POULTRY HOUSES 379 



$35 or $40. A fairly good type of colony house has both a 

 door and window in front, the latter being covered with wire 

 screening, and with a curtain to be used for cold weather pro- 

 tection. A small window in one end, for both ventilation and 

 light, and a wooden floor are also desirable features. Poul- 

 trymen having houses differing widely in style of construc- 

 tion and lighting seem to get equally good results from their 

 fowls. Two strong arguments in behalf of the colony house 



Fig. 211. A large colony house system. Photograph by courtesy the Poultry 



Herald. 



are, a flock of about the right size may be kept in a yard of 

 suitable area; also the house may be shifted from time to 

 time to new and clean soil conditions, thus providing good, 

 permanent sanitation. Colony houses may be hauled into 

 grain fields after the harvest, where the fowls secure uncom- 

 monly good forage of grain and insects. 



The shelter coop is usually built for a hen and a 

 brood of chickens. It varies much in construction. Com- 

 mon boxes 2 or 3 feet square, with slat or wire front; 

 empty barrels, with a slat attachment at one end ; and 

 shelters of tent or A shape, are frequently seen. These coops 



