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Show POULTRY I CARE OF BABY CHICKS. C. S: Gorline. There is an editor-man over in Marsellcs who has dyspepsia some of the time and a good hen-paper most of the time. Well, this same cd'tor-man cd'tor-man is publishing a series of articles en the care of little chicks which he is pleased to term "A Symposium." This word is derived from "sym," meaning some, and "posium," gena-tivc, gena-tivc, plural of the Latin word posius, meaning pumpkins. (I trust the editor edi-tor will take no exceptions to my ' very literal rendering.) Symposium, then, means literally some pumpkins, and is the correct word when applied to the- care of baby chicks, for if there is any specific part of poultry culture in which "some pumpkins" is necessary, it is the care of chicks for the first thirty days of their existence. ex-istence. It is the consensus of opinion of poultrymcn in general, that a thousand thous-and chicks arc hatched for every one that is brought to maturity, and if the mortality were any greater, I am sure they would have said so. Be this as it may, every1 experienced poultry raiser knows that the mortality mor-tality is frightful, and notwithstand- ing such appalling losses, many people peo-ple have found the raising of poultry poul-try profitable. If there is any way to prevent this great mortality, how important it is that very one interested inter-ested should make a study of this branch of the business. The modern poultryman is equipped equipp-ed with one or more incubators that will hatch a large per ccntagc of fertile fer-tile eggs and we have observed brood after brood brought off that were the equal in every respect of the best hen hatched chicks. In twelve hours time, or maybe in twenty-four or even thirty-six hours, the chicks were transferred to a brooder, given a light feed and rut to bed. During the doys following the chicks arc permitted per-mitted to run about the nursery, if they choose, drink when they wish and perhaps eat when they want to. Vuout the third or fourth night about nine o'clock, or later, if we listen rwar the brooder we are more than likely to hear a peculiar twitter in a prolonged tr mule from some unfortunate unfor-tunate chick. To the cxpcricncd, the story is pathetic and soon told; the poor little beggar is constipated, or the vent is closed with a sticky substance sub-stance that has dried and the chick is vainly trying to clear itself. In two or three days, we begin to take out the dead ones, and when the fatal tenth day is reached, who can guess how many will live to be counted. IVaybc twenty-five per cent, maybe less. Fortunate indeed is he who can ) I count fifty per cent, and seventy-five per cent is really wonderful. Do yoi J J think that I have over drawn the ' picture? Inquire around among your acquaintances and gather the facts for yourself. The hen-papers arc full of the cause of white diarrhoea and the best remedies, and we read learned learn-ed discourses on microbes and how to fumigate the incubators "before and after," and all the time we have overlooked the real cousc of mortality mortali-ty among the chicks, namely the I brooder. You sec, I want to put the j blame where I know it belongs, an J before I get through, I will endeavor to prove it to you. Our manufacturers manufactur-ers seem to have vcd with each other as to who would produce a machine ma-chine for hatching that would show the best results, and to that end have expended thousands of dollars in experimental ex-perimental work, with the result that many machines arc now on the market mar-ket that will actually equal the hen under most favorable conditions and that will hatch more and better chicks ! than tjic average hen, under average ; conditions. This is a state of affairs 1 that should be remedied by some specialist backed with ample capital who will be able to construct a truty closc-to-naturc brooder. So much for the brooders. Tak. the average hen; she may hatch ten c twelve or even fifteen nice chicks, but how many will, she raise? What is your experience? Maybe nine or ten; more likely five or six, and if she is a real foolish hen, as many hens are, maybe three and sometimes even one. Again the brooding is at fault, just as surely as it was with the hot box to which you consigned your incubator - chicks, only in this case it was more likoly a cold box the old hen had to sit under or her fool gad-about ways in bedraggling the chicks about in the cold wet grass. And if they survived such ordeals, or-deals, maybe they had to finally succumb suc-cumb to unsanitary coop conditions or ill feeding, the result of neglect or total ignorance on the part of the poultry keeper. It doesn't seem to make much difference diff-erence whether the chicks arc consigned con-signed to a brooder or' to a hen, the mortality is very great, and the vital problem is how to avoid this and save the chicks. During the brooding sca-, sca-, son in most climates, the days arc warm and the nights cool; the chicks J are active during the day and inact-l inact-l ivc at night; result, over heated dur ing the day and become chilled at l'.iglit, followed by bowel trouble, loss of appetite, leg-weakness; general debility, de-bility, and if we add to this an ill smelling, ill ventilated brooder that is cleaned but once a week or maybe once a month, can any thinking person per-son wonder that sickness and death will surely follow? f The purpose of this article, then, I is to outline a method of procccdurc bx which one may raise 95 to 100 per cent of the vigorous chicks hatched. hatch-ed. If you mean to hatch hens, try to set a number of them at the same time and as soon as the chicks arc hatched take them from the hens and p)'acc 40 or so of them in a small box previously prepared by lining it on the sides with two or three thicknesses thick-nesses of baby-flancl which may foe tacked to the sides with double poinded poind-ed tacks by driving them through the flannel near the top of the box and allowing the strips to hang down inside the box. The bottom of the box should be covered with a sheet of paper. Into this box put the chicks and tuck them in with a little flannel blanket about a third longer than the box, one end on the bottom and the other end over the top; over the bottom end spread another blanket or two, owing to how cold it is and keep the chicks in the house for the first five or six days. Twice a day paper bottom shoui'd be changed, so that the box will always be sweet and clean smelling. Tuck the chicks in as carefully as you would a baby, allowing one corner of the upper end of the blanket to remain open to afford fresh air. The heat of their bodies, under the blankets will keep them warm jind comfortable on the coldest nights, if kept in the houses. When thirty-six hours old, they should be given a feed of equal parts 01 bread crumbs and hard boiled eggs (boil the eggs for an hour or more) seasoned with a pinch of salt and sprinkled with red pepper. A godd way is to run the eggs and broad crust thrigh a food chopper at the same time, which mixes the food ready to feed. Give them a drink of water, warmed to take the chill off and put them to bed again. When four or five days old, put them on the ground out in the sunshine if weathejr will parmit, then consign them to a firclcss brooder in a tight, warm shed provided with a run to keep them from getting lost. Add prit to the feed on the third day ana thereafter. Feed worms or choprcd Jean meat well cooked three or four times a week. On very cool or wet days, so that they may run out and in as they like. When cold, they will hunt the warmth of Uk brooder, just as a child will seek the sovc, . but at night we always put them to bed in the Tireless brooders, or in boxes, and cover them over with flannel, flan-nel, and we have never had a case of diarrhoea since wc have adopted this method. It is trouble of course but if you arc trying to keep out of trouble, by a4l means avoid the breeding breed-ing of live stock or plants. When the chicks arc five or six days old, wc begin feeding prepared chick-fccJ and when ten days old, add a little cracked corn and later on a little wheat, and when two months old, feed the wheat and cracked corn only. on-ly. Wc proceed with the same method meth-od with every brood of incubator hatched, except that wc aportion them off about fifty in a box, and when the weather is mild, consign from 100 to 125 to a fircless brooder at night. The lamp brooders arc abandonee tntiray for night work, but arc indispensable in-dispensable in cold or wet weather for day brooding . Any one handy with a saw and hammer -can at odd moments construct the firclcss brooders brood-ers necessary for night brooding and for day work when the weather is mild. We have never seen such vigorous, vig-orous, sprightly, hungry chicks produced pro-duced by any other method nor sd small a mortality. Try it. You won' regret it. |