The Lynden tribune. [volume] (Lynden, Wash.) 1908-current, 1911-11-16
TIMELY TOPICS
H. L. Blanchard, Asst Sup't Of
Western Washington Expen-
ment Station, Puyallup, Wash.
B Y
CULLING THE FLOCKS

time required, than that of system
atically culling his fiocks. BY Gull
ing we meau he practice If select
ing and .epi. ,.''s the inferior an
poorest birds of the flock from tne
best, for it goes without, saying
that practically every flock has its
good. bad oand Indifferent birds. The
cad and Indifferent hitds ought. as
early as possible, to be disposed Oh
or at least separated from the good
birds. The reason icr this practice
are obvious, for the time is fast pass
ing when all hens are longer con-
sidered as alike-oue as good as an
ether. Through the aid of the
trap nest and of other agencies, it
has become quite generally recognize
ed that the egg producing capacity
Cf hens varies greatly. for such fact
mas been repeatedly proven. 1t is
not, however, generally believed that
such variation is as graat as 1t is
Without a question from 60 to 40
percent of the pullets that iesui.
from matches from eggs produced by
the average flock, ever lay enough
eggs in a year to pay for the feed
that they naturally require. AS this
fact becomes better understood the
farmers and others are taking notice
of the condition. and are casting
about for remedy Systematic Gull
ing furnishes the remedy, and Isl
the only remedy 1t matters not how
prolific layers the birds comprising
the flock may be, to neglect this
important matter of culling, will IN
the course of a few years result in
the flock deteriorating as egg pre-
lucers, to a point no better than
The average of its kind. Unless che
flock possesses good staying qualities
here is very little that can be said
or the business, for it is very easy
o lose the results of ones efforts,
Turing six months of the year by
he neglect and mismanagement of
he following six months. Such are
l few of the reasons why the culling
Of the flocks ought not to be neg
ected.
HOW TO PROCEED.
Those who have trap nests and
use them will make use of them IN
the work. Those who have not the
trap nests and have not the time
that successful trap nesting demands,
at their disposal, must necessarily ad-
opt the next best plan, and, which,
with them will be found to be more
practical. We refer to the plan of
culling the pullets at a certain nge-
the age to depend upon the breed.
Like in other matters practice makes
perfect, and one ought to make n
close study of the characteristics Of
the breeds that he is using. There
is one class of culls that the novice
can detect as well as can any per-
son, viz, those birds that are I'M
dersized or underweight. This can be
done by the use of the Standard Of
Perfection and pair of spring bal
ances or scales. For instance, a
Leghorn pullet at five months of age
that is found to be one pound under
the standard weight for a Leghorn
hen at maturity, can be classed as a
Gull, and so treated. The same may
be said of the Wyandotte pullet at
six months of age and also the Rock
pullet at six and one half months of
age. OF those remaining after such
culls have been removed those birds
that do not plainly show evidence of
laying or of soon beginning to lay
upon arriving at the ages as stated
can be removed. Any further culling
can now be delayed until the birds
remaining have been laying for a
period of two or three months, when
there SuOulu Uc all eAdllllldtiou iudue
of the pelvic bones. Those birds hav-
ing these bones still close together,
the space between not admitting the
end of the forefinger freely, can also
he removed The birds then re-
naming will be the best birds of the
flock for practical purposes. 1t is
only such birds as these last re-
naming ones that should be used in
the breeding pens.
The culling system herein outlined
will, at once, be recognized as being
thoroughly practical, from the stand
point of any farmer or poultryman,
the simplicity of which will cause
the plan to be generally adopted.
This method can be regarded as
one of the few details that ought
to be observed by poultry men, in
order that their work may become
the more successful.
,..tA Ill,