Turkeys, Ducks, Geese

 Chicken Cages and Houses

Most breeders of poultry in the United States subscribe to the National Poultry Improvement Plan sponsored by the United States Department of Agriculture and administered by official state agencies. Under this federal program, chicken houses and hatcheries must conform to sanitary standards; blood tests on folks are periodically conducted as a safeguard against pullorum and other diseases, pedigreed male breeding stocks are determined, and pullets are trapnested to ascertain their egg laying performances. As a result of such measures and also of selective breeding and careful feeding, the flesh of the modern chicken is healthy and more tender than its range raised predecessor. Moreover, chickens today mature faster and, consequently, the cost of chicken feed them is low in comparison to other kinds of farm-raised of feeding livestock.

Turkeys

Descended from the wild turkey, which is native to America and flourishes in some section of the United States, the domesticated turkey is second in importance to the chicken in both Canada and the United States. A land bird capable of flight unless wing-clipped. It is bred and raised mainly for its meat. Turkeys are bred, raised, and processed very much like chickens and are ready for marketing at 18 to 22 weeks.

Ducks

Ducks are web footed waterflowl, like chickens, they may be bred and raised for egg-laying as well as for meat. The Khaki Campbell breed, for example, which is raised only for egg production, can actually lay just as many eggs as any breed of hen raised for the same purpose.

The most popular duck in the United States is the White Pekin. A meaty bird, the average weight of the adult male is about 4 kg (9 lb). The ducks are usually marketed at lesser weight, however. Their profit earning potential is enhanced by the demand for duck feathers and down among manufacturers of bedding materials.

Ducks are slaughtered, bled, scalded, and rough-picked in one continuous machine operation. To remove the duck’s valuable feathers, their carcasses must be dipped in a hot, resinous wax, which is cooled to harden and then removed by machine with all feather intact.

Geese

Geese are restless, aggressive, and intelligent birds. Also waterflowl, they are much larger in size than ducks, with adult ganders often reaching more than 12 kg (approximately 26 lb) in live weight. Geese are bred and raised for their meat and feathers. Because their egg-laying capabilities are much less than those of chickens and ducks, their eggs are reserved for incubation to assure reproduction of the species.