The Butler weekly times. (Butler, Mo.) 1881-1918, 1913-05-01
Feeding tie Baby Chicks.

( , Il 5 i i, 10
Circular Missouri Experiment. station.
Thousands, yes, millions Of bab
chickens die on Missouri farms an
in Missouri poultry yards each sea
. son. AS result, the loss in egg
and labor in Matching is tremendous
Much of this is due to imprope
methods of feeding and can be avoid
ed. The newly Matched chick is
very tender and frail little creatur
just after having picked his wa,
from the she'll. The comfort of tn
chicks, and the feed given them ar
the two main things which will meal
your success or failure, and these ar
the two things which require you
most careful consideration at thi
time. See that they are comfortable
not to the extent that you nurse them
but they must be kept reasonably
warm, dry and active.
Some of the mistakes in feeding
too soon after being Matched, feeding
too freely, feeding sloppy food, feed
ing too much corn, feeding CONNER.
cial grit at the start instead of sand,
feeding other ingredients which
should not be used at the very begin
ming. These and similar mistakes
tend to irritate the digestive organs
and intestinal tract. Such practices
often result in the chicks having
diarrhea. The chicks become dump
ish, get out of condition and die
rapidly.
During the past two years, we have
tried but several methods of starting
baby chicks. If you are troubled
with diarrhea of any kind, or lack of
vitality, or slow growth, then try the
following plan. 1t has been one of
the most successful plans of feeding
baby chicks which we have ever
used.
We sprinkle little clover chaff or
fine cut straw or clean litter, free
from must and mold, over the floor
of the brooder or hover before the
chicks are placed in it. We provide
a small fountain of pure water. The
chicks are not fed for forty-eight
hours or more after they are Matched.
Don't feed too soon. Give chicks
lime to assimilate the yolk of the egg
which contains enough food to last
hem several days.
Begin by feeding mixture of two
birds rolled oats and one-third wheat
oran mixed with a small amount of
charcoal. This is fed on clean ,,
board or paper four or five times a ,
lay and only a small quantity fed at ,
| time. We remove the feeding
BOARD after the chicks are through
ating. Clean sand is given about
he time the first feed is given, and :
10 grit is given before. We think :
and is better to start chicks with
IAN commercial grit, if it can be Sc .
ured, and if not, then use fine COM q
lercial grit very sparingly until /"
hicks are at least ten days old. After
le chicks are week old, we begin
} add little commercial chick feed
the above mixture and gradually B
crease this until the rolled oats and
AN are eliminated from the first or
ain feed. AT this age, we also be-
n to feed dry mash, the mash
ing made by mixing the following:
One part wheat bran, one part
IN meal, one part shorts, one-half
TT alfalfa meal, one-third part rolled Ga
is or oatmeal.
We add one-half pound of very fine E;
It to each 100 pounds of the above
xture, and also add a handful of
e charcoal. After the chicks are
o weeks old, we begin to add a p,
all quantity Of dry beef scraps to W.
mash mixture. If the chicks are he
free range, and get plenty of bugs 50,
] worms, they do not need the 70,
~
UN YOUR nTNDEp cu