CULLING THE POULTRY FLOCK 



487 



The comb of a laying hen is large, full, and bright in 

 color, while the comb of a non-laying one is dry and com- 

 paratively hard, often covered with scale, and is pale in color. 



The abdomen of a laying fowl has a fat covering that is 

 soft and pliable, and feels much like an udder that has been 

 partly milked. The skin is also soft and velvety. The 

 abdomen of a non-laying hen is dry and hard. 



The pelvic, or pin, bones of a laying hen are straight 

 and flexible, with 

 very little or no 

 fat around them. 

 They are spread 

 far enough to 

 permit the pass- 

 age of the egg. 

 The spread var- 

 ies with the in- 

 dividual and the 

 breed, and no 

 definite measure- 

 ment applies in 

 this regard. In 

 general, how- 

 ever, a laying 

 hen will show a 

 spread between 

 the pin bones of 

 at least three 

 fingers. Practice is necessary to determine just what spread 

 indicates that the hen is laying, keeping in mind the fact 

 that a hen that is laying will show a greater spread of pin 

 bones than one not laying, and that the bones of a non-laying 

 hen are thick, stiff, and blunt, with the ends bent in. 



The distance from the pelvic to keel bones of a laying 

 hen is an important indication. A laying hen consumes 



Figure 233. A culling demonstration. Body depth is 

 a measure of a hen's capacity to consume a large 

 quantity of food and consequently produce a large 

 number of eggs. The one on the left is a deep-bodied, 

 high producer, the one on the right a shallow, round 

 bodied scrub. Photograph from Prof. E. L. Dakan. 



