POULTRY RAISING TURKEYS 365 



Number of Eggs for a Sitting. If the pairing of the hen with the torn 

 is complete and the torn is in good condition, practically every egg laid by the 

 hen will be fertile. Many times each egg in the nest will produce a living poult. 

 No more eggs should be put under a hen than she can properly cover. Domestic 

 hens of course cannot cover nearly as many as the turkey hens. It is much better 

 to put too few under a hen than too many. If too many eggs are given for a 

 sitting, a poor hatch is almost certain. 



Two Broods in One Season. It is natural for a turkey hen, when not 

 allowed to sit on her first clutch, to lay a second clutch of eggs. She may find 

 another nesting place to do this. The first clutch of eggs can be gathered, given 

 proper care, and set. Thus by preventing the hen from sitting on her first clutch, 

 a second may be raised in one season. 



Rules for Care of Setters. 



1. Dusting Hens. Dust the hen with insect powder at least twice while 

 setting. Never use kerosene for this. Lice are sure death 1 to young poults. 



2. Dust Bath. Provide a dust bath near her nest. This can be done by 

 working up a few feet of ground in a sunny location. If the soil is not fit it 

 will be easy to carry a bushel of dry loam to the place. It is a good plan to 

 throw some lice-killing powder into the dusting place. This will aid in keeping 

 the hen free from lice. 



3. Fasten Hen on Nest at Hatching Time. Fasten the hen on her nest 

 after she has sat about 26 days to prevent her leaving it before all the poults 

 are strong enough. If the hen can not be fastened on her nest, she can often 

 be prevented from leaving by throwing corn within her reach. 



4. Food and Water. Supply the hens with food and good, clean water. 

 Have these close at hand. Corn and wheat are the best feeds for them at this 

 time. 



5. Grit and Charcoal. Give them plenty of grit and charcoal. 

 Brooding Natural. If given a little more attention a domestic hen will 



successfully bring up a brood of young poults until they begin to wander, then 

 she cannot keep them together. At this time they should be given to a turkey 

 hen. The poults will usually leave their foster mother in time anyway, to go 

 with a brood headed by a turkey hen. Many times the poults are given to a 

 turkey hen as soon as they are hatched. Turkey hens are generally pretty good 

 mothers. Those that have reared a brood or two will generally care for the 

 poults better than hens that have never reared a brood. The little poults must 

 be taught how to eat and old hens usually give more care and attention to doing 

 this. Domestic hens are often better, for this purpose, than turkey hens because 

 they give the matter special attention and teach the poults how to eat when very 

 young. 



Artificial. The artificial brooding of poults has been tried in some places. 

 Any person that can successfully brood chickens this way can brood turkeys. 

 Some breeders think it is safer to brood a large number of poults artificially 

 than to trust them to turkey hens. The chief difficulty to overcome in artificial 



