POULTRY EXPERIMENTS. 173 



ing the busiest 4 or 5 hours of the clay. During the remaining 

 hours he has some time for other work. 



The nest is certain in its action, easy of operation and simple 

 in its construction. It is not patented. We do not sell it. Any 

 one is free to make it. 



FEEDING YOUNG CHICKENS. 



The chicks are allowed to remain in the incubator without 

 food until they are about 48 hours old. They are then strong, 

 steady on their legs and hungry. 



The temperature under the brooder hover is kept between 95 

 and 100 degrees during the first week; reducing it about 5 de- 

 grees during each of the next 2 weeks. The chicks must not be 

 allowed to chill while young, day or night. After they are 3 or 

 4 days old, they are taught, little by little, the road down, and 

 out on the floor, which is covered with a little sand and a little 

 dry cut clover, or clover leaves and chaff. 



The best method of feeding young chicks is at present a matter 

 of some uncertainty and it is doubtful if ever there will be gen- 

 eral agreement as to the one best method. One condition ap- 

 pears to be imperative and that is that the young things be not 

 allowed to over-eat. During the past years we have practiced 

 several different methods of feeding chicks quite extensively, 

 and have observed the results carefully. 



Method 1. 



Infertile eggs are boiled for half an hour and then ground in 

 an ordinary meat chopper, shells included, and mixed with about 

 6 times their bulk of rolled oats, by rubbing both together. This 

 mixture is the feed for 2 or 3 days, until the little things have 

 learned how to eat. It is fed with chick grit, on the brooder 

 floor, on the short cut clover or chaff. 



About the third day they are fed a mixture of hard, fine 

 broken grains, as soon as they can see to eat it in the morning. 

 The mixture consists of equal parts of cracked corn, cracked 

 wheat, millet seed and pin-head oats. It is fed on the litter, care 

 being taken to limit the quantity, so they shall be hungry a 9 

 o'clock A. M. Several of the prepared, dry, commercial chick 

 foods may be substituted for the broken grains. They are satis- 

 factory when made of good, clean, broken grains and seeds, but 

 13 



