poultry raising

POULTRY RAISING IN El Cajon VALLEY

Mrs. Rogers tells us how poultry raising began in this valley about 1914. There were only two chicken ranches in El Cajon Valley then. A third farm was located at Lakeside and another at Johnstown. Most of these ranches raised the white Leghorn chicken which laid many eggs.

One of the problems was to find a place to sell the eggs. The eggs were taken to San Diego to sell at the stores. They sold for 11 cents and 15 cents a dozen then. How much do eggs cost now ?

The chickens were first kept in the long sheds with straw on top to keep out the rain and sun. They used to hatch eggs in incubators holding 540 eggs. Those eggs had to be taken from the incubator twice each day and turned and cooled. The incubator was kept at 103 degrees by heating the water in them with a kerosene lamp. You had a check the thermometer and adjust the flame of the lamp to keep the eggs at the 103 degree temperature.

When the chicks hatched they were put in a room with a large hood or brooder to cover them, with an oil heating stove to keep them warm. Today everyone uses electricity so they don't have to check them so often.