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P A C 1 I- I C T R ]<: ]'. A N I) V I N ]•: 



The Demand for Incubators 



By A. >\ ARREIN ROBIINSOIN 



There is ati ever increasing de- 

 mand f(ir incubators. Probably at 

 no previous time has there been so 

 many patterns of these poultry -yard 

 necessities made as at present. 

 Every year sees new devices put 

 upon the market — some cheap, 

 some excellent. One certainly has a 

 large variety of makes to choose 

 from; hot air, hot water, the two 

 combined, and what not. One has 

 an opportunity to choose according 

 to his ideas and his purse, for there 

 are low priced machines and those 

 more costly. It is not good policy 

 to get the cheap machine simply 

 because it is cheap. A few extra 

 dollars expended for a well made, 

 thoroughly tested incubator is 

 money well spent. There are ma- 

 chines that are made to sell. Others 

 are made for service. 



A good incubator will hatch a 

 good per centage of eggs under cir- 

 cumstances that are far from per- 

 fects But the better plan is to have 

 the room in which the machine is 

 placed one in which the tempera- 

 ture can be kept without much var- 

 iation. Also, the ventilation must 

 be well nigh perfect. Too much 

 stress cannot be placed upon this 

 latter point. Much depends upon 

 the evenness of the temperature, 

 for the thermometer in the incuba- 

 tor room must indicate no radical 

 changes. 



Therefore the best room, prob- 

 ably, in our California climate, is 

 the cellar, wholly, or as many pre- 

 fer, half underground. The writer 

 is inclined to favor the latter plan. 

 Still he uses a room situated en- 

 tirely above ground. The walls are 

 common redwood boards, battened 

 on the outside and lined on the in- 

 side with Cabot's building (|uilt, 

 the space between the roof and tlie 

 ceiling being fdled in with chaff. 

 In this room the temperature varies 

 very little iluring the twenty-four 



hours — practically remaining about 

 the same. 



We note that a poultryman, of 

 lar.ge experience in the Eastern 

 vStates, after much experimenting, 

 has arrived at the conclusion that 

 an incubator room, situated wholly 

 above ground, i-. preferable to those 

 differently situated. One reason he 

 advances is that the room can be 

 more perfectly ventilated. 



There may be a dispositioti on 

 the part of not a few persons to use 

 a cheap grade of oil in their in- 

 cubator and brooder lamps. Some 

 have adopted this plan to their sor- 

 row. Use the best grade of oil, by 

 all means, and avoid smoke and the 

 charring of the wick. As regards 

 the latter article the carbon wick, 

 which does not smoke, gives a much 

 better light than the common wick. 

 One will last for months without 

 replenishing. We are inclined to 

 think they burn less oil, though 

 that may be mere fancy on our part. 

 Now, this may seem a little matter, 

 but it is in looking after the small 

 details in the poultry business that 

 one reaps profit. 



Test out all the intertile eggs on 

 the ninth or tenth day. Be sure 

 not to open the door of the incuba- 

 tor after the first chick pips an egg. 

 Hundreds of chicks have been 

 killed by not observing this little 

 matter, if, indeed, it can be called 

 little. Be carelul. ( )ne may sim- 

 ply let the baby chicks remain in 

 the nur.sery (all well-arranged in- 



cubators have nurseries attached) 

 for two or three days before remov- 

 ing them to the brooder. Don't 

 hurry. 



No food is needed for the first 

 forty-eight or sixty hours, or even 

 longer. We have found the best 

 diet, at first, to be finely broken grit 

 and charcoal. It is surprising how 

 much of this latter article the little 

 creatures will eat. Then, for a day, 

 feed stale bread crumbs, slightly 

 soaked in sweet milk and squeezed 

 very dry. How necessary the cau- 

 tion not to overfeed during these 

 early days ! We are all apt to give 

 the babies too much; feed too fre- 

 quently. 



Let the after feed be dry. Crack- 

 ed corn, steel-cut oats, broken rice, 

 cracked wheat and millet seed are 

 all excellent. If these are fed judi- 

 ciously, and the proper temperature 

 is provided, the chicks will thrive, 

 if the)' are of good stock. Do not 

 omit a daily allowance of finely 

 chopped grain and beef scraps. 

 After the chicks are three or four 

 weeks old, keep cracked grain and 

 beef scraps before them all the time 

 until they are fully developed. 

 Nothing will make the young fowls 

 grow faster than this diet. 



Of course the\ must have abund- 

 ant exercise to thrive well. This 

 must be looked after from the first. 

 Probably much of the leg weakness 

 so often cotniilained of is due to lack 

 of exercise; this, and too much bot- 

 tom heat in the brooder. 



iVliramonte Poultry Farm 



Breeds the leading slraitis of Heavy haying S. C. Wuitk Lkchokn.s 



Kggs fur hatchin!;: SL.'iO per setting; two si'ttin^s, >;2..">0; $r>.(X) per 100. 

 K. L. DUNSHKK . . - - Mountain View. Cal. 



POULTRY AND EGGS "^ 



Wanted at Chapmail & Johnson The(.rocers 



Cor. Second and San Ecrnando Sts. 



San Jose, California 



