Agriculture Reference
In-Depth Information
you should never feed your sex-links or purebred flocks raw meat. The taste of blood
can become very habit-forming and must be watched closely.
Feather picking
is another bad bird habit that usually arises as a result of poor nu-
trition and is exacerbated by boredom or confinement. It tends to be the biggest con-
cern in hybrid layers, which is why most large-scale producers
debeak
their birds,
removing the top or top and bottom of the beak to prevent feather picking. If you do
not want to debeak your birds, prevent them from being bored by allowing them to
free-range and provide them with proper feed.
Buckeyes
and
Javas
are both old American breeds but also deserve some considera-
tion when it comes to choosing a brown-egg-laying breed.
Delawares
are outstanding layers and are quite productive and thrifty as well. They
are the right choice for you if you desire tinted eggs that are not dark brown.
Wyandottes
are also an American breed and are often successfully raised for the dual
purpose of producing both eggs and meat. These birds are large enough to make a good
table fowl and are good producers of eggs as well. Wyandottes come in a number of col-
or varieties as well.
And many will want to consider the
Orpington
and the
Sussex,
birds that also come
in a variety of color patterns. These two breeds, also dual-purpose birds, are discussed
Laying-Flock Management
Once you've determined your needs and limitations, and have picked out the breed,
crossbred, or assortment of breeds that you're going to raise, it's time to plan your man-
agement strategy. Discussion of some of this planning can be found in the above sec-
tions of this chapter on the selection of your breed but along with flock management,
there are other management tasks throughout the year required to keep production high.
READY (TO LAY) OR NOT?
Use these illustrations to help guide you into distinguishing your productive layers
from your nonproductive birds.
