Baby Chick Industry.—During the last 20 years, the business of hatching chicks in commercial hatcheries and shipping them by express or by parcel post has developed into an enormous industry. Beginning about 1908, and for the next ten years, chicks were shipped by express to various parts of the country. In 1918, however, it became possible to ship chicks by parcel post, and this resulted in a very great expansion of the hatchery industry. At present several thousand hatcheries are located throughout the United States, varying in capacity from about 5,00o to as many as over i,000,000 eggs each. It is impossible to determine the total capacity of the hatcheries of the country, but it is safe to estimate that at least 300,000,00o chicks are pro duced there annually. It seems reasonable to expect still further expansion of this industry.
Economics of Poultry Production.—It has recently been demonstrated that egg production is relatively more important than poultry meat production. It is important, therefore, that particular attention be given to the improvement of the laying ability of hens. The total annual revenue to be obtained from a flock depends on the breeding quality and the methods used in feeding and management. Breeding is the basis for success, because no amount of good feeding and proper management will make poorly bred hens lay well; on the other hand, good feeding is of great importance because it is only through good feeding that a well-bred flock can respond efficiently. Also, proper manage ment, which includes methods of incubating, rearing and housing, as well as sanitation, is of the greatest importance, because it has been demonstrated that since the major poultry diseases affecting the health of the flock are filth-borne they can be controlled very largely through proper sanitation. The amount of feed consumed per bird depends upon many factors, such as the breed, size of the bird, number of eggs produced, etc. Leghorn hens and those of similar breeds, laying an average of approximately 150 eggs per year, consume from 7o to 85 lb. of grain per year, while Plymouth Rocks, Rhode Island Reds and Wyandottes, laying approximately 15o eggs per year, consume from 8o to 95 lb. of grain per year. The amount of feed the average flock consumes in a year represents approximately 6o% of the total cost of egg production; hence feeding methods should be made as efficient as possible. Of vast importance is the time of the year when
eggs are produced. For instance, ten eggs laid in November or December are worth approximately twenty laid in April or May. This is because the young pullets which have been hatched in the spring of the year have not yet come into active laying condition in the late summer and early fall, whereas the yearling and older hens are going through a moult, with the result that there is a shortage of fresh eggs during the late summer and early autumn months. A study of the trend in the average monthly farm prices of eggs from 1910 to 1924 shows that the lowest wholesale egg prices prevail in April, and that there is a slight increase in July and August with a more perceptible increase in September, the highest prices being reached in December. It should be realized, therefore, that the season which holds the possibility of the greatest profits is in the late summer and early fall months, and poultry raisers should do everything possible to have their stock laying by October. Efficient methods of production alone do not necessarily bring the highest net returns because market ing methods may be very wasteful. The marketing of poultry meat and eggs can be carried out in the most effective manner when there is a sufficient quantity to enable marketing the pro ducts frequently, and especially where it is also possible to grade the product according to size and quality. A flock of 200 to 400 birds is particularly desirable in order that the management of the flocks and the marketing of the eggs and dressed or live poultry may be conducted on the most economical basis.
In America there was developed in 1874 a Standard of Per fection, which is revised periodically, and serves as the basis of guidance in 'breeding operations and in judging various classes of poultry at the poultry exhibitions. The majority of breeds possess egg-laying and meat-producing qualities, and many of them also possess beautiful combinations of colour patterns that give chickens an important place in animal breeding. Then again, the relatively small size of chickens, as compared with cattle, sheep and hogs, makes them particularly adaptable to a wide variety of conditions. These factors account, in a large measure, for the large number of breeds and varieties that exist and for the variation in type and colour pattern that has been developed.