POULTRY FOR PROFIT 147 



we humans do, from the direct burning rays of the 

 sun. 



Baby chicks left exposed to the glare of the sun 

 soon die. I went to church one hot April morning 

 and forgot to shade a Philo coop which held thirty- 

 five or forty young chicks. When I returned three 

 hours after one chick was just breathing its last, and 

 they dropped off, one by one, till the entire brood 

 was gone. Adult fowls can bear more heat than 

 chicks, but they are very uncomfortable and this 

 should be reason enough for protecting them. 



Hens and chicks alike prefer the shade of a low- 

 growing tree or vine to anything else. Nothing 

 pleases them quite so much as a grape vine. Corn is 

 a particularly good shade for young chicks. The 

 shade is low and not too dense. 



Deciduous trees make a very satisfactory summer 

 shade and are profitable besides, but they are of no 

 use in February, when shade is often greatly needed. 

 For a permanent shade, good all the year round, 

 nothing is such a pleasure to fowls or such a satisfac- 

 tion to their owner as a pepper tree. It might make 

 too dense a shade in a north-front yard, but in a 

 south-front yard, especially on a southern slope, it 

 is ideal. Vines when they can be made to grow are 

 excellent shade, but unless the vines are started 

 ahead of the chickens they are impossible. Castor 

 beans are good but ugly. 



When there is nothing else a wooden frame two or 

 three feet high covered with burlap sacks makes a 

 very good shade, but it is not pretty, and every poul- 

 try keeper ought to plan for some permanent green 

 shade. Whether you have a tree or only a makeshift 

 burlap shade, try throwing a pail of water under 

 it every day, just enough to keep the ground moist 

 and make a wallow for the fowls. This helps to keep 



