Poultry 435 



been incubated for at least forty-six hours, the blood settles 

 away from the embryo toward the edges of the yolk, forming 

 in some cases an irregular circle of blood, known as a blood 

 ring. Eggs vary in this respect, some showing only a streak 

 of blood. All infertile eggs should be removed at the first 

 test. The eggs containing strong, living embryos are dark and 

 well filled up on the fourteenth day, and show a clear, sharp, 

 distinct line of demarcation between the air cell and the grow- 

 ing embryo, while dead germs show only partial development, 

 and lack this clear, distinct outline." 



216. Natural brooding. Before moving the hen and chicks 

 to the brood coops, she should be powdered with insect powder 

 to get rid of the lice. The brood coop must be kept clean, and 

 if mites are found, the coop should be sprayed with kerosene. 

 An inch or so of sand or a thin layer of straw should be kept 

 on the floor of the coop and the coop moved each day to fresh 

 shady ground. As long as she will care for them the hen should 

 be left with the chicks. The following directions from Farm- 

 ers' Bulletin 624 will be found very satisfactory for feeding 

 the chickens : 



" As soon as the chickens will eat whole wheat, cracked 

 corn, and other grains, the small-sized chick feed can be elim- 

 inated. In addition to the above feeds the chickens' growth 

 can be hastened if they are given sour milk, skim-milk, or 

 buttermilk to drink. Growing chickens kept on a good range 

 may be given all their feed in a hopper, mixing two parts by 

 weight of cracked corn with one part of wheat, or equal parts 

 of cracked corn, wheat, and oats in one hopper and the dry 

 mash for chickens in another. The beef scrap may be left 

 out of the dry mash and fed in a separate hopper, so that the 

 chickens can eat all of this feed they desire. If the beef scrap 

 is to be fed separately it is advisable to wait until the chicks 

 are ten days old, although many poultrymen put the beef 

 scrap before the young chickens at the start without bad 

 results. Chickens confined to small yards should always be 



