CHAPTER V 



HOW TO SELECT LAYING HENS 



Note to Teacher : The class should be taken to the school and nearby 

 flocks to practise taking measurements and for observation of the other 

 characteristics indicating good and poor layers. Allowance must also be 

 made for fingerbreadths, as the standard fingerhreadth is based on the 

 fingers of the average-sized man. 



61. When to Cull Hens. Hens should be culled each year in 

 July or August, or as soon thereafter as possible. 



62. Physical Condition of Laying Hens. In order that a hen 

 may lay well, she must have a sound body. The bird must be 

 vigorous and healthy. Vigor and health are shown by a bright, 

 clear eye, an active disposition, and. a well-developed body. 



63. Physical Condition of Poor Laying Hens. Poor laying 

 hens are shy, while good layers are tame and easily handled. 

 A poor laying hen goes to perch early. Her toe nails are long, 

 indicating that she has not been scratching like the good layer. 

 The poor layer usually is the last bird to leave the perch in the 

 morning. 



64. Physical Defects. Laying hens should be free from such 

 physical defects as a crooked beak, excessively long toe nails, 

 eyelids that overhang so that the bird cannot see well, scaly legs, 

 or anything that would tend to keep the bird from getting an 

 abundance of feed. 



65. In the yellow-skinned birds, such as the Leghorn, Ply- 

 mouth Rock, Rhode Island Red, and Wyandotte, the yellow 

 color fades out as laying goes on. Skin tests cannot be carried 

 on in birds with a white skin. 



66. Bleaching of Beak and Shanks. In Leghorns the beak will 

 be entirely bleached by the time the bird has laid thirty eggs. 

 The shanks will be bleached out by the time the bird has laid 

 sixty eggs. 



