THE CHICK BOOK 



49 



to nestle or roost upon the bare ground. There should 

 always be a board platform raised a few inches above the 

 earth, keeping the birds dry under toot at all seasons. 



We note that small, movable coops for weaned chicks 

 are rapidly growing popular, a number of very practical 

 patterns now being made to take down and ship in a small 

 space. We know that the value of these movable coops can 

 hardly be estimated. With such well planned and conven- 

 ient coops the chicks can be constantly on clean, fresj. 

 ground and with the movable covered runs attached the 

 long rainy days are not nearly as much to be dreaded by 

 those ambitious to see their birds growing every day. Much 

 of the failure to succeed with young turkeys and pheasants 



during the last two seasons is due to the lack of this kind 

 of protection. The fine young chicks can be weathered 

 through many a wet week to our entire satisfaction and the 

 coops made to pay their way many times over in the saving 

 they will be to young stock, among which we look for our 

 next winter's prize winners. 



With vigorous parent stock we always expect to pro- 

 duce rapid growing chicks, and with constant attention to 

 securing for them the best foods and giving them protection 

 from vermin and ill weather we look for many of the most 

 perfectly conditioned show birds to come out of these June 

 hatched broods. 



FRANKL.ANE L. SEWBLL. 



JUNE HATCHED BIRDS FOR WINTER SHOWS. 



The Season Naturally Favorable to Growth— Free Range for Hens with Chicks— A Shaded Location for Coops and 



Brooders— Green Food and Clean Water Important. 



By It. A. Noarse. 



JUNE is a month of growth if most is made of the favor- 

 able conditions usually prevailing and chicks hatched 

 this month will often make bone and muscle faster 

 than those of earlier hatches. This is especially true 

 when the owner is without facilities for properly housing 

 the chicks during the chilling storms which April and May 

 some times furnish. In June not much protection is neces- 

 sary. The brood may be out in the fields where the requisi- 

 tion of fr^h air, exercise and green grass will build strong 

 bodies, able to take care of all the food that the chicks can 

 eat. No conditions are more favorable for securing good 

 growth at the least expense for labor and food. 



Some of the winners at the largest shows in recent 

 years were hatched in June. In the Plymouth Rock, Wyan- 

 dotte and Leghorn classes June hatched birds are frequently 

 awarded the ribbons and a successful breeder of Buff Coch- 

 ins, asserts that some of the best January show pulletB he 

 ever raised were hatched in June and July. 



Chicks With Hens. 



The man who broods his chicks with hens, and has a 

 range of fair area, can make the most of his chances by con- 

 fining the hen to the coop only at night and in bad weather. 

 At other times she should be out with the chicks teaching 

 them to find the natural food intended for them and protect- 

 ing them from their natural enemies. Such a course not 

 only strengthens them physically, but makes them self- 

 reliant and able to take good care of themselves when they 

 are deserted by the hen. This freedom also allows the hen 

 to dust frequently in the cool, moist earth, keeping her 

 feathers clean and assisting to rid herself of lice, which in- 

 crease faster in warm weather and must be kept down. To 

 this end, hen and chicks must be treated for body lice and 

 head lice. If the hen is confined most of the time, a roomy 

 coop and good ventilation should be furnished. In warm 

 weather coops should be located in the shade, or if this is 

 impossible, they should face toward the north. If the hen 

 is free she will find a cool place, but if confined, she is likely 

 to suffer from the heat and the chicks remaining near her 

 while young, will suiTer also and fail to prosper. 



Brooder Chicks. 



Chicks in brooders are supposed to be, and should be, 

 free from lice. No chick that has had a chance to get a 

 louse on it should be put in the brooders or in a broodei 

 bouse and, if that is looked to, brooder chicks have an ad- 

 vantage over chicks with hens. Most of the June brooder 

 chicks are housed in outdoor brooders and the shade ques- 

 tion becomes one of major importance. A brooder placed 

 in the sun, however well it may be ventilated, will reach a 

 high temperature during a hot day and cool rapidly at night, 

 making it necessary to extinguish the lamp during the day 

 and start it again at nightfall. This does no particular 

 harm if the chicks are old enough to take care of themselves 

 and can find shade during the day; but it is unfortunate for 

 little chicks as the temperature will vary widely. 



Under a group of shade trees or in an orchard is the best 

 place for a brooder at this season, the shade tempering the 

 heat of the sun. If the cover of the brooder is raised, there 

 will be no difficulty in keeping the heat under the hover 

 within bounds. To place a brooder where it will be exposed 

 to the midday sun and confine the chicks in a small yard 

 also without protection is nothing less than cruelty, and 

 good results are impossible. 



Feeding and Watering. 



The feeding of June chicks need not be different from 

 that advocated for those hatched earlier. The green 

 food should be young, tender blades of grass gathered by 

 the chicks themselves; if the young ones must be confined 

 to yards, fine lawn clippings or the delicate leaves and stalks 

 of new clover, rape or alfalfa should be handed out liberally 

 every morning while they are still fresh from the night's 

 dew. Cool, fresh water constantly accessible is a decided 

 advantage and far more difficult to provide than in cool 

 weather. The supply should be renewed with fresh water 

 three times each day and the fountains cleaned and disin- 

 fected frequently, for germs multiply rapidly in tepid water. 

 The need of being thus careful is obvious when we under- 

 stand that the germs of diseases affecting the lungs, throat 

 and head find drinking water a ready means for distribution. 

 Prevention is not difficult and is better than cure. Take 

 care of the .Tune chicks and they will take care of you. 



H. A. NOURSE. 



