Belington progressive. [volume] (Belington, W. Va.) 1912-1927, 1916-07-13

,hicks Just Hat ched.
loss in chickens is frequently due to
chilling received while taking them
from the incubator to the brooder
They should be moved in a covered
basket or receptacle in cool or cold
weather.
Breeders and Hovers.
The capacity of breeders and hovers
is often overestimated, and one-hali
to two-thirds of the number of chick,
ems commonly advised will do much
better than larger number. The
danger from fire, due frequently to
carelessness and lack Of attention, is
considerable in cheap breeders and
hovers, while there is some risk in the
best grades, although proper care will
reduce this to minimum Individual
hovers in colony houses or several in
one large house are giving quite gen.
eral satisfaction on small poultry
farms, while the pipe system of brood.
ing is commonly used in large com.
mercial poultry plants and where ex-
tensive winter brooding is DONE Gas,
oline brooders, brooder stoves burn.
ing engine-distillate oil, and separ-
ate individual hover heated by a coal
fire are coming into more general use,
each with a capacity varying from 200
to 1900 chickens. These large indi-
vidual brooders are used in colony
houses, and when the chickens are
weaned the colony house is used as a
growing coop, which requires a small
er investment than the long, piped
brooder house ano allows one to rear
the chicks on range to good advantage.
Best Temperature.
The best temperature at which to
keep brooder or hover depends upon
the position of the thermometer, the
style of the hover, the age of the
chickens, and the weather conditions.
Aim to keep the chickens comfort
able. AS the operator learns by the
actions of the chickens the amount
of heat they require, he can discard
the thermometer If he desires. When
too cold they will crowd together and
try to get nearer the heat. 1t is inn
possible to state for each case at
what temperature the breeders should
be kept to raise young chickens; how
ever, it will run from 80 degrees up to
100 degrees in some cases, as some
broods of chickens seem to require
more heat than others, an average
being SO degrees to 95 degrees for
the first week or ten days, when the
temperature is gradually reduced to
IS degrees for the following ten days,
and then lowered to 70 degrees or rs
degrees for as long as the chickens
need heat
Feeding Young Chicks.
Young chickens should be fed from
three to five times daily, depending
upon ones experience in feeding. The
young chicks may be fed any time af.
ter they are SO to 4S hours old, wheth.
err they are with hen or in brooder.
The first feed may contain either
hard-boiled eggs, johnnycake, stale
bread, pinhead oatmeal or rolled
oats, which feeds or combinations may
be used with good results. Feed the
bread crumbs, rolled oats or johnny
cake mixtures, moistened with water,
five times daily for the first week,
then gradually substitute for one OF
two feeds of the mixture finely
cracked grains Of equal parts by
weight of cracked wheat, finely
cracked corn and pinhead oatmeal or
hulled oats, to which about five per
cent of cracked peas or broken rice
and two per cent of charcoal, mil1et or
rape seed may be added.
After the chicks are ten days old
good growing mash, composed of two
parts by weight of bran, two parts
middlings, one part cornmeal, one part
low-grade wheat flour or red-dog flour.
and ten per cent sifted beef scrap,
may be placed in hopper and left
before them at all times. AS soon as
the chickens viii eat the whole wheat,
cracked corn, and other grains, the
small-size chick feed can be elimin-
ated.
Fine charcoal, grit, oyster shell and
clean water should be kept before the
chickens at all times, and cracked or
ground bone may be fed where the
chickens are kept in small bare yards,
but the latter feed is not necessary
for chickens that have a good range.