Vermont phÅ“nix. [volume] (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1834-1955, 1915-12-31
HOW TO WINTER POULTRY.
Given Fowls During Cold Weather
to Obtain Best Results.


to obtain Best Results.
To obtain good results from flock
Of poultry during the winter all houses
and coops should be put in good condi
ton, only healthy fowls placed in the
buildings, and good care given to the
poultry, says the Weekly News Letter
of the department of Agriculture. The
houses should be thoroughly cleaned,
disinfected, and made tight for winter
If the house has n dirt floor, it is well
to remove 3 or 4 inches from the top
and substitute fresh gravel or sand. If
the floor is cement or wood, remove all
litter and dirt and put in 4 or inches
of fresh straw or litter. Be sure that
the house is tight On three sides and
that there is no chance for a draft to
strike the hens. If hens roost or are
placed in draft during the fall and
winter, colds are sure to develop, which
may result in roup and other troubles.
The south side, or front, of the poultry
house may be left comparatively open,
but should be under control, SO that
the openings may be closed gradually
as the weather becomes cold. Have
muslin curtains in the front of the
house, or leave IL window partly open
even on the coolest nights to allow
some ventilation in the house. Fowls
will stand considerable cold air pro
vided it is dry, and ventilation will
keep the air thoroughly dry in the
house.
The pullets should be brought in off
the range and put in winter quarters,
but before they are mixed with the
IL xl,,. I II ~
banded or that the web of the foot is
punched in some way so as to distin-
guish between the pullets and the hens.
In this way the older stock may be
culled out whenever it appears desira-
BILE, and the young hens kept for fur
ther laying. Gull the chickens which
are brought into the laying house
carefully, and fatten and market all
chickens which are small, poorly devel-
oped, or in poor condition. These small,
poorly developed chickens are apt to
catch cold if put III with the other
poultry, and develop diseases which
quickly spread through the flock. Mar
ket all surplus cockerels or older male
birds which are not desired for breed
ing or not wanted for later market.
Feed the grain in deep litter on
the floor and make the hens exercise
for all of their grain. The mash may
be fed either wet or dry, and should
be so regulated that the fowls will get
about equal parts of mash and of the
scratch grams. 1t is necessary to give
the fowls plenty to eat to get good re-
suits, but the birds should always be
eager for each feed. In cold weather
feed about one-third of the scratch
grains in the morning and two-thirds
at night. In this way the hens arc
forced to exercise more than if they re-
ceive all the grain they desire at the
morning feed. Scratch grains, mash or
ground grains, animal protein, green
feed, grit and shell should be supplied
in the winter. good scratch mix
ture may be made of equal parts, b.
weight, of cracked corn, wheat, ami
oats; and mash may be made of two
| parts corn meal and one part each of
wheat bran, wheat middlings, and
! beef scrap. Green feed, such as cab
bages mangel wurzel beets, cut alfalfa,
or sprouted oats, should be supplied to
replace the green feed which the fowls
have been securing in the fields; and
beef scrap, skim milk, cut green bone,
or some similar feed is needed to re-
| place the bugs which the fowls have
been getting on the range. Beef scrap
or feed of this nature is very essential
in securing a good supply of eggs dur
ing the winter months.
Clean the dropping boards at least
once week, and spray the roosts with
kerosene or some commercial prepare
ton for killing mites once a month
during the winter Have a good supply
of sand or dry dirt on hand to use
on the dropping boards during the win
ter
If any of the birds develop colds,
put as much potassium permanganat,
as will remain on the surface of dim
into a gallon of water and keep this
mixture in their drinking water for
several days, or, until the symptoms
of the colds have disappeared Remove
any sick birds from the flock as soon
as they are noted and treat them in
! coops by themselves, or kill and bury
them if they are not worth treating,
Examine the pullets and hens FOR
lice and dust thoroughly with. good
insect powder or apply mixture of 9
parts vaseline and Il part of mereuriai
OF blue ointment, about the size Of q
pea, | inch below the vent of the bird
rubbing the mixture lightly on the
skin. An application of this ointment
two or three times year will keep the
fowls free from lice. Where insect
powder is used, it should be applied
three or four times year, or oftener
if the fowls become infested Provide
n small box in the house partly filled
with dry read dust or fine dirt in which
the hens may dust, thus helping to
keep themselves free from lice.