POULTRY-CRAFT. 125 



166. How Much Exercise? Poultry keepers, being human, are prone 

 to go to extremes. This is as true of plain poultrymen with their methods, 

 ideas and theories, as it is of fanciers with their devotion to points of form 

 and color, and perfection of development of non-essential features. Having 

 tried for years to keep fowls in confinement without adequate provision for 

 exercise, poultrymen are now, very generally, compelling too much exercise. 

 To keep fowls scratching all day scratching busily for all the grain they 

 get, is carrying a good thing too far. As much exercise as will keep them 

 in good condition is needed ; more is superfluous, and, therefore, wasteful. 

 Exercise has to be paid for if food is paid for. The amount of exercise 

 needed will vary ; it can easily be regulated by watching the condition of the 

 hens. At any age a fowl in good condition is plump. A poor thin fowl 

 has no reserve force. A fowl in good condition will be kept so if obliged to 

 scratch about one-third of the day for one-third of its food. To bring a poor 

 fowl up in condition, the proportion of food secured by exercise must be 

 reduced. To reduce a fat fowl, compel more exercise even going so far as 

 for a while to oblige the fowl to exercise for all food, and to go hungry as 

 long as it will not scratch.* 



167. Exercise for Heavy Fowls. What exercise suits a Leghorn does 

 not suit a Brahma or Cochin. In the first place, the Asiatics do not need as 

 much exercise as other varieties, and in just walking about they get much 

 more of what exercise they need. Even in small, rather bare yards, they 

 keep in pretty good condition without special exercise. As is well known, 

 the Asiatics are both the hardiest of fowls and the best suited to close confine- 

 ment. In the next place, scratching is harder work for them than for clean 

 legged fowls. With their feathered feet and legs they do not work easily 

 in heavy litter ; so, while the rule of one-third of a day's work for one-third 

 of a day's ration can be applied to Asiatics, it is necessary to so litter the 

 floors that the rule will work right. 



fowl-yard the scratching floor is not absolutely necessary, and may even be superfluous 

 if the hens have access constantly to a barnyard ; but unless there is some other 

 convenient sheltered place to which the hens can resort in all weathers, it is best to 

 make regular provision for scratching exercise at the hen house. 



* NOTE. There need be no fear of injuring a fowl by this process. People are some- 

 times too tender hearted to compel a lazy fowl to work. If the hens miss one or two 

 meals rather than work for their food, the owners take pity on them, and feed them as 

 usual. This is a common case, and one in which pity needs to be diluted with common 

 sense. The truest kindness to an animal is to keep it in such good condition that it will 

 feel like working taking exercise, and when it gets out of such condition to put it in 

 condition again at once^ though stringent measures be required. The only case where 

 an overfat fowl ought not to be compelled to exercise is when its feet are so sore (scaly 

 leg) that it cannot use them. In this not uncommon case the foot disease must be 

 tteated first, and it will do no harm to diet to reduce fat at the same time. 



