HOUDANS FOR EXHIBITION AND PROFIT. 



463 



and separate attention. Cockerels may run 

 together till four months old, but those intended 

 for show must then be separated and put into 

 small, dry houses, each bird having a house to 

 himself These houses should be weather-proof 

 and shaded from the sun ; otherwise the crests 

 and saddles get tanned, which spoils the appear- 

 ance of the bird. Indeed, it is almost impossible 

 to moult a Houdan cock so that he shall be in 

 really tip-top feather and condition, unless he 

 has the accommodation I have stated. When 

 moulting the hens, I never give them anything 

 other than the ordinary food, except a cabbage 

 or two to peck at now and again. But I always 

 give the cockerels and cocks a little animal food 

 — the cockerels twice a week, the cocks three or 

 four times in the same period. 



" Great care should be taken not to allow 

 too many chickens to crowd together when they 

 get up to about two months old. This they are 

 very apt to do when the hens are taken away, 

 the chickens from two coops crowding into one. 

 If this is allowed to last, roup is almost sure to 

 break out, and Houdans are very susceptible to 

 this complaint if once allowed to crowd together. 

 But they can stand wet and cold as well as any 

 fowls. I have cooped chickens a few days old 

 out in bitterly cold weather early in March, and 

 they have stood snow and wet without my losing 

 a chicken ; but they were kept scrupulously clean, 

 and their coops perfectly dry. It is only with 

 neglect that mischief is done. Half a dozen 

 half-grown chickens sleeping together in a dirty 

 coop, and allowed to run out, will almost certainly 

 contract roup." 



The following article, contributed by Mr. 

 T. Henry Thornber, Brookside Farm, Cheadle, 

 refers more especially to the breeding of Hou- 

 dans for purposes of utility, and to the results 

 when so bred, while not necessarily losing sight 

 of exhibition properties. It will be observed 

 that, when a really high average of eggs is 

 in view — and the averages stated below are 

 so high as to excite surprise — Mr. Thornber's 

 opinion is somewhat different from that of Mr. 

 Thomas in regard to the connection between 

 egg production and the size of the hen's comb. 



" There can be no question of the value of 

 this breed as layers, and as table birds. A 

 properly reared and properly fed Houdan of a 

 good laying strain, hatched in March 

 Qualities of or April, should commence to lay in 

 Houdans. October, and should be la}-ing three 

 eggs per week by the end of 

 November. From my experience, I find that 

 they soon run up to four eggs per week, generally 

 about the latter end of January or middle of 

 February. After this, according to my egg- 



recording books, there seems to be no increase 

 in the number per week until about the middle 

 of April, when there has been an increase for 

 most of my pullets to five eggs per bird per 

 week, which high rate has lasted till about the 

 middle of June. Towards the latter end of June 

 there has been a diminution to three per week, 

 and by the end of July I have been having only 

 two per week per bird. After this latter month 

 the laying quickly ceases and the birds go into 

 moult, which, with a little care and the use of 

 Douglas mixture, should not last more than 

 about five weeks. They come on to lay again 

 very quickly after the completion of the moult, 

 and, according to the behaviour of my birds, 

 there seems to be practically no shrinkage in 

 their laying powers during their second year of 

 laying, although they start laying rather later 

 and continue until a later part of the year. The 

 succeeding moult, after the second year's laying, 

 appears more prolonged and more exhausting, 

 and I find a very considerable reduction in the 

 number of eggs afterwards. My laying stock 

 average per annum has varied from 160 to iSg 

 eggs. I get a number of eggs of quite a tinted 

 appearance, rather deeper than cream colour, 

 amongst the rest, the majority of which are snow 

 white ; yet the birds are all bred the same, and 

 have been so for some years. I have never been 

 able to account for it. 



" Selected birds have done much better than 

 the above. My breeding stock are kept in pens, 

 each comprising seven pullets or hens and a 

 cock, in pretty large runs. There are five of 

 these breeding-pens, which are also fed a little 

 differently from the general flock. These 35 

 birds, selected to breed from as good layers, have 

 averaged as follows, during the last four years, 

 counting from November i to November i : — 



I consider a Houdan worthy of the name of 

 a layer when she lays 200 eggs between the 

 beginning of the November after her being 

 hatched, and the beginning of the following 

 November. 



" As a table fowl, the Houdan is very hard 

 to beat, carrying a large proportion of its meat 

 upon the breast, having a nice white flesh and 

 white skin, being fine in the bone, and of excel- 

 lent flavour. I find the cockerels to grow very 

 quickly indeed, and have killed birds which I 



