84: FEEDING ANIMALS. 



CHAPTER IV. 



STOCK BARNS. 



ONE of the most important questions relating to a sys- 

 tem of economical meat, milk and wool production is that 

 of the best construction of barns for the various kinds of 

 farm animals. Even in the comparatively mild climate of 

 England, the best feeders have found it a great economy 

 to provide a warm shelter in winter. Many experiments 

 have been there tried upon cattle and sheep. But sheep 

 are usually supposed to be the best provided by Nature 

 with protection against cold ; yet Mr. Nesbit relates a case, 

 coming under his observation, where a farmer in Dorset- 

 shire placed 30 sheep under a warm shed, and a like num- 

 ber of sheep, of the same weight and condition, were fed 

 in the open field, without shelter of any kind. Each lot 

 was fed with turnips, ad libitum, and coarse fodder. This 

 continued through the cold season, and the result proved 

 that those without shelter gained one pound per head each 

 week, whilst those under shelter, although they ate less 

 food, increased three pounds per head per week. 



It must be admitted that the large amount of water 

 in turnips would cause this diet to show most unfavorably 

 in the open air, giving a greater contrast than a diet of 

 dry food. But that most experienced cattle and sheep 

 feeder, Mechi, has given very strong testimony in favor of 

 shelter for all farm animals. In the case of the cow, all 

 dairymen have noted the immediate effect of cold upon the 

 secretion of milk. A sudden change to a lower tempera- 



