Poultry raising at the Santa Maria Farm School

Title

Creator

Reyna, Jose

Language

English

Year

1916

Rights

In Copyright - Educational Use Permitted

Fulltext

POULTRY RAISING AT THE SANTA MARIA FARM SCHOOL. By Jose Reyna. Teacher. Santa Maria Farm School. The raising of Cantonese chickens was begun at Santa Maria in 1914. The chickens were somewhat more than a year old when they reached the farm school. Although they were of pure stock, they were not entirely different from the native variety. In color they were uniformly yellowish brown. Soon after their arrival, the eight hens began to lay, and at the end of the first month they had laid 117 eggs. During the second month, they laid 140 eggs. About the middle of this month, four hens wanted to set but they were soon broken. As there was not a pen on the farm, the parish priest kindly consented to the use of his stable. Six of the original hens are still living, and have aver aged 72 eggs from January to August of this year. A daily and monthly poultry record is kept. Every day four pupils are detailed to guard the poultry yards. Each guard keeps a record of the chickens, reporting to the teacher in charge. He cleans the yards, prepares the food, and takes care to follow the feeding program closely. Nests, roosts, troughs, and yards are disinfected twice each month. Lime, and carbolic acid well diluted with water, are used for this purpose. The young chicks are well looked after. Corn, rice, meat, and eggs form the main part of the daily rations. Green feed such as cabbage, pechay, lettuce, mustard, endive, corn, and grass, are fed abundantly. Frogs, tadpoles, and insects form part of the meat diet for the first ten days. Only one or two kinds of feed are given to the youngest chicks, the chief feed being biscuits of fine corn meal slightly soaked in water. Chickens of different ages are kept in separate yards. Usually ten laying hens and one rooster have a yard by themselves so as to avoid inbreeding. Other yards contain more hens and roosters. The mothers of the little chicks are placed in a big, shaded pen with woven bamboo Wa,lls which prevent other chickens from getting in, and give protection from hawks. The walls are so made as to let the chicks in and out of the pen at any time. Chickens attacked by any disease are at once taken to the poultry hospital. This is a double-room pen located under small shade trees, 200 meters distant from the other yards. The temporary pens are made of bamboo with cogon roofs. This type of poultry house meets the demand for pens on the farm. It also helps the pupils and others interested in poultry 271 272 THE PHILIPPINE CRAFTSMAN raising to gain practical ideas for their home projects. Many who wish to raise chickens cannot afford to build elaborate poul try houses, but they can afford bamboo coops like those on this farm. The cost of material for one of these houses ranges from P0.60 to Pl.50. The Cantonese hens are good layers as compared with native fowls. A good hen that receives proper attention will lay from 160 to 190 eggs a year. A native hen of the same grade and with the same amount of attention, will lay from 70 to 100 eggs a year, but many lay only from 30 to 60. Another argument in favor of the Cantonese chickens is that the hens mature early. Some of the pullets hatched on July 5, 1914, began laying on November 2, 1914, while a native pullet hatched on December 9, 1914, did not begin laying until June 30, 1915. The only objection to the Cantonese chickens is that the hens are poor setters, a characteristic of many breeds noted for their good laying qualities. Because of this fact the school is now using setting hens of native stock. Sixty-five to 85 per cent of the eggs placed