The sun., 1916-04-16
BROODY hens NEED
TO Be DISCOURAGED
Various Methods May Be En-
ployed to Make Them Re-
sumo Egg Laying.
STARVING IS DANGEROUS

~ 0OBRNT n ANMS1NON0s
Contrary to the opinion Of many
poultry keepers, egg production 10 not
a sequence Of 30 much nourishmsnt
taken into the body daily. dieested, a.
simulated. and then converted into the
materials for making eggs. In other
words. . continuous operation. unbroken.
a. II we're. provided the care and feed
ing Of the hen are as they should BE-
The egg cells. technically known a. the
ova, Of which there are many hundred
in the well bred. vigorous fowl. are
formed, or rather developed in series or
clusters. sometimes called iitters or
clutches. each cluster being developed
or retarded in accordance with the hens
physical condition and her ability TO
consume sufiiclent quantities Of the
proper nutrients. Between these clus-
ters there 10 an interval Of non-produc-
tion. q sort Of rest period, which varies
quite considerably with different breeds
and with specimens. and which may be a
week or month and not infrequently
IL Is three months, As in the case Of
impoverished fowls. or where they have
not been bred along biological lines for
heavy egg production.
Furthermore. the number OF eggs In
each cluster varies with each breed and
specimen as much as the variation in
the duration OF the rest period. There
may be but a dozen eggs 10 a litter, or
nifty. and In rare cases hen will con-
tinue to lay almost without cessation.
and continue to do so for a couple OF
years. Usually hens t1lat lay short lit
ters take but a few days to the intervals
between them. whereas the hen that
lays a series Of forty to sixty eggs, in
| almost daily succession. will require a
rest period OF a couple OF weeks. With
| specimens OF like breeding and vigor
there IL usually an average struck.
Between the laying OF each litter. es-
| pecially at certain seasons OF the year
and notably the spring months. there
| Is a tendency for the hen to indulge In
| her maternal instincts. in the shape OF
desire to sit and hatch brood o.
| chicks She has completed the first step
IN the operation. the laying Of the eggs
and quite naturally feels that she canno,
, acquit herself OF the responsibility until
she has transformed them into a flock
| OF chicks. Hens OF the heavier varie
ties, such as the Plymouth Rocks. wy.
sndottes, Orpingtons and Brahnas, are
especially prone TO this form OF domes
ticity; yet the desire is also found amonr
| the lighter breeds. even to the so-callet
nom sitting breeds, the I.eghorns, Cam
pines and Hamburgs. In the latter
however. the tendency is not 40 hahitua
nor so likely to be diff'cult to break up
II is not definitely known whether {
hen can control the development of al
egg once the yolk is we'll formed and ra.
left the ovisac. but It is quite certair
| l,at sta f,,a, 10
| veiopment Of the yoiks at the beginning
OF the process. and she also has th,
power to hold the finished egg for
: considerable tine. When hen become
broody and elbows q determination to 81
on the nest day after day. for In man,
cases the desire IL but a passing fancy
the succeeding cluster Of egg cells 4
held In dormaH state for two a
three months. or until she has Matched
reared and weaned her brood ot chick
! and subsequently reinviRorated hersel
for further rroductiveness.
on farms devoted to egg production
where the incubation and broodIng f
| done artifcially. the hen IL not held re
| sponsible for the production OF next sea
sons pullets. IL is the hens eXclus,v,
! business to produce eggs, consequent,
she must be encouraged In that spe
c!alty as much as possible. A. soon a
she shows signs OF shrking her tasl
she must he held to a "strct account
ability; her broodiness must be dis
| couraged-ha rmlessly. not brutally-an,
her internal workings" stimulated an,
spurred on to further achievements
Even on the general farm, wher
1 chicks are reared naturally, there ar
| times when more hens become brood,
than are ever needed TO hatch the youn,
| flock. and because they are allowed I,
sit as long AZ they choose, without IN
reference from the farmer. although
he may not give them eggs to sit upon
the habit soon becomes confirmed an,
there is very noticeable decrease il
egg production. Failure to discourag
broodlness il probably the most poten
cause for the low egg production It
farm focks, and Cor which the farme
has nothing 10 blame but his own In
difference or ignorance.
We have az noticed the poor, thiI
and e'nac!ated condition OF the hen tina
has been sitting on a nest FOR a coupl
Of weeks. and perhaps marveled at he
ability to sustain life at all when "
consider that she eats and drinks Yer,
little and takes practically no exercise
II II were not for her internal storehouso
on which she draws heavily for susie
nance. she would not survive. Befor
she started 10 sit she carefully store,
up a supply of fatty tissue tha. was in
tended to help nourish her during tn
period of her inactivity. and the deISe
citation Of this supply Is what cause
her to become so thin.
Egg production is in reality the resul
OF over-stnulation, or what Is some
times termed secondary circulation
Fowls eat to repair and restore the dali,
wear and tear on the body tissues. ana
! nt S~a1,, tn yafx
this task alone there Is no surplus lef
to go to the production OF eggs. 1t Il
the excess OF nourishment. that which Il
assimlatcd over and above the daily de
mands OF the body. that goes into tn,
stimulation and active development O
the egg organs. and they progress n,
faster than this nourishment Is pro