Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1919-03-27
GET CHICKS AWAY
TO GOOD START
OvercrOwding Ranks Among
Worst Evils of Mismanage-
manufacturing the BrOOder
Treatment for Gapes, Bum
BILE Foot, Colds and Other Com
mon Ailments
tBy H. ARMSTRONG ROBERTS,

tBy H. ARMSTRONG ROBERTS)
A small incubator will do the work Of
Ave hens.
High egg production is not matter
Of luck 1t is good housing, plus ju-
dicious feeding, plus selective breeding.
Litter can be made to last twice as
long II the floor of the house Is dry
and the building is well ventilated. Lit
ter is absorbent, which is as it should
be to take up the moisture in the drop
pings, and when it becomes moist and
"mucky'' it should be removed.
OF all the evils Of mismanagement.
overcrowding poultry ranks among the
worst. 1t is more profitable to raise a
few chickens in roomy, well-ventllated
quarters than to keep a large flock in
stufty. crowded conditions.
Make the hens exercise.
Dislocation of the neck and cremation
I is the best remedy for fowls afflicted with
a serious contagious diseases. Few
come back" strong enough to be used
as breeders or as profitable layers. and
when one considers the time and trouble
required to doctor seriously sick birds,
it IL economy to kill them.
Disturb sitting hens as little as pos
sible.
soil. You must have the same thing
for poultry. They will not thrive in a
mud hole, on baked clay, or on ground
that is contaminated with an accumu-
lation of manure. Plow or spade the
yards. Turn fresh soil up to the sun.
Don't kill off fowls because of their
age alone. Consider their utility. There
are long-lved fowls just as there are
long-lived humans. We have all seen
''old men" at 40 and young men" at
CO. Productiveness is not a matter of
years
Green food is essential to the bill of
fare-not an accessory.
Whitewash is so cheap that no poul-
tryman can afford to be without it. For
outdoor use, if the whitewash is mixed
with skim milk instead of water, the
results will compare favoraby with oil
paint.
Eggs intended for Matching should no,
be washed. Avoid badly soled eggs. AS
precaution against disease Matching
eggs are some times dipped in alcohol.
MATCHING AND BRBOODING HINTS
Yellow, brownish stains that accumu.
late on mica peepholes in brooder ant
incubator lamp chlmneys and which OBJ
struct clear view of the lamp flame
can be removed by a strong solution Of
washing soda or vinegar. Alcohol is also
useful In removing these stains.
Poor matches are often blamed on the
Incubator, on the eccentricities Of a per.
verse hen, or the operator will raj
against weather conditions as the cause
of failure. when in reality the quality
of the eggs is entirely at fault.
There is no truth in the notion thai
&c
eggs cockerels. The shape of an egf
is influenced entirely by the contour o.
the hens oviduct In which it is cast
and has nothing to do with the sex o.
the embryo. For further proof of this
we observe that the hen laying a Ions
egg or round egg will continue to la,
the form peculiar to her with very lit
tie variation.
It Is economy to set large hens, be
cause they are able to cover more eggs
but this point should not be carried I,
the extreme Of using clumsy hens, which
are likely to trample and kill thei
chiclxs.
A quarter-inch of sand-any dry sol
VIII answer the purpose--coVered witt
a half-inch Of cut clover or alfalfa o
wheat cbaff saved from threshing o
sweepings from the hayloft make a.
10e6l COVtIlHB OF DtuulHR Tor DrOOde
floors. The sand and litter act as a
absorbent, furnish grit, encourage ex
ercise, help TO keep the floor warm. nc
- dust bath, allay doors, and tn
clover or alfalfa or sweeplngs also fur
nish the chicks with a tid-bit.
Tho hens temperature is about JOG de
grees; mans temperature is about
degrees. Do not house them alike.
Geese are grazing creatures. capabl
of sustaining themselves on pasture lant
They require virtually no grain, exceI
for fattening. Thus they constitute n
economical form of meat.
Eggs which are frozen and later thaw
ed have n fiat taste. resembling a stal
n flavor, and they are likely to be water!
IMPORTANCE OF FRESH WATER
The best foods available will fail |
kProduce eggs or flesh unless they M