Jasper County Democrat, Volume 10, Number 18, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 3 August 1907 — BROODER CHICKS. [ARTICLE]

BROODER CHICKS.

Methods Employed by a Capable Poultry Woman In Raising Them. Mrs. C. B. Walker of Brownsburg, Ind., thus explains her method of raising brooder chicks for the benefit of the readers of American Poultry Journal: The first thing after the chicks are out of the shell and dry we take them to the brooder, being sure the heat is not less than 95 degrees. We never feed until the chick is' about forty-eight hours old; then we give dry breadcrumbs mixed with hard boiled egg, and a little bit of black pepper also. I dry the eggshell and pulverize this and mix in feed, which I find the chicks are very fond of. This we feed for two or three days, with plenty of water or milk. The chicks should be fed only as much as they can eat clean, allowing no food to be left over, as It is better to feed three or four times a day. We cover the floor of the brooder with paper, as this can easily be removed with all filth and burned, this being done every day. After the chicks are a week old we make corn bread, as for table use, using pepper and eggshell for grit This may be given three times a day “or as often as chicks are hungry,” with a little fresh meat ground fine. We always keep a small pan of grit in brooder so chicks can go to this at will. Now, to the brooder we attach a box for a run, the box being four feet long and one and a half feet wide. In this we have plenty of alfalfa litter on floor, with small grain, such as Kaffir corn, cracked corn or wheat thrown in, so this will give the little chicks plenty of exercise. When they are a week old, we raise the small door of brooder and let them Into this run, which you will find they greatly enjoy. At three weeks we begin to give potatoes, cabbage or any convenient vegetable for green food. We also find they are very fond of onion chopped fine. We never feed sloppy foods or mashes to young chicks, as we think are the cause of so much bowel trouble. Right here let me say I find nothing so good for this trouble as ginger tea—a teaspoonful of ginger, with a teacupful of boiling water, after cooling. You will find the chicks are fond of this. Be sure there is no other water they can get to. We give this drink often while trouble lasts, if it appears. It will be all right to give them this drink once a week until five or six weeks old. Keep before them plenty of grit and charcoal, and as far as feeding is concerned the chicks will grow to be healthy and happy if everything connected with the brooder is kept perfectly dean. After the flrat week we reduce the temperature of brooder to 75 degrees and the fourth week to about 00 degrees.