BREEDING STOCK 89 
in the first two years of their life as these 
pullets lay in the first five or six months of 
production. 
Necessity of Maintaining Weight. The 
one important circumstance that will cause 
the eggs from pullets to hatch poorly is the 
following: If the pullet has laid very heavily 
during the five or six months, has been fed 
insufficient scratch feed for her to maintain 
her normal weight, and has begun to lose 
weight, then she has begun to go to pieces 
physically and cannot put the ingredients 
into the eggs which are necessary to produce 
strong, livable chicks. 
Summary. The present-day poultryman 
should use pullets as breeders, feed them 
heavily during November, December, Janu- 
ary, and February on scratch feed, possibly 
slowing up their production a trifle, but en- 
deavoring to maintain the health and vitality 
of the stock, the best measure of which is the 
weight of the birds. 
Male Birds. In breeding to these pullets 
the poultryman should use cockerels hatched 
at the same time as the pullets. The reasons 
5 practically the same as those which make 
