SHEEP SHEARING SHEDS AND YARDS 



263 



entirely of timber (either rails or palings may be used) so as to stand the 

 pressure of hard forcing, for which purpose wire netting is not strong 

 enough. All other fences may be made of good wire netting, strongly 

 backed by six well strained plain wires. 



The drafting race should be 24 inches wide at the entrance and 

 20 inches at the exit. Its length should be at least 12 feet, though 

 15 feet is preferable. The fences forming this race should be at least 

 3 feet 6 inches high and " blind," i.e. the sheep should not be able to 

 see through them. The drafting gate Y should be 5 feet long and swing 

 against the two posts at the exit from the race. If the drafting gate be 



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Fig. 203b. 



Side Elevation. 



Fig. 203c. 



not made "blind," then the spars should not be further apart than 4 

 inches, so that small sheep may be prevented from getting their heads 

 through the gate. 



The branding race should be about 4 feet wide and from 20 to 25 feet 

 long, with one of its side fences 3 feet 6 inches high to admit of a man 

 leaning over it. When sheep are to be branded, the race should be 

 jammed full, the heads of the sheep will then all face in the same direc- 

 tion, viz. towards the outlet gate. The man who is branding remains 

 outside of the race, and does his work over the 3' 6" fence. He 

 carries a pan of tattoo oil in one hand (an old frying pan forms an 

 excellent receptacle for the oil) and a short-handled hand-brand in the 



