l88 PROFITABLE POULTRY PRODUCTION 



Have a board floor to the coop, so a heavy shower 

 some night will not drown the chicks. Always 

 close the coop tightly at night to exclude rats. After 

 the chicks are a week old let the hen out with them 

 every day a few hours while it is dry. Never turn 

 them out in the mornings until all dampness has 

 left the ground. 



A few days before hatching rub sulphur thor- 

 oughly through the hen's feathers and sprinkle it 

 in the nests. When the chicks are two days old 

 examine them for lice. Unless accustomed to this, 

 one may decide that a poor little chick which really 

 is being eaten alive with them is comparatively 

 free from lice. It must be learned what to look 

 for and how. The large gray louse is the most 

 common. 



Dip the finger in kerosene and draw it first 

 around the ' chick's neck, next to the body. This 

 will start the lice all on a run for the head, ears 

 and under the bill. Follow them up with the oil 

 and every one touched by it will be killed instantly. 

 It is not necessary to saturate the down, and care 

 must be exercised to get no oil in the ears or the 

 eyes. This treatment will not hurt the chicken in the 

 least. In 15 minutes he will be as dry and fluff}' as 

 ever if he is not allowed to run directly under the 

 hen. That would prevent evaporation and he might 

 get a blister. This is greatly to be preferred to 

 kerosene mixed with some other grease, as that 

 prevents rapid evaporation. Never grease the 

 chicks under the wings, as they are too sensitive 

 there. 



