182 PRINCIPLES OF POULTRY FEEDING 



must be present to aid in crushing and wearing the feed into fine 

 particles. The harder and sharper the grit the better, and it 

 ghould be kept always before the birds. Digestion does not take 

 place until the feed is ground in the gizzard, and when new, 

 sharp grit is not present the feed must remain unground in the 

 giz^ard until it becomes soft and falls to pieces; this process is 

 slow and results in imperfect digestion. 



Stimulating Feeds. — The use of condimental or stimulating 

 feeds,' such as the so-called " stock feeds," " poultry panaceas," 

 and " egg feeds," should not be permitted except when birds seem 

 to be lacking in appetite and it is desired to increase the palata- 

 bility of their ration; and such use should be stopped as soon as the 

 birds recover. It is a very bad practice to feed forcing and con- 

 dition powders to strong, healthy birds. The habitual use of such 

 stimulants in the ration causes the individual to become immune 

 to the good effect which they may at first seem to have on the 

 system. Their action on a healthy bird is very similar to that of 

 alcohol on the human system ; for a short time there is an excessive 

 stimulation, but the after effects are depressing because of the 

 tendency to break down or unnecessarily wear out the tissue. The 

 use of these stimulating substances should be discouraged. Their 

 actual value as nourishment is usually only a small fraction of 

 their cost, and their value for promoting palatability is not equal 

 to that of common salt, which may be safely added occasionally 

 for this purpose in the proportion of about one ounce of salt to 

 twenty-five pounds of dry feed. 



Protective Feeds. — Dr. E. V. McCullum of Johns Hopkins 

 University has recently discovered the peculiar and very necessary 

 properties possessed by eggs and milk in the human diet. He finds 

 that these products together ^dth the leaves of certain plants are 

 vital to a satisfactory growth of the j^oung. These recent dis- 

 coveries place eggs as one of the leading and absolutely essential 

 necessary food products for man. It is just as urgent and necessary 

 to provide these protective feeds to the poultry flocks if a profitable 

 satisfactory growth and production is -to be secured. The two 

 most available and profitable protective feeds with which to supply 

 poultry are milk in the form of skim milk, or buttermilk either in 

 its natural condition or in a drj^ or powdered form, and alfalfa or 

 clover in the green succulent condition. These two types of feeds 

 are absolutely essential if the best growth of pullets and cockerels 



