examination that she is detected. Hermaphrodites are half-sexed birds 

 that are sometimes hard to detect. They always have bright red 

 combs, but their masculine look and air enables the skillful poultryman 

 to detect them. 



By culling out the very earliest molters and those that are not up 

 to type at the end of the first year, you will have a very respectable 

 flock for the second year's laying. It is a mistake to dispose of all the 

 hens at the end of the first year, because it takes less time, trouble, and 

 feed to carry them through the molt than to replace them with a new 

 lot of pullets. Also the eggs from second year hens run larger and bring 

 an extra price. An additional profit can also be secured by mating 

 the second year hens and hatching the eggs or selling the eggs for 

 hatching. Custom prices for hatching eggs for hatcheries run 10 cents 

 per dozen above market quotations. 



The best plan is to have half pullets and half second year hens. 

 Then each year the old hens are disposed of as fast as they go into the 

 molt and replaced by young hens. Thus you can readily see that an 

 egg farm is not on the highest producing basis until the end of the 

 second laying year. When once stocked up an egg farm is almost able 

 to keep stocked up with little extra expense, for the sale of old hens 

 each year should bring in enough capital to rear the pullets. If an 

 egg farmer can make money the first and second year, he is sure of 

 easier profits thereafter. It takes initial capital to build houses and 

 put in stock, but after that is in it does not have to be repeated. 



The third culling begins when the second year hens start in to molt, 

 which a few will do in July. During July and August these second year 

 hens should be sold just as fast as they cease laying. I have a net 

 attached to a heavy band at the end of a long handle, and with this I 

 can catch up any hen just as soon as her comb begins to shrivel. 



Also her legs will grow more yellow, for during the heavy laying 

 period they bleach out white. As soon as egg production ceases the 

 fat accumulates and the legs grow yellow. In walking through a large 

 flock during July and August, you can easily detect the non-layers by 

 shriveled combs and yellow legs, and more or less ragged appearance 

 from loss of feathers. All these second year non-layers should be sent 

 to market just as soon as detected. Each day's feed on them lessens 

 profit. 



By keeping the first year hens over to the second year, you have a 

 much larger and heavier hen for the market, as they grow considerably. 

 Even third year hens are heavier than second. All the second year hens 

 that keep laying steadily up into September without showing signs of 

 molting are undoubtedly the cream of the flock and well worth keeping 

 the third year as breeders. These third year hens will produce the male 

 birds for the general flock of next year second season breeders, and these 

 males will be the very best possible, because from the insistent layers 

 of mature age. In this way heavy laying propensities can be established 

 in a flock without losing any vigor whatever. 



It is a very few hens that will get through for the third year laying, 

 but these few will be choice. A very small number might even get 

 through the fourth culling, and so be carried over the fourth year. 



By this breeding from the earliest maturing pullets from second and 

 third year hens, and culling these at six months for early maturing, and 



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