CHAPTER XXXI 

 FARM POULTRY 



307. Poultry Should be Raised at Every Home. Only 

 a small outlay of capital is required to establish a pay- 

 ing poultry business. The natural food of nearly all 

 members of the bird family is largely insects, small 

 animals and fish. The eggs of all sorts of poultry are 

 a rich, nutritious food. Ducks and geese produce a fine 

 quality of feathers as well as eggs for food. 



308. Hatching and Rearing Poultry. The growth of 

 the germ in the egg begins at a temperature just a little 

 below that of the bird's body. The temperature of the 

 blood in chickens is given as 107.6 Fahr. or 42 C. In 

 the brooding season the small blood-vessels on the 

 breast of the chicken become more prominent. The 

 time required to hatch, called the period of incubation, 

 will vary with the freshness of the eggs and the kind 

 of birds. The period of incubation for several kinds of 

 birds is as follows: 



Canary bird 14 days 



Pigeon 18 days 



Chicken 21 days 



Guinea 25 days 



Duck, geese and peacock 28 days 



Turkey 28 days 



309. Artificial Incubation. Artificial incubation is 

 a very old practice in some countries. Incubators 

 have .become common in recent years wherever much 



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