Milford chronicle., 1917-11-16
There's Profit In Raising Early BrOilers
By J. H. MeFAUL, Jr.
(AH Rights ReSe,7ieA

,-ara cold weather. butt his does not
mean that they do not want and need
fresh air. Admit plenty Of fresh air in
TO the brooder, but shut out the drafts
and provide place where they can get
all the warmth they need. DO this and
one-half Of your chick troubles will dis
appear and you will be headed on fair
road to success with the business of rails
ing broiers.
sunshine is as important TO the raising
of broilers as to any other Of the fowls.
They will not stay where II is dark and
gloomy. if il is possible to get away
from such a condition. II the chicks are
forced into the darkness, however, they
will not grow as rapidly as II allowed to
hattie in tha sunshine The three ele-
ments then, which are most essential 10
the raising Of broilers in a brooder are:
proper heat, fresh air and sunshine.
These should come ahead OF the method
NJ feeding. The chicks might be allow
ed out Of the brooder on good, dry days
but unless the brooder IS bright and
cheerful inside, they will never return
to II. although they might get cold, and
in this event they will get chilled and
die. Chicks have a horror Of dark. dngy
quarters. as older fowls, and if the
brooder be light, they viii seek the
warmth OF it.
There is as much danger in too much
heat however, as in too little. The
brooder should at all times be at be-
tween 60 and 20 degrees, never above
When the weather moderates the tenn
perature should be cut down. Give the
chicks plenty Of exercise, and for iths
purpose, keep the floors Of the brooder
well covered with a good light litter OF
cut alfalfa, straw or hay, into which the
cracked grains should be scattered.
The scarcity Of game in the past few
years has created quite a demand for
what is termed the squad broiler, and
many persons indulge quite extensively
in their raising. SQUAD broilers are US
uaTv marketed when they weigh about
three-quarters of pound. These are
generally marketed during January and
February. and while they are quite pro-
ftable I believe that more money is 10 be
made in the long run by selling the gen
eral broiler than the squad broiler. The
reason, as I have said before, is due to
the infertile condition Of the eggs dur
ing the earlier portion Of the year and
the consequent big loss in eggs.
In the raising Of broilers. as with
other chickens much depends upon the
parent stock. They should be in a per-
lfectly healthy condition and in no way
inbred if you want to get good, healthy
chicks.
When raising chicks in brooders, feed
stale, grated bread crumbs for the first
few days, then finely-cracked grain
ration can be given. After the chicks
are about two weeks old they should be
given a good growing mash, which should
be fed morning and evening. When
about four weeks old add sifted meat
scrap to the mash food in about a fif-
teen per cent proportion.
The kind Of fowls to be raised for the
purpose Of later raising broilers is largely
determined by you. The White Leg
horns and Anconas grow very rapidly
until they reach the one-pound weight,
but lag after that. For squad broilers
they are possibly the best breeds. The
American breeds are, however. gener-
ally used for the purpose Of broilers, and
are largely used on many farms.
If you are not already engaged in the
business of raising broilers for market.
think this matter over and possibly you
might be convinced to try and increase
your poultry profits by getting into the
business.