FEEDING PRACTICES AND APPLIANCES 381 



case of artificially brooded chicks which do not have the 

 hen to hunt up their feed for them bit by bit and keep them 

 interested. Little and often should be the rule, with periods 

 of not longer than three hours elapsing between feeds. 



Successful poultrymen differ as to the advisability of 

 feeding moistened feed to chicks, as well as to laying hens, 

 though the number that prefer the dry feeds seems to be 

 increasing. 



"A soft feed of dried bread-crumbs soaked in milk is 

 very nourishing and supplies all the elements essential to 

 growth, but is open to the criticism of being softer than the 

 food supplied by nature. A mixture of hard-boiled egg 

 chopped fine, shell and all, and mixed with four to six times 

 its bulk of dried crumbs or rolled oats (one egg to 100 chicks) 

 seems a little nearer to the natural diet of bugs and seeds. 

 This can be supplemented by milk to drink by those who 

 can obtain it at a suitable price. "^ 



As soon as possible the chicks should be gotten to scratch- 

 ing for cracked grains, and exercise encouraged in every 

 possible way. At times when they appear a little listless 

 they should be interested and livened up by supplying some- 

 thing that they like very much and will scrap over. Angle 

 worms are the best thing for this purpose, but are not 

 always easily available. Long pieces of onion made by slic- 

 ing the onions, separating and cutting the rings, will serve 

 nearly as well after the chicks become accustomed to it. 

 The skilled feeder is one who so feeds his chicks.that they 

 are constantly active and busy. Overfeeding or infrequent 

 feeding is likely to result in listlessness or dumpishness on 

 the part of the entire fiock, which should be recognized at 

 once as a danger signal and some means of livening them up 

 resorted to. 



Chick Feeds Must be Sweet.- — ^In feeding little chicks it is 

 absolutely essential that the grains be perfectly free from 

 mould or must and the meat scraps from taint. So important 

 is this in newly hatched chicks that poultrymen frequently 

 go to the expense of purchasing kiln-dried grain in order that 



' Jaffa, California Bulletin No. 164. 



