134 POUL TRY-CRAFT. 
177. Importance of Closely Observing the Physical Condition of 
Hens.— In feeding for eggs it may be noticed, that, as in some breeds the 
tendency is to convert surplus food into eggs, and in some to convert a surplus 
into fat, and as similar differing tendencies are observed in different hens of 
the same breed, so the same hen will show at one time a tendency to fatten, 
and at another a tendency to turn all surplus into eggs—and this altogether 
apart from the influence of external conditions. When one function gets, as 
it were, the upper hand of the others, it seems to have power to appropriate a 
lion’s share of the surplus food taken into the system. This matter requires 
watching, and sometimes makes it necessary to reassort a stock, putting hens 
of similar tendencies together, that they may be given required special treat- 
ment. One of the secrets, perhaps the secret, of getting big egg yields from 
fowls of the large breeds, is to get the hens in such condition, axd laying, 
that they acquire a certain momentum of egg production —then feed heavily. 
For this one needs to be much among his fowls, watching them closely, and* 
handling them often. The feathers make it difficult to accurately judge a 
hen’s condition by observation. In the case of large fowls the difficulty is 
increased by the length and looseness of the plumage. Very docile hens can 
be picked up at any time; others, not so easily approached, but still not 
wild, may be caught at the feed trough, by lifting with the hand under the 
breast, without being at all alarmed. A close examination is not needed; all 
that is necessary is to get hold of the fowl in such a way that the weight rests 
easily on the hand, and the fingers learn by touch the condition of the flesh. 
Hens that would be too much disturbed by being caught by daylight, should 
be handled on the roosts at night. Beginners generally need to watch their 
hens’ condition more closely than old breeders, because the old breeder’s stock 
as a whole has become habituated to his system of handling, and by the 
inevitable process of natural selection fowls which do not do well under his 
system have been largely weeded out. 
178. Gentleness in Handling Laying Hens Important.— Careless 
and rough handling of laying hens cause many bad breaks in egg yields. 
Occasions are constantly arising in the poultry yard when one needs to 
exercise all his powers of self-restraint to keep from doing things of which he 
will afterwards be ashamed. Hens can be very aggravating, and cannot be 
coerced with gentle force or mildly corrected as most domestic animals are. 
A threatening movement, though carried no further, will often put every hen 
in a pen in a bad state of fright; in a long continuous house the panic runs 
like wildfire from pen to pen. A disturbance of any kind measurably affects 
the egg yield. The poultry keeper who is most a novice knows that a dog or 
other unfamiliar animal, or a bevy of visitors is very objectionable near the 
quarters of laying hens. Not all poultry keepers know that they themselves 
often unknowingly cause bad disturbances. They see the disturbance, but 
are unable to account for it. To abruptly enter a pen, to run past it, to go 
