Northern Wisconsin advertiser. [volume] (Wabeno, Wis.) 1898-1925, 1906-03-22
Getting Ready for Spring.


incubators and breeders, he mates up
his breeding pens and makes ar
rangements for early Matching. With
quite number the incubators are
started some time during January,
and these early birds are quickly
grown into broilers. The wise poul-
tryman saves only from his March,
April and May matches for future
breeding stock, turning everything else
into table poultry. Now is a good
time TO buy new blood, for by waiting
until spring opens there is a POSSIBLE
ity of having poor stock to select
from. The choicest go with the early
orders, says the New York Tribune
Farmer. All poultry-houses should
be so constructed that there is ample
room in them for the fowls to ex-
ercise and keep busy during such
weather as compels them to remain in
doors. For this purpose there is no
better plan for a house than the one
constructed on the scratching shed
order, These provide not only com
Portable quarters, but they admit such
quantities of fresh air ana yet shield
the stock from the inclemency Of the
weather that, instead of suffering
from the confinement, they profit by it.
Getting ready" too, means extra
care with the breeding stock. At this
writing we are right in the midst Of
winter. 1t means considerable bad
weather yet to come. We never feel
safe until the short but decisive"
month of February has left us. 1nen
We can begin to look for better days.
Knowing that the birds must be more
of less confined for a month a. two
longer, the practical man secures a lot
of straw or hay, and this he uses free
ly in the houses, scattering gram
among it, compelling the hens to work
hard to secure their meals. This exer.
else promotes health: it keeps the
stock happy, and it produces eggs. 1t
requires health and contentment in a
hen to make eggs. They are ingredi-
ents as valuable as lime is for the
formation of the shell. Another fac
tor in good management is proper
feeding. A man who ovelfeeds does
more harm than good to his stock.
Proper condition means well fed AMI
well cared for. hen in good laying
condition rarely il ever overfattens.
1t is the idle, lazy creature that takes
on layer after layer of fat. An over
fat han iS NOT n bpa1thu ono
On all the well conducted poultry
plants trap nests are used. These
nests at this time of the year perform
an important mission in picking on.
the January and February layers
AS the pullet goes on the nest she be.
comes trapped, and when released, If
she has laid, ring is placed on her
leg. Each ring has a separate num-
ber On a number of large farms pull.
lets that have not begun laying during
January are at once discarded, as the
winter egg producers are of more
worth than hens that wait until the
warm suns of spring appear. There
is only one way OF finding out which iS
the cream of the flock, and that IS
through the add of trap nest. II
each year the breeding is done only
with the winter workers it is reason
able to suppose that tach year the
stock will become more valuable for
that purpose The writer has trab
nests installed in all his pens. These
he starts In January and keeps them
fDl1
four months the traps are converted
into open nests, no individual record
being kept Of the summer laying
What we want to know Is which of our
stock give us the most eggs during the
season when eggs are the highest. Al
the end of each year we pick out our
best winter layers and breed only
from such. Each year we sell of
half the previous years breeders-of
course retaining the cream-and make
up the other half with pullets Matched
in the spring. We hold over during
the month of January more pullets
than we need, so that the pens will be
made up Of birds that are laying in
January, afterward selling the surplus
The breeding pens should now be
arranged. We do not favor large
fiocks. Better results are obtained
from small families well managed
Our pens contain Is hens each, and
for strong fertility we alternate male
birds in the pens. This can be done In
many ways. Some favor changing
males in each pen once a week; others
prefer twice week, and still others
daily. The idea of alternating is that
1t does not give either the males )r
females chance TO have favorites
II Is a fact that a male bird continn
onsly in flock is very apt to pick out
certain hens that he will take care OF
but will ignore all the others. On the
other hand females are apt to form dis
likes for certain male and will re.
fuse to cohabit with him. 1t is needless
TO say this will be the cause OF a Ger.
tain amount Of infertile eggs. Now.
by changing the males those hens
those hens that have been previously
neglected will at once take up with
the new male, and he, being a stranger
n, tho HcrL mill ~ ..1o n