20 The Care of Animals 



size of the animals. For small cows of the dairy type 

 the length of stall from the manger to edge of gutter 

 should be from fifty -six to sixty -two inches; and for 

 the larger beef breeds seventy -two inches. The floor- 

 ing of the stalls should be planks, well matched, run- 

 ning lengthwise of the stall and having a slight incline 

 to the rear. The gutter behind the stall should be 

 from four to five inches deep and about fifteen inches 

 wide. The edge of the gutter next to the stall should 

 be vertical; otherwise animals are liable to slip when 

 stepping on it. 



The width of the stall should vary, according to the 

 size of the animal, from thirty-eight to forty-five inches. 

 There should be a partition extending far enough back 

 to keep the animals from fighting each other and from 

 turning crosswise of the stall so as to interfere with 

 the neighboring animal or to soil the adjoining stall. 

 In the narrower stalls for milch cows, it is an excel- 

 lent plan to have the partition hinged near the cow's 

 shoulder, so that the rear portion can be unhooked and 

 swung aside or raised to give more room for the milker. 



The manger should be as low as convenient, and 

 should be so divided that the food of each animal is 

 kept in a separate compartment. In the stabling of 

 cows, each animal should have her own stall assigned 

 to her, and she should not be shifted from place to 

 place. 



Cows are fastened in stalls in various ways. Some 

 of the swinging or chain stanchions give good satisfac- 

 tion. An excellent method is merely to stretch a chain 

 across the rear of the stall. This is a cheap and effi- 



