FARM ANIMALS. 33 



plumage, but egg production virtually implies a continual 

 breeding condition, for the ultimate constituents of the egg 

 are, with the exception of the amount obtained from the 

 air, all that are combined in the living chick. 



The body of a Leghorn pullet, about nine months old, in 

 active laying, contains about 55.4 per cent of water, 21.2 

 per cent of different nitrogenous constituents, 18.0 per 

 cent of fat, 3.0 per cent of ash or mineral matter, and 2.0 

 per cent of other substances, including also a little water 

 lost in manipulation. Leghorn hens almost two years old 

 and laying, showed an average composition of 55.7 per 

 cent water, 21.6 per cent nitrogenous matter, 17.0 per cent 

 of fat, 3.8 per cent ash constituents, and 1.7 per cent other 

 substances. The body of a mature capon is composed of 

 about 41.6 per cent of water, 19.4 per cent nitrogenous 

 matter, 33.9 per cent fat, 3.7 per cent ash, and 1.4 per cent 

 other substances. 



Notwithstanding the fact that the problem of poultry 

 feeding is much more complex than that of feeding most 

 other farm stock, fewer carefully collected data are avail- 

 able in formulating feeding standards for poultry than for 

 cattle. The following rations for laying hens are, how- 

 ever, near the average of those that have given best 

 results. They are stated at the rate per 1000 lbs. live 

 weight, to compare with the standards which have been 

 used in feeding other animals. 



One thousand pounds live weight of laying hens, of 

 about three pounds average weight, require from 65 to 70 

 pounds of total food, less bulky than that for the cow, or 

 about 52 pounds water-free food, per day, containing about 

 9 pounds digestible protein, 20 pounds digestible nitrogen- 

 free extract and fiber, and 4 pounds of fat. From this ra- 

 tion the hens would produce generally from 16 to 31 pounds 

 of eggs containing from 5.2 lbs. to 9.8 lbs. dry matter, one 

 pound of eggs being produced from about 3.4 lbs. water- 

 free food, one pound of dry matter of eggs for each 8.8 lbs. 

 water-free food. 



For one thousand pounds live weight of hens of about 

 six pounds average weight, there should be fed from 40 to 



