Rural School Leaflet 1139 



Freedom. — Fowls should be given their freedom in winter as well as in 

 summer. This is particularly desirable when the house opens into a dry 

 barnyard in which the fowls can roam about and pick up bits of food left 

 by the other animals. 



Cleanliness. — The pen must be kept clean. The health and comfort of 

 the fowls depends very largely on this. Do not wait until the litter be- 

 comes wet and filthy, but change it as soon as it begins to pack. Provide 

 a small box of screened coal ashes or road dust in which the hens can dust. 

 This will help to keep the lice off their bodies. Whitewashing the house 

 will help to keep the lice in check; if necessary, put kerosene on the perches 

 and over the nest boxes, refilling the nests with clean bedding. The white- 

 washing is very desirable, since it makes the pen lighter and cheerier, and 

 kills most of the vermin. 



By the above method, the pullets can be made comfortable for the 

 winter at a very small cost. The one thing before all others which 

 young poultry-raisers should remember is: Provide your fowls with 

 wholesome surroundings and they will make it worth your while to keep them. 



VIII. FEEDING FOR WINTER EGGS 



C. A. Rogers 



Does it ever occur to boys and girls that fowls are fond of a variety of 

 food? This is especially so when the weather becomes cold and they are 

 shut up in their pens. Then they are away from the fields where in summer 

 they can nearly gain a living on bugs, scattered grain and seed, and 

 grass. It is true that they will subsist, even in the winter, on corn and 

 water given them at irregular intervals, but under such care they cannot 

 lay eggs. Notice how much better you feel after eating a meal of whole- 

 some, well-cooked food that you like. Fowls are just as partial, and 

 respond when well fed. There is no one method of feeding that can be 

 applied equally well under all conditions. The method described in the 

 following paragraphs, however, may be followed to advantage under many 

 conditions and may also serve to suggest ways of improving your present 

 practices. 



Morning feeding. — In the morning the fowls are hungry and ready to 

 work for their breakfast. It is well to let them keep as busy as possible. 

 Work keeps them warm, healthy, and contented. With this in mind, 

 scatter mixed grains in the litter. Be rather sparing of the feed in the morn- 

 ing, so that the fowls will not quickly obtain their fill but will continue to 

 work and hunt for the grain for the greater part of the forenoon. This 

 grain should be a mixture of all the kinds grown on the farm. They may 

 be mixed in the proportion of three pounds corn, two pounds wheat, and 

 one pound oats, to which may be added, if available, one pound buck- 



