Birds Pigeons 
housed in the loft of a barn or shed; and while the 
common breeds do fairly well if thus left to them- 
selves, yet no pets respond to loving care better than 
do the pigeons. 
The first essential of the modern pigeon house is 
that it shall be mice and rat-proof; this is often ac- 
complished by interlining or covering all the walls 
with wire netting. The house should be placed on 
well-drained soil, and should face southward in our 
northern climate. If built large like our chicken 
houses, it should be well ventilated with windows 
that may be opened or closed according to the 
weather. The roof should be tight, and the holes 
for exit should be arranged with a six inch alighting 
board or threshold both inside and outside. 
The following pigeon house is advised by Mr. J. 
C. Long, who maintains that it can be built for 
twenty dollars, and will accommodate twenty-five 
pairs of birds. The house is 8 ft. square on the 
ground plan, 4 ft. high at the back, and 6 ft. high at 
the front, the roof to pitch from the front backward. 
The floor is tight, and the whole house is supported 
on piers or posts a foot high from the ground, and 
capped with zinc projecting downwards to prevent 
entrance of rats. The roof may be made of rough 
boards covered with felt roofing paper, or it may be 
shingled. In any case, it must be rain-proof. The 
door for the entrance of the caretaker is placed at 
one end of the house near the front. Along the 
front of the house is a window, with eight panes of 
glass, each pane being 8 x 10 inches. The bottom 
of the window should be 18 inches above the floor. 
The window-sill on the inside should be widened by 
adding a board a foot wide, so the birds may 
get a sun-bath, which is very necessary to their 
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