The Abilene reflector. [volume] (Abilene, Kan.) 1883-1888, 1884-03-20
Early Chickens.


not to engage in raising early chickens;
in fact. those who cannot engage in it
with earnestness and pleasure will find
it for their interest not to try to raise
chicks until warm weather. But those
who have good house situated In
warm dry place where there is plenty
of sunshine, and who are deeply in
terested in the business, with some
practical knowledge of it, may engage
in it with a good prospect of making
more than he made by the production
of eggs alone; but to do so they must
ever keep in mind that it is necessary
to, as far as possible, turn winter into
spring, at least so far as the poultry
house is concerned.
The hens should be set in a house by
themselves where the other fowl will
not modest them; and it should be as
free from dampness as possible; it
should also be warm enough so as not
to freeze cold nights. Each hen should
be kept by herself when she comes off
from her nest; this can easily be done
by having small open coop made of
laths, for her to 90 in to eat and dust
herself. Never set hen on floor
where the air will draw under it, or in
& barrel or box with nothing but straw
on the bottom A few inches of par
TALLY dried earth placed on the bottom
OF the box in which to make the nest,
stops the draft of air from below. If
on the earth. short hay or chopped straw
be put, a nest can be made that will be
likely to keep the eggs in the right con-
dition to hatch.
One of the most important steps is to
get good eggs; this is not always easy,
there are so many diseases among fowl
that are constitutional, that it is some
what difficult to get eggs that will pro-
duce healthy chicks. Any constitutional
weakness in the fowl will be very sure
to make its appearance in the chicks,
especially when Matched during cold
weather. Having secured good eggs,
good mothers are the next want. There
is great choice in hens to set; some
are uneasy and are very likely to break
half the eggs before they have been set
ting a week, while others are quiet and
careful, as well as gentle. The medium
size Brahma hens make very good
mothers, and are to be preferred to
most of other breeds. Every effort
should be made to furnish the hen,
while setting, with everything she
needs to keep her comfortable. Be-
sides being furnished with variety of
food she should have ground oyster
shells, gravel, and some very dry loan,
or ashes, to wallow in. 1t is very i'm
portant that the hen should not be dis
turbed while setting on the eggs; it is,
as rule, best to let them have their
own way. especially when the chicks
are about Matching out We are aware
that some believe that it is necessary to
assist the chick from the egg, but we
are not of that number. Believing
that nature has made ample provision
for getting the chick out of the shell
without the assistance of man, we hold
to the opinion that while there may be
cases when assistance would be benefi-
cial, as rule more chicks will be
killed than saved by mans Interference
with natures process.
Another error is often committed by
trying to make the chicks eat as soon
as they are out of the shell. AS they
are not hungry until very nearly day
old, it is not best to feed them until the
next day after they are Matched; then
they should be fed on sweet cracked
corn and millet seed, and in few days
the smaller grains, but never feed on
fine meal, whatever may be the age of
the chicks. Some of the best successes
we have ever known were gained by
feeding whole corn as soon as the chicks
oil tn oh
can do when about two weeks old; with
the corn was mixed oats, barley and
wheat, the proportion being two-thirds
corn and the other third the oats, barley
and wheat in equal portions combined.
In addition to this was given a noon
meal of boiled vegetable, mixed with
wheat bran and a small quantity of
meat.
In feeding chicks great care should
be taken not to keep too much food be-
fore them; the noon meal should be
only what will be eaten up at once, if
it be composed of boiled vegetables,
and the grain should be given in guam
titles that will be eaten up clean each
day. To overfeed chicks is but to
invite disease and early death, especially
those that are raised so early in tn o
season to require them to be kept in the
house.
Chicks that hatch out in February or
March should be very carefully looked
after. especially during the first four
weeks after they are Matched; never let
them get chilled in the cold wind, or by
rCnning on the snow, and yet they
must not be so closely confined indoors
as not to get the fresh air; few things
will cause chicks to stop growing
quicker than to shut them in close,
warm room where they cannot get fresh
air.
To have early chicks do well they
must be supplied with some vegetables,
and if they can have the green leaves
of cabbage it will improve them, but
the Young sprouts of grass are better
and should always be given when it is
possible to get them. The fine hay and
hay seed from the bottom of the hay
NOW is good to put in the yard for the
hen to scratch over; she will busy her.
self all day hunting for seed for the
young chicks.
Great care should be taken to keep
the chicks from becoming lousy; but
there is but little danger OF this, if,
when the nest is made, little sulphur
be sprinkled in the nest before the hen
is set, and the hen be constantly fur
nished with dry wood ashes 10 dust her.
self in, as long as she is permitted to go
with the chicks.
When the chicks are old enough to
wean, care must be taken the first few
nights to see that they find good COM
Portable quarters; they should not be
permitted to 90 on to the roost with the
old hens until the weather becomes