274 



POULTRY PRODUCTION 



develops into roup. Unless fairly frequently replaced th^ 

 dirt becomes contaminated with filth and is a source of 

 danger. 



The cement floor is dry, if properly constructed, and is 

 sanitary, durable, and rat-proof.' It is not a cold floor when 

 properly bedded with a straw litter. In order to insure a 

 cement floor being dry it is necessary to take a precaution 

 similar to the one mentioned in the case of the dirt floor. 

 The capillary moisture must be stopped. A six- or eight-inch 



Fig. 147 



The Kansas colony house. (Courtesy of Kansas Experiment Station.) 



course of coarse-crushed rock should be the floor's founda- 

 tion. Over this may be placed a layer of gravel and finally 

 the finishing coat, which should be smooth to insure easy 

 cleaning. It is an additional safeguard against moisture 

 with both dirt and concrete floors to make the floor level 

 six inches above the level of the ground outside. 



What seems to be proving a very satisfactory floor is made 

 by laying hollow clay building blocks on their flat side in a bed 

 of well-settled gravel and plastering the whole with cement 



