92 



SUCCESS WITH POULTRY 



•warm and dry unless the storm is prolonged until hunger 

 compels them to move. 



Notwithstanding the natural timidity of the turkey she 

 shows a courage in the care of her young that I have never 

 seen equalled in oth«r flocks. I have raised poults with do- 

 mestic hens with no loss, and, with encouraging prospects 

 until they were weaned, when they lost courage, and, refus- 

 ing to eat, wandered around in search of a mother or kept up 

 an incessant "cheep," "cheep," that was pitiful to hear. 

 At night they sought the company of some friendly ben and 

 tried to slip under her wings, but in the morning they would 

 renew their search for a mother until finally worn out with 

 hunger and loneliness they nearly all died. At other times 

 they adapt themselves more reiadily to changed conditions, 

 showing that the difference was mainly with the mothers, 

 those being the most desirable that encourage their poults 

 to scatter out and forage for themselves instead of calling 

 them all back every few miniutes with an exciting and prom- 

 ising chuck. At one time I attempted to transfer a brood of 

 three weeks' old poults from a domestic to a turkey hen, but 

 whil« she was quite willing to adopt them they would ac- 

 knowledge no allegiance to her. They had been accustomed 

 to the duck of the hen and would not respond to the persua- 

 sive crooning of the turkey. One. characteristic of turkeys is 

 that they are never cruel to each other 's young. On the con- 

 trary, they usually form squads or colonies, sometimes two 

 families uniting, sometimes all that are on one farm. 



I have learned that the best mother is the one that as- 

 sumes the whole care of her family and does not wait around 

 *,o be fed. One summer I had a hen with eighteen little ones, 

 and I was pelased to see her bring them up to the house 

 several times a day, stepping around cautiously and looking 

 I in at the door in a tentative sort of way, as if to learn 

 whether her family would be taken care of without any spe- 

 cial effort on her part. To encourage her confidence I kept 

 a pan of food ready for the™, and how those turkeys did eat. 

 But it iwas mistaken kindness, for when they were four or 

 "five weeks old they began to die from no apparent cause, and 

 I am now convinced that it was from overfeed and indiges- 

 tion. Of the eighteen only six remained and I have ever 

 since discouraged turkey loafers. Now I feed but twice a 

 day after they have their liberty, and frequently the mother 

 takes her flock to the pastures and I do not see them for 

 weeks, but we have a lookout committee to report as they 

 roam about the fields. 



Occasionally, though rarely, a whole flock will wander 

 far «nough away to fall victims to hunters. We have not as 

 many foes to poultry as they do who live near t^e ' ' timber, ' ' 

 and consequently need not be so careful about housing the 

 young, but We are not wholly free from losses by accident, 

 as for instahAe, last summer on two separate occasions, a 

 railroad train ran into my flock as they were taking their 

 sun-bath 6n the rails, at one time killing t'Wenty-four of my 

 earliest half-grown poults. 



FIOHTIKO THE LIOE P£ST. 



Before insect powder came into general use I had re- 

 course to grease with a little coal oil added, but it was dan- 

 gerous to use this on young poults or on the mother hen, es- 

 pecially in damp weather, and rather than take such risks T 

 frequently turned her out, depending on her taking dust 

 baths, which she could or could not do according to the dry- 

 ness of the soil. Next came the powder, but some danger 

 to the little ones was connected with the use of this, too, and 

 more, possibly, by withholding it. Probably all turkey rais- 

 ers have been confronted with the query, to grease or not to 

 grease, to dust or not to dust, that is the question. When I 



received my first can of liquid lice killer or paint I experi- 

 mented on a brood of White Plymouth Eo(ik chicks three 

 weeks old. " During intubation the mother had been in a 

 clean, light, dry room with a soft, earth floor, so that, she 

 had ample 'facilities for dusting. I had dusted her with in- 

 sect powder twice during the three weeks and again after 

 natching. She was placed with her chicks in a light, sunny 

 room in the cellar, which was warmed by furnace pipes pass- 

 ing through it. Herp, too, she had loose, dry earth for a 

 bath, and on examining the chicks closely I found no sign of 

 lice. However, I determined to test the merits of this much 

 lauded insecticide by commencing with the smallest of my 

 flock. After placing a paper in the bottom of a small wooden 

 tox and brushing it over lightly with the liquid lice killer, I 

 put the chicks in and covered them over, leaving a half-inch 

 crack for air. After leaving them for an hour I carefully 

 removed them to a piece of white cloth and gathering up the 

 corners I gently shook and brushed them, then opening it, I 

 took the chickens out and looked for results. 



While I did not find "a hundred dead lice" I did find 

 enough to convince me that the paint was far more effectual 

 than powders and so much more quickly and easily used. I 

 gave the mother the same treatment. One occular demon- 

 stration is sufficient to insure the use of it for the future. 

 By painting the nest boxes with louse paint, and keeping the 

 Iroody turkey in a box similarly painted for a few hpiirs be- 

 fore she is given her eggs, I believe the annoyance of vermin 

 will be eliminated from turkey rearing. 



WHEN AUnnVEN- APPROACHES. 



The hen turkeys that have been out in the fields during 

 the summer bring their broods gradually nearer home as 

 autumn approaches, and before the middle of October the 

 whole flock is together again an das comfortably established 

 as though they had not tiiken a summer outing. Probably 

 :& is hereditary , instinct from the ancestral wild parents 

 that causes the bronze turkey to love, to roam and take her 

 young far from the haunts of men. 



While there is an element of danger in this inclination 

 to wander away with the young there is also an advantage 

 of a varied diet and consequent rapid growth, besides a great 

 saving of time for the attendant, but I can not believe that a 

 larger per cent of poults would be raised' if the mother were 

 allowed to take them away as soon as hatched. At least my 

 experience has been in favor of keeping the mother confined 

 until the poults can run well. They are weak when first 

 hatched, and a, long tramp, even though slowly taken, is too 

 much for them to endure. When I have given the mother 

 and little ones their liberty as soon as taken from the nest, 

 the largest per cent of loss occurred within the first two 

 weeks. 



While on the subject of poults I desire to add a word of 

 caution as to the use of a liquid loiise killer for very young 

 turkeys or chicks. Their skin is extremely tender and easily 

 irritated, therefore be sure to paint only the sides of the box 

 in which they are placed, and have it large enough so they 

 will not be crowded against the paint, also leave plenty of 

 open space for fresh air for them to breathe and do not leave 

 them in the box more than an hour or two. 



The poults begin to perch on a fence when six or eight 

 weeks old or as soon as they are well feathered. If the fence 

 is high some strategy is repuired to get the little fellows to 

 the top and it is interesting to watch the process of their get- 

 ting settled for the night. A fence corner is frequently se- 

 lected and the young turkeys fly as high as possible at first, 

 then fly across from corner to corner, ascending with each 

 flight, the mother in the meantime stretching her neck and 



