33o 
THE  RURAL  NEW-YORKER.  May  21 
Comfort  for  the  Cows. 
IIOW  TO  MARK  THEM  HAPPY  IN  WINTER. 
I.  What  is  the  best  material  for  floors?  2.  How  much  slope?  3. 
What  length  ?  4.  What  Is  the  best  form  of  /fetter  ?  ft.  Should  the  cows 
face  or  back  each  other  ?  (!.  What  Is  the  most  economical  method  of 
cleanln/f  out  the  /flitter  ? 
One  Handling  for  Manure. 
1.  In  ray  own  case,  as  I  use  little  or  no  bedding,  I 
consider  2-inch  pine  planks  the  best,  but  the  floor  re¬ 
quires  renewing  once  in  five  or  six  years,  hence  is  not 
the  most  economical.  Since  listening  to  Prof.  I.  P. 
Roberts’s  directions  for  making  a  cement  floor  (given 
at  the  recent  annual  meeting  of  the  Wisconsin  Dairy¬ 
men’s  Association),  which  is  practically  indestructible, 
I  would  advise  its  use  where  plenty  of  litter  is  at  hand. 
2.  T  think  cattle  should  stand  on  a  nearly  level  floor, 
and  I  have  mine  slope  only  sufficient  not  to  allow  the 
liquids  to  stand  on  them,  say,  a  quarter  of  an  inch  to 
the  foot.  3.  For  Jerseys  of  average  size  a  length  of 
four  feet  is  sufficient,  but  that  would  be  too  short  for 
the  larger  breeds,  and  for  some  individual  Jerseys. 
The  platform  should  be  long  enough  so  that  when  the 
cow  stands  squarely  on  it  the  droppings  will  fall  into 
the  gutter.  My  cows  stand  in  rows  across  the  stable, 
and  some  of  the  platforms  are  four  feet,  and  some 
four  feet  four  inches.  Very  large  cows  would  require 
four  feet  six  inches  or  upwards.  4.  My  gutters  are  at 
present  one  foot  wide  by  eight  inches  deep,  made  also 
of  two-inch  plank,  wrell  matched  and  water-tight,  but 
I  would  recommend  a  width  of  18  inches,  and  a  depth 
of  six  inches  of 
brick.  5.  This 
will  depend 
somewhat  o  n 
the  situation 
and  form  o  f 
the  stable,  but 
for  conveni¬ 
ence  of  feeding 
and  handling 
generally, they 
should  stand 
facing  each 
other  in  rows 
lengthwise  of 
the  stable, 
with  an  alley 
between  them 
w  i  d  e  enough 
for  a  far  m 
wagon  to  be 
driven  through 
In  a  bank  barn 
like  my  own, 
economy  of 
space,  light, 
etc.,  seem  to 
make  cross 
rows  facing 
each  other  the 
best.  (5.  This 
is  a  problem 
which  I  have 
not  yet  sat¬ 
isfactorily 
solved.  It  de¬ 
pends  somewhat  on  the  place  and  location  of  the 
stables  and  the  disposition  of  the  manure  after  its 
removal,  so  that  the  question  becomes  involved 
with  the  broader  one,  What  is  the  best  way  of 
saving  and  applying  stable  manure  ?  On  this  opinions 
differ,  the  preponderance,  I  think,  being  in  favor  of 
one  handling  between  the  stable  and  the  field,  which 
can  be  most  economically  given  by  loading  it  from  the 
gutter  on  to  a  Kemp  manure  spreader,  but  in  this  lati¬ 
tude— Waukesha  County,  Wis.—  it  is  hardly  practicable 
to  do  this  every  day  in  the  year,  and  we  can  only  ap¬ 
proximate  as  nearly  as  possible  thereto,  h.  s.  weeks. 
W.  H.  Gilbert’s  Way. 
1.  I  consider  concrete  or  cement  floors  not  only  the 
best  but  the  most  economical.  2.  The  floor  should  be 
level.  3.  The  length  should  depend  upon  the  size  of 
the  cows— say  from  4%  to  five  feet.  4.  I  use  a  water¬ 
tight  gutter  covered  with  grating,  and  consider  that 
the  best,  as  it  keeps  the  animal  clean  whether  stand¬ 
ing  or  lying  down.  5.  If  the  stable  is  wide  enough  I 
prefer  that  the  cows  should  face  each  other,  not  only 
for  convenience  in  feeding,  but  for  light  and  cleanliness 
in  milking.  Then  in  ventilating  a  stable  we  can  let 
fresh  air  into  the  feeding  alley  and  the  foul  air  out  at 
the  floor  behind  the  cows.  6.  Draw  out  the  manure 
directly  from  the  gutters  to  the  field  and  spread  it,  or 
draw  it  out  to  the  compost  heap.  The  stable  should 
be  not  less  than  40  feet  wide  for  two  rows  of  cows. 
