108 THE BEGINNER IN POULTRY 



to be explained to any one who understands animals. 

 And, as man is himself an animal, he should be able to 

 reason out the value of exercise to all other animals. 

 But, I think he tends to forget that he is an animal, on 

 the physical side, and thus often fails to draw the analogy 

 between himself and the lower animals. To be sure, 

 fowls are not, in all things, like the four-footed animals, 

 yet the main organs the bodily engine parts are much 

 the same for all. 



Exercise for fowls can be encouraged in varying 

 ways. To provide litter for scratchers and water privi- 

 leges for swimmers is the easiest and quickest way to 

 insure exercise. Running, flying, scratching, and swim- 

 ming are Nature's methods of exercising her winged and 

 scratching and swimming birds. Flight, the poultry- 

 man must usually curtail more or less to suit his own 

 interest. It follows justly that he must take a bit of 

 extra trouble to provide other exercise for his fowls. 



There are several patent feeders, especially designed 

 to induce the fowls to scatter small grains by their own 

 activities. This they do by tilting or jarring the recep- 

 tacle containing feed, and the busier they become, the 

 more feed they get. The receptacle is usually hung 

 two or three feet above the birds, at least. The existence 

 of these ought, it seems to me, to stimulate poultry 

 feeders to whom such a method of feeding would be 

 helpful, to invent for home use devices whereby the 

 grains might be thus scatteringly given down. All the 

 more when the poultryman provides in large quantities, 

 expecting to replenish containers only at intervals of a 

 week or so. It is quite necessary for those who thus 

 depend on providing feed at long intervals to have a 



