44 



FIRST LESSONS IN POULTRY KEEPINd. 



Advantage of Box Style Coops. 



Another A Shaped Coop, 

 Sides of roof 22 x 28 inches. 



One advantage of this style of coop is that the entire floor space in tlie coop, and ground 

 «pace in the pen, are available lor the hen as well as for the chicks. In the A shaped coop 



the hen can stand upright only in the middle of the 

 coop. This gives her actually much less room than 

 she appears to have, and this close confinement in 

 coops is one of the reasons why hens sometimes do 

 not do well with chicks. We must give the hen a 

 chance. 



A second advantage of the box coop is that it is 

 more easily cleaned. I used them for years in a dry 

 climate, with the top nailed fast, cleaning the coop 

 l)y tipping tirst backward, then sideways toward the door, then forward, the droppings rolling 

 out at the door. For climates where the floor gets damp, and the droppings adhesive, the lop 

 •should be hinged, thus making it easy to get at the inside of the coop to clean. Besides, the 

 angles at the floor being right angles instead of acute angles, as In the other style of coops, the 

 ■corners are much easier to keep clean in case of 

 llie coop with a floor, and this box coop makes a 

 serviceable coop for all seasons. 



To go into all the details of coop construction 

 in this lesson would be out of the question. We 

 cmust have a special lesson on that subject next 

 winter at the time when coops should be made '-'<"'? **""" "'" I'<'st Illustraiion with Penift. Long 



, J, . , . T ■ i_ , a«^ Movable Shelter Board. 



ready for the coming season, I give here only 



enough alioiit coops to give those studying these lessons a fair idea of them, and wish to 

 impress on them as having special bearing on their success in rearing chicks with hens that the 

 istructure of the coops should combine these two features: 



(i). (Jnmfort of both hen and chicks, 



(2). Convenience of the attendant. 



Coop Pens for Hens and Chicks. 



The illustrations so far show pens which confine the hen, but give the chicks full liberty. 

 This is the best way to handle them if it can be done. 



Jt cannot be done, however, where enemies of chicks are so numerous that they would 



destroy many of the chii'ks if 

 ^ . ...=^~-^ given lilierty. Poultry keep- 



ers living In towns have espe- 

 cially to guard against the 

 niarauilings of cats. Against 

 tlie>e the best protection is 

 wire covered pens. Tlie il- 

 lustration on next page shows 

 such a pen used with a box 

 coop of the same width. 



This pen is a little more 

 easily handled than that I use, 

 whii'h is wider, mine being 6 

 >; 12 ft. on the ground, whei'e 

 this is 2 X 12 ft. I prefer the 

 l;irt;er ones as giving the 

 chicks more room, and not re- 



„ ■ . , , , quiring lo be moved so often. 



Now just a word about the use of such coops to protect the small chicks. Tbev are more 

 .expensive, and It is more trouble to handle chicks this way than In the other coops with the 



Box Coop With Knock Down I'e 



Tliis oonp Is 22 x 24 inclies, oiitsklc! 

 ailgli ill from, and 16 Ijiclics In lliu ria 



isiirc on tlir grounil, 21 iuclies 

 Wliin nniiiij of tlu-su lilniiu- 

 -sl.ms 10 inch boaids cut witli pniclli^iilly no Hiisle. The l.iiu-i- pen is 

 4 ft. long, 2 ft. wide, 2 ft. high. T,.]! and bott(,ni mils iiie of 1 Inch 

 .stuff, 2 Inches wide. 



