Brooders and Pure Air 43 



the air around the chicks is stagnant. Consequently the chicks breathe 

 and rebreathe the same air over and over again. 



To chicken raisers this will mean a great deal when they once real- 

 ize it. We have been brooding chicks artificially a good many years 

 by the direct heat methods of various kinds, and the secret of get- 

 ting fresh air by indirect heat has not been properly appreciated yet. 

 When it is, all other methods will go to make room for the best. 



The large hovers and systems lessen labor; that is the only excuse 

 for having them, and if the air currents can be enlarged so that the 

 chicks can get a moderate amount of fresh air, nothing will displace 

 them. Labor is an important factor in the successful management of 

 a poultry plant. The profits are so small that it is absolutely necessary 

 to minimize expenditure in all possible ways. Crude oil can be 

 burned in all these large systems, and that is as cheap fuel as we 

 ever expect to get. 



The fuel question is very easily answered, as so far, nothing 

 cheaper has been found to substitute for crude oil. 



The Sandbox Brooder and Its Construction. — The sandbox brooder 

 was used by T. B. Purvine last year to care for 12,000 chicks hatched 

 by himself. About 9,000 came to maturity. A box is made about 20 

 feet long and one foot square, laid lengthwise of the house. Through 

 the center of it a terra cotta stovepipe runs from a wood stove to the 

 chimney. Around the terra cotta pipe, the box is filled with sand. A 

 low hover is placed over the box while the chicks are small, and re- 

 moved to make room for roosts later. Half a cord of wood is used 

 to brood each brood of chicks, from 800 to lOOO at a time. With this 

 sand brooder there is no gas in the air and extremes of temperature 

 are avoided, because the sand is not easily overheated and does not 

 lose its heat quickly if the fire dies out. Mr. Purvine has fourteen 

 houses all equipped with this system. 



