INDIAN BURNER BUCKS.

Nelson Evening Mail, 25 November 1905, Page 1

INDIAN BURNER BUCKS.

Tho following extraicts are lwajd* from an article wwoii »» tiie •'•'lieli«|bfle Fouttry Joui-mxl (an Atoerican jauni'al') .*— Tbiet-e is no .braauch ot th« poultry industry of Ireland that has made greater hwadway within t>hc past production. As a matter o£ fact, aecaate jtlwin duels te«PAIQg-tor. efey rhe duck indwstry of ■. Ireland ten ywars ago was Ytobt wortii ?. natful of sfctos/' Vflit this was before We advent of ttoS Indian Runner. TLUte old type of Irish duck was sosnethi-ng like a diminutive Rouon," "but ligtohsr in colour, ai>d if it was remarkable for any one trait more than another, it was for utter- laziness. tfrom mornjflig l-o night it spent l'ts time waddling; ' aMout ■ the farm s"ard and »avcrsvarchxd fhe fields for grubs as more spri'g'htly ducks arc accustomed to do. I believe there were no records kept of the egg yield in those days, but, H tlra-e were, the old'-tiiinG Ifieih (, J>v Woiii'd siiow very poor returns, for it laid only pftfout six 'm-c!nt<hs of I'heycar, tm\d Ike Caesar's army, spent the remainder of the time "in w nter sjutartera." ■ ■ • , The Indian Runner duck yields a nwiximu'm of profit in return *oa- a minimum of expense, as on acoount of its ha'Liita of foraging the food bill is kept low. This country •atfoumls with \ias kind of runs well suited for duck keeping, viz., I large tracts of pasturajge watered toy -brooks-, springs and ponds. Wo | also have an abundance oi bog. ' land, moors, and swamps which tare tteming with small fish, frogs, slugs, and various othdr forms of reptile and insect life, so that almost any farmer or cottager may keep a; flock of Indian Runner ducks. It ia only necessary to supply them with a light morning feed and turn them out on the run, foraging as if their livtes depend where they will remain all day on the number of frogs and fishes tihey can devour. When the weath'er is mild and the ducks are in full lay, thcyi will scarcely touch a particle of "mash in the morning when they lqavo the house, but make straifgM for a mooi* or strwam whei-c they can find foovl, which is better for egfer-making thnn the most carefully prepared mash.

While this duck will give the blest results where It enjoys a good run and an ample supply of wiater, still it can be kept with profit on dry upliawd, or even in a. small yard or garden, with no water other thleun th'at supplied in, a trough or tul>. I beliove that full\n one-tlvird of the <ducks bred in this country are kept oy cottagers 1 who have o-n-ly tb<»ir Katf-acro i 'plote for runs arrd wlwj eUppl.V Water in «a w o od«n tu-b or.trouohi In I many cases, however,, ducks kept fb'y cottatY.-r3 a.ra allowed to run on tihe pu^vlic hi.uCiway, and, ijirring accidents, a better run could scarcely KXi foruTOd.. for ttiere is always a supply of water and any amount of srrit, wh'ilst the skirting Ts^ouivds with insect life. Th« Indian Runner duck is a great egg-producer, but its strcng- , point is that it is cci extraord-i---wary winter layer. Poulti-y keepers will realise tho great value of this feature when I rem.ir.d them that not alone are eggs worth twice as much in December as in March or Apiil, tout ttnat it is only by koepIng up th© suppljj through the winter months as well as through the summer that we can retain and please customers. No ■efip-farmer can hope for success if he allows his customers to hunger for a supply of winter egigs. Tfov. In-d'ian Runner dufek keeps up the winter supply, and mlak'es no mistake , aToout it. It makes no differenco ! at wtoat time of the year they are hatched, for they will Coflninence to lay when they reach the five months' mark, if not before that age, ,anti continue thioujrhout the year, except during the molting season, which in this country is August or September. This duck is at her best, so far as egg-pro-duction is concerned, during October, November, Docemter, and January, and lays until the end of July. I h'ave kiepi records of tho c&'gyleld of difTcfent 1.13ns of -ducks, and <in many cases the average has Ween up to 190 ejrgs in the year. The -L'jst fedividwal layers do not Jay over 200 egjrs. LNUt the average fOl a gOCd Strain 1 9f layers iray be safely set at 180 per annum, arJd tho oli^prvat'i'ons I have nrade regarding 1 IJie laying powers of the Indian Runner confirm my b^lirf tiiat this estimate i$ not -toohi'gli. The size orf the egg Is almost as bre&rt as that of tho ,V<Asin or AyU-s-B'ury, and in order to ascertain the average weight, I have weighed many lots in various parts of the country. I have found that the average is 21 pouwds to 120 eggs, so that a duck which wedghs onilj' 4i pounds and lays 180 eggs a year produces exactly seven, times her own weight. It is not uncommon for a duck to lay her own weigM of cgigs in less than .one montfc.

The Indian Runner is not much of a taftyle duck, tlecause It is too small to compete with the Ayles•liiury or the Pekdn in the b*st marn ke/ts, yet thei-e is a demand in the smaller t^ywits for plump, tender d-ucWiittfs, w«|ili<hirtpf 3J to 4-. pounds dressed, and though tiie 'price hxsre is only a'bjout nine cents ipar p'oumdy (bi^feders. are gteud to kill and dispose erf their surplus drakes, if not at a piofrt, at least without loss. Tho feniajlijs, Of comtsc, are kept laying, but as 'h*alf the b«rds are males they must bo disposed of in tho most profitable mnjaner.