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Show Over-Early Production of Eggs Not Advisable Pullets should be full grown and well up to standard weight before they begin laying, advises Miss Cora Cooke, poultry specialist of the Minnesota agricultural ag-ricultural extension division. University Univer-sity farm. Egg laying is a heavy strain, Miss Cooke explains, and If the pullets begin laying before they reach the proper maturity and condition, condi-tion, it is a cinch they will not hold out long and the eggs will be undersized. under-sized. Pullets that attain full weight before be-fore they begin to lay will produce bigger eggs from the start anr. will not be so likely to molt in the fall or early winter. Pullets should be in good flesh when they start laying. Any that are even slightly thin are likely to lay for only a short time. Those of the yellow skinned breeds, and this includes in-cludes all except Orpingtons, should have beaks and shanks that are a deep orange when laying commences. If pullets shown signs of laying' too early they may be held back by giving them lots of scratch feed. Miss Cooke says. As summer advances, scratch feed should be steadily increased and when pullets go into laying quarters they should be eating about twice as much scratch as mash. Good fleshing will be promoted if the scratch feed consists of at least one-third yellow corn. . |