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A Weekly Page of Poultry Hints to You
Here is a Department Full of Bright Ideas For Readers of the Home and Farm Magazine Section.
ITOME AND FARM MAGAZINE SECTION
B Byron Alder, of the Utah
Agricultural Experiment Station,
furnishes a comprehensive article $
on the housing of farm poultry. 0
lijtTH the exception, perhaps of ac
. 4 tual starvation of the fowls them
selves, there is no other factor in
eonnection with the keeping of poultry
that will affect egg production and good
.vigorous growth so decidedly as poor
or improper methods of housing. This
circular sets forth some of the essen
tials of a good house for Utah condi
tions, and offers plans of three houses
in which an attempt has been made to
-Include these essentials. The ideas and
plans presented here do not represent
.any one person's original work. They
.re a compilation of the work done on
this subject by those who have preceded
the writer in charge of the work at this
station, and suggestions that have come
from a study of tho types of houses
recommended and in use in different
parts of the country.
The Colony or Stationary House.
There are two systems ia common use
throughout tho country. The colony or
free range system in which the fowls are
kept in small flocks, boused in small
movable houses, and the permanent yard
system in which the fowls are more or
less closely confined and the house is
built in such A way, or of such material,
that it is stationary. The colony sys
tem is admirably adapted to farm con
ditions whero only from two to three
hundred hens are to be kept. Where the
fowls arc kept in larger numbers than
this considerable time is required to go
from house to house to feed or gather
the eggs. The advantages are, however,
in being ablo to move the house from
place to place about the farm or yard,
thus giving tho fowls fresh ground and
pasture and utilizing space whieh at
certain times could or would not be
used for other purposes. . The. soil ia less
likely to become filthy and contami
nated with disease. Where the soil on
which these houses are kept is of a
snndy or gravelly character, with good
uuderdrainage, thero is no need of floors
in tho colony houses, and' tbo problems
of cleaning and keeping the surround
ings fresh and sweet are reduced to a
minimum, since all that is necessary is
to hitch a horse to the house and take
, it off a short distanco to fresh ground,
leaving all manure and ' filth behind.
In winter tho houses should be grouped
more or less closely together in a con-
; venient place and the soil banked up
well around them before the ground is
'frozen too solid.
In the permanent house larger flocks
can be handled with less expense and
' trouble, because of many conveniences
that may bo provided for the general
management of a large flock. Exceed
ing care should be exercised in clean
ing up tho yards and houses, in keeping
tho soil sweet and fresh by occasional
cultivation, and in preventing the spread
of contagious diseases.
Whether the colony or the stationary
bouse is used, the problems to be con
sidered in planning the house are very
much the same. These may for conven
ience be divided into four groups.
Health and Comfort of the Fowls,
Dryness The first essential of the
bouse itself to insure health and vigor,
its freedom from moisture. Since the
house must be kept dry it must be lo
cated in a dry place. A gentle slope to
the south with a porous soil and good air
drainage is ideal. In many places it will
not be possible to get the ideal, so that
some provision must be made to keep
the moisture out of tho house. A good
floor well up from the surface of the
ground is about the best we can do. A
Concroto floor, under which is placed a
six or eight inch layer of fine gravel
or broken stone, will keep out the mois
ture and will be more easily cleaned and
kept in a sanitary condition than the
dirt floor. Many prefer the dirt floor,
howover, because of cost, and if six
or eight inches of dirt are placod on top
of the stone after a thin luyer of cin
ders or other fine material covers the
tone, it does fairly well and will usual
ly be dry; but the dirt must be replaced
occasionally by fresa soil and the cost
of keeping it in condition will soon pay
for the cement floor. In wet or damp
surroundings evaporation ia continually
taking place, and evaporation is a cool
ing process so that the temperature will
be kept down. Then hen's feet will be
wet and muddy. This means fewer eggs
and many dirty oneB.
Ventilation Fresh air without
draughts is the next important consid
eration. In the past warmth was the big
object sought, and many houses were
built with little or no ventilation pro
vided for, or the openings that were pro
vided caused draughts; now if we are
not more careful in planning the house,
the open front will be carried to the
other extreme, as has been done already
in some instances. No rule can be given
as to just how much space should be
left open in the front of the honse, as
that depends on the type of the house
and Somewhat on local conditions. One
very important feature of all open front
nouses is that during the severe cold
weather the other three sides of the
house must be perfectly tight. To secure
this 'these three sides should be con
structed of matched lumber and lined
either outside or inside, preferably the
latter, with good heavy building paper.
The double wall with a dead air space
iu not necessary and is undesirable. It
offers protection and a breeding place
for mice, rats, mites, etc., and adds
considerably to the expense of the
building. In the hottest part of the
LAKENVELDEB FOWLS.
