HOUSING AND HYGIENE 283 



the roof and the pen below. It is also likely to be a harbor 

 for rats and mice, and mites once established in it are difficult 

 to get rid of. So far as the efficiency of the loft is concerned 

 the straw may be left from year to year. 



The straw loft seems best adapted to the gable-roof houses, 

 as shown in Fig. 154. It may be used with less convenience 

 in either a shed roof or combination roof house. 



Fixtures. — ^Those pieces of equipment which are built as a 

 part of the house should be simple, few in number, placed 

 high enough not to use up floor space, and removable. They 

 will generally consist of nests, perches, a broody coop, and a 

 shelf for the watering device and feed hoppers. A dropping 

 board beneath the perches is desirable, where bedding is 

 expensive or the manure is to be saved for gardening purposes. 

 It is essential if the nests are located below the perches. 



Nests. — ^The desirable qualities of a nest are that it be 

 roomy, easily cleaned and sprayed, dark, conveniently 

 located, and capable of being closed. For the common 

 farm breeds a nest fourteen inches square and six inches 

 deep is a good size. * At least fifteen inches of head room for 

 the hens should be provided. There should be one nest for 

 every ten hens in farm flocks of ordinary size. Enough of the 

 parts should be removable so that cleaning and thorough 

 spraying are possible. The whole battery of nests should be 

 so arranged that they can be taken out of the house for 

 cleaning, spraying, and sunning when it appears desirable. 

 Dark nests are highly desirable because the hen loves seclu- 

 sion for laying. If her whims are satisfied in this particular 

 she is very much less likely to steal her nest in undesirable 

 places. If the nests are dark, fowls are far less likely to get t 

 to scratching in the nest, break an egg, and contract the 

 vice of egg-eating. Arranging it so the fowls may be easily 

 shut out, precludes their roosting in the nests and fouling 

 them. This they are prone to do, particularly at molting 

 time, in order to escape being crowded by other birds on the 

 perch. While the new feathers are coming through they are 

 sensitive to being touched by other birds. 



For convenience the nests should be placed at such a 

 height that the person gathering the eggs, who presumably 



