148 PROFITABLE POULTRY PRODUCTION 



in offsetting excessive fluctuations of temperature 

 and moisture. Because large quantities of car- 

 bonaceous matter are used in maintaining the heat, 

 a carbonaceous ration may be better for egg pro- 

 duction during very cold vireather than a nitrog- 

 enous one. This will be gathered from the discus- 

 sion in the chapter on feeding, but it needs to be 

 emphasized here. So much carbonaceous matter 

 is used up to maintain the heat of the fowl that 

 there should be still enough surplus of protein to 

 meet the demands of egg laying. 



SPRING AND SUMMER CARE 



This matter is of great importance, because, as a 

 rule, the poultryman is likely to overlook the fact 

 that hens lay more naturally in the spring than 

 during the winter and, therefore, he may jump to 

 the conclusion that his method of feeding is correct, 

 whereas it may be positively detrimental to his best 

 interests. For this reason, it is best that hens be 

 allowed to become broody in early spring, so that 

 they may have a rest of a few weeks. They will 

 be all the better for hatching a brood of chicks and 

 can be brought back into laying condition again 

 even while they are running with their broods. Of 

 course, this remark does not apply to the Mediter- 

 ranean and other laying classes. Laying hens 

 should invariably be given the utmost care to keep 

 them in prime condition. This cannot be too 

 strongly emphasized. 



During the summer, hens usually take a rest 

 from laying, but there will still be individuals in 

 the flock that continue, and proper feeding will 

 keep them in laying condition. Large numbers of 

 eggs, however, must not be expected. 



