92 INCUBATION 



too many eggs into the nest, for the best returns come 

 from too few rather than from too many eggs in the nest. 



Broody or sitting hens must be kept quiet and undis- 

 turbed, except at feeding time, which should occur at 

 the same hour each day. This statement refers to hens 

 that are confined to their nests. Hens that come and 

 go at will should have food and water close at hand, 

 from which they may help themselves at any time. 

 Corn and wheat with grit and shell are perhaps the best 

 foods for sitting hens. Fresh water should also be 

 provided each day. A dust bath is a necessity for 

 health and cleanliness. If any eggs are broken in the 

 nest, they should be removed without delay, and the 

 nest should be cleaned. If the eggs in the nest become 

 soiled, they should, if possible, be cleaned without wash- 

 ing them. This cleaning may be done by scraping them 

 with a dull knife or with the thumb nail; if washing is 

 indispensable, the eggs must be immersed in water the 

 temperature of which is 90 F., or a little less not more; 

 the dirty coating on the shell should be softened and 

 removed with as little rubbing as possible. When the 

 nest and eggs have been cleaned, the eggs should be 

 replaced under the hen. Eggs that have been washed 

 do not hatch as well as those that have not been so treated. 



Feeding the Sitting Hen. Hens that are sitting must 

 be regularly fed on good, solid grain. They should have 

 at each feeding grain enough to last 24 hr. Whole corn 

 that is dry and hard, wheat, and some shell and grit 

 must be supplied. Hens that cannot come from the nest 

 at will should be liberated or taken from the nest to 

 feed. Their crops should be felt each day. If they are 

 not sufficiently fed, they will lose fat and their temper- 

 ature will decrease, so that the eggs will not be properly 

 warmed. When the hens come and go from the nest at 

 will, food grit, and water must be placed where they 

 can help themselves and at the same time be out of the 

 reach of other hens. Looseness of bowels at this time 

 should be avoided, as such a condition weakens the hens 

 and lowers the temperature of the body. In returning 