That  will  give  ample  room  for  a  drive- way  behind  the 
cows  and  a  good  feeding  alley  with  plenty  of  manger 
room,  Such  a  stable  can  be  well  lighted  and  venti¬ 
lated.  One  objection  to  the  common  open  gutter  is 
that  the  cows  are  liable  to  get  the  habit  of  standing 
with  the  hind  feet  in  it  which  often  causes  premature 
birth  and  other  troubles.  Then  from  an  open  gutter 
filth  is  easily  transferred  to  the  cows’  tails,  w.  h.  o. 
A  Cold  Country  Barn. 
My  cow  stable,  here  in  Walworth  County,  Wis., 
which  pleases  me  fairly  well,  is  in  a  stone  basement 
eight  feet  high,  the  bottom  being  on  a  level  with  the 
ground,  except  a  bank  on  one  side.  The  barn, 
which  is  shown  at  Fig.  158,  page  332,  is  70  by  30  feet. 
The  stable  on  the  inside  measures  07  by  27  feet,  and  is 
arranged  for  31  cows,  besides  two  box  stalls,  a  meal- 
bin,  0  by  8  by  8  feet,  and  a  space  eight  feet  square  for 
cut  feed,  which  drops  from  the  cutting-room  above. 
The  stable  has  eight  outside  doors,  and  is  lighted  by 
10  windows,  and  ventilated  by  a  shaft  running  to  the 
roof. 
The  cows  face  inward,  and  are  fastened  in  stanch¬ 
ions.  Theoretically  this  is  a  barbarous  method  ;  but 
I  know  of  no  other  that  combines  so  many  advantages. 
Stanchions  are  safe  ;  they  economize  room  ;  the  cows 
can  be  kept  clean,  and  do  not  seem  to  mind  the  con¬ 
finement.  They  are  in  three  rows — two  lengthwise  of 
the  stable  and  one  across  the  end. 
The  feeding  alley  is  eight  feet  wide  and  the  distance 
from  the  outside  wall  to  the  stanchions  is  nine  feet 
four  inches;  the  floor  upon  which  the  cows  stand  is  of 
plank  four  feet  ten  inches  in  length  and  the  gutters, 
which  are  also  plank,  are  18  inches  wide  and  three 
inches  deep  and  the  walk  between  the  gutter  and  wall 
is  three  feet. 
Lading  the  Gutters  and  Feoor. — The  ground  was 
first  made  as  level  as  possible.  The  gutter  was  made 
of  two  10-inch  planks  kept  level  by  placing  short 
pieces  of  inch  boards  crosswise  under  them,  every 
three  or  four  feet.  These  were  let  into  the  earth  so 
that  the  gutter  planks  rest  firmly  on  the  ground.  On 
the  gutter  plank  next  to  the  wall  a  2  by  4-inch  scant¬ 
ling  is  spiked,  which  makes  the  backside  of  the  gutter. 
The  space  between  the  gutter  and  the  wall  (three  feet) 
is  filled  with  soil  and  tramped  firmly  for  a  walk  be¬ 
hind  the  cows. 
A  2  by  4-inch  joist  is  set  up  edgewise,  about  six  or 
eight  inches  from  the  stanchions  a  strip  of  board  two 
inches  wide  is  laid  on  the  inside  of  the  gutter  plank. 
This  and  the  2  by  4  joist  are  for  the  floor  planks  to 
rest  on,  and  there  is  one  inch  slant  to  the  floor. 
Before  laying  the  planks  for  the  latter,  both  sides  of 
the  joist  and  the  space  to  the  gutter  should  be  filled, 
rounding  full,  of  earth,  so  that  each  plank,  when 
laid,  will  have  to  be  pounded  to  settle  it  into 
the  earth,  so  that  it  will  rest  firmly  upon  the  supports 
at  each  end.  This  will  give  a  water-tight  floor  and 
gutter,  and  they  will  last  much  longer  than  if  air  cir¬ 
culated  underneath.  The  gutter  is  18  inches  broad, 
three  deep  in  the  front,  and  two  at  the  back,  and  will 
be  found  much  more  satisfactory  than  a  narrow  one 
six  inches  deep,  which  gives  a  cow  a  wrench  every  time 
she  may  step  into  it.  It  is  also  much  more  convenient 
to  clean.  For  cleaning  the  stable  we  use  a  long- 
hand  zed  scoop,  and  generally  load  the  manure  directly 
from  the  stable  on  the  wagon  or  sleigh,  and  dra\v  and. 
spread  it  either  on  meadow  or  land  to  be  planted  to 
corn  the  following  spring. 
The  feeding  alley,  with  the  exception  of  a  trough  14 
inches  wide  in  front  of  the  cows  for  feeding  grain,  is 
elevated  about  four  or  five  inches. 
