HATCHING AND REARING CHICKS 



great aid in keeping the chicks busy and contented. 

 Chicks that do not get sufficient exercise are suscep- 

 tible to leg weakness, bowel diseases, and other ills ; 

 therefore, make them work for all they get, and 

 have no fear that they will not get enough food 

 because it is buried in litter. Chaff from the mow 

 floor makes the best scratching material, especially 

 when the chicks are quite small, as they greatly 

 relish the minute hay seed it contains. 



If you make use of soft food, first of all be sure 

 that you are feeding a mash and not a slop. Then 

 be careful to place all food in small troughs or 

 pans; never throw soft food upon the ground or 

 upon the floor of the brooder, where it quickly 

 becomes fouled and a potent source of disease. 

 Only as much should be placed before the chicks 

 at one time as they will eat up clean in a few 

 minutes. The troughs or pans should be thor- 

 oughly cleaned after each meal and scalded with 

 boiling water every week or ten days. In a word, 

 keep everything sweet and clean; soured, contam- 

 inated food and filthy troughs are frequent sources 

 of bowel disorders among little chicks. 



Wheat screenings can often be fed at slight cost, 

 and in such cases their use is all right ; but where 

 they cost nearly as much as wheat, use the latter 

 grain, as it contains more nourishment. Milk I do 

 not consider quite so excellent a food for little 

 chicks as do many people, not because the milk is 



157 



