xii WAR-TIME FOREWORD 



at a loss. There are some hens that never lay an 

 egg, and if they are not culled out will consume a 

 great amount of grain, which ought to go only to 

 hens that are producers. Culling the flock should 

 be done persistently. 



When the pullets begin to lay, it is a good plan 

 to slip a leg band — they may be obtained from all 

 dealers in poultry supplies — on each bird that is 

 found on the nests. If this practice is kept up for 

 a few weeks the man with only a small flock will 

 soon be able to pick out the birds that do not lay 

 at all. 



It is also well to make the pelvic test, which 

 means taking the birds off the roosts at night and 

 examining them to see if the pelvic bones are close 

 together or spread apart. If two fingers cannot be 

 laid between these bones, it is safe to say that the 

 hens are not laying at that time. Such hens should 

 be marked with a band or in some, other way, and 

 tested again at intervals. If there is no evidence 

 after a short time that the hen is laying, it should 

 be discarded. 



It is impossible to say just what to feed the 

 poultry, because of the varying conditions in differ- 

 ent parts of the country. Of course wheat should 

 have no place in the poultry rations. It is robbing; 



