St. Johnsbury Caledonian. [volume] (St. Johnsbury, Vt.) 1867-1919, 1910-05-04

thing on the order OF dOughnut
This hole in the center acts as yenti-
lating flue and causes a gradual circu-
lation of warm air to pass up through
the center and down over the sides of
the heating drum, thus keeping the
chicks uniformly warm and at the
same time providing them with fresh
air
The exact temperature of the brood
er is of no particular consequence.
The warmest part of it should always
be just a little too warm so that the
chick may go toward or from the heat.
as it pleaseS. The comfortable chick
sleeps squatting down with its head
stretched out If cold it stands up in
an effort to get near the heat which
is above it. These attitudes of the
chicks are by far the best thermometer
for the brooder.
The arrangement of the brooder for
the sleeping accommodations of the
chicks is important, but this is not
the only thing to be considered in
brooder., The brooder used in the ear
~ season. and especially the outdoor
brooder, must have ample space pro-
vided for the daytime accommodation
of the chick. This part of the brooder
must be well lighted and somewhat
cooler than the hover AS soon as
conditions will permit get the chick
ems out on a large floor or, better still.
on the ground. Keep the chicks
scratching in daylight and sleeping
stretched out at night, and the most
difficult problem of poultry raising has
been solved.
Feeding Chicks.
Little chicks should not be fed for
forty-eight to seventy-two hours after
Matching Nature has provided for
their nourishment during this period,
and people who worry about them
starving are wasting pity. Another
error made by kind hearted people is
in thinking the chick needs bread and
milk, hard boiled egg yolk or some
other soft food or wet food. On the
contrary, the chick should be given
the same class of food that it would
get if it first saw daylight in it's ma
tive Indian jungle.
The natural diet consists of seeds,
insects and fresh sprigs Of grass. This
we must duplicate the best we can.
A chick may be first fed any grains
that chickens eat in later life if the
particles are small enough for the
chick to swallow. and they do not
need to be so small. either, for newly
Matched chicks can swallow Kaftir
corn or whole wheat. Hulled oats and
millet are two of the choicest grain
foods for young chicks. Wheat, crack
ed corn and Kaffir corn are staple
poultry food.
Feed small quantities and as often
as is convenient. If the food is buried
in deep litter they must work longer
getting it out. The idea is to have
them always hungry enough to hunt
for food and always a little food for
them to find. If the chicks are at hber-
ty feeding often is not so important.
Three times day would be sufficient.
while if they roam far in the fields,
finding much food. morning and even
ing feeding is all that M necessary.
1t is highly important that the young
chicks be given little meat food in
some form. Commercial beef scrap, to
be had at the feed store, is the best
meat food for any sort of poultry. For
chicks Matched in the spring of the
year and allowed to range outdoors no
special provision for green food need
be made. If Matched in the winter it
is highly important that this be pro-
vided in some form. There is nothing
better fer winter green food than
kale, which if planted the season be-
fore will keep green all winter in al
most any climate. Early lettuce and