PRACTICAL FEEDING OF POULTRY 



FATTENING POULTRY FOR MARKET 



It pays to have poultry in good flesh before it is mar- 

 keted and all thin chickens should be fattened for one to 

 three weeks before they are marketed. The cost of put- 

 ting on this extra weight is usually considerably less than 

 either the market price of chickens or the cost per pound 

 of rearing chickens to market age. Growing chickens 

 which are thin or in an unfinished condition can be fat- 

 tened profitably while hens which have been properly fed 

 are usually in good flesh and do not need any special fat- 

 tening. It is much more profitable to fatten chickens than 

 hens although hens which are thin may be fattened to 

 advantage. In addition to increasing the quantity of 

 flesh by fattening, the quality is also greatly improved 

 which should make the well- fattened chicken command a 

 higher price per pound than the ordinary chicken which 

 is not specially fattened. Farmers and handlers of all 

 kinds of livestock recognize the value of fattening hogs 

 and cattle for market but often do not realize that the 

 same opportunity for profit and improvement exists in the 

 fattening of poultry. 



BEST CHICKENS TO FATTEN 



The greatest, cheapest and most profitable gains are 

 made on early broilers because broilers will not only make 

 far greater percentage gains than larger chickens but they 

 also bring the highest market prices per pound, especially 

 those sold early in the season. Broilers or any small- 



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