Kankakee Valley Post, Volume 10, Number 46, DeMotte, Jasper County, 3 October 1940 — FARM TOPICS [ARTICLE]

FARM TOPICS

CANNIBALISM IS CURED BY SALT Remedy for Costly Poultry Vice Is Discovered. ,

By L. M. BLACK

(Extension Poultrymnn. New Jersey College of Agriculture. Rutgers University) Some poultrymen have a lot of trouble with cannibalism among their chickens, especially during the growing period. But here is a simple remedy—common salt. This remedy is so simple that to many poultrymen it may seem almost ridiculous—they’ve tried so many other impressive remedies. However, none of the others has ever been entirely satisfactory. Cannibalism has become more and more common in recent years, c > And, of course, it’s important to stop this usually costly vice. Many chickens may be lost. Others may look so unsightly they do not sell to best advantage. And if the pullets are kept through the laying year, cannibalism may continue and affect egg production. Harry W. Titus and Ralph B. Nestler of the U. S. department of agriculture discovered the effectiveness of salt somewhat by accident, in feeding experiments with quail. Quail generally are more quarrelsons.» than chickens, especially when two or more coveys are mixed. In the experiments, cannibalism had become a serious problem. , / Back in 1933 J. H. Prentice reported in the Journal of the Ministry of Agriculture fcr Northern Ireland the results of a study of the role of salt in the nutrition of the laying hen. He stated that a lack of salt in the diet of hens causes them to lose weight and become subject to cannibalism. On recalling Prentice’s observations, Titus and Nestler tried adding salt to the diet of their quail. It w'orked. The remedy has since been tested on chickens, and found to give excellent control of cannibalism. There is an old belief, of course, that salt is poisonous to chickens. However, moderate amounts of salt aid digestion. And experiments show that chickens can stand considerable salt for several days without permanent injury. Titus says only a small percentage of salt is needed to stop cannibalism. Standard diets usually contain about Vg per cent of added salt. An additional 1 or 2 per cent added to the diet for four or five days usually stops cannibalisrft*. The effectiveness of salt seems especially logical. Some feed manufacturers have been putting less and less salt in poultry diets in recent years, and during the same time cannibalism has been on the increase.