THE NUTRIENTS AND DIGESTION 307 



cent, of the former and more than 65 per cent, of the latter. 

 A dozen eggs of good size contain a pint of water. (3) It 

 serves as a carrier, transporting the feed from the digestive 

 tract to all parts of the body and carrying the waste products 

 from all parts of the body to the points of elimination. (4) 

 It serves to equalize the temperature of the body by evapora- 

 tion through the air sacs and lungs. (5) It aids in the process 

 of digestion and absorption, by acting as a diluent for 

 solutions that are too concentrated to penetrate the walls of 

 the intestine. (6) It acts as a lubricant for the joints and 

 muscles. 



Water usually forms from 8 to 12 per cent, of the air-dry 

 weight of the common grains which generally make up the 

 bulk of the poultry ratiop. This fact points to the necessity 

 of a liberal supply beyond that furnished in the food. 



The lack of water retards most of the processes of the body. 

 It hinders digestion and limits excretion. A continued lack 

 of- water thickens the blood and raises the body temperature. 

 Growing chicks are easUy stunted in their development by 

 a lack or an irregular supply of water. Starving is better 

 withstood by fowls than a complete , absence of water in 

 warm weather. 



Ash. — ^Ash is a term used to designate collectively the 

 mineral compounds found in feedstuffs, the fowl's body, or 

 the egg. It varies from 1.1 per cent, (gluten feed) to 17.6 

 per cent, (meat scraps) of the weight of the common poultry 

 feeds, averaging 4.66 per cent. It forms 3.4 per cent, of the 

 live weight of a laying hen and 12.2 per cent, of the weight 

 of whole raw egg. While the common feeds would usually 

 supply sufficient ash to meet the necessities of the hen's 

 body, they fall very short of supplying the needs of the 

 laying hen or growing chick. 



As far back as 1844, von Bibra, as reported by Emmerich 

 and Loew,^ found that feeding hens with potato and barley 

 alone caused the shell of the egg to disappear. After about 

 three weeks laying stopped, apparently due to the ash 

 deficiency in the ration. 



1 Deutsche Revue, July, 1912. 



