The Monmouth inquirer., 1925-10-15
DO YOUR CHICKENS
HELP SUPPORT your
The Only Way to Know Accurately Of
Financial Status is to Keep
Account Book

The Only Way to Know accurately OF
Financial Status is to Keep
Account Book
Are you keeping chickens, or are
they helping to keep you?
We have heard of numerous farm
women and city jewellers who have
kept accurate records of their poultry
work and showed a good profit on
their investment and labor. We have
also known some people who have
thought they we're not making any
money, but they did not know it, and
we have known some people who
thought they were getting rich fast,
but were losing money.
The only way to know accurately
just the financial status of the poultry
business is to keep records, and the
work Is not arduous or disagreeable
II done In the right way.
In fact, the account of box of a
small back yard poultry flock should
among ten states in different sections
be as interesting rs a popular novel
to anyone who really likes to work
with poultry.
If a new flock is being purchased
its cost should be charged to stock"
If you have some fowls on hand and
want to start an account they should
be i~nventoried as stock"
The cost of houses, i~ncubators and
other equipment should be charged
to buildings and equipment" and a
reasonable amount credited to that
account each year for depreciation.
Too many people make the mistake of
charging all new equipment to oper-
ating expense of a small flock, and
then declare that the business is los
ing money when the fowls are not
able to show a profit e total cost
the first year.
All of the feed should be charged to
"feed' account, so that the cost of
feeding the flock can be a~scertained at
any time. The cost will vary in pro-
portion to the amount of table scraps
and other free material which is avail
able.
II the flock is large enough to JUS
tify setting eggs or breeding stock,
and they are disposed of by advertis-
ing, then that cost should be kept
separate.
Those accounts cover the most i'm
portant expenditures, and will be suf-
icient for small fiocks, unless the
owner wishes to have a number of
accounts and charge cost of incubat-
ing chicks and special feed accounts
for them.
All of the eggs produced should be
credited by number and value either
for actual sales or market price for
all consumed at home, for the home
is the best market Of all.
Fowls killed for table use should be
credited at market price, and those
sod for delivery away from the prem
ises should be credited for the full
amount of sale.
The eggs used for Matching need not
be credited to the stock" as the
chicks will be figured in the inven-
tory at close OF year, unless separate
accounts are kept for the chicks.
To get a fair valuation Of the BUSH
ness at inventory time list the stock
on hand at what they would sell for
as breeders or market fowls. Add the
total sales of eggs and fowls, which
will give the credit side Of the &C
count. Add together the cost of stock
inventoried or bought at the start, the
cost Of feed, cost of advertising (if
any, and a fair proportion of cost Of
houses and equipment, with interest
on the investment, and you can read
lily determine whether you are keep
ing the chickens or whether they are
keeping you.
No charge has been considered for
labor on a small plant, as the value
of the little work required will be of.
set by improved health gained by the
outdoor exercise. This is where the
doctor loses.
No credit has been made for poultry
manure produced, as it is not always
possible to use or dispose of It to ad-
vantage, although the general rule is
to allow thirty cents a fowl per year
for manure produced. If it can be dis
tributed over a garden it is worth
more than that amount.
On large plants the cost of labor
will be quite an item and cuts down
the net profit per bird considerably,
but on small plants the work is
classed as recreation and not charged
for