﻿THE COMMERCIAL FATTENING OF POULTRY. 19 



REMOVING BIRDS "OFF FEED." 



"Cripples" were removed from the batteries at Station 1 after 

 October 26, which materially lowered the loss due to dead birds, but 

 increased the cost of labor. These birds, if in good flesh, were dressed 

 and their weight credited to their respective lots. The economy of 

 this extra labor depends upon numerous conditions which are closely 

 related. One reason for doing this at Station 1 and not at the other 

 stations was that the birds were fed there for a longer time much later 

 in the season than at the other stations. The conditions in the feed- 

 ing station appeared to produce more sickly birds at Station 1 than 

 at the others. If the chickens are carefully selected before they are 

 put into the feeding station, so that no birds with colds or apparently 

 out of condition go into the feeder, and they are only fed for a short 

 period of 6 to 10 days under proper conditions of ventilation, it does 

 not appear profitable to employ an extra man to remove "cripples." 

 The regular help, however, must watch the birds carefully enough to 

 prevent roupy conditions from spreading through the coops, although 

 this is not likely to occur during the short feeding periods. Portable 

 batteries placed a few inches apart keep the -birds scattered so that 

 any contagious disease will not spread as rapidly as in stationary 

 coops or batteries. 



FEATHER PICKING. 



Two per cent of linseed meal was fed with the ration in Experiment 

 D from September 1 to November 5. The linseed meal did not appear 

 to affect the results of fattening in any way. The chickens during 

 this period dressed particularly well, and it is possible that this lin- 

 seed meal made picking easier, but its use would not be profitable 

 for this purpose. The object of feeding linseed meal was to see if 

 it had any effect on the habit of chickens picking each other. This 

 vice caused considerable loss in fattening at times, but appeared to 

 depend greatly on the condition of the chickens before they reached 

 the packing house. Chickens which have not been well fed, or have 

 been held for some time by the country merchant under poor condi- 

 tions, are particularly subject to this vice, while in sections where the 

 birds receive better care and are moved more quickly from the farm 

 to the packing house, this habit does not cause any particular loss. 

 Linseed meal added to the ration at Station 4 seemed to stop this 

 vice, but the habit was not so widespread that a good test could be 

 made. Either fresh meat or good beef scrap might prove of value 

 where there was much loss due to this habit, but the remedy appears 

 to He largely in the use of better methods of handling the chickens 

 before they reach the fattening stations. 



Feather picking was more prevalent at all of the feeding stations 

 in 1912 than it has ever been before. From 2 to 3 per cent of waste 



