Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1916-10-07
THE POULTRY YARD
'sa31Niod oNI41oW 7Nos
BY ED wERRR

II Is rather surprising to an old
poultryman to be asked what makes
hens lose most Of their feathers soon
after midsummer. Yet that is the
question coming from reader Of the
T.-R and a poultry raiser in Missouri
Still this querist Is no more ignorant
OF some common matters than many
who pretend to know 1t all I recently
visited a man who has raised poultry
about fifteen years, and he told me that
he had lost about twenty hens the past
month and he believed the cause Of
their death was salt. He had seen in
book that salt promoted laying, and
also prevented early melting. so he had
tried it with the result stated.
He will know better hereafter but
without a doubt hundreds have been
misled into sustaining the same loss
When visited him he was mixing
some kind OF appetizer" with his
poultry food. / asked him what 1t
was composed of and he said he did
not know but it was said to be mighty
good for fowls.
Did he show any more wisdom than
the one asking why hens lost most Of
their feathers after midsummer? I
notice that there Is a good deal Of
| ignorance displayed about the man
| agement Of fowls when they are mott
ing. Many poultry raisers are found
| who declare that they never have q
melting fowl. That they dispose Of
every hen Just as soon as she begins
to mott. That is the chatter Of the
smart" To carry hen over in good
oh rot har thr,y "a n
| business again Of course requires
sensible management. If properly fed
she will continue to lay all right I'M
til most Of her feathers are off, but as
soon as the new ones begin to grow it
is practically a physical irnpossibility
for her to produce eggs, because the
very material that enters into the for
nation of eggs goes to produce
feathers, and her system Is unable to
supply more than what Is required for
either purpose at one time.
Good Feed Necessary For Feathers.
When hen begins to grow new
feathers, and ceases to lay, most poul-
try keepers think it is not worth while
to waste any feed on them, and that
is right where they miss it badly. Just
at the time the hen needs quite as
good feeding as when she Is laying to
enable her quickly to produce her new
coat she is about half started. and the
formation Of her new plumage is de-
dayed and the melting process Is
naturally slow and continued In cold
weather, often until we'll on TO Christ
mas Then, very often, she does not
begin to lay again until the top lofty
prices for fresh eggs has gone glim-
mering.
In the case Of the hen that is sup
piled with the material required for
the manufacture Of feathers. she keeps
her flesh, strength and vitality unim-
paired, and as soon as the coat OF
feathers is completed she begins to
lay because her system is charged with
egg material, and the. formation OF
eggs is q simple change from the for
nation OF feathers.
A hen so treated and cared for will,
II given fair show produce enough eggs
to buy herself two or three times over
before spring. But her owner should
remember that she should not be
loaded down with fat The food she
needs Is not such as produces fat, but
flesh and bone-a heterogeneous rather
than carbonaceous food. A food that
contains q good deal Of lime, and fills
rather than fattens. A small quantity
Of corn is all right, but bran. middlings,
oats and foods of that character should
constitute the chief food
Feather Making Tests Vitality.
The process Of forming new coat Of
feathers is greater strain upon the
vitality of hen than the process
of forming eggs. Hundreds Of poor,
ragged birds are kept shivering in the
raw November winds and without a
morsel Of food in their crops, and their
owners are just as keen for dollars as
any body. but they were too stingy to
nrovide their hens with the stuff that