom, 423
conservation of fertility of, 40 round-\ip of, 421
Spleen, 312 selection of breeding, 422
Spot eggs, 499 White Holland, 07, 419
Springs, classification of, 473 4\irning eggs during incul-ation,
Sprouted oats, 351 _
194, 210; 224
Stags, chissification of, 473, 174 Turnips, 353
Stained (>gg^;, 491 Type, breed, 54
Standard l)red defined, 59 egg, 158
pack, 470 of houses, 283
of perfection, 57 meat, 139
Stencils, use of, 477 vigorous, 136
Sticking knife, 458
Stomach, glandular, location and
function "of, 312, 313
Stove brooders, 234 ff
Straw loft, 275 \'arieties, standai'd, 54 ff
String picking, 401 Variety defined, 55
Stud breeding, 171 \'egetable feeds, 322
Succulent feeds, 348 Ventilating system of a hover, 241
Siigar, 347 Ventilation in inculiators, 214, 225
Sunflower seeds, 334 necessity of, 215, 258
INDEX 541