ARRANGEMENT OF NESTS 139 



passageways or intrude upon the floor area. An unobstructed 

 floor area is a vital consideration, and it should not be robbed 

 in any way unless absolutely necessary. 



A good location for the nests is underneath the dropping- 

 boards, suspended from them in light portable sections or bat- ■ 

 teries, which may be removed conveniently for cleaning. This 

 practice, however, is not possible in houses intended for the 

 heavier breeds, where the dropping-boards are built close to the 

 floor, but it is admirably well suited to Leghorns. 



The nests should be arranged so that the hens enter from the 

 side toward the rear wall, and have a shelf upon which they may 

 alight before entering a particular compartment. Each nest 

 should be from 12 to 14 inches square and about 12 inches high, 

 with solid partitions between them to prevent the hens from 

 fighting. The side from which the fowls enter should have a 

 front piece — a batten about three inches high — to keep the nest- 

 ing material in its proper place ; the side of the nests exposed to 

 the interior of the house and from which the attendant is sup- 

 posed to gather the eggs, consists of a hinged lid, arranged to 

 opera.te with the greatest facility. 



Portable Nests. — The advantages of nests built in portable 

 sections are numerous. It is necessary to clean them frequently 

 in order to secure clean eggs at all times, and to replenish the 

 nesting material. Moreover, they should be sprayed or scrubbed 

 with a disinfectant at regular intervals to avoid a pestilence of 

 lice and mites. The easiest way to perform this work is to re- 

 move the nests outdoors, dump out their old contents, wash or 

 spray them, place them in the sun to dry, refill with fresh straw, 

 excelsior or other material and return them to their proper place. 



Built-in nests, those which are not portable, are very difficult 

 and tedious to clean, and should not be tolerated. 



Cleanliness.-7-It is also important that the nests be protected 

 against the fowls roosting in or on top of them, thereby soiling 

 them unnecessarily. Soiled eggs are very bothersome, and even 

 when thoroughly cleaned they are apt to be detected as washed 

 eggs, and will be discounted accordingly. Furthermore, the 