Were  I  to  build  again,  I  would  have  my  barn  six  feet 
wider  so  as  to  give  behind  each  row  of  cows  space  for 
driving  a  one-horse  cart  for  cleaning. 
As  to  whether  the  cows  should  face  each  other  or 
stand  with  their  backs  to  each  other,  I  think  cows  are 
social,  and  enjoy  standing  face  to  face.  chas.  r.  reach. 
All  Under  One  Roof. 
My  stables,  here  in  the  Western  Reserve,  Ohio,  are 
all  constructed  so  that  the  fore  feet  of  my  cattle  stand 
on  the  ground.  I  have  discarded  all  other  kinds  of 
floors.  I  have  fixed  most  of  my  horse  stables  in  the 
same  way  and  this  season  will  adopt  the  same  plan  for 
the  remainder. 
In  building  new’  barns  for  75  or  a  less  number  of  cows 
and  horses,  I  would  plan  to  have  them  all  under  one 
roof.  Time  and  feed  will  be  saved.  What  hay  the 
cattle  leave  will  furnish  feed  for  a  number  of  horses 
and  they  seem  to  relish  it  about  as  well  as  fresh  hay  ; 
and  in  zero  w’eatlier  when  one  comes  in  with  his  teams 
if  his  cattle  are  where  they  should  be — in  the  barn — 
he  will  find  a  summer  atmosphere  instead  of  frost  and 
cold  which  would  necessitate  more  oats  and  blankets 
and  better  care. 
A  basement  barn  should  be  graded  with  a  slope  of 
one  foot  in 
forty  for  the 
drainage  of  the 
gutters.  Now 
dig  a  ditch  par¬ 
allel  with  the 
stanchions. 
Let  the  dis¬ 
tance  be  five 
feet  from  them 
to  the  edge  of 
the  ditch, 
which  should 
be  18  or  2  0 
inches  wide 
and  12  inches 
deep,  with  a 
half  round  bot¬ 
tom.  Cement 
it  with  any 
good  brand  of 
cement,  using 
one  part  of 
cement  to 
three  of  good 
sharp  sand  or 
fine  gravel.  If 
tw’o  or  more 
rows  of  stan¬ 
chions  are 
used,  dig  a  nar- 
row  ditch 
across  the  ends 
of  the  gutters, 
and  make  it 
low’est  at  the 
outlet.  Cement  this  like  the  gutters,  and  use  five  or 
six-inch  sewer  pipe  to  conduct  the  contents  to  the 
manure  cistern  or  refuse  pile. 
After  the  gutters  have  been  cemented,  place  sleepers 
across,  extending  three  inches  below  the  surface  of 
the  ground  back  of  the  gutters.  On  these  lay  planks 
for  a  width  of  three  feet,  five  feet  from  the  stanchions, 
but  not  so  tightly  as  to  prevent  the  liquid  manure  from 
draining  through  between  them  into  the  gutter.  If  you 
have  plenty  of  bedding,  a  three-incli  drop  is  enough. 
I  prefer  a  two-inclx  one,  but,  where  there  is  not  much 
if  any,  a  drop  of  six  inches  would  be  enough.  Five 
feet  four  inches  is  about  the  right  width  for  the  plat¬ 
form  on  which  cows  of  medium  size,  say  900  to  1,100 
pounds,  should  stand  ;  those  for  large  Ilolsteins  and 
Short-horns  should  be  wider  ;  while  for  Jerseys  and 
other  cows  smaller  ones  will  do.  For  a  six-incli  drop 
I  would  make  the  platform  three  inches  wider.  For 
such  a  drop  spike  two-by-four-inch  joists  parallel  with 
the  stanchions’  outer  edge,  for  as  wide  a  space  as  the 
platform  should  be  ;  double  and  brake  joints.  Now 
place  sleepers  two  feet  long  with  ends  to  the  joist  one 
inch  higher  next  to  the  stanchions.  Spike  the  planks 
to  this,  having  the  widest  next  to  the  gutter ;  have 
both  two  feet  wide  for  cows,  wider  for  steers,  and  they 
should  be  built  differently.  Fill  in  with  clay  or  some 
kind  of  earth  that  will  pack  solid  between  the  planks 
and  the  stanchions,  so  that  when  packed  it  will  be 
nearly  level  with  the  planks.  On  the  outer  edge  of 
"the  gutter  nail  cleats  one  by  two  inches,  and  it  is  ready 
for  the  cows.  In  building  a  large  basement  barn,  10 
feet  in  the  clear  is  not  too  high  for  good  air  ;  22  or  24- 
foot  posts  cost  but  little  more  than  18  or  20-foot. 
Barnyard  Scene  on  a  Northern  Vermont  Dairy  Farm.  See  First  Page.  Fig.  150. 
