176 VETERINARY HYGIENE 



sary that they should be so tied or fixed as to limit their movement. 

 The most common practice is to tie them round the neck by means 

 of a chain or rope, the other end of which is secured to a ring that 

 has perpendicular play up and down a rod bolted to the partition. 

 The perpendicular play must be sufficient to allow the animals to 

 rise and lie down with ease. The length of the chain must be 

 such as will not permit of any appreciable backward or forward 

 movement. The rod should be 1 foot 6 inches in length, and the 

 lower end of it should be 1 foot from the ground. It should be 

 placed about 2 feet 6 inches from the wall. Chains are more 

 durable than rope and they are quickly adjusted and released if 

 there is no strain on them. In the case of acute illness, such as 

 milk fever, it is often a matter of great difficulty to release a 

 recumbent and unconscious cow. If properly tied, ropes can be 

 quickly released or at the worst can be cut. Patent quick releasing 

 fastenings are put on the market by manufacturers. Broad leather 

 straps are sometimes fitted to the chain, they are easier on the cows' 

 necks than chain but are not so popular with dairymen. A method 

 of fixing cows in their stalls and preventing too much movement 

 that is being largely adopted is the use of a kind of pillory or yoke 

 that is hinged at the bottom and opens at the top. Both top and 

 bottom are attached to a few links of chain, thus a certain amount 

 of movement is possible. 



Calf Houses. Calf pens must be light, dry and airy but not 

 draughty. Each calf should be allowed not less than 180 cubic 

 feet of air-space. The lighting should be so arranged as to admit 

 as much sunlight as possible. The floor, walls, partitions, &c., must 

 be constructed so that cleansing can be easily done. If possible, 

 an exercising ground should be close to, if not actually an annex of, 

 the calves' house so that the young growing animals can get plenty 

 of exercise and fresh air when weather conditions permit. Calf 

 houses are commonly the worst constructed places on a farm, being 

 frequently dark, damp, unventilated and undrained, and they are 

 often kept in a very dirty condition. 



Food Preparation Room. A food preparation and mixing room 

 should be attached to the cow house for convenience in mixing and 

 preparing the food. Under no circumstances should food be stored 

 in the byre. 



Milking-Shed. A separate milking-shed apart from the byre 

 is a great help toward the production of clean milk. The idea of 

 such a shed is that the cows are moved at milking time to a building 

 that is free from dust. They are there tied up in the usual way, 

 given a feed of concentrated non-dusty food and milked. The 