under native hens hatch, and 100 per cent is not uncommon. The best time for hatching is during Feb ruary and March, while the poorest time is in May and June. Some may wonder where setting hens are obtained. The people in Santa Maria are industrious and have the right kind of school spirit. If the teachers ask them to lend the school one or two of their setting hens, they do it willingly. They are given a pair of Cantonese chickens when the hens are returned. Home projects in poultry raising to the number of a hundred are being undertaken by the pupils of the Santa Maria Farm School. Each pupil is given two hens and a rooster, or 13 eggs if the number of chickens at the farm is not sufficient. He must have an assistant to look after his chickens when he is in school. These two persons are required to follow the methods’’ in use at the school and to report results to the teacher. Many boys have raised over 100 chickens since last June. They ex pect to raise more this year. The hens sell for one peso and the roosters for two pesos each. Orders from Tayabas, Manila, La Union, and from many towns in Ilocos Sur are refused because the home demand for Cantonese chickens is so great. Pupils may dispose of their products whenever they wish, and they may do as they please with the money; but they are advised to use it for school supplies, or to deposit it in the Postal Savings Bank. Some of them, however, use the money for their living expenses, while still others are saving it for their high-school education. POULTRY RAISING 273 How the chickens are fed at the Santa Maria Farm School. CHICKS FROM 2 TO 10 WEEKS OLD. SunOQt. Monday. Tucsday. I Wedneoday. : Thurad,.y. ' Friday. I Saturday . .... ~1· B.tf-eMl!ed nee Half-cooked rice' Half-cook:.i -;;-c~Half-cooked- -r-i-;; Half-cooked tJ;;"lff.\k~k;..------;;~ Half-cooked ric~ : . ._,.l>o,\ed :'i!~- hard-boiled ; :~~- h~';.'d-~j::l :!~.hard-boiled : :i!~. hard-boiled 1 !vJ~. h:~-~;:l :~!~. hard-boiled ••..• Cini -9 •o.aked Corn meal ooaked ' Corn meal BOaked Com meal -ked 1 Com meal aoa.ked . Corn meal BOaked Corn meal BOaked U.ilOa.m .••••• •H:.Tr:..r;ce .. H~ic:';;.ince ... 1c.!:.,w,!!:f-muah .... H~~f~~j.r.;.i rice C.::.,w~~l mixed ~~nw..!!!f'muah .... H~~f~!~'lr.;.i rice I ! mixed with bran. I b'.:!~"- ground . 1 ~.!.~.:'lt>ean!':ith 3.00p.m ••.. Hn1f·c<>">ktd rice Half-cooked rice 1 Half-cooked rice Com meal mixed I Half-cooked rice Half-cooked rice Corn meal mixed ~:~ c;~~h = ~"e1i ..ii':.:d. meal 1 !,",,~] .:i:.:d. meal with coconut. 1 ~"e~t .:~.:d. meal ' ~e~l ,:;~.:d. meal with coconut. '.3 &.ao P- m.. I ~~nw::'~~1 soaked eo~~r[~~;n·e".t c~~ir[i~;n':.'!t I eo~:.r~i~~~'!~; eo~:.r~~~':.'!t I eo~ir::!~.m~'!t '4~"w~:! •oaked ~ " .. Welk ....... s- t....:I tuch aa cabbal'e, peehay, lettuce, mustard, endive, e<>rn leave>1, or grass should be 1riv~n between mcalo. 6S:Oa m ••••• ,Hall'.-W rlcalHalf-cooked rice Half-cooked rice I Half-cooked rice I Half-cooked riee-IHalf-cooked ;;-;;-~-ualf:~.,";.J.-;d·-.;-;,. wilh hm•b<>>led with hnrd b<>iled and corn meal with hard-boiled with hard-bolled and corn meal with hard·boiled " so. •· ;:~,"" H::.'.:oo>oo "'" cf ii~.:::::'~ i H;f;;~1th ;;.~'. Co~:~;.~;•0-J' ,].~~:~::::•~ H~~::."{(!i Ulp m ~~nw':t~l •onked c~'t:'opp~lllm::~ c~h"opp~alm::t ICo~~op;'ed"lm:~~ I °:,h'opi::nlm::~ I eo:i:iopp':.tealm::t ci~nWll~~l BOaketl well mixed. well mixed. well mixed. well mixed. : well mixed. 1 Well·ohoPI•<-<l"r«•nfeed•houldbegivenbetweenmealo. t::'. ;:-.:::::1 ~~:=- : g::,i.~c~.;,:,;·m1x:·I g::~k~c~.;r;, .,-,;": g~~~1i~c:~fii:·' g~~;:~:~t~ix:· g~!i~~:~:~fix:·1· g~c'k~c~rn ~ ;; ~ ·------ed.withmeat. I t>dwithmeat. ---------Grwa t..c ""Id be jfiun between meals. . - !:S ..

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