The Republican journal. [volume] (Belfast, Me.) 1829-current, 1918-08-15
Fattening Chickens for Market.
Special Feeding Before Selling is Profitable

Nineteen years ago the Maine Agricul-
tural Experiment Station made trials In
fitting chickens for market, the practical
conclusions for which are even greater
today under the marked increased cost OF
food then when they were made. These
experiments comprised (a) the marketing
of range fed and specially fattened birds.
Co Coop versus small house feeding. 'c)
Effects of age. I'D Effects of green
food.
This was before the introduction OF
large poultry plants into Maine At that
time most of the poultry in the State
were carried on dairy farms. Very little
milk was sold and skim milk was a farm
by-product. Dry-mash feeding was I'M
known. In these experiments the special
ly fattened birds was fed porridge made
of meal sand skim milk. The porrldge
was thick enough to drop but not to run
from the end of spoon. The meal used
was mixture of 100 pounds of corn meal,
so pounds of finely ground oats, and Az
pounds of finely ground meat meal 10
wet up this 100 pounds of meal required
about IS gallons of skim milk.
(a) The specially fattened birds sold
quickly for 20 cents per pound more than
theirtmates direct from the range.
% The coop fed birds "A in coop
made no more rapid or economical growth
in body weight than did their mates fed
in small houses. The houses were by ii
feet, with attached yards 20 feet square,
with 40 birds to house The labor was
much less with the small house than with
the coops.
(c> 1t required about 6 pounds of the
grain mixture for each pound increase IN
live weight when the chickens were 1870
days old, and about pounds for each
pound increase in live weight when the
chickens were ITO days old. This is in
accord with the we'll known fact that the
Younger the animal the less the quantity
of food required to make pound OF
growth With only the moderate differ
ence of weeks in age it takes third
more food to produce pound increase in
weight of months old chicken than it
does with weeks younger bird.
Id Rape as a green food when added
to the ration above outlined was without
effect.
At the time these trials were made the
infinitely present ''fat soluble substance"
and water soluble substance were I'M
discovered. And the fact that the addi-
ton of green food which was known to
be of marked advantage in poultry grow
ing had no effect in these trials was dis
appointing and could not be explained by
then known facts. These two substances
about which almost nothing is known
other than that they are present in GER
tain food materials and lacking in others
and that the 'tfat soluble substance" is
essential to growth and the water solu-
BILE substance" is essential to bodily
maintenance are present in milk. If milk
does not enter into the ration the addi-
ton of green food is essential in mea
mixture similar to that given above.
These studies make clear that special
feeding fattening) pays in preparing
chickens for market; That combining birds
to close quarters stimulates growth and
makes them better feshed; That young
birds are fed much more profitably than
older ones; That skim milk is very de-
sirable food material; And that when skim
milk is freely used green food can be
omitted in afattening ration for chickens.
-Chas. D. Woods, Director.