52 CHOOSING A POULTRY FARM 



eggs. In the breeding of high-class exhibition and fancy speci- 

 mens it is absolutely essential to keep the different flocks separate. 

 The semi-community does this well. It is also adapted to the 

 village or farm flock where the nearness of a neighbor or the 

 presence of some crop which would easily be destroyed makes it 

 desirable to keep them securely yarded (Fig. 33). 



Colony system is a term applied to the method of dividing 

 birds into small flocks of from twenty to fifty and scattering them 

 in small colony houses about the farm; no fencing is used, the 

 birds have free range all the time. The feeding or work is usually 

 done by an attendant driving around from coop to coop with a 

 wagon. This system is adapted to low-priced land located at 

 considerable distance from cities; it can be used to excellent 

 advantage on waste land, such as brush fields or rocky wooded 

 hillsides. It is suited to the raising of roosters, capons, and turkeys 

 on a large scale, since they do much better on free range and the 

 cost of feed is reduced to a minimum. The cost of labor per 

 bird is usually high where a system of this kind is employed, but 

 by the use of wagons or feed carts it should not be excessive 

 (Fig. 34). 



The colony system works out to very good advantage in com- 

 bination with other branches of farm work, such as fruit-growing. 

 The colony houses may be scattered among the trees, thus making 

 the same land produce two crops. With dairy or beef farming 

 the houses may be scattered about the permanent pastures, where 

 they can be easily attended to and do no damage. 



Economy of Time and Labor. The poultry plant, whether 

 large or small, should be laid out with the idea of saving steps. 

 The greatest saving in this respect can be made by care in planning 

 the location of the buildings. The main building should be cen- 

 trally located. It usually contains a feed-room and general 

 workroom, as for fattening, killing, and picking. The incuba- 

 tion and brooding equipment and the laying houses should be so 

 placed in relation to the main building that the entire round of 

 work can be done without retracing steps and with the shortest 

 distance possible. Chick ranges should be located as near the 

 centre of the plant as practicable, as the birds require feeding 

 much oftener when young. 



A good system of roads and paths should be constructed so 

 as to be dry at all times. These should be in direct communi- 

 cation with the public highway. 



