Breeding for Meat Type in Chickens 



Ten years ago, the Poultry Depart- 

 aiient started to investigate the possi- 

 ]»ilities of using Cornish blood in 

 j)roducing better broilers. Dark Cor- 

 nish males were crossed on New 

 Hampshire females and a selection 

 process foi nine generations has pro- 

 duced families with good egg pro- 

 <iuction, meat qualities, livability, 

 hatchability. and uniformity. This 

 new unofficial breed is called "Dur- 

 hams." Some of the undesirable feat- 

 ures of the Cornish such as slow 

 growth, close feathering, and dark 

 hairs are still evident, and its real 

 value appears to be in crossing it 

 back upon New Hampshires, as 

 shown in the following broiler ex- 

 periment which was run this past 

 year: 



Does Washing Affect The 

 Hatchability of Eggs? 



There have been conflicting opin- 

 ions concerning the various methods 

 of egg washing and the effect on 

 hatchability. Two types of mechanical 

 washers were used in a study at the 

 University Farm and the following 

 conclusions were drawn: Clean eggs 

 hatch better than dirty non-washed 

 eggs. Washing dirty eggs improved 

 their hatchabilitv. but did not raise 

 ii to the level of clean eggs washed. 

 Differences between the two types of 

 washers were not significant. If used 

 correctly, the various methods of 

 washing eggs can involve consider- 

 able saving of labor and not affect 

 hatchability. 



W. C. Skoglund 



The crosses were considerably su- 

 perior in weight when compared to 

 the Durhams and were about equal 

 to the straight New Hampshires. The 

 cross retained a considerable share of 

 the excellent breast qualities featured 

 in the Durham, and were superior to 

 the New Hampshires in this respect. 



A white Cornish-New Hampshire 

 cross now in its third generation of 

 selection seems very promising. The 

 plumage color varies from all white 

 to buff and some have streaks of red 

 and white. However, in all cases the 

 undercolor is white. This new breed 

 possesses an excellent breast width 

 and has loose feathering, which are 

 desirable features on today's market. 



W. C. Skoglund 



Factors Influencing the Maturity 

 Of Fall Hatched Pullets 



In order to maintain a more even 

 yearly egg production, fall hatching 

 of chicks for replacement purposes 

 is increasing in popularity. There is 

 a widespread complaint that such 

 pullets mature early and lay eggs of 

 small size. One reason for the early 

 .^exual maturity and small egg size 

 may be the effects of light stimula- 

 tion. During late February, March, 

 and April, the days are rapidly in- 

 creasing in length as the fall hatched 

 pullets are approaching sexual ma- 

 turity. Thus there is a continuously 

 increasing light stimulation. It was 

 thought that perhaps by the use of 

 lights, a uniform day could be estab- 



35 



