FOURTEENTH ANNUAL YEAR HOOK— PART X 781 



CONFINEMENT OF ODORS. 



About the dairy barn there are many distinct odors and these 

 must be confined to themselves to prevent the milk from becoming 

 contaminated. Silos have an odor peculiar to themselves and should 

 be built away from the barn and connected with it by a corridor, 

 the door of which can be kept tightly closed. With this precaution, 

 and by feeding silage only after milking, the milk will not be 

 tainted nor taste of the silage flavor. The calf barn has still 

 another peculiar odor and for this reason should be set off from 

 the cow barn. Hay, though without any bad odor, is dusty. The 

 hay chute, therefore, should be a closed apartment and large 

 enough to permit a large amount of hay to be thrown down from 

 the mow at once. After the dust has settled the door may be 

 opened and the hay distributed among the cows. This keeps much 

 dirt out of the barn. The feed room, too, should be a tightly closed 

 room for the same reason. 



The cow barn itself has odors not agreeable when found in milk, 

 so the milk room needs to be a distance from the barn. Many 

 milk plants have their milk rooms many yards from the barn and 

 carry the milk in cans over a cable. At least five feet of space 

 should separate the milk room from the barn; this too may be 

 connected with a corridor fitted with swinging doors, — two seta- 

 preferably. 



Bulls also have a distinct odor, and more than this, they are 

 very troublesome when housed in the same barn as the cows. 

 For these reasons it is advisable to have a separate place for them 

 a goodly distance away. A shed opening into a small pasture of 

 an acre and a half per bull is best. He can go in and lie in the 

 shed out of the hot sun or cold winds and storms or he can remain 

 in the pasture. Unless the weather is very severe he will choose 

 the latter, which is best. 



To make a cheap addition to the capacity of the dairy farm it is 

 well to have a shed for dry cows, yearlings, heifers, etc., when 

 not in milk. These animals will otherwise take up expensive room 

 in the cow barn proper when they would be better off in the open 

 air, sheltered from exposure by a cheap, warm shed where they 

 will not detract from the appearance of the milking herd. This 

 shed is best located so that it will be conveniently accessible from 

 the silos, hay room and feed room of the main barn, as the cattle 

 there kept can be well fed with, little labor. 



THE KIND OF FLOOR. 

 The features of a good floor for the dairy barn are: 



1. Impervious to moisture. 



2. Sanitary and easily cleaned. 



3. Comfortable for cows. 



4. First cost not too great. 



5. Durable. 



The following floors are in common use in dairy barns: 



1. Dirt with cement or wood gutter. 



2. Wood. 



3. Brick. 



