102 Farm Poultry 



working rule as regards air-space or cubical con- 

 tents of the building. Under good average con- 

 ditions, six or eight cubic feet per pound of live weight 

 will perhaps be quite satisfactory. The amount of 

 air-space, of course, will depend upon the ventila- 

 tion, and also upon the sources of contamina- 

 tion, aside from the fowls themselves. If manure 

 is allowed to accumulate and the litter becomes 

 damp, the air will become impure. Other things 

 being equal, it will become impure sooner in small 

 houses than in large ones. The above rule as regards 

 air-space has given good satisfaction under favor- 

 able conditions, and may be used in the absence of 

 more definite* information derived from actual 

 experience. 



Foundation. When permanent houses are to 

 be built, it is undoubtedly most economical, in 

 the long run, to erect them on foundations made 

 of brick, stone or concrete. Such foundations 

 should extend into the ground below the frost line, 

 should be vermin-proof, and so constructed as to 

 exclude drafts of air. Some provision should be 

 made to give thorough ventilation during the warm 

 seasons of the year, if the floor and its supports 

 are to be constructed of wood. 



It is not safe to inclose wooden floor supports 

 with solid walls of masonry on account of the liabil- 

 ity of "dry rot" to destroy the supports and even 

 to ruin the floor. A free ventilation should be pro- 



