22 POULTRY FARMING 



The Business of Poultry Farming. — Poultnj farming is essen- 

 tially a diversified industry, possessing a great variety in character 

 of products. The greatest success is obtained where a combi- 

 nation of products are produced which best meet the market 

 demands and which are most economical of production with the 

 equipment and stock at hand. The poultry farmer can receive 

 a revenue from any one or all of the following products as he may 

 see fit to organize his work: Table eggs, hatching eggs, baby 

 chicks, breeding stock, utility and show birds, market poultry 

 in the form of broilers, roasters, and capons, feathers and manure. 

 Anj^ of the above can be run as a specialty or side line; they can 

 be run under intensive or extensive conditions. This wide variety 

 makes possible the supplying of a varied demand. 



The opportunities are becoming increasingly greater each year, 

 due in large measure to an ever-increasing demand for products 

 of fine quality, and also owing to the fact that better prices are 

 constantly being received for products of good quality. 



Types of Poultrymen. — All poultry keepers can be classified 

 or divided into groups according to the extent of their business 

 and the character of products produced, A brief discussion of 

 such a classification follows. 



The Poultry Farmer. — The poultry farmer is essentially a 

 specialist, devoting all of his efforts to the production of poultry 

 and associated products. He invests not only his time but his 

 money in the enterprise. He is usually the owner, manager, and 

 in most cases performs much of the labor essential to the business. 

 Such farms are usually large with reference to the number of birds 

 kept, and are usually located near large centres of population. 

 The commercial products are usually eggs or meat, and sometimes 

 a combination of both. 



Success means constant application to the details of the farm 

 work. A well-balanced and sufficient equipment is necessary, and 

 some surplus cash is desirable to use in case of need. The land 

 upon which such a specialized industry is run must be especially 

 adapted to the work. The farmer himself must be well trained 

 in the technic of poultry management. The more experience he 

 has had the safer will be the business and the greater the profits. 

 Special care must be given to hatching and the successful rearing 

 of the young stock, for on large farms of this type many birds 

 must be reared, and the danger of disease and overcrowding is 

 always present. The poultry farmer must be a man of good 



