Milford chronicle., 1916-03-10
THERE IS REAL PROFIT
TO BE HAD FROM POULTRY
By J. H. MeFAUL, Jr.
(AH Rights ReSeyved1

Notwithstanding the fact that poultrl
is now considered to be one of the great
est industries within the confines of thi
great commonwealth and although sta
tistics complied by government expert!
show that it actually leads many of thC
supposed to be leaders in point of earn
ings, there are still many who question
the ability Of the featured tribe to carr
even a profit for their breeders.
The poultry business. in many re-
spects, is like many other industries,
that is, in that every person who enters
or engages in it does not stamp the bust
ness of raising poultry for meat and
eggs as unprOfitable. 1t only goes to
show that in order to make a success one
must be up and doing at all times. and
must profit by his experience. Be con-
tent to start in a small way and grad
ually build up your business, learning it
as you go, until you have reached a
point where much money is to be deriv-
ed from it,
Poultry raising under favorable con-
ditiOns is profitable, and by favorable
conditions, / mean that the surroundings
must be conductive to good health of
the stock, that their feeding must con-
sist of the proper kinds of foods, sys-
tematically fed, and that the birds must
| be given the care and attention which
they require.
Ii these details are carefully looked
after. every hen should yield a net
profit of about 81 per year. OF course,
many will exceed this amount, while on
/ the other hand, some will fall below the
mark. Anyway, there should be little
trouble in getting 81, 80 from every bird.
| 1t is a known fact the larger the flock
the less the profit per bird, up to GER
tain amount, but no matter how large
the flock might be, each individual hen
should net at least 81. 80 per year profit.
If this is not true of your birds, then
there is trouble somewhere. If traced,
the fault will be found with the breeder
and not the birds.
While believe this to be true, ! am
willing to yield point Or two and say
that, under any circumstances, you
should at least realize 81 per bird over
and above her cost of keep. If this |
cannot be done, then it will not pay you |
to keep poultry.
Many persons who raise poultry, and |
particularly the smaller breeders and |
farmers (who, as a rule, pay but little
attention to their tlocks) make the claim
that they are Improbable. 1t will be
found in almost every case where this
claim is made that the breeder or keeper
never maintains any record of the
of money spent to keep poultry
nor what is realized from the sale of
stock or eggs
He is therefore not in a position to
fairly judge Of their worth. There are
still other persons who attempt to keepI
such a record, but never take into &C
count the fowls and eggs used for their
own table. This is just as imperative
as a record Of those sold, for when used
Tor the home they take the place of
lther things which would have to be
purchased on the outside they there
lore represent an earning. q
When the little chick is first hatched c
t requires little or nothing to feed it, t
)ut as it grows from day to day it con- y
umes more and more food at an in
reased cost. The keynote to the sue q
essful raising of chicks is to keep them |
and this means more food as b
he chicks advance in age, thus increas- u
ng the cost of raising as they get older. Il
There is practically no expense entailed II
n feeding the chick during its first e
week, but each succeeding one adds ma p
erially to the final cost of raising. A
The bulk of the profit to be derived
rom the handling of chickens surely "
ONES from the production, and this is CT
augmented by that derived from the g
ale of surplus stock as meat and from "
he sale of some specimens as breeders. Ia
n order then TO get the most out of Il
Oultry, one must look well to the lay al
lg qualities. Aim to breed to this end, p'
you have not already done so. It
As the bulk of the profit derived from 1t
le sale of eggs is realized from fall and a
inter eggs (sod when they are at it.
it is up to the progressive
lultryman TO make his birds produce Gu
lring that period. There are many al
I'd divers ways to accomplish this feat, st
1t among them, two things stand out ee
ore prominently than any others. oh
1ese are early matches and proper
eding. ca
Early matches produce the specimens to
which you might work to accomplish gr
'ur end, and proper feeding keeps them wi
owing constantly and develops them pli
time for fall and winter laying. ne
ithout attention to these details it is ca
most impossible for you to attain sue ge
IS in the production of eggs during III
e cOluer months OF the year. SN
No poultryman is called upon to exert sal
nself or give the fowls much thought pO
get them to produce during the spring ice
)nths, as this is the natural season for tut
ms to yield. However, at this season du
e eggs do not command fancy prices mt
cause the markets are usually flooded sel
the time.
But. to go back into the subject of the by
Dfit to be derived from hen. From ly
2 present price of grain. it will re- fro
ire the outlay of from twenty to SUI
enty-tive cents to bring the chick up It
the age of ten weeks-at which time it ula
)uld weigh about one pound. As it is gre
to the poultryman to get all he can
Of his fiocks, he should Immediately,
rket all of his surplus cockerels and u,
-colored specimens as broilers. These
nmand a good price and yield cash re re
] profit. DIT
from the age of ten weeks on, or un- 81
the pullets are about five or hve-and- zee
alf months old. each individual will mgr
nsume about thirty to thirty-five cents
n. r r.. IL 4