BUILDING POULTRY HOUSES 



PART I. THE PRINCIPLES 



Poultry-keeping is an exacting business. The four cornerstones on 

 which success rests are: 



(1) Suitable buildings^ properly, located. 



(2) The right foods, skillfully fed. 



(3) Good fowls, carefully bred. 



(4) Facility and ability to hatch and rear chickens. 



To these should be added a willingness to work, a love of the business, 

 and marketing ability. Not the least in importance is the question of 

 constructing the poultry plant. 



The poultry house essentials 



Buildings for poultry should be economical of construction, convenient, 

 comfortable, dry, cheerful, well-ventilated, and sanitary. Unsatisfactory 

 egg yields are frequently traceable directly to the conditions under which 

 fowls are housed. Moreover, many of our most troublesome poultry 

 diseases are due primarily to improperly located and poorly constructed 

 poultry houses. Such unsatisfactory results rest on the fact that egg 

 production is dependent on the fowl's physical condition. Fowls must be 

 kept in good health if they are to be profitable. 



The site of the building 



The location should be dry, sheltered and have good air drainage. If 

 the ground is not dry naturally, it should be made so by underdrainage. 

 Damp ground means cold ground, because rapid evaporation cools the 

 soil. It also means unhealthful soil, because the air and sunshine cannot 

 penetrate to purify it. Muddy ground means dirty feet, and dirty feet 

 make dirty eggs. 



A low place, though more sheltered from the wind, may be many 

 degrees colder than a higher place a few rods distant. Cold air settles 

 in low places, therefore avoid locating poultry houses where cold air can 

 settle. Secure warmth by building in the lee of a windbreak or a hill, 

 or in front of farm buildings. Buildings that face the south will get the 

 largest exposure to the sun's rays, and other things being equal they 

 will be warmer and dryer and more cheerful. An eastern exposure is 



