36 



the fowls, working it thoroughly in among their feathers. Spray 

 the room once a week with a one per cent, solution of carbolic 

 acid, and remove or cover with dust the droppings of the fowls. 

 Keep the room well ventilated, — in fact, make the conditions 

 continuously healthy. 



If by using hens the chicks are not hatched sufficiently early in 

 the season or in large enough numbers, or if you think that the 

 hens can better employ their time in laying eggs than in hatching 

 them, you are not forbidden to procure an incubator and brooder, 

 or, in fact, several of them, provided the business warrants the 

 expenditure of capital for this purpose. It is easy to learn to run 

 an incubator. The chief difficulties in chicken culture come before 

 and after incubation. They are found in the successful breeding 

 of fowls to lay eggs that possess strong fertile germs, capable of 

 producing vigorous chicks, and in successfully raising the creatures, 

 after hatching, to marketable size or to maturity. 



Artificial Mothers. 



A study of the brooder problem at the Rhode Island Agricult- 

 ural Experiment Station sheds considerable light upon the sub- 

 ject of the artificial raising' of chickens. According to Bulletin 

 No. 61 of this station, the causes of the numerous deaths of 

 incubator chicks raised in brooders may be grouped under : — 



(a) Heredity, or to environment during the period of incubation. 



(b) Mechanical causes. 



(c) Imperfect sanitation. 



(d) Improper feeding. 



Under the first heading (a) a hint is given that successive alter- 

 nate periods of heat and cold during incubation are responsible 

 for a large proportion of abnormalities in chicks. Experiments 

 recently undertaken in Germany have strongly emphasized this 

 matter. 



Among mechanical causes (6) are included crowding and hud- 

 dling, which, though inexcusable, are far too prevalent, because 

 of the ambitious desire of the poultryman to keep under one hover 

 as many chicks as possible. The remedy is evidently to be found 

 in not crowding. Twenty-five chicks are as many as the novice, 

 at least, should attempt to accommodate under one hover. 



Under imperfect sanitation (c) is included lack of pure air, sun- 

 light and cleanliness. Tuberculosis, for example, is by these 

 conditions given an excellent opportunity to attack the little 

 creatures. Prevention is in this case the best plan. The hovers 

 should be removable, and, if placed out of doors on bright days in 

 the fresh air where the sunshine can get at them, the germs of 