The Lakenvelder. has not as yet bef accorded a place in the American stand
ard of perfection, but in Eoropo it has rceived general recognition by poultry or
ganizations. It is striking in appearance, much like a White Leghorn, with vel
vety black tail and hackle. The breed originated in Germany and is most valued
for the production of white-shelled eggs. It is said to be hardy and a great for
ager, picking up much of its food if given a wide range. Adult males weigh
about five pounds; females, four pounds.
summer an opening may be provided in
one of the other sides, providing it is
not located so that a draught would
strike the fowls while on the perches.
Pure Air Eequired.
While reasonably eold, pure fresh air
is to be preferred to warm imptrre air,
yet it should not be forgotten that it is
the purity of the air and not the low
temperature that is desired. The more
surfaco there is exposed in tho walls
and roof of a house the greater will be
the loss ot heat, other things being
equal. For this reason it is not desirable
t' extend the walls higher than is neces
sary to allow sufficient room in the
house for the attendant to move abont
freely without continually bumping his
head. The greatest vigor and produc
tion cannot be secured if the fowls are
required to breatho impnre or very cold
air. Early spring condition, when we
have our highest egg production, should
be tiie air in this regard both winter
and summer. Plenty of fresh air with a
moderate temperature, and good, clean,
nutritive food brings high production in
eggs and meal.
Sunlight, the third essential for
healthful, vigorous stock must bo pro
vided for in a good chicken house. For
this reason the open front baa become
very popular and the house should al
ways face to the Bouih. The, opening
should not be too low or the snow and
rain will drift in and dampen the litter,
and tho fowls should be protected from
the cold wind while at work on the
floor, Two to three feet from the
ground to the bottom of the opening
will give this protection and will not
shado much of the floor space. It must
extend as high as possible so that the
sun will go to the back of the pen. The
direct rays of the sun not only make the
house warmer but keep the interior dry
and are the best of disinfectants and
germicides that we know. They aid ma
terially in preventing disease. Very
much glass space is undesirable, not
alone because of the additional expense
and breakage, but it is estimated that
glass allows about four times as much
heat to escape from the building as
the ordinary board wall. In this re
spect it is not much better than the
muslin curtain, and on sunny days the
curtain may be raised to allow the sun 's
rays to enter without reflection in any
direction.
It seems to be more or less a fault
in human nature that those tasks are
more often neglected that are a little
out of our way, or are a little difficult
to get at. There is no animal aronnd the
yard that responds more quickly to kind,
sympathetic and regular treatment than
does the hen. The poultry house should
not be located, as it too often is, after
all other buildings, sheds and yards are
plaaned, and then find that there is
room out behind the barn or some other
out-of-the-way place for the chicken
house. Much of the work in caring for
the fowls is done by the women or is
not done at all, and therefore, the boose
and yards should bo readily accessible
to them. All gates, doors and other fix
tures should be made as simple as pos
sible yet securely fastened and easily
operated. There should be plenty of
room to get insido the building. The
nests, feed hoppers, etc., should be easily
reached, so that cleaning and refilling
is mad'' -is easy as possible. It is some
times advisable to arrange tho nests so
that the eggs may bo gathered without
going into the bouse.
Protection From Vermin.
The house should not be located close
to the grainery, barn or other buildings
where grain is stored that afford breed
ing places for mice nnd rats, to prey
upon the fowls. The building should be
made as tight as possible to exclude all
such enemies. All nests, perches, etc.,
and the interior surface of the house
itself should be as smooth and free from
cracks and unnecessary corners as pos
sible. The internal fixtures should be
solid, yet easily taken out to clean and
disinfect.
Many who have gone into the busi
ness of poultry raising have failed be
cause of the lack of consideration of
this fuctor in connection with the
poultry houses. It is necessary of course
to make a building as permanent and
substantial as the local conditions de
mand, yet buildings of this nature need
not be elaborate in construction or of
expensive materials. Except, perhaps,
in special cases, the cost of the house
should not exceed one dollar and a
quarter for each fowl that it will ac
commodate when complete. This is not
given as a rule, but to indicate what we
should expect in this regard. To illus
trate further, the total cost of a
colony house should seldom exceed
thirty dollars, and it will accom
modate under nsual conditions about
fifty hens of the smaller and forty of
the larger breeds, making a cost in me
one case of Bixtr cents per hen, and in
the other seventy-five cents per hen.
By following the ideas sugestea
above, a number of houses could be
planned that would no doubt be en
tirely satisfactory.
THE STORY
of a STUDENT
No. I.
He came to us somewhat uncertain
as to his future, bat quickly caw hi
opportunity when shown what . the
Behnke-Walker Business College could
do for him.
BUSINESS COLLEGE
Fourth Bear Morrison, Portland, Or.
I M. WALKER, Pres.
We hare enrolled 1030 students linn
the first ot August. 1913.
L M. WALKER, President
Portland, Oregon.
Write us. No trouble to answer, ,
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