434 Growth of Chickens in Confinement 
Drummond attempted to rear young chickens in the labora- 
tory without success even when the food supplied was supposed 
to be the same as that which facilitated growth under conditions 
of normal environment. He mentions “ruffled appearance” and . 
‘“‘weakness in the legs’’ as symptoms attending the failures. 
Quoting Drummond further: 
‘‘The failure of the normal birds to grow and develop was at first at- 
tributed to possible defects in the condition of keeping or feeding. Thus, 
poultry-keepers sometimes consider that weakness in the legs is due to a 
deficiency of fresh meat in the diet. It was therefore attempted to rear a 
batch of young chicks upon normal food, giving them in addition a ration 
of fresh meat daily. The birds ate the meat greedily, but did not respond 
to the change, and the effort to raise them was no more successful than 
before. ‘ 
It was then thought that if the young birds were reared upon a more 
natural surface they might thrive more satisfactorily. Accordingly, two 
batches were reared separately, one being brought up upon a surface of 
sawdust and coarse sand, scattered on the floorofthecage . . . whilst 
the other group was provided with a surface of fresh earth and grass.’’ 
Post-mortem examination of a large number of these ‘normal’ chicks 
did not bring to my notice any particular point of interest. The bodies 
were without exception greatly emaciated. The organs were usually small 
and anaemic. During life this apparent poverty in blood was striking. 
The combs and eyelids of the chicks were peculiarly bloodless, being of a 
dead white colour, as contrasted with the deep red colour possessed by 
the combs and eyelids of normal fowls of an equal age.”’ 
In conclusion Drummond wrote: 
“Tt is felt that the young chick is not a suitable object upon which to 
conduct experiments in the study of growth, at any rate, when it is kept 
under artificial conditions. The difficulty of rearing young fowls indoors 
is, I believe, realised by poultry-farmers generally, so much so in fact, 
that it is seldom attempted by them. 
An explanation of the cause of the failure has not yet suggested itself. 
No dietary deficiency can be held as responsible, for the diet supplied to 
the experimental chicks in the normal batches was in every way similar to 
that successfully employed to rear chicks in the open air. An attempt to 
supply one of the conditions, under which fowls are normally reared, was 
made when fresh earth and grass were given to provide a surface for: the 
young birds to run upon. 
They certainly made use of the soil, scratching it over and pulse out 
small insects and other tasty morsels all day long. And yet, despite the 
fact that the earth was changed frequently, this group of birds reached 
but a slightly better standard of development than did a similar batch, 
which had a surface of sawdust and grit to run upon. 
