,» 1977
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June 1, 1977
Fun with feathers
“This will get you guys
into shape for football
season,’”’ shouted farmer
James Garber.
His words were drown by
the frantic clucking of
several thousand chickens.
Thirty-five members of
the Donegal Football Boost-
er Club (mostly athletes
and coaches) had their
hands full of feathers last
Wednesday evening, when
they participated in a
“chicken catch’’ at the
Garber farm. The Boosters
transferred 13,500 chickens
from the Garber chicken
barn to a truck. At 2 cents
a bird, they earned $270
for Project D-Lites.
Although coach Dennis
lezzi smiled cheerfully
throughout the operation,
most of the participants
looked as if they would
rather be doing push-ups
on the football field.
The Susquehanna Times
photographer told one
Booster, ‘‘You know, I
used to do this for a
living.”’
“I think I'd rather
starve,”” the booster re-
plied.
According to our photo-
grapher, the Garber farm is
a chicken-catcher’s dream
come true. The birds were
very clean and healthy, and
the ventilation system in
the barn kept the ammonia
in the air to a minimum.
The Boosters, most of
whom had probably never
worked in a less well-man-
aged barn, didn’t appreci-
ate the excellent working
conditions.
Anyone who spends a
few hours lugging chickens
around is liable to get a
little...well, dirty. To catch
a chicken, you reach into
her cage and grab her by
the feet. Each catcher
removes four chickens from
each cage. Holding them
by the feet, he carries them
to a truck, where they are
placed into a new set of
cages. The chickens do not
cooperate.
The Garber chicken
house is as long as a
football field, which means
that the Booster Club
volunteers got quite a bit of
exercise while carrying
their squawking burdens
up the long corridors of
cages. The building cost
$178,000, including equip-
ment, and it incorporates
the latest developments ir.
poultry science.
The birds are confined in
cages, where their feed and
water can be delivered by
automation. Each chicken
has about 45 square inches
for exercise. The tiered
cages make even ventila-
tion possible. Droppings
fall through the mesh cage
floors anu into a pit; a
system which improves the
birds’ sanitary conditions
and simplifies manure
handling.
Mr. Garber raises young
Catching chickens is har work
Dennis Iezzi must be a natural-born chicken catcher. He
smiled as he worked.
pullets to the age of about
21 weeks. At that age, the
birds are ready to start
laying a lot of eggs. With
the help of chicken-catch-
ers, the birds are trans-
ported to another farm,
where their eggs can be
collected and sorted auto-
matically. The chickens
have a life-expectancy of 72
weeks. That’s when their
egg production drops, and
they are shipped to a
Fish Derby winners
Winners of the Eliza-
bethtown/Mount Joy For-
est Fire Crew Fish Derby
were:
First fish caught—Shawn
Maxwell, age 11, 271 Park
Ave., Mount Joy;
Smallest fish caught—
Robert Shank, age 10, Box
146, Rheems;
Grand prize for the
largest fish caught—Tom
Stare, age 10, 216 N.
Barbara St., Mount Joy;
First fish caught—Jeffrey
Shelly, age 8, R.D. #2,
Manheim;
cannery.
Until recently, most pul-
lets were raised in the
South, on open ground.
Technological improve-
ments have shifted a good
share of that business to
more northern places like
Lancaster County. Mr.
Garber has almost com-
pleted a second big chicken
house, so the Donegal
Booster Club should have
plenty of opportunities to
raise money in the future.
First 8 fish caught—Me-
lissa Nicola Gutshall, age
'4, R.D. #3, Box 38, Mount
Joy;
Smallest fish caught—
Andy Smeal, age 4, 114 N.
Market St., Elizabethtown.
The following businesses
contributed to the event:
Tradin’ Post Sporting
‘Goods, Elizabethtown; Joe
The Motorist’s Friend, E-
lizabethtown; Western Au-
to Assoc. - Store, Mount
Joy; McComsey’s Sports-
man’s Center, Mount Joy;
and J.B. Hostetter & Sons,
Mount Joy.
SUSQUEHANNA TIMES - Page 3
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