58 



the others. About two days before time for the eggs to hatch, sew 

 each egg up, loosely, in a piece of cloth mosquito netting. This will 

 not interfere with the heat getting to the egg, the chick will come out 

 nicely, and as soon as he is out of the shell and dry, you can cut the 

 mosquito netting away from around him and mark his toe so he can 

 be distinguished from the others. The netting must be loose enough 

 to give the chick room to break the shell and get out. 



METHOD OF MARKING CHICKS. 



At the present time fully ninety per cent of the farmers and 

 poultry raisers do not know the age of a large per cent of the birds 

 in their flock. They do not know whether the males they are saving 

 and breeding from are from their best laying females and best pro- 

 ducers or not. If you have a special mating or an extra good setting 



' A A * A A 



* A A A A 



* A A " A A 



* A A * A A 



* A A A A , : 

 A A * A A 



7 A A * A A 

 A A * A A 



Method of marking baby chicks. 



of eggs and you wish to know these chickens at maturity from the 

 rest of the flock, you can determine each such chick by punching the 

 web of the toe at the time the chick is hatched. The accompanying 

 diagram shows a system by which sixteen different combinations of 

 toe markings are possible/ You should know your chickens, their 

 age, their breeding, their record, and we recommend marking their 

 toes or use leg bands, or a combination of both. 



PRECAUTION NECESSARY BEFORE REFILLING THE 

 INCUBATORS. 



Before refilling your incubator it should be thoroughly cleaned. 

 If the incubator has burlap or other material covering the bottom of 

 the nursery, this should be replaced with a fresh, clean piece. The 

 incubator should be scalded or washed out with a weak solution of 

 creolin or zenoleum in warm water or other antiseptic solution, and 

 thoroughly aired and exposed to the sun. The egg trays should be 

 scalded or flamed. Never reset your incubator without this precau- 

 tion against infection and the spread of disease among the young 

 chicks. The same precaution must be used with your "brooder. 



After the season is over keep the incubator stored in a dry place. 

 Empty the lamp, for if oil is left in it, it will give you more or less 

 trouble by smoking the second season. You can save both time and 

 money if you give some attention to the care of your machine. 



