UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE 
BULLETIN No. 657 
Contribution from the Bureau of Chemistry 
CARL L. ALSBERG, Chief 
Washington, D. C. 
PROFESSIONAL PAPER. 
May 2, 1918 
A WHEATLESS RATION FOR THE RAPID INCREASE 
OF FLESH ON YOUNG CHICKENS. 
By M. E. Pennington, Chief, H. A. McAleer, Investigator in Poultry and Egg 
Handling, and A. D. Greenlee, Assistant Chemist, assisted by A. W. Broomell, 
Assistant Chemist, L. E. Harker, Aid in Poultry and Egg Handling, and H. L. 
Shrader, Investigator in Poultry and Egg Handling, Food Research Laboratory. 
CONTENTS. 
Composition of rations used 
Character of birds fed 
Total gains in weight 
Quantity of feed required 
Rate of gain 
Loss in weight due to killing and chilling. 
Page. 
2 
Page. 
Relation of initial weight to final gain 8 
Composition of broiling chickens before and 
after fleshing 9 
Economic advantage of fleshing broilers at the 
packing house 10 
Summary 11 
THE WHEATLESS RATION for the commercial or coop flesh- 
ing of young chickens for market discussed in this bulletin 
offers to commercial feeders a singularly efficient and economical 
ration for the rapid increase of chicken flesh. This ration, composed 
of corn meal, dried distillers' grains (corn), and fresh buttermilk, was 
fed again and again throughout the whole feeding season, and produced 
in 14 days' coop feeding an average gain of a pound for 7.91 pounds 
of wet feed consumed, or 4.63 pounds of solids. The employment of 
distillers' grains makes this ration of especial importance to feeding 
plants accessible to distilleries engaged in producing commercial 
alcohol from corn. 
The tests reported were made under commercial rather than farm 
methods of feeding poultry. The aim of the commercial feeder is 
to increase the flesh of young birds rapidly and economically in a 
brief period after they are received from the farms. This necessitates 
the use of feeding coops which allow the chickens little exercise and 
the regular and abundant feeding of the birds under clean conditions. 
It calls for special equipment and for use of time and employment of 
labor to a degree not possible on most farms. 
In order that full benefit from the flesh added rapidly by special 
feeding may be realized, it is necessary to slaughter the chickens 
immediately and dry pick and chill them without delay. It has been 
39089°— 18— Bull. 657 
