34 Hubbard's poultry secrets. 



clipped oats, one-half part flaked or rolled oats, mixed thor- 

 oughly. These hoppers are placed in front of each brood coop. 

 You will find that the chicks learn to work the hoppers in less 

 than five minutes. 



Now take a heart shaped hoe and make a trench ten to 

 twelve feet long and from three to five inches deep in front 

 of each brood coop. This I fill about half full with soaked 

 oats and cover up with dirt, mixing the dirt with the oats. 

 After this is done lay a board over them so the chickens can't 

 dig them out before they start to sprout. At the end of four 

 days take the board off, and dig up one end of the trench so 

 that some oats will show. After the chickens see the oats, 

 they will start to eat them and w'ill dig out every oat in the 

 trench. They will leave almost any other feed for the oats. 

 This is one of the best secrets I have in getting large frame 

 on the birds I grow. There is no other method of feeding 

 known that will give a growing chick more exercise than to 

 dig the oats from these trenches, and it is exercise that they 

 enjoy. We feed sprouted oats in this manner almost the year 

 around, even in our cold climate here in the east where the 

 seasons are short. There is no feed known that quite equals 

 oats as a frame builder, and to keep a flock of chickens in good 

 condition. 



By feeding the ground grains and scratch feeds in hoppers 

 and the oats in trenches the labor of caring for a flock of grow- 

 ing chicks is reduced to a minimum. The only hand feeding 

 we do is to feed two mash feeds a day, one in the middle of 

 the forenoon, the other in the middle of the afternoon. For 

 this wet mash use the same mixture of grains used for the dry 

 mash only omit the beef scraps. Give bone meal in its place. 

 You can now cut out the milk used in mixing the mash for the 

 first twelve weeks, and substitute fresh ground liver and water 

 in its place, which you will find much cheaper and better. To 



