92 



FARMER'S CYCLOPEDIA OF LIVE STOCK 



After heavy rain storms the bacterial 

 content of the deeper strata of soil is 

 higher than after long periods of 

 drought. 



The common practice of allowing hogs 

 and other animals to obtain their water 

 from streams or ponds in which they are 

 allowed to stand is an undesirable prac- 

 tice. Not only do the animals contam- 

 inate the water which they require 

 themselves, but the contamination in the 

 case of running streams is carried down 

 the stream and subjects the animals of 



Fig. 50 SIMPLE METHOD OF TAKING AIR 



INTO STONE OR BASEMENT STABLES 



other farmers to the danger of infection. 

 An infectious disease once started may, 

 therefore, spread widely as the result of 

 carelessness from the premises where it 

 had first occurred. Such methods of in- 

 fection have been observed in the case 

 of hog cholera, but particularly of 

 anthrax. It is well worth the trouble 

 of all stock farmers to provide a clean 

 water supply in troughs or by some 

 other method by which the animals are 

 prevented from contaminating their 

 water supply. 



A proper supply of pure air i s nec- 

 essary to the health of all kinds of farm 

 animals and it is unquestionably true 

 that a considerable percentage of the 

 disease which prevails among farm ani- 

 mals is due to close confinement in 

 badly ventilated and otherwise insani- 

 tary stables. The belief is often held 

 that our modern high-bred animals re- 

 quire more pampering and greater atten- 

 tion to the regulation of the temperature 

 of their surroundings than do scrub 

 animals. Such, however, is not neces- 

 sarily the case. 



Moreover, in securing a high tempera- 

 ture in stables during the winter it often 

 occurs that too little attention is 

 given to the ventilation of the stable, 

 so that one possible advantage is ob- 

 tained with the simultaneous loss of 

 another and more important advan- 

 tage, namely, good ventilation. The 



air of stables which are filled to their 

 full capacity with farm animals be- 

 comes contaminated not only as a result 

 of the breathing of the animals, but by 

 various organic substances given off in 

 the respired air and by the manure and 

 other filth which is too often allowed to 

 accumulate in stables. 



The amount of air breathed hourly 

 by different farm animals has been cal- 

 culated by King as follows: For 

 horses 4,296 cubic feet, for cows 3,542 

 cubic feet, for hogs 1,392 cubic feet, 

 for sheep 917 cubic feet and for hens 

 31.5 cubic feet. It is, of course, admitted 

 at once that perfect ventilation is not 

 possible in practice, but fortunately it 

 is also not necessary. In fact in the 

 average stable, a sufficient amount of 

 air passes through the cracks and 

 around doors and windows to prop- 

 erly ventilate the stable. Under such 

 conditions no attention may be given to 

 ventilation. If, however, such loosely 



Fig. 51 — CROSS SECTION OF MONITOR- 



ROOFED STABLE WITH HINGED-VALVE 



SYSTEM OF INLETS AND OUTLETS 



constructed stables admit too much cold 

 air and lower the temperature too 

 greatly, it may be necessary to make them 

 nearly airtight, and if this be done a 

 system of ventilation becomes necessary. 

 In other words, in practice a special sys- 

 tem of ventilation is necessary only in 

 cases where the stables are constructed 

 so nearly airtight that otherwise a suf- 

 ficient quantity of air could not get in. 

 Furthermore, in order to secure the 

 proper operation of any system of ven- 

 tilation, it is necessary to have the 

 stables constructed nearlv airtight since 



