358 ARTIFICIAL BROODING 



will try to keep warm by crowding, and much loss results, — chiefly 

 from suffocation and a general condition of weakness due to low- 

 ered vitality. 



The question of sunlight is important. It is not well to allow 

 direct sun rays to strike the brooder floor, because all the chicks 

 will attempt to get into this one spot, and will thus be drawn 

 away from the hover heat and will injure one another by crowding 

 or be suffocated. Floods of sunlight produce no such conditions, 

 so that it should be a point to have either an abundance of sun- 

 shine or no direct rays at all. The direct rays of the sun should 

 never shine upon the hover, as this causes great variations. 



Feeding Brooder Chicks.* — The feeding of the artificially 

 brooded chicks is one of the most important factors in poultry 

 keeping, and successful nutrition should begin with hatching and 

 extend throughout the growing period. The first four weeks are 

 the most trying, for this period covers the delicate stage of the 

 chick's growth, and is the time when the death rate is greatest and 

 when mistaken methods will be shown by poor broods. The fol- 

 lowing principles apply to baby-chick feeding, a discussion of 

 which will better fix them in the mind of the feeder. 



1. Feeding Too Soon. — Just prior to hatching, the yolk is 

 drawn into the bird's body, and supplies the growing chick with 

 nourishment for a number of hours after hatching. It is unde- 

 sirable to tempt or force the chick to eat within a period of from 

 forty-eight to sixty hours after hatching. The best practice is 

 to supply fresh water and plenty of fine grit when putting 

 chicks in the brooder, withholding all solid feed for at least the 

 first twelve hours in the brooder. A good plan is to give the chicks 

 their first feed the morning after they are placed in the brooder. 



2. First Feed Easily Seen and Nutritious. — The j^oung chick 

 artificially hatched has to be taught many things which under 

 natural conditions it learns from the mother hen; such as search- 

 ing for feed, and the elementary process of eating. The natural 

 instinct of the chick is to pick up bright things; for this reason, 

 feed which is easily seen is desirable. A good practice is to throw 

 a limited amount of rolled oats on the floor of the brooder, — only 

 what the chicks will eat in an hour or two. Rolled oats are very 

 nutritious, are relished by the chicks, and make an excellent 

 first feed; but their continued use is not advisable. Hard-boiled 



*The following outline of requirements is largely based on results of experi- 

 ments conducted at Cornell University under the direction of James E. Rice. 



