Daily capital journal. (Salem, Oregon) 1903-1919, 1914-10-31
Weekly Page of Poultry Hints

the trap nest is impractical. 1t would
cost almost as much to trap 1000
laying hens the entire year as the
profit on their eggs would amount
to. II one traps continually from
200 to 500 hens is about all one per-
son can care for and look after the
growing stock to keep up the flock.
Unles the hens are uncommonly pro-
ductive this number will not afford
the remuneration one Is wont to e1-
pect who takes up the production of
commercial eggs as a business.
A Tedious Grind.
For nearly ten years I have trap
ped my pullets designed for breeders
and the breeding hens. It has been
a steady and tedious grind. 1t means
that in that time I have visited the
coops something like $4,000 times.
The duty could not be shirked and
must be done every day, whether
there is circus in town or not.
Many times have been on the point
of abandoning the work, but the
thought that it would render useless
all that l have accomplished sus-
tanned me. AS l think Il over l am
in doubt whether It has paid or not.
In fact, am strongly Of the opinion
that 1t has not paid in dollars and
cents. What learned about the lay
ing hen has been of much use to me,
but IL l had been on terms Of in
timacy with my flocks l might have
secured a portion Of this knowledge
without the use of trap nests.
am pretty well convinced that II
I had not trapped my hens and de-
voted the same time and energy to
raising more stock and culling out
the poor layers, would have been
money ahead. The plan 1 should
have followed is to breed from the
most vigorous females, using males
from some reliable breeder who does
trap, or select males that came from
great laying hens. should raise
about twice rs many pulletg as l
cared for, so as to have plenty to SO.
lect from and keep culling up con
tlnually. Yearling hens should be
culled twice year and this selec-
ton may continue to the two and
three-year-old hens, as II Ia their
laying condition rather than their
age which determines their value. II
| had followed such O course ! would
have been able to care for and raise
the stock TO keep up flock from
one to two thousand hens with the
same labor | now expend on about
three hundred breeders.
Not Worth the Prico.
BY the use Of trap nests and pedl-
gree breeding we can build up lay
Ing strain which will reproduce Itself
to a marked degree, but Is tho game
worth the prioe7 | hardly think no,
and this conclusion 10 reached after
ten years Of use. The number OF
pedlgreed birds that can bo pro-
duced Is too small, oven though they
hIe wv utbh VI lt9Niof w ANNuih bNA-
ficient revenue. We might better dis
card half the pullets wo raise, and
will then bo able 10 secure double
the number we can by pedigree
breeding. and II these selected pull
let's do not lay quito as many eggs
each M tho pedlgreod stock, the ag-
gregate will be greater, II tho pedl-
greed hens return q net profit Of
three dollars each and the selected
hens two dollars each, we can GER
tainly make more money from 1000
Of tho latter than we can from 800
OF tho former, and tho labor will bo
about tho same.
by tho flock record we can estl-
mate the number OF hens which are
laying II tho percentage 10 small we
should mako an examination Of tho
hens, say once in two weeks, and
note down tho band numbers Of those
which are laying. II this In done
three or four times it will not take
long TO find out the hens which are
not producing. Hens which show no
signs OF laying during two or three
examlnatlons may he put down az