36 $4223.00 PROFIT IN ONE YEAR 



be fed them in this manner. Keeping the fowls supplied with a dried 

 mash in the hopper insures them always having enough to eat. In case 

 they are not fed sufficiently in the litter they will finish their meal at the 

 hopper. If the chickens are always ready for you when you enter the 

 pen with the feed pail you will know that they are not being overfed. 

 If they are hungry they will flock around as soon as you enter. If they 

 are indifferent when you go in you will know that they are being overfed. 

 So it is time to cut down on their rations. 



Piano Box Colony House 



In another chapter I discussed incubators and brooders, but perhaps 

 while I am talking over with you your baby chicks, you'd be interested in 

 ray experience with a home-made colony house — many of which I still 

 use. After the hatches came off, the fluffy babies were transferred to the 

 brooder — and it is remarkable to see how they thrive and grow. They 

 are always anxious to get out and when the robins return bringing spring 

 with them, I let the growing youngsters into their sunflower parks. 



The beautiful days of May come all too soon — and chicks grow 

 splendidly. They are now large enough so that sexes may be separated. 

 A colony house made from a piano box such as will be found illustrated 

 on page 33 will make a comfortable and economical quarters for growing 

 stock. I removed the bottom of the box, then placed two pieces of 2x6 

 under the box, sawed off the corners next to the ground, which will make 

 it easy to move. These pieces are placed about twelve inches from the 

 outer edge of the box and the floor nailed to them. I placed a few bricks 

 under them so that the box can be raised high enough to afford the 

 chickens splendid shelter on rainy days. I placed the box on a high spot 

 so that the ground was dry under it, as' the chicks prefer to go under the 

 box rather than go inside during the daytime in case of any rough 

 weather. After I had the runners secured I next divided the front, which 

 was the bottom of the box and is now open, by nailing a 2x4 between 

 the bottom and the top at the front edge. Next I nailed a 2x4 of the 

 same length against each side, on the inside flush with the front. This 

 served to hang the doors on. I made the doors out of 1x2 and covered 

 with one-inch mesh. If you arl likely to be troubled with weasles it 

 would be a good idea to tack wire cloth on the frames instead of one- 

 inch poultry netting. This wire cloth can be secured any width and as 

 fine as you wish. The half-inch hardware cloth is sufficiently fine. These 

 doors answered the purpose very nicely until the weather became a little 

 cool in the fall, when I tacked muslin over the wire. After the doors 

 were on I covered the top of the box with roofing paper, stopped all 



