HATCHING AND REARING CHICKS 



out injury to the garden or crops. In addition to 

 protecting the chicks from the weather, these coops 

 also provide safety from cats, rats, and hawks. 



The majority of the outdoor brooders give the 

 best results when operated under cover, where 

 they are more or less protected from the elements. 

 Even the large colony brooders give the best results 

 when the chicks have some protection other than 

 that furnished by the brooder itself. In winter 

 and spring weather it is often too cold for the 

 chicks to be outdoors in the open, and no brooder 

 has enough floor space to comfortably house fifty 

 or more chicks all the time for a week or more. 



Shelters for Chicks. While it is detrimental 

 to the health and vitality of the chicks to 

 allow them to run in wet grass, or before the 

 dew is off in the morning, it is also detri- 

 mental to keep them confined in the brooder for 

 several hours. We have a covered run attached to 

 each brooder, and the chicks make use of this 

 during the early morning hours and during rain 

 storms. By the use of these shelters the chicks 

 have an outdoor run where they are protected from 

 sun and storm and also from marauding animals 

 that so often reduce the flocks, especially where 

 chicks are reared on town and city lots. The 

 run is made by covering a wooden frame with 

 one-inch mesh wire netting. We have three dif- 

 ferent styles in use on the Buff Rock Farm, and 



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