POULTRY 



661 



before crating, not crowd too many into 

 the crate and if shipped long distances 

 to provide some food for them on the 

 journey. A head of cabbage ' tied at 

 each end of the crate will be appreciated 

 by the birds. 



Dressing — Dressed chickens are usu- 

 ally shipped in barrels or boxes. Before 

 killing, they should be fasted for 12 to 

 24 hours. Most of the poultry marketed 

 in the large cities is sold undrawn and 

 with the head and feet left on. The 

 birds are killed by running a sharp 

 knife through the roof of the mouth to 

 the brain, so that they bleed freely. If 

 dry picked, the sooner the operation be- 

 gins after killing the easier the work is 

 done. 



The birds are hung up by the legs for 

 the blood to escape. The easiest way of 

 dressing is to scald the birds, though 

 they are not so attractive on the market 

 as when properly dry picked. In scald- 

 ing, the temperature of the water should 

 be just below boiling. The chicken is 

 held by the legs and dipped two or three 

 times in the water, care being taken 

 not to dip the head, as this discolors the 

 comb, shrinks the eyes and gives the 

 head a sickly appearance. After scald- 

 ing, some recommend immediate plung- 

 ing of the bird in cold water, after 

 which it is hung up by the legs so that, 

 both hands may be free to remove the 

 feathers and pin feathers. 



After the feathers are removed, the 

 bird should be "plumped." This is done 

 by immersing in almost boiling water 

 for an instant and then into ice cold 

 water. "If the stock is iced when 

 shipped, it can remain in the cold bath 

 until taken out for packing, otherwise, 

 it should be removed when thoroughly 

 cooled and hung up to dry." 



Packing and shipping— All old and 

 heavy birds should be marketed before 

 January 1, as after that date the de- 

 mand is mostly for the smaller, round, 

 fat fowls. "In packing chickens, the 

 head may be . put under the wing, but 

 the body and legs should be straightened 

 out. Pack snugly in a barrel or box to 

 avoid sliding , about in transit. The 

 stock should be carefully graded in each 

 package and all inferior stock kept sep- 

 arate from the better grades. The birds 

 should be clean, free from blood stains, 

 and any bad tears in the skin should be 

 sewed up with fine, white thread. 



"In shipping dressed chickens in sum- 

 mer, a layer of finely cracked ice should 

 be put in the barrel, then chickens, then 

 a layer of ice, until the barrel is full; a 

 layer of ice should cover the top layer 

 of chickens. This should be covered over 

 with a piece of burlap and a large piece 

 of ice put on, with a large piece of burlap 

 secured over the top hoop. Holes should 

 not be bored in the bottom of the barrel, 

 as it is better to have the barrel hold 

 water. Mark directions plainly on the 

 outside of the package and state what 

 the package contains." 



All white chicken feathers suitable for 

 cushions bring 15 to 20 cents a pound, 

 colored feathers 4 to 5 cents a pound. 



Losses in dressing_At the Canada 

 experiment farm dressed and drawn 

 chicks exclusive of the giblets averaged 

 66.4 per cent of the original weight of 

 the birds. The giblets constituted 5.5 

 per cent, head and feet 11.2 per cent, 

 feathers 8.3 per cent and entrails 8.5 per 

 cent. The New York state station found 

 that the loss in dressing capons for 

 market, undrawn, was 11 per cent of their 

 fasted or 15 per cent of their unfasted 

 weight. 

 DUCKS 



The duck industry has increased enor- 

 mously in recent years. There are a 

 good many duck farms at the present 

 time which turn out .annually from 

 4,000 to 20,000 birds. The larger part of 

 these are marketed when they are about 

 10 weeks of age as "green" ducks. The 

 better breeds at this age will average 

 4*/2 to 5V 2 pounds each. Formerly a 

 pond of running water was considered 

 essential in duck farming, but at pres- 

 ent many of the largest growers raise 

 all of their ducks on high, dry land with- 

 out any water except for drinking pur- 

 poses. One of the largest growers of 

 ducks in the eastern states, James Ran- 

 kin, states that in the strain of White 

 Pekin, which he has raised for many 

 years, the desire for swimming and pud- 

 dling in water has been entirely 

 bred out. Ducks grow three or four 

 times as rapidly as chickens, are more 

 hardy, less subject to disease, and Ran- 

 kin states that in 40 years' experience he 

 has not found them affected with lice. 



A prominent eastern duck grower 

 places the cost of producing green ducks 

 as follows: 



Cost of one newly hatched duckling, 

 10 cents. 



