Phillipsburg herald. [volume] (Phillipsburg, Kan.) 1882-1905, 1904-04-14
POULTRY
Care of Sitting Hens.

There are numerous farms on which
some fowls are raised, but not enough
10 justify the owner In purchasing and
using an incubator. On such farms
Tie old hen must still be used for the
purposes of incubation. 1t will be
found that the amount of care that is
given the sitting hens will determine
10 considerable extent the outcome
OF the Matching operations. All poul-
Try raisers must acknowledge that the
slttlng hens require good deal OF
attention, and often more than is
given them. In a state of nature the
men at this period takes care of her.
sell. Let us not imagine, however,
tnat she always does it successfully.
IN that state she laid more eggs than
she could cover and naturally many
OF them spoiled. The wild things OF
the wood and the air preyed upon her
nest and 1t was often despoiled. When
born her chicks often fell into the
clutches OF rapacious animals and
Dlrds. Let us not suppose that the
men In her wild state led a life OF
uninterrupted prosperity. If left to
her own inclinations the hen would
To-Day prove a very improbable in.
Vestment to her owner. To make he,
profitable man has had to surround
her with safeguards that would pre-.
serve her extra eggs and her extra
progeny for himself. The wild thingt
stlll try to make her and her product
their plumber and frequently succeed
The first care for the sitting hen
then, Is to see that she is undisturbed
IN her task of lowering the eggs for
three weeks. 1t is needless to say
that she should not be left to make
ner nest in the fence corners or the
bushes, as is sometimes done. Her
nest must be provided for her, and II
II is an exposed place she must be
smut In each night. On our farms a
good many people follow the practice
OF turning down a barrel and SETTING
the fowl In that. The barrel is lef,
IN the door yard or any other place
that comes handy. This is all right
IL the owner prefers it that way. bun
IN such case the barrel should have
a cover to 1t that will permit the
entrance OF air but not of animals of
prey, such as skunks, coons and
minks.
Where brooding places are provided
IN the poultry houses the greatest
danger is from mites, which FREQUENT
" XIII the hens on their nests. One
farmer told the writer his experience
n This matter He said he had a
nock OF about fifty fowls and had pro.
Vlded a good house for them, His
nests were specially arranged for sit.
ing, so that the laying birds could
De Kept from the ones that were
sitting. The nests opened on both
sides, but at sitting time the openings
INTO the roosting part of the house
we're closed. He set two fine birds
N some choice eggs and waited re.
'u!ts. In a few days he noticed that
10Th birds were becoming pale around
he combs and wattles and it was a
'uzzle to him to find the cause. They
we're apparently sick, and he went
N doctoring, but this did no good.
)ne morning he found one of the sit.
ers dead on the nest and the other ,
learly so. He examined the dead ,
'ird and found not louise on her or ,
nything that would give a hint of the !
ause OF her death. She seemed :
loodless. He took the other hen of ,
nd gave her her freedom and she +,
t once began to recover. He found a
yell hen and put her on one sitting ,
l eggs, and she began to get sick 7
hen he took the bird off and began q
tear the nest to pieces. That
olved the mystery. The bottom OF =
he nest was writhing mass Of red n
Ines. Every night they had climbed
nto the doomed birds and sucked SO n
luch OF their blood that they had 4
illed one and nearly killed another. n
'p to that time this poultryman did I
OF know that he had a mite in his a
oultry house. This proves most con. &
Iusively that 1t never pays to set a
en- and then forget her.-Farmers'
avfau