The Effect of Feeding Cow Manure on Egg Production and Hatchability

HAMMOND (1942) demonstrated that the feeding of dried cow manure increased the rate of growth of chicks and stimulated the development of their combs. After a more detailed investigation of the effect of feeding cow manure on the development of the combs, testes, and ovaries of chicks, Riley and Hammond (1942) reported that cow manure contained one or more androgenic principles. On the basis of these results the possibilities existed that egg production and hatchability would be favorably affected by the growth-stimulating dietary factors of cow manure or that they would be unfavorably affected by the androgenic constituents. It has been demonstrated that cessation of egg production is brought about by subcutaneous injection of a male hormone preparation in sesame oil (Schoeller and Gehrke, 1933), by intramuscular injection of testosterone propionate in sesame oil (Allee et al., 1939) or by implantation of testosterone propionate or androsterone pellets or intramuscular injection . . .