Breeding

Extract

The Weight and Composition of Eggs. Das Gewicht der Eier und ihrer Bestandteile während des Jahres und des Lebens bei Hennen. J. Podhradsky. Sbornik Ceskoslovenske Akademie Zemedeske, Vol. 11, 1936, p. 601.

In completion of former reports on this question it was ascertained that theresults partly confirmed the statements made by writers up to the present, namely, in so far as my experiments show.

1. 1. In the first year two big increases in weight take place, in spring and in autumn. These increases are followed by decreases which are generally underbroken by a smaller deviation, e.g., in April-June.

2. 2. In the first year these deviations occur both in albumen and shell and sometimes (contrary to what Philpott states) in the yolk.

3. 1. The following years show a similar cycle: the course of some of the curves is, however, less regular. The weight often begins at a higher level—mostly in older hens which have been laying for some years—but sinks progressively in the course of the year and is often underbroken by smaller deviations.