Gloucester County Democrat. (Woodbury, N.J.) 1878-1932, 1901-08-08
BREEDING FOR EGGS.
A Few Suggestions on How to Get
200 Eggs Fer Hen Per Year.

200 Eggs Per Hen Per Year.
More poultry men and women get
from 100 to 125 eggs per hen per year
than over that amount. And why?
There are only four reasons why-frst,
the stock; second, the houses; third,
the seed; fourth, the care given. Again,
there are only two classes who make
money by keeping poultry-the person
who has only few and the one who
makes it a business. Two hundred eggs
per hen per year are not an unusual
event. and there is no reason why ey-
cry poultryman should not have that
kind
1t is not necessary to have trap nests
to find out your layers. The poultry
man who has to use them for that pur-
pose is not the one to make a success
of poultry keeping. because if he has
to depend on continuance it is only
proof that he cannot place any depend
ence on himself AS soon as one has to
rely Oh others it is high time that he
gives up the business. If you want to
find your layers. stay with your fowls,
pick them out, hang up daily egg rec
ord and watch it. If you have not the
time for this, then you certainly be-
long to the middle class. Unless YOU
give the fowls all your time you can
not expect them to make money for
you. Unless you know your fowls they
will not make you money, even If you
do give them all your time. IL you
have a hen that is known layer and
she is understood or too large, don't
breed from her. If you do, you are
wasting both time and money.
Stock has greatly improved in the
past five years, but egg production has
not. When poultrymen devote more
time trying to find out which way and
how is the best to feed, then they will
increase the egg production. Because
John Jones tells you that his way Of
feeding is the best that is no reason
why you should adopt it until you
know it to be a fact. Because Sam
Jones tells you that one variety Of
chickens will lay more than the others
don't sell what you have and get them
until you know it is so. Poultrymen
are too ready to listen to the other
fellow.
My method of obtaining and holding
great layers is as follows, no matter
what the variety kept:
AS soon as the pullets are fully ma
tured they are carefully watched. AS
soon as one starts to lay she is removed
to her permanent quarters, punch
marked, a record hung up, date Of
hatch, pen hatched from, etc. This
goes on until pens are full. Those
that are backward in starting are put
in a different building, we counting
them as culls. The pullets and records
are carefully watched. We do not
breed from these as pullets, but will
breed from the cream of them as year
lings. They are now yearlings, and we
start to hatch. Each egg is marked
with pen number When put in incu-
bators. same is set down in ledger
for that purpose, also giving the num-
Der of male bird and what pen he was
Matched from. When the eggs are due
to hatch, they are put in pedigreed egg
trays. This keeps each pen of chicks
separate. They are then punch marked
and placed in breeders, which are
grouped in colonies. separated with
fine mesh wire. so that the chicks can
not get mixed The cockerels are re-
moved as soon as possible and fattened
for market. We pick out few, those
that we think will make extra good
ones, and then turn them ON free range.
Soon the pullets are removed, each lot
to a separate house and yard, and then
we wait for the first eggs.
You must start your feeding for
heavy laying soon after the chick is
Matched. This part of poultry keeping
is entirely too much neglected. l be-
lieye more damage is done by letting
the cockerels remain with the pullets
while growing than from any other
cause 1t will put Them back two
months in their laying, and they will
never make as good birds. 1t certain
ly stunts them. A pullet must be In
the best of condition if you expect her
to be heavy layer, and you must keep
her that way if you want her to keep
on laying. Ny experience teaches me
that we must have large framed birds,
and to get that kind you must start
feeding as little chick. You can put
on flesh any time. but there is only one
time to form large bones, and that is
on the start.-C. A. During