Amount of Salt Necessary 173 



posing that they are eating grit. Eock salt is 

 particularly dangerous on this account. Some 

 instances have been known of fowls being poi- 

 soned by eating salt fish which had been care- 

 lessly thrown where they could gain access to 

 it. When fowls have a wide range they eat 

 grass, insects, and many other things that already 

 furnish salt in some quantity. This may explain 

 why it is not necessary to feed salt under these 

 conditions. 



Experiments made at the New York Agricultural 

 Experiment Station showed that salt was not in- 

 jurious in quantities below .063 ounce per day for 

 each hen (that is, nearly one -half pint per day for 

 100 hens) . The following, taken from Bulletin No. 

 39, gives results of the experiment: "The number 

 of eggs laid during this trial is of no great signifi- 

 cance, as it was about the end of the laying sea- 

 son and the hens were old; but, inasmuch as the 

 yield of eggs was twice as great from the hens 

 having salt, while it was mixed with the food, it 

 would appear that not enoigh was fed to very 

 injuriously affect egg production. The salt used 

 was ordinary barrel salt, although not coarse. 

 Should rock salt be exposed, or salt that contained 

 large crystals or fragments as large as the par- 

 ticles of gravel and grit eaten by hens, it would 

 of course not take long for a fatal amount to be 

 3 wallowed. For mature fowls it is probable that 



