DUCKS AND GEESE 



ever, they are not to be killed until afternoon they 

 can be fed lightly in the morning. 



Sorting Market Ducklings. When a pen of duck- 

 lings which are being fattened are deemed ready to 

 be killed they are driven up to the killing house and 

 a few of them at a time driven into a small pen 

 where it is easy to catch and examine them. Each 

 duck as it is caught is examined to make sure that 

 it is in proper market condition. The examination 

 consists of feeling of the duck's body to see that it 

 has a good smooth breast so that the breast bone 

 cannot be readily felt. If it is in that condition it is 

 ready to kill. Ducks which do not show this condi- 

 tion are thrown out and returned to the yards where 

 they are fed for a longer period unless it is desired 

 to ship them alive. 



At the proper season of the year when breeders 

 for the next season are to be selected, suitable birds 

 for that purpose are picked out from the market lots 

 as they are examined. In any lot of ducks there will 

 be found some cripples. It is common practice to 

 sort these out and group them together in a pen by 

 themselves where they are held until they are in 

 suitable condition for marketing. It is doubtful 

 whether it pays to hold these cripples as they are 

 hard to get in good condition and in many cases are 

 probably kept and fed at a loss. Some ducklings 

 will show twisted wings but as a rule they are 

 thrifty and will fatten readily and be in good mar- 

 ket condition. 



104 



