CHAPTER XXII 
PROJECTS AND QUESTIONS: POULTRY 
1. Breeds found in the district.— What domestic fowls are kept in 
your district? (Chickens, turkeys, ducks, geese.) If any of them are 
blooded stock, find out what breed they are. Find out why the owner 
prefers this breed. Visit some of the best flocks and note the breed and 
its characteristics. 
2. Food and feeding habits. — Observe the feeding habits of a flock 
of chickens in summer, not confined in a small yard but allowed to forage. 
(c) What food is given them? How manymealsaday? How much 
is allowed for the total daily ration per chicken? 
(b) What food do they find for themselves? Watch them for an hour 
or two and make an estimate as to the number of insects and other food 
each chicken probably finds in a day. 
3. Hatching, and the young. — When some one in the district sets a 
hen or other domestic fowl: 
(a) Make a careful note of the exact dates of setting and of hatching 
and compute the length of time between these dates. 
(b) Observe the condition of the young when they come out of the 
shell, — to what extent they are feathered, how rapidly the little ones 
grow, how long before they eat, what kind of food is given them. Make 
a full report to the school. 
4. Confinement, freedom to roam. — What benefits do chickens ob- 
tain from free range? Which breeds suffer most from confinement? 
Why? Why should chickens that are closely confined be provided with 
a scratching shed? 
5. Diseases and vermin, — Find out what vermin or diseases afflict 
the poultry kept in your district and what treatment is most successful. 
6. Winter eggs; housing and feeding. — Find out what are the most 
satisfactory flocks in your district in regard to winter production of eggs. 
Visit them and observe how they are housed and what feed is given 
them, also what care they receive. 
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