POULTRY FOR PROFIT 65 



Such a plan is not possible on large poultry plants 

 where thousands of chicks are raised yearly, but it is 

 entirely feasible where 500 or 600 are raised. 



Warmth the First Essential 



Rest and warmth are the first requirements of a 

 newly hatched chick. The last day of hatching it 

 draws into its abdomen the yolk of the egg, and 

 this is food enough for the first two days. All it 

 needs now is to lie quietly in a warm place and sleep, 

 but it must be warm or it cannot sleep. Lack of 

 sufficient heat the first two days is the great cause 

 of bowel trouble and death. A slight chill causes 

 indigestion, there is diarrhea (not white diar- 

 rhea), the chick becomes pasted up behind, stands 

 around "hunched up" and miserable, and soon dies. 

 It is extremely important, therefore, that in moving 

 chicks from incubator to brooder, or from sitting 

 box to coop, every precaution be taken to prevent 

 chilling; that brooders be so warm that the chick 

 will lie down comfortably and sleep, and that 

 mother hens, if they do not understand their busi- 

 ness, be compelled to brood their charges or give 

 them up. 



Just how soon after hatching a chick should be fed 

 is a mooted question among experts, but all agree 

 that it should not be less than forty-eight hours. 

 In most broods some chicks will begin to hunt for 

 food while others are still resting under the hen. 

 These older chicks should be fed when they seem 

 hungry. Those that are not ready to eat will not 

 eat. 



Overcrowding is one of the greatest enemies to 

 the growth and health of baby chicks. A brooder 

 that is just right when the chicks are first hatched 

 will be far too small when they are three weeks 



