676 



FARMER'S CYCLOPEDIA OF LIVE STOCK 



Marketing — Squabs are killed before 

 tbey get large enough to leave the nest, 

 or when they weigh about 8 pounds to 

 the dozen. They should be taken in 

 the morning, before feeding, when_ the 

 crop is empty. In killing, some writers 

 recommend that the squab be taken in 

 the left hand, and the head in the right 

 hand, with the thumb at the base of the 

 bill. A slight pull is then given with a 

 push upward and back with the thumb, 

 which dislocates the neck. A small cav- 

 ity is formed by the break in the spinal 

 column sufficiently large to drain the 

 body of blood. If the squabs are not 

 picked they must be thoroughly cooled 

 by hanging them up by the legs and 

 allowing them to remain over night, so 

 that all the animal heat is entirely gone 

 from the body. If laid on boards packed 

 together before this, the flesh will be 

 discolored. Generally, the birds are 



Fig. 431 — RUNT PIGEON 



plucked, in which case the feathers 

 should be removed while they are still 

 warm, and the birds thrown into ice 

 cold water, leaving them there over 

 night to plump out and harden. Good 

 pickers dress from 12 to 15 squabs in 

 an hour. If shipped to distant markets, 

 the squabs should be packed in boxes in 

 layers, alternating with ice and finish- 

 ing with a layer of ice on top. 



Training flyers — The pigeon raiser is 

 usually interested also in growing fancy 

 birds or in training flyers, since cham- 

 pion birds of these kinds bring good 

 prices. Young birds raised at home may 

 be given their liberty and will always 

 return. So, if old birds are bought, it 

 is always necessary to confine them or 

 they will return to their original home. 

 The training of young Homers begins 

 when they are about five months old. At 



first they may be taken in a basket and 

 carried a mile or two away from home 

 and liberated. Some special feed should 

 be provided for them at home as a re- 

 ward for their prompt return. Gradu- 

 ally the distance taken can be length- 

 ened, until they may be shipped some 

 miles from home, then liberated, either 

 by the expressman or friends at a defi- 

 nite hour, and the time of their arrival 

 home noted. Special cages have been 

 provided, upon their entrance to which 

 an electric bell is rung in the house to 

 notify the owner of the bird's return. 



In carrying messages, light aluminum 

 tubes may be attached to the legs, in 

 which the message is contained. 



Mating and determining sex — In 



growing breeding stock, a mating pen 

 is maintained in which new birds do 

 their courting and become acquainted 

 with each other. They are not allowed 

 in the breeding pen until they have 

 mated in the mating pen. The male and 

 female birds very closely resemble each 

 other and it is extremely difficult to de- 

 termine the sex by any of the usual 

 methods. It is claimed that if the beak 

 of a pigeon is held in one hand and the 

 feet in the other, stretching them out, 

 the male bird will usually hug his tail 

 close to the body, while the female will 

 throw her tail. The male does more coo- 

 ing than the female and usually turns 

 around several times, while the female 

 turns but part way around. If a pigeon 

 loses its mate by death, it must be re- 

 turned to the mating pen, otherwise it 

 might seek to win a mate already mated 

 and thus cause trouble in the breeding 

 pen. Great care must be taken to avoid 

 inbreeding if large sized squabs are to 

 be secured. 

 GUINEAS 



The guinea, also known as keets, is 

 but little grown commercially, but small 

 flocks of two to six or seven birds are 

 found on farms all over the country 

 principally in the southern states. Ke- 

 cently there has been considerable de- 

 mand in the larger cities for guineas as 

 table birds at hotels and clubs, because 

 of the gamy flavor of the flesh, which is 

 especially marked when the birds are 

 allowed free range. They are noisy 

 birds and it is claimed that they are 

 thus a protection to other poultry from 

 attacks of hawks and other enemies. 

 They lay from 50 to 100 well-flavored, 

 hard-shelled, speckled eggs annually, 

 slightly smaller than hens' eggs. 



