DUST BATHS 301 



poultry farming should or should not raise their feed. If 

 one is sufl&ciently well versed in practice and theory to 

 operate a poultry plant he can spend all of his time to 

 better advantage in raising poultry than in raising feed for 

 poultry. This, however, does not mean that areas should 

 not be reserved for the production of green feeds. Nor does 

 it mean that small areas should not be cultivated for the 

 purpose of renovating the soil and at the same time growing 

 such crops as can well be used as forage for horses or for 

 feeding the hens. 



Dust Baths. — The primary function of a dust bath is 

 to gratify the hen's instinctive desire to dust ; to keep her 

 contented and comfortable. A secondary purpose, the 

 value of which has been very much overrated, is to rid the 

 hen's body of hce. 



Careful observation and close investigation have estab- 

 lished the following points : 



First, the indoor dust bath, which has its greatest value 

 in allowing the hen to dust in cold weather, when the 

 ground is covered with snow, is generally so cold that the 

 hen will not use it. 



Second, when it is warm enough for her to use it, the air 

 of the room becomes so dusty that it is uncomfortable for 

 the attendant and injurious to all the flock. 



Third, upon microscopical examination of the throat 

 mucus in some cases of pneumonia, it has been found that 

 the source of inflammation was due to dust particles im- 

 bedded in the mucus membrane. 



Fourth, the hen's instinctive desire for wallowing or 

 dusting is apparently just as thoroughly gratified by wal- 

 lowing in the litter thrown upon the floor as it is in a 

 specially devised dust box. 



