600 Journal of Agriculture, Victoria. [15 Oct., 1919. 



cost of food consumed, there will probably, in the highest breeds, be a 

 loss on the cockerels, besides the hatching expenses, with interest, depre- 

 ciation, and repairs on the incubator and brooder plant. The profit 

 in egg production on right lines is such that one need not unduly 

 exaggerate, and pretend that pullets can be reared for a couple of shil- 

 lings, and that every one will show 10s. net profit! 



"V\Tien the chickens are from four to six weeks old they may be 

 removed from the brooder shed to small pens with ample range during 

 the day time, and warmly bedded up Avith plenty of straw at night. The 

 sexes should be separated as soon as discernable. Continued lack of 

 ample range for the young stock year after year will inevitably result 

 in degeneracy, which, probably unnoticed at first, will sooner or later 

 undermine constitutional vigour. It is all very well to talk glibly of 

 700 or 800 bird flocks on half an acre, as, while that number of pullets 

 may be housed in their pullet year on a still smaller block of land, the 

 stud pens and the young stock must have ample room, and the 

 continued overcrowding or lack of range must be sternly opposed to 

 prevent the gradual but certain loss of supremacy which our birds at 

 present hold. 



POULTRY FEEDING AND FOODSTUFFS. 



The six essentials for successful poultry culture are mating, hatch- 

 ing, rearing^ feeding, housing, and marketing, and of these probably 

 the most important of all is feeding. A moderate bird skilfully fed 

 would give better results than a highly pedigreed bird indifferently 

 fed. Merely temporary neglect of a sheep or a bullock may not ulti- 

 mately affect the wool clip or beef, but the slightest neglect of the 

 laying hen results in an immediate decrease in the egg yield, and 

 possibly causes a false moult. Some knoM'ledge is therefore necessary 

 of the constituents of the various foodstviffs and the functions that they 

 perform. 



The Nutrient Ratio. 

 The nutrient ratio is the proportion of digestible nitrogenous matter 

 to the rest of the digestible matter (non-nitrogenous) in any foodstuflF. 

 The nitrogenous matter repairs the waste of tissue, and is construc- 

 tive, in that it builds up flesh, bone, feathers, &c., and is usually 

 referred to as " proteid." The non-nitrogenous matter consists prin- 

 cipally of starchy matter, and fats or oils, and helps to maintain the 

 body heat and support respiration, whilst certain oily secretions are 

 derived from the fats and oils w-liich assist lubrication. Fats and oils 

 are two and a quarter times as heating as starchy matter, consequently 

 to arrive at the correct nutrient ratio the percentage of fat is multi- 

 plied by 2} to express it in the same heating terms as that of the starchy 

 matter. 



In the case of a foodstuff containing 12 % nitrogenous matter. 



55 % starchy matter. 



21 % fatty matter. 



the nutrient ratio would be 12 : 6") 5 -|- 2^ X 2.J-) 



12 : 60 (approximate) 

 1 : 5 



