1C4 POULTRY SECTION. 



food of some kind. They can ea; much more and grow much faster than chicks. 

 Like chickens they should not be fed until the second day after they are hatched. 

 The first two or three days' feed may consist of hard-boiled eggs and dry bread 

 crumbs broken up fine, to which should be added a small amount of coarse sand 

 for grit. A good mixture for feeding after the third or fourth day may be made 

 of six parts of corn meal, six parts wheat middlings, and one part of beef scrap 

 or blood meal. To this add a small portion of Dr. David Roberts' Poultry Tonic 

 to aid in its digestion. Wet this mi.xture to a crumbly mass and feed all they 

 will eat. The green food may consist of any kind of succulent vegetable, chopped 

 up fine, ^rass clippings, or even v/eeds of a juicy character. I have known a flock 

 of ducklings to grow and thrive on no other food but chopped weeds, mixed up 

 with a little bran or corn meal, and an occasional feed of dry cracked corn. Of 

 course, they had the run of the y;;rd and picked up an occasional bug, or worm, 

 which supplied their need of animal food. 



After the ducks are three or four weeks old, cracked corn and whole wheat 

 may be given, but it must first be well soaked. If convenient give them all the 

 milk they can drink. The pan or trough used for watering should be deep 

 enough for the ducks to dip their bills into above the nostrils. Unless they can do 

 this their nostrils get clogged and the ducks are apt to suffer in consequence. 

 Give them all the fresh, clean water they want, but not enough to swim in. 

 Although ducks are water fowls, they will quickly die if they get thoroughly wet 

 before their plumage gets heavy enough to protect them. During the first week 

 or two, grit should be added to their mash feed in the form of fine gravel or 

 coarse sand. After this age they will pick it up themselves if kept in sufficient 

 quantities where they can get it easily. They also need cracked oyster shells and 

 charcoal kept before them all the time to get the best results. 



For laying and breeding ducks the following mash food is good ; 



Wheat Bran 10 parts 



Corn Meal 10 parts 



Ground Oats 8 parts 



Cut Clover or Alfalfa Meal 6 parts 



Grit 2 parts 



Dr. Roberts' Poultry Tonic 2 parts 



Mix with about four parts of boiled turnips or other vegetables and feed all 

 they will eat twice a day. At noon give whole corn and oats. For green stuff, 

 follow the suggestions as given for chickens on page 162. 



Ducks that are well taken care of are very seldom sick. They get colds 

 and lameness from sleeping in damp quarters. In case of cold, remove the cause 

 by putting clean, dry bedding in their house. If the cold is severe, causing a 

 frothy scum over the eyes, treat the same as for roup in chickens. 



Ducks and geese are very hardy and you may depend on it that they will 

 live and grow, even with very little attention, after the first few weeks, providing 

 they have the proper kind and the proper amount of food. 



PROFIT IN GEESE. 



Geese are about the easiest fowls to raise on the farm, since they require 

 but little care after they are four weeks old. They are grass eating fowls, and 

 will thrive and grow on less grain than any other variety of poultry. They are 

 hardier than other fowls, consequently do not require such comfortable quarters; 

 a low shed for protection in stormy weather is sufficient. Low, marshy ground, 

 suitable only for water fowls, can be profitably utilized by raising geese, providing 

 they have a dry place to sleep in. 



In mating, one gander with from one to four geese is the rule. Breeding 

 stock at pasture need but little attention. Those kept in confinement must be 

 provided with plenty of green food, rather than too much grain. Do not let 

 them get too fat. After a goose has laid nine or ten eggs she will become 

 broody and want to set. Break her up as you would a hen and she will soon 

 start to lay again. After she has laid the third lot of eggs in this way, it is a 

 good plan to let her set. The first eggs may be hatched under hens. The time 

 for incubation is from thirty to thirty-two days. After the fifteenth day it is 

 a good plan to moisten the eggs occasionally so the young goslings will be better 

 able to break through the shell. 



