Profitable poultry

by W. B. Tegetmeier

Indian Corn is remarkable for the large proportion of oil contained in the yellow varieties, which averages eight pounds in every hundred; its capability of putting on flesh is not greater than that of barley, as it contains only eleven per cent. of flesh-giving food, and sixty-six of starchy matters. Cochins seem remarkably fond of it, but I have found that it is refused by Dorkings and Spanish, when they are able to obtain other grain.

Rice is the least nutritious of all grains, and therefore the worst that can be given to growing animals. In the husked state in which it is usually found in this country, it contains scarcely any fat, or bone-making materials, and only seven per cent. of flesh-forming food, (less than half the quantity contained in oatmeal,) being almost entirely composed of starch. Boiled rice is a useful variation in the food of fowls, and is much relished, but as the main support of growing chicken it is very objectionable.

Buckwheat Flour is about equal in nutritive properties to that of wheat, but the large proportion of husk that the unground seeds contain, must be taken into account in estimating its money value; it is commonly supposed to cause a greatly increased production of eggs, but its chemical composition does not shew any superiority over many other varieties of food.

Dhoora, or Indian millet, a small grain largely cultivated in the east, is employed by some poultry keepers; it is much relished by fowls; the nutritious properties of the flour are very similar to those of wheat, and as it contains very little husk, it may be regarded as a valuable addition to the poultry dietary.

Malt Dust, Malt Culm, and Cummins, are names given to the small sprouts of the barley which are broken off in the process of malting, and form a coarse fibrous powder. Malt dust contains from two to three times as large a proportion of flesh-forming food as wheat, and in this respect far surpasses any of the substances ordinarily used as poultry food; its value not being generally known, it is frequently used as manure; mixed with soft food, it is much relished by fowls, and as it may be obtained at a remarkably cheap rate, its employment is very advantageous.

Bran, Pollard or Randan, and Middlings or Sharps, particularly the latter, I regard as most valuable additions to the food of poultry. In the first place they are economical—and they contain a very high proportion (eighteen per cent.) of flesh-forming substances, and a very considerable quantity of oil (six per cent.) Another circumstance which adapts them to the use of chicken is the large proportion of bone-making materials they contain.

Many poultry feeders are in the habit of preparing the grain before use; some simply soak the barley or other corn, by placing it in water the previous evening, this lessens the time it has to remain in the crop, before passing on into the gizzard; others boil their corn, a proceeding which has the advantage of rendering it more digestible, as it effects an important change in the starchy part of the grain. Rice, especially, should always be boiled before use, and it should be cooked in such a mode as to allow the grains to remain separate, which may be easily managed by boiling it in a large quantity of water, to which a small piece of fat, as lard or dripping, has previously been added. The experience of all experimental agriculturists is in favour of cooked food for live stock of all descriptions: from the change effected in the starch it is more nutritious, and is more rapidly digested; hence, there is less work for the stomach and digestive organs to perform, and therefore they are less liable to become diseased. From considerable experience in its employment, I can strongly recommend the following cooked food, as being exceedingly well adapted to supply all the substances requisite to support a healthy and vigorous existence. A quantity of middlings, with or without half its bulk of barley-meal, or a corresponding proportion of malt-dust, is placed in a coarse red ware pan, and baked for about an hour in a side oven, or until the mixture is thoroughly heated throughout; water is then poured in, and the whole stirred together until it becomes a crumbly mass; if too much water is added, the mixture becomes cloggy, a defect which is easily remedied by stirring in a little dry meal. The advantage of this method is that the food is prepared with scarcely any trouble, and there is no fear of its being burnt as in boiling. Sometimes the barley meal is omitted, and the baked middlings mixed with rice which has been previously boiled. This mixture forms the stock food of my old fowls, a liberal supply of grain being given during the day. I have found that since its adoption they cost less in food, and that they are in equally good or even in better condition than when fed on an unlimited supply of grain alone. Should the convenience for baking not exist, it will be found more desirable to scald the middlings and meal with boiling water than to mix them with cold.

If grain of any kind is broken or crushed, it should only be done shortly before use, unless it is thoroughly kiln dried; for when this is not done, the grain, from the moisture it contains, soon becomes musty, sour, and unwholesome. Inferior samples of grain contain so large a proportion of husk that they are not desirable, and if regarded with reference to their nutritious properties the best will be found the cheapest.

Potatoes, when plentiful and free from disease, may be advantageously substituted for rice, which they closely resemble, in containing a large amount of starch; there is less waste in their use, if steamed, than when boiled.

Peas, Beans, and Lentils, either whole or ground, are much used by many feeders; they contain a larger amount of flesh-forming food than grain—on the average about twenty-four per cent., whilst the quantity of fat is very small, not usually more than two in every hundred; but they are not easily digested, and are too stimulating to be regarded as a wholesome diet. I have traced many cases of disease, such as white comb in Cochins, inflammation of the stomach and egg passage, &c., &c., to their employment.