POULTRT-CRAFT. 229 



fluous. At the same time, it is to be observed that not a few who succeed 

 when they fuss a great deal with chickens or turkeys, fail utterly if they 

 attempt more economical methods. 



(1). Ration for Young Turkeys. (CRANGLE). "After about thirty-six hours 

 old, or after the hen leaves her nest, we feed for three or four meals, equal parts of hard 

 boiled eggs and stale bread. After that mostly stale bread moistened with milk. For 

 two or three weeks we give curdled milk to drink. After two weeks we mix a little red 

 pepper with the bread twice a week." 



(2). Ration for Young Turkeys. (CURTISS). " Our first feed is bread and milk, 

 with the milk so pressed out that the bread will crumble. This is fed for the first two 

 weeks, after which the feed is gradually changed to milk curd and meal, one-half part 

 each, and a little cracked corn is given at night." 



(3). Ration for Young Turkeys on Good Range. (Mrs. MACKEY). "The first 

 feed I give is milk curd, with onion tops and tongue or pepper grass cut very fine 

 seasoned with black pepper. I give this morning, noon, and night. It is a mistake to 

 feed very often or too much while they are young. If poults are fed three times a day 

 from the time they are hatched until they are grown, they are fed often enough. Yet 

 they must have something to pick all the time, hence I would advise that they be kept in 

 a grass yard where the grass is kept low. 



" As they grow older I add other things to the food. Table scraps are splendid for 

 them. If I have infertile incubator eggs I boil them and mix with the other food, but 

 never use fresh eggs, simply because I do not consider it necessary. I give milk instead 

 of drinking water when it is plentiful. I keep grit constantly before them. Wheat is 

 one of the finest feeds for young turkeys. Cracked corn is splendid when they are older. 

 My rule has been to mix grains of wheat in the food from the first, so that when they are 

 old enough to change from curd to grain it will not be so hard to change foods." 



(4). Rations From Shell to Market. (Mrs. HARGRAVE). "I feed poults every 

 two hours until about ten days old, giving stale light bread softened in sweet milk (or 

 water), squeezed dry, mixed with hard boiled eggs, including shells, finely broken. This 

 food is alternated with bread and clabber cheese, oat flake and egg, or cheese seasoned 

 with a little salt and pepper. After the little ones are about a week old I begin mixing a 

 little whole or cracked wheat, Indian corn, Kaffir corn, or millet with the cooked food, 

 and thus they learn to eat grain. Always try to feed no more than they will eat up clean 

 each time. When they are about a week old I begin to drop the white bread, and give 

 them instead what I call a brown light bread made the same as white bread, using one- 

 half white flour (a cheap grade will do) and the other half about equal parts of shorts 

 and bran, with a handful or two of corn meal. The meal makes it crumble easily. The 

 bread should be allowed to dry for a day or two before feeding ; if fed fresh it may choke 

 the poults. I gradually drop the white bread and eggs, and feed instead the brown bread 

 and cheese. When about six weeks old they have become accustomed to the grain food, 

 which since they were three weeks old has been kept by them in troughs, in coops so 

 constructed that the little turkeys can get in and the older fowls are kept out. By the 

 time the poults are nine or ten weeks old I have dropped the soft or cooked feed to once 

 or twice per day. By September the older poults are dependent upon grain food and 

 range. For fattening I had good results with a mixture of grains proportioned as 

 follows : two bushels whole corn, two bushels cracked corn, one bushel oats, one 

 bushel Kaffir corn." 



