LAYING HENS PROVIDE
a year-round income,
utilize off-season labor,
help build a permanent system o f 
agriculture in Alaska

Balloun, Stanley L.

English

ScholarWorks@UA

LAYING HENS PROVIDEa year-round income,utilize ofi-season labor, ALASKA  ^-Shelp build a permanent system o f 3 3agriculture in Alaska E-Z'Zj 'Alaska Agricultural Experiment Station Circular No. 8UNITED STATES L I £ fci DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE ' Agricultural Research Administration - r"  ^r~cjoSccf' Ac^f i c u jf  u^ojL 1Experi went S-fcxh Dn>s CU.MORE EGGS FROM ALASKA FLOCKSPrepared by Stanley L. Balloun, Superintendent,Matanuska Experiment Station, Palmer, AlaskaU S M U S O N  l i b r a r yIp ffV E R S iT Y  O f  a * A S K A .p a «i? B A N ^Feeding the Flock1. The hen is a high-pressure factory. Keep it operating at full capacity by supplying an ample amount o f egg-building feeds. A  hen requires about 90 to 100 pounds o f feed a year.2. A  high-analysis mash (23 to 26 percent protein) is economical under Alaskan conditions, be­cause it allows for greater use of Alaska-grown grains. With low-protein mash, you pay freight on grains that you could grow on your farm.3. Provide plenty of convenient, feed-saving hop­pers. Each 100 hens should have two 8-foot mash hoppers, a grit and oystershell feeder, and a constant supply o f clean water. The water should preferably have the chill removed by a heater o f some kind.4. Hens should be encouraged to eat more mash. You can do this by:(a) Stirring mash in hoppers each day.(b) Placing mash hoppers in the best light pos­sible.(c) Feeding grain in the mash hoppers on top- of mash. ('/(d) Feeding a warm, moist mash each day.-,'1(e) Using only top-quality mashes that, have e been stored under cool, dry condition^ .( / )  Placing waterers near feeders.5. Use Alaska-grown feeds in home-mixed mashes.'** Feed high-quality silage, root crops, or cabbage. Chop unthreshed grain for use as litter and scratch grain combined. Home-mix both grain and mash, or purchase mash of 23 to. 25 percent protein, and self-feed both mash and grain.Keep the Flock Comfortable1. Hens need space or they won’t lay well. Provide 4 square feet per hen under Alaskan conditions. If you can’t enlarge the hen house, cull the flock.2. In winter, confine the hens to the house and don’t have too many windows. In Alaska, the' window area should not total more than 4 per-: cent o f the floor area. Remove surplus win-, dows, board up the openings, and use the windows for storm sashes.3. Insulate and ventilate. Chopped straw over the ceiling and dry sawdust or commercial insula­tion for the walls are excellent. Slot-type ven­tilators near the ceiling on the south side are usually satisfactory. Don’t exfend outlets to the floor. Ventilate according to temperature.4. Provide comfortable roosts, free from drafts. Locate roosts as far from air intakes and outlets as possible. Roosts should be made o f 2 by 2 material and spaced 13 inches apart. Allow 8 or 9 inches o f roost for each hen.5. Provide a wire-covered dropping pit under the roosts, where in winter two-thirds o f the drop-. pings are passed.6. Promote dryness by use o f a deep litter of chopped straw. Start in August and add straw as needed, stirring often. Encourage hens to scratch by feeding some grain in the litter. By February, the litter should be 12 inches deep.■7? Use dark nests or separate dark nesting rooms-. Frequent changes of litter in the nests will aid in keeping the eggs clean.8. A small well-drained exercise yard is better than a larger poorly drained or dirt yard, even if considerable range is not available. Six inches o f coarse gravel makes the yard sanitary.Two Good Laying Mashes lor AlaskaMash No. IProtein content 21 percent—For use with m ash-and-grain feedingPercentGround wheat.........................................  20Ground hull-less b a r le y ..................................... 20Ground oats . . . . . . . .  . . . 12Fish m e a l .........................................   16Alfalfa leaf m eal....................................  . . 1 4Ground Alaska p e a s .........................   8Limestone f l o u r ............................................  . 6Steamed bonemeal . . . . .  . . . . 2Salt . . . .  . . . . . . . . . .  2100Add 1 pint o f fortified vitamin D  oil to each 100 pounds o f mash.Mash No. 2Protein content 26 percent—For use with self-fed grain"PercentGround wheat. ............................................  . 10Ground hull-less b a r l e y ......................................10Ground oats  ......................................10Fish meal  ...........................................30Alfalfa leaf m e a l ........................................ . 15Ground Alaska peas  ............................10Limestone flour . .      9Steamed bonemeal . . . . . . . . .  3Salt . . . . . . . . . . . . .  . 3100Add 1^2 to 2 pints of fortified vitamin D  oil to each 100 pounds o f mash.Practical Pointers lor Poultry ManagementW hen Feed Is High-Priced, Save Feed by:1. Feeding only good hens, culling severely.2. Using properly built feed hoppers.3. Adding fresh feed often, but never filling hoppers over two-thirds full.4. Keeping no hens beyond the first year of production.5. Using hens of lighter breeds in the laying flock.6. Utilizing Alaska-grown feeds.Assure High Average Egg Production by:1. Purchasing top-quality pullets.2. Culling often and rigidly.3. Feeding only high-quality feeds.4. Keeping the house clean and dry.5. Insulating and providing storrp windows.,6. Providing convenient, sanitary waterer and slightly warmed water.'7. Using lights to give hens 12 to 13 hours of light a day, or using dim lights all night.Save Poultry Chore Labor by:1. Piping water to drinking fountains.2. Using covered dropping pits and cleaning them only two or three times a year.3. Providing convenient, large-capacity feed storage in poultry house.4. Using litter carrier on overhead track for cleaning out the house.Keep the Laying House Dry by:1. Using built-up deep litter of chopped straw.2. Insulating walls and ceilings and using storm windows.3. P r o v id in g  adequate ventilation without drafts.4. Piping warm air or water under the floor. Pipes may be laid in new concrete floors; warm-air ducts are very effective under wooden floors.Guard Flock Health by:1. Proper sanitation.2. Comfortable quarters.3. Wholesome feeds.4. Severe culling o f out-of-condition birds.

Circular, No. 8

https://scholarworks.alaska.edu/bitstream/11122/2363/1/C08.pdf

Circular, No. 8

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