POULTRY KEEPING 193 



Well cured meat scraps and fish meal are dried down until they 

 contain only about ten per cent of water. Seventy-five pounds of 

 milk dried down to the consistency of beef scrap, containing ten 

 per cent of water, would weigh about eight pounds. Its feeding value 

 would be just about the same as eight pounds of beef scrap, varying 

 somewhat one way or the other, according to the other foodstuffs 

 fed in connection with it. To illustrate: The 75 pounds of milk 

 dried down to eight pounds, containing ten per cent water, would 

 be worth, at 3 l /> cents per pound, 28 cents, while eight pounds of 

 beef scraps at 2> l /2 cents per pound, would be worth 26 cents. Fish 

 meal at three and one-fifth cents would be worth only a trifle less. 

 Draining the whey and drying the curd in the sun is all right, but 

 it is believed that it is dangerous to feed the whey to poultry. 



Green Winter Feed. 



What is there in the line of greens suitable for poultry that can be 

 grown without irrigation? 



Rape planted in fall or winter will send roots down and keep 

 green sometime into the next summer. The soil must be moist and 

 fine when it is broadcasted, to give the seed a chance to germinate. 

 Giant kale planted in the fall in moist soil will persist till spring 

 when alfalfa or green corn is large enough to feed as fodder. Fall 

 sown rye or other grain will give green winter feeding. 



Soft Shells and Egg-Bound Hens. 



What are the causes of soft shelled eggs and egg-bound hens and what 

 are remedies? 



The cause of egg-bound cases is internal fat. Soft shell eggs are 

 nearly always caused by the same conditions, but not quite all. Some- 

 times a fright will cayse hens to drop soft eggs, or a lack of lime in 

 the system. In that case the remedy is to supply more lime in the 

 way of old plaster, oyster shell, or bone. When the trouble is caused 

 by too fatty condition, the remedy is to lessen their feed. Get some 

 straw or other litter and feed all grain in the litter, make the hens 

 exercise more for it, also feed less mash. 



Feeding Little Chicks. 



In raising chicks from an incubator I have been feeding chick feed 

 and boiled eggs. They are two weeks old and seem strong, but for the 

 past few days they have been dying. They become droopy and die very 

 quickly. 



First cut out the eggs. It is strange that people will stuff little 

 chicks with such concentrated food and expect them to live. Chop 

 up a head of lettuce and an onion or two, just as fine as you can, so 

 they will eat it, and mix with a little bran and rolled oats. Feed them 

 this two or three times a day and the chick food the balance. Your 



