The Grit-advocate., 1906-02-02
Pekin Ducks.

Pekin Ducks
The Pekin ducks take the lead over
all other ducks, first, on account OF
their rapid growth. If they are prop
erly cared for they can be made to
weigh five pounds at ten weeks old.
and can be marketed when prices are
the highest. Second. on account OF
their strong. healthy frames and long
bodies there is never anything amiss
with them. They should have plenty
OF water to drink, but do not need any
to swim in. Care should be taken that
they always have plenty Of sharp grit
where they can get 1t. l usually keep
3 box Of grit in their drinking dishes.
Here in the west ducks are not
mated until about February LIST, but
Of young ducks by that time. They
raise them for the New York and
Boston markets. where the people
have had their taste educated to like
green duck. The people of Chicago
have not yet reached the point where
they are willing to pay eastern prices
for green duck.
try to have my ducks begin laying
in February. Most of the eggs first
layed are not very fertile. To obssate
this difficulty l generally set two
ducks at time. II part Of the Eggs
are infertile, this can be found out
by testing them and the fertile eggs
put in one incubator. If he is using
incubators. February is not too early
to commence incubation. My arst
feed is infertile eggs chopped fine
with bread crumbs. to which is added
little chick grit. After about week
take. johnny cake. made from one
half shorts, one-half corn meal, which
feed about one more week. l then
take about one-third corn meal, one
third bran and one-third shorts, and
use these for the feed. We cannot
always get bran or shorts here.
have had brakes hatched about July
10th weigh ten pounds early in Desem
Der.
There is no class of poultry SO
easily raised, nor is there anything in
the animal kingdom that can be turaed
into money as quickly as ducks. They
never have lice except head lice. We
always put little grease on their
heads. Bees will kill ducks II they
run where there is white clover. They
will catch the bees and the latter will
sting them in the throat. This catses
suffocation. Ducks not yarded nights
will run themselves to death m on
light nights-Mrs. Charles Jones, lii
lois.
How Far Can Fowls Ee shippet?
! have made many shipments of
fowls to Australia and New Zealind,
as well as to Germany, Argentine Re-
public, Honolulu and England, and
have for some years covered Nurth
America with shipments practically
every month in the year. have
found it almost without exception to
be advisable to ship fowls if properly
Grated and under proper conditions to
any part of the Globe, and believe that
arrangements could be made to for
ward pen Of thrifty birds around
the world. without any special drtri-
ment to them.
1t is not advisable to ship egg, to
such distances as will take more than
seven or eight days to forward them.
Conditions are all against them:
though l have customer who is
anxious to try the shipping of a set
ting to Australia. It would take fcom
thirty to sixty days to land them in
his hands.
have made repeated shipments Of
eggs from the very eastern part of
Massachusetts as far west as Van
couver, and had my customer ge. as
good results from them as though
they were In the next state. think
that the above answer covers some.
what the radius Of the territory which
can be covered by one who advertises
widely.
am at the present time using
South African advertising medium and
expect results from It, Shall have to
state. to you frankly that have
found in most instances that it is
only the English speaking people who
are ready to pay price such as to
make a satisfactory foreign trade, for
the expense of shipping stock and to
get fair value for them is such that
ho JS' sAS oiSiSh spSdNlHS people are
not ready to make many or liberal pur-
chases, with the exception of Ger
many. One reason for this is, l think,
that it takes poultry exhibitions to
create a demand for fancy stock, and
these, If conducted at all, are in a
small way with other people than the
English speaking.
| find it no more difficult to hold
customers at distance than those
who are located near by, for with the
mail order business the same as with
face to face trade, it is the satisfied
customer who comes again.-Arthur
G. DustoI. Middlesex Co., Mass.
The Use Of Whitewash.
Whitewash cannot be used too
frequently in the hen houses
or Is at least not likely
to be. 1t is a great germicide and
when disease germs and poultry lice
are buried under it their course is fin.
ished. Whitewash has the virtue of
filling up the unsightly places, and a
rough board holds more Of it than a
smooth one. Some men whitewasb
their poultry houses only once a year:
hut