HANDLING BIRDS ON RANGE 137 



helps materially to give a feeling of comfort and con- 

 tentment to the birds in their new quarters. 



The afternoon following the day in which chicks 

 are put into the Colony Houses (which means that 

 they have been confined for about twenty-four hours), 

 they are let out, but not until four o'clock, and they 

 find their grain ration scattered close to the door of 

 the House. In fact, it is not scattered until the small 

 chick doors are opened for . them to come out, and 

 then it is thrown on the runs, and through the doors, 

 as well as on the ground directly in front. The 

 grain lying in the runways acts in a double way; it 

 entices them out, and as they see it on the ground they 

 eat very little on the runs, but later, after they have 

 cleaned up all on the ground, that lying on the chick 

 runs attracts them on back into the House at night. '' 



The reason for letting the birds out so late in the day 

 for their first outing is that a chicken, late in the day, 

 will never go any great distance from where it has 

 been confined, but works around close to the quarters 

 in which it has spent the previous hours, and naturally 

 returns there for shelter as the Sun goes down. The 

 following morning the chick doors are opened and 

 the birds allowed to roam at will. 



Grain and Mash Once a Day 



From this on the regular routine of Range feeding 

 is followed. The Range Feed Wagon is low geared 

 and broad tired. On the rear of the wagon there is 



