168 POULTRY BREEDING AND MANAGEMENT 



make greater headway where the chickens are kept in 

 wet, muddy yards. 



2. Drainage. If the ground selected has not good 

 natural drainage, provisions should be made either by 

 under-drainage or by open ditches for carrying off the sur- 

 plus water. The water should not be allowed to stand in 

 the yard. Muddy feet mean muddy eggs. Dampness 

 means catarrh, roup, rheumatism, tuberculosis, etc. 



Sometimes the poultry house is put on a part of the 

 farm that cannot be used for anything else and occasion- 

 ally on a low sour soil too damp for the growth of cereals. 

 Such a place should never be selected as a location for the 

 poultry house. On the other hand it is possible to select 

 land that is too dry. The nature of the soil undoubtedly 

 has an influence on the growth and development of the 

 chickens. Chickens make a more thrifty growth if kept 

 on a soil that retains some moisture. A soil that becomes 

 extremely dry and warm in the summer months is not the 

 best. Hot sand soils, as well as clay soils that bake hard 

 in the summer, do not afford good conditions for profitable 

 poultry production. 



The question as to how many fowls may be kept on an 

 acre of ground depends a good deal on the nature of the 

 soil. Many more chickens may be kept on soil that is 

 rather light and porous than- on heavy clay soil. Soil con- 

 tamination will not have the same danger on the porous 

 soil as on the clay soil. 



3. Air Drainage is sometimes as important as soil drain- 

 age. Cold, moist air seeks the lower levels. It is better 

 to locate the house and yards on higher levels, where there 

 is some air movement to carry off the cold, damp air or 

 prevent it becoming stagnant. Fowls should not, however, 

 be exposed to high winds. You will notice that on windy 

 days they mope around in sheltered corners or in houses. 



