78 



POULTRY HOUSES AND FIXTURES 



colony brooding and will be found 

 suitable for the use of the great ma- 

 jority of those who are raising chicks 

 by this time and labor-saving method. 

 Fig. 152 shows floor plan of house, 

 which is 10x24 feet, with a 10-foot 

 hover section partitioned off at one 

 end. When the chicks are first 

 placed under the hover they are to 

 be confined to this room. It is large 

 enough for several hundred during 

 the first week or two, but not so 

 large as to invite floor drafts, and 

 it can be comfortably heated with 

 much less fuel than would be re- 

 quired to maintain the correct tem- 

 perature if the entire house were in 

 one room. 



When the chicks are ten days to 

 two weeks old, or when only a few days old in 



FIG 151 FRONT ELEVATION OF TWO-COMPARTMENT HOUSE FOR 



COLONY HOVER 



mild 



weather, they should be given access to the exercising 

 compartment, which is provided with a muslin shutter for 

 ventilation. In order to be able to graduate the ventila- 

 tion, a double shutter is provided so that the upper part 

 may be opened without disturbing the lower section, thus 

 affording fresh air without exposing the chicks to direct 

 drafts from the opening, as would be the case if the 

 entire shutter were to be opened in severe or stormy 

 weather. In milder weather, or when the chicks are 

 older and have been somewhat hardened, the entire shut- 

 ter may be hooked up, thus giving the chicks practically 

 outdoor conditions without exposure. This shutter is 

 shown in detail in Fig. 148. 



Fig. 150 is a cross section of the hover end and Fig. 

 151 shows the front of the completed house. 



Frame for top shutter.. %x2 



Strip under shutter %x2Ms 



Strip under window %x2% 



20 lin. ft. 



6 lin. ft. 



10 lin. ft. 



Surfaced 

 Surfaced 

 Surfaced 



sides 

 sides 

 sides - 



Remarks 



BILL, OF MATERIALS FOR COLONY HOVER HOUSE 



No. of 

 Pieces 



4 



2 



4 

 11 



4 

 10 



Size Length 

 Inches Feet 

 12 

 10 

 12 

 10 



12 



1 piece cuts 

 Cut to fit. 



Sills, sides 2x8 



Sills, ends 2x8 



Sills, half width 2x4 



Joists 2x6 



Plates 2x4 



Studs, front 2x4 



Studs, rear 2x4 



Studs, ends 2x4 



Rafters 2x5 



Window sills 2x5 



Roof boards 1x10 



TAG siding %x6 



Flooring % x4 



Celling- 9-16x4 350 ft. bd. meas. 



Door & window frames..%x6 150 lin. ft. Surfaced 



Trim boards %x4 60 lin. ft. Surfaced 



Frame for shutter %x3% 25 lin. ft. Surfaced 



Spike to inside 

 face of side sill. 



10 

 16 

 12 

 10 



6 



4 



13 



2 



2. 



325 ft. bd. meas. 

 450 ft. bd. meas. 

 300 ft. bd. meas. 



Surfaced 



sides 

 sides 

 sides 



ftoom. 



YARD 



3% squares prepared roofing. 



3 squares sheathing paper for floor. 

 60 sq. ft. wire netting for curtain front. 



2 12-light windows, 10x12. 



3 pr. 8-inch T-strap hinges. 



3 hasps. 



4 pr. 2-inch butt hinges for windows. 



1 pr. 2% -inch butt hinges for shutters. 

 1 pr. 3-inch butt hinges for shutters. 

 4 2-inch screw hooks and eyes. 

 Nails, tacks and paint. 



Capacity of Colony Hover Brooding Houses 



Overciowding is geneial among chick raisers, but is 

 particularly common in colony-hover brooding where the 

 effects of this mistaken practice are most serious. The 

 wise chick raiser will conservatively estimate the capac- 

 ity of his house as well as the brooder, and will keep 

 well inside its limits. The house shown in Figs. 146, 147 

 and 149, is large enough for 300 to 500 chicks for the 

 first two or three weeks, with proper care, but after that 

 time the number positively must be reduced, unless the 

 chicks can be outdoors practically all day long. In that 

 case the flock may remain undivided until the chicks no 

 longer need artificial heat. 



At that time the cockerels should be removed, but 

 the pullets may be left to grow to maturity together, 

 provided the house can be thoroughly ventilated. The 

 capacity of the house shown in Figs. 150, 151 and 152 

 is practically the same as for the smaller house during the 

 brooding period. After the chicks no longer need artifi- 

 cial heat the entire house can be used 

 for perches, thus dividing the chicks 

 into two flocks. 



For use early in the season, when 

 the chicks must be confined indoors, 

 estimated capacity should always be 

 discounted considerably, as any 

 brooder house will comfortably ac- 

 commodate many more chicks when 

 they are running out most of the 

 time. In cold weather brooding, the 

 maximum size of the flock for either 

 house herein described should not 

 exceed 300, and this number must be 

 greatly reduced after the chicks are 

 a few weeks old. 



Tn addition to the brooder houses 

 illustrated and described in this chap 

 ter, most of which are designed to b< 

 permanent, the reader should consult 

 FIG. 152-FLOOR PLAN FOR TWO-COMPARTMENT COLONY HOVER HOUSE the plans in Chapter VII. 



