HOT WEATHER PROBLEMS 



FIGHT INSECT PESTS UNCEASINGLY— THE NECESSITY OF SHADE AND PURE WATER EMPHASIZED 



MRS. S. B. TITTERINGTON 



^ T seems trite to say that each season lias its own 

 peculiar conditions and needs. Yet, to be suc- 

 cessful in poultry raising, it is indispensable that 

 one study and understand the requirements of 

 each changing period. 



One problem that comes to the front in the 

 heated term is a question of ownership. Do we 

 own the poultry houses, or have the lice and mites taken 

 possession? When the sun's rays grow torrid and the ground 

 becomes heated, then wooden walls absorb heat and insect 

 enemies- have their hour of triumph if. they are not fought to 

 a finish. Troubles develop with lightning-like rapidity at 

 this season, and the hoped for success vanishes into thin air 

 if proper precautions have not been taken. 



It is not necessary to dwell on the methods of warfare 

 which have proved effective in conquering insect pests. Every 

 poultry paper has enumerated them scores of times. The 

 thought emphasized here is the folly of carelessness and neglect. 

 For the careless and heedless poultry raiser is with us, and 

 I fear always will be to the end of the chapter. If the con- 

 sequences of this carelessness could be confined to the guilty 

 ones, it would not matter so much. A rather extreme case 

 recently under observation will illustrate this point. 



AN EXTREME CASE 



A certain poultry raiser (a woman, I am sorry to say) 

 had her surroundings in as bad a condition as is possible to 

 imagine. The yard was so low that except in a dry season or 

 when not frozen in winter, it was a mud puddle. The poultry 

 house was unworthy the name. It leaked through every inch 

 of the broken roof; one side was entirely open, the roosts were 

 too high for the fowls to reach easily and the floor was of dirt 

 and the accumulated droppings of years. In wet weather 

 water covered the whole area. Mites had taken possession of 

 the dilapidated old shell, and preyed on the helpless fowls. 

 When the poor birds were dying too fast, the woman would 

 empty a coal-oil can as far as she could reach, which only checked 

 the pests temporarily. A frosty, wet winter spent in such 

 damp, unwholesome quarters gave the flock cold, and, as spring 

 opened, they caught the roup from fowls purchased from a 

 huckster's wagon. An expert who was called to see the aggre- 

 gation of swelled heads, blind eyes and running nostrils, gave 

 some strenuous advice, in regard to getting rid of the entire lot, 

 but the advice was not followed. Quite a number survived the 

 epidemic, though many died. The disease spread to the flock 

 of turkeys, taking every one. The living fowls layed a few eggs, 

 and by buying more eggs from her neighbors, this woman 

 manages to hatch out a good many chickens each year, only to 

 have them take the roup later and die. The ground has become 

 so saturated with the germs of the disease that of late men 

 hired to work about the premises have carried the germs to 

 their homes on their feet, infecting flocks as far as^two miles 

 away. These outside birds develop roup in its most maUgnant 

 form. Who can say 'this woman's carelessness is not a public 

 menace? 



SHADE MOST IMPORTANT 



To those without trees in their poultry yards the ques- 

 tion of shade becomes a serious one. In this case, as in others, 

 necessity becomes the mother of invention. Shelters can be 



erected of boards but these are not so good as cloth or canvas, 

 as the wood absorbs heat, but they are far better than nothing. 

 Cloth stretched upon stakes, leaving aft opening on all sides 

 for the circulation of air, is particularly ^ood. 



By taking forethought in the spring, sunflowers and other 

 tall growing vegetation may be planted, which will afford grate- 

 ful shade when the hot days come. If a corn-field is accessible, 

 the fowls will have an ideal summer home, with shade and 

 animal food to be had for the scratching. 



The problem of fresh water in hot weather needs careful 

 consideration. The water fountains or troughs must not stand 

 in the sun, or the water will become rank poison. Frequent 

 replenishing is indispensable to the best interests of the fowls. 

 This means work, but what success can be obtained without 

 effort and plenty of it? 



CONDITIONING BREEDING STOCK 



A PROBLEM REQUIRING INTELLIGENT ATTEN- 

 TION BUT NOT DIFFICULT TO SOLVE— NAT- 

 URE'S CONDITIONS MUST BE FURNISHED— 

 THE UTILITY OF EXERCISE IN PURE AIR— 

 HOW TO DECIDE THE FEEDING QUESTIONS 



H. A. NOURSE 



The problem of conditioning breeding birds is by no means 

 a difficult or intricate one. Any poultryman worthy the name 

 selects each season, birds of the development and style that 

 denote vigor and constitution,\ while selecting the shape re- 

 quired for the variety in hand. It is a fact that birds of stand- 

 ard size and shape are not produced year after year by any but 

 healthy, vigorous stock and the breeder cannot avoid protecting 

 the constitution of his strain when following the course 

 necessary to produce good representatives of his variety. Con- 

 stitutional vigor is the source of strong procreative power and 

 is built up only by careful breeding for a term of years. 



With this characteristic well estabhsheJ it remains only to 

 maintain good health and normal condition of flesh to produce 

 eggs which will bring forth chicks that will hve, thrive and 

 make a profit. In this connection it is safe to remember that 

 appearance, although a good indicator of health, is by no means 

 infallible and a bird may be in the best of condition, apparently, 

 yet unable to produce a fertile egg. Supply the food and con- 

 ditions required and trust to nothing less, whatever the appear- 

 ances, to bring about the desired results. 



Every effort should be made to conserve the energy and 

 maintain the strength during the winter when conditions are 

 largely artificial. This does not mean that all profit from the 

 birds in a practical way myst be lost or that a hen may not 

 lay well during the winter and produce strong, fertile eggs in 

 the spring. It is only necessary to build up day by day the 

 vitality which egg production tears down, that the hen shaU 

 not be the loser. The best rule to follow during the winter is 

 this: Provide as well as possible the exercise, fresh air and 

 foods that the hen would get if allowed her freedom on a grass 

 range in summer. 



Of these, exercise is the most difficult to obtain. The dry 

 grain may be fed in the scratching material and the methods 

 of dry feeding now becoming popular, enable the feeder to get 



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