Evening star., 1915-01-03
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Turkeys for Profit.

ways DelnB 1eTIlles the youuS lul hey 9'
or ''poults," as they are called. wander
about through grass and weeds. after
their mother, and within a week or so
most of the little fellows are dead.
Those that do not die are, of course,
turkey raising being a striking eXem-
plif1cation of the survival of the fittest.
If Mr.. or Mrs. Farmer raises half a
dozen out of the brood of fifteen
''poults" he or she Is lucky. That Is
one reason why turkeys are almost al
ways high at Thanksgiving and Christ
mas time.
Ask the average farmer why he con-
tinues to raise" turkeys in this way
and the chances are that he will reply:
MY father raised them that way,
and it's as good a way as any 1 know
So he goes on, year after year, bring
ing not more than 20 per cent of the
annual hatch of poults to maturity, be
cause father did it that way" 1t
never occurs to bin that perhaps there
may be better way. He never seems
to think that there must be something
wrong with a plan that results in the
death of -fifths of the young tur-
keys Matched.
Young turkeys are probably more
susceptible to weaknesses and ailments
of various kinds than any other kind
of poultry. Somebody said once that
1t seemed as If when a poult stepped
on a drop of dew 1t just naturally felt
proceeded to do it. While actual con-
ditions are not quite that bad. wet
feet and draggled down or feathers
kills thousands of young turkeys every
spring. And still it never seems to
occur to farmers that a good way to
prevent this Is to keep the baby turks
from getting wet and draggled
To succeed with turkeys. hatch the
eggs under hens of some breed like
white .Plymouth Rocks, placing not
a hen. When the poults are out OF
the shells, place them in dry, sunny
we'll ventilated house. the floor OF
which is raised OFF the ground and
clean. dry sand and gravel. Keep hen
and poults confined to this house by
means of poultry netting. Feed the
little fellows carefully, just as you
would baby chickens. The first feed
as much should be fed for the first
few days as the poults will clean up
in five minutes Feed them at least
four or five times day.
At the end of the first week the
oatmeal may be changed to a reliable
brand of chick feed, and little more
may be fed at each feeding. At the
end Of the second week give the poults
a little-a very litt1e-cooked meat
more necessary to turkeys than to
hens. Be careful not to overdo it.
however; it is better to feed too little
meat than too much.
keys plenty of clean, fresh water, to
which has been added the proper
quantity of permanganate of potash,
the same as for other fowls. If butter
milk or sour milk is available, give
the poults a ration of this every day.
Also. see that they have. each day, a
feed of tender young clover or some
fresh, juicy green feed.
By the end of the third week the
number of feelings per day may be cut
feeding increased. Be careful never
to overfeed, however; the digestive ap-
paratus of the -poults is easily upset,
and once out of fix nothing can rem
for the first month or six weeks, al
though a hopper of wheat bran NAV
be placed in the pen for the poults to
eat when they want it.
Keep the sand and gravel on the floor
clean by Stirring 1t up with a rake
every day. If this doesn't seem to keep
it clean enough. renew the sand and
gravel. being sure that the new is
clean and thoroughly dry.
Do not permit the poults to step a
foot on the ground until they are two
months old. By that time they will be
well advanced and will have grown
quite a covering of feathers. They may
then be permitted to run about in an
inclosed yard, provided there is shade
in the yard, beneath which the poults
may find shelter from the hot sun. At
this time begin feeding them a good
scratch-feed mixture-one that does
not contain too large a proportion of
corn. Wheat bran or a good dry-mash
mixture. with a fair proportion of sound
beef scrap in its composition, should
+ f1x1 - tI,@ 90 n
they should also have all the clean,
sharp grit and charcoal they want.
Continue the sour milk or buttermilk
ration, if possible.
BY the time the poults are four
months old, they will be big enough
to eat whole grain, when they may be
fed mixture of corn, one part; wheat,
two parts; barley or rye, two parts;
oats, one part. At this age they may
also be allowed free range, as they will
not wander far from the mother hen,
and will also forage for bugs. worms
and grasshoppers, as well as the large
amount of green feed they require.
Never turn them out while the dew is
on the grass, however, or when rain
has recently fallen or is threatened.
This plan, if followed, will surely re-
duce mortality among young turkeys
almost to the vanishing point. and will
change turkey raising from it's present
status as a haphazard proposition, in
which the element OF luck ngureS to
the exclusion of almost everything else,
to one in which certain well defined
rules may be depended upon to bring
certain results. That is all there is to
turkey raising-simply the application
of common sense and the abandonment
of methods that have been followed
year after year for no reason except
that father and grandfather used to
do 1t that way"
Breeds and Feeds.
Many disappointments that arrive via
the egg basket would never come to
yex the soul and drain the pocketbook