DISEASES OF POULTRY. 19 



under the building during heavy rains should be guard- 

 ed against by filling in with a foot or more of earth 

 before the construction is commenced. It is a great 

 advantage to have soil which contains enough sand to 

 prevent the quick formation of mud and which soon 

 dries. Dampness in the houses and mud in the yarcls 

 are not favorable conditions for poultry raising. 



The next condition of importance is a proper amount 

 of space in the houses and yards. This depends some- 

 what upon the size of the birds and whether a shed is 

 attached to the house. Houses without sheds should 

 have from six to fifteen square feet to each adult bird, 

 while those with sheds may be reduced to about one - 

 half this space. The yards should be large enough to 

 allow exercise in the open ajr, and large enough to 

 supply more grass than the birds will eat. This will ■ 

 vary from 60 to 150 square feet per adult bird. The 

 open shed facing the south, where the fowls can be in- 

 duced to hunt for their food and take exercise in all 

 seasons of the year, and where they can enjoy the 

 pleasure of scratching and dusting themselves in the 

 sunshine, even during the Winter months, is of great 

 assistance in maintaining the health and productive- 

 ness of the flock. 



The ventilation of the poultry -house should be pro- 

 vided for in such a way that draughts of air will not 

 strike the birds. The amount of ventilation required 

 will depend largely upon the height of the house, the 

 atmospheric temperature and the velocity of the wind. 

 In northern latitudes, with buildings of moderate 

 height, the problem in winter is rather to keep the cold 

 out than to let the air in. When the weather is not too 

 cold, however, the admission of plenty of fresh air is 

 important and particularly so if the walls and roofs of 



