516 AgricuUuml Gazette of N.S.W. [July 2, 1920. 



can be left open for ventilation and light. Every stable should possess some 

 means of ventilation, such as a louvre board window which cannot be closed 

 under ordinary circumstances. 



A good stable should be about 18 feet wide, the divisions between the 

 stalls being 9 to 10 feet long. A stall for cart horses should be about 6 feet 

 wide, but it may be narrower if it is only to be used as a feeding stall. A 

 loose-box should measure 12 feet bv 10 feet, and a little more for heavy 

 stallions. 



The drainage of stables, unless attached to a sewerage system, should be 

 open. Closed drains, unless very well flushed and easily opened up for 

 cleaning, are a constant source of trouble. 



Oow-slieds, 

 In dealing with this subject, four types of buildings have to be considered : — - 

 (1) buildings in which the cows are milked, fed and housed at night during 

 part of the year ; (2) combined milking and feeding sheds; (3) milking sheds ; 

 and ''4) feeding sheds. 



Very few buildings of the first type are in use in this State, although 

 probably as the country develops and becomes closely settled they will 

 become more common, especially in the colder parts. The essentials Ot such 

 buildinos are impervious floors, proper light and ventilation, and efficient 

 drainage of the open type. As with all buildings for cattle, site and aspect 

 should be given special consideration. There is usually a tendency to make 

 these buildings too dark, a condition which militates against cleanliness. 



Combined milking and feeding sheds are now fairly common, and so long- 

 as shelter from the cold winds is provided they cannot be too open. The 

 best type is a plain open shed, with a double row of bails arranged so that 

 the cows' heads face inwards, and a central passage-way down which the food 

 is taken either by truck or hand. The floor must be impervious to moisture, 

 and nothing is better than concrete. Stone grouted in with cement may be 

 satisfactory, but the cement is always liable to work out. Bricks set in 

 mortar wear into holes, and wood sooner or later becomes urine-soaked. 

 Behind where the cows stand should run a concrete open .'ihallow drain to 

 lead the ui'ine out of the yard. 



So long as it is open and well ventilated, it cannot be said that any one 

 type of milking shed has much effect one way or the other on the health of 

 the animals, but it is of importance from other points of ^ie\v. Sheds 

 which are only used for milking require the same type of floor and drainage 

 as that used in the combined sheds, but are usually nmch smaller and only 

 allow for f(jur to a dozen cows to be in the bails at a time ; prot(5ction 

 from the south and west is most desirable. Feeding sheds should also be 

 built with due regard to aspect, and should preferably be quite open along one 

 side, unless local conditions as to cold would render such exposure excessive ; 

 such is not the case through most of our dairying country where alone cattle 

 are likely to be stall fed. Foi' the floor, earth well beaten down will suflice. 



