Rensselaer Semi-Weekly Republican, Volume 40, Number 52, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 6 March 1908 — CACKLES. [ARTICLE]

CACKLES.

A small flock, well kept and cared for, will be more profitable than a larger one indifferently handled. The poultry business is one of many phases, each of which requires lndlvtdnAi. ffl ll local treatment. A successful breeder says that energetic Mediocrity is more prolific of results than Indifferent brilliancy. Try feeding dried alfalfa hay and clover, scalded, during the winter months, and watch the egg supply Increase. Don’t overlook the fact that sunflower seed and millet are both food for chickens during the moulting period. Pullets should be fed wheat and oats, and beef scraps, If the latter can be had. Also give them milk In any form. Filth and vermin are the greatest obstacles to success In the poultry business. Keep the vermin away by cleanliness. Don’t sell off your best turkey hens. Save the beßt and procure a good tom and prepare to Improve your flock each year. A surplus rooster Is an expensive ornament In the poultry yard. Eat or kill the surplus roosters before they eat double their value. Give clean water and plenty of grit, feed a variety of cracked and whole grains, mostly In a dry state; keep birds out of the grass In rain or dew. It Is too much to ask a bird to furnish enough blood for Its own growth and that of a colony of lice. Rout the vermin and give the chickens a show. An old ben aud her chickens should be turned out for a Bun bath, a roll in the dust and Borne exercise as soon as weather is warm enough and chicks strong. Don't wait for mites to appear before beginning to fight them. Whitewash the house twloe during the fall and kerosene the perches evsry week or tw«