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There are many good brooders upon the market which are well 

 described in the manufacturers' catalogues; hence a description here 

 is unnecessary. Personally, I am in favor of a three-compartment 

 brooder, as it admits of keeping the chicks in near the heat when young, 

 and on stormy days. The brooder lamp should always be arranged 

 so as to give little chance of fire. 



If the brooder can be placed in a small portable house, it is a 

 good plan, as the brooder is thus protected from stormy cold winds 

 in the early spring ; also from the heat later on. The house protects 

 the chicks from rain, and serves as a roosting coop after they become 

 too large to stay in the brooder. 



Chicks should not be fed until they are at least 36 hours old. It 

 is a serious mistake to feed them earlier. Too early feeding is the cause 

 of indigestion and bowel trouble in many cases. We try to keep the 

 temperature of the brooder between 90 and 95 degrees at the chick 

 level throughout the first week. After the first week the temperature 

 is gradually lowered, generally speaking, about one degree a day. When 

 the chicks are put into the brooder, it is well to remember that every 

 15 chicks will raise the temperature of the brooder one degree. Be 

 careful not to get your brooder too hot, nor yet so cool as to chill the 

 chicks. This is very important, especially during the first ten days. 



The floor should be covered with clover chaff before the chicks 

 are put into the brooder. Luke-warm water should also be put into 

 the brooder for drink before the chickens are taken from the machine. 

 I have had best success in starting young chicks on hard-boiled eggs, 

 finely chopped, shell included, and bread crumbs — about four parts by 

 weight of bread to one of eggs. This is fed dry. After the first two 

 days we begin to give an occasional feed of seed chick-food, which is 

 made as follows : — 



Cracked wheat 25 parts. 



Granulated oat meal 15 



Millett seed 12 



Small cracked corn 10 



Small cracked peas 6 



Broken rice 2 



Rape seed 1 



Grit (chicken size) 10 



This can be used for the first feed and continued through the first 

 eight to ten weeks with good results. We aim to feed the chicks five 

 times a day. Generally after the first few days, there are three feeds 

 a day of this chick-food, one of bread and milk (the bread being squeezed 

 dry and crumbled), and one of whole wheat, or a mash made of equal 

 parts of bran, shorts and corn meal, to which has been added ten per 

 cent, of animal meal or blood meal. If we can secure fresh liver and 

 get it boiled, this is generally given twice a week, and the animal meal 

 is then omitted from the mash. If the chicks cannot get out to run 



