The Cecil Whig., 1910-09-10
Elkton, Maryland, Saturday, September 10. 1910
Some interesting
Poultry Facts

suit OF feathers, others are forlorn
looiling in the extreme; there may be
one old tail feather here and there
or there may be none. The egg
yield is low, il not entireiy cut off,
and some OF you have greatly reduced
rations for this very reason. 1t
would be hard to do the fowls a
greater injustice, and what is worse
the practice is not uncommon. The
Noting period is one OF the hardest
in fowls life time. More than ever
does it need the best OF care and at
tention during the sixty days taken
up by this oncea-year change.
The birds molting early are the
winter layers; at least they should be
with proper food and house condi-
tions When you cut off or reduce
the food, you are making it infinitely
harder for the natural functions to
take place There must be something
out OF which to build an entirely new
set of feathers, not only that there is
period OF recuperation after molting,
which must be borne with and pro-
vided for. 1t is your hens vacation.
and you will be dollars in pocket if
you help to make it agreeable For
ten months your fo,r or five pound
egg plants know no Sundays, and
then the first thing YOU know they put
tilty-two OF them, one right after the
other. The wise poultryman will
make it point to help his fttle work
ers to enjoy their just days of rest
| have known hens, as late as Feb
ruary Ist, to still be suffering from
neglect which Occurred during the
natural molting season. The owner
Of the fowls which | have in mind,
showed me his flock and made re-
marks to the following effect: "When
they stopped laying | stopped feed
ing-let them hustle for living
they weren't bringing me in any
thing. Bought them from strain of
great winter layers, too. They did
right well last winter, but here it is
February and no eggs; no, nor pros
poets. Guess | got stuck" The
above was a very unusual case and
happened with man who put more
emphasis upon housing his fowls than
tcrously lax in his appreciation of
noting demands, and OF course paid
the fiddler
IltIt are q lew ldCls concerning
the molting OF fowls:
ISt, A lean hen can't grow new
feathers. A
2rd. A fat hen won't shed old
ones
3rd Hens carefully housed and
fed produce a large yield and keep
their old feathers even past the profit
able time for moting.
4th. Hens housed carelessly with
out due regard to cleanliness and
ventiiation and indifferent,y fed will
start to mott early and keep it up
late.
All through the molting period the
average farmer, if he feeds at all, will
get some eggs. and the better his
housing conditions the greater will
he the number, but his receipts can
never represent a profit. The period
is too much drawn out and recupera-
tion is too slow. The writer has
known fowls TO molt on corn and
water and nothing e'se, but it would
not be a paying method. Some peo-
pie, some writer's, suggest sunhower
seed as a help at this time, because
of the oil contained therein, but as
there is about 90 per cent of waste
matter in this product. the value is a
question. Protein in the ration is
necessary and oil helpful
The fowls may often be induced to
hasen their shedding and renewing
Of feathers by short period Of re-
duced rations II fed almost no food
for week III late summer, egg pro-
duclon may be entirely stopped and
mouting will most always follow.
AbundaHt t,eding should ;hen be
pracliced, using linseed meal, animal
meal and gluten feed to supplement
the ration. The nutritiye ratio OF the
rat,ons for producing eggs is 40 for
Leghorns, and IA ? for Plymouth
Rocks, but during the mott ration
standing Is would be better. This
method of starving and following with
heavy feed, applies most where the
fat hen concerned and for condi-
tions represented under TACT 3rd."
For the average farmer the prompt
moltng and early consumption OF egg
production are rl0re apt to be in
duced by omittinp the starving pro-
cess and feeding very abundaDtly OF
the ration having a nutritive ratio OF
rs, beginning the middle of August.
But one wants to remember that
when a hen stops laying. her ten
dcncy IS to iaze around and put on
fat. She must be kept busv-cxercise
at this time IS imperatiyc-it is abb
solutely necessary if the fowls are to
Re kept over for winter egg produc-
tion; that is, If the owner expects to
get eggs.
These nutritlve ratios may seem
like worthless information to some
who may read, and for such it might
be well to say in general, when your
fowls mott, feed them during the per-
iod of recuperation, which follows,
continue to feed them The ten
months OF laying has reduced the Vi
tality OF the fowls-the mott comes
as a further tax. Whatever else YOU
do or fail to do, FEED The thin
hens can't grow feathers without
something to build trom-the fat ones
A Rp|jahIn EoncHy cx