^^ /Vr pv h oj^ 
) jjt ’-•$ 
TSxWj 
: 
pli 
V: 
i 
yfi 
'zM 
ftjjjg 
vnr T YYYTTT Published Weekly by The Rural Publishing Co., 
' ljAAAIU . 333 W. 30th St., New York. Price One DoUar a Year 
NEW YORK, JULY 5, 1924 
Entered as Second-Class Matter, June 26, 1879. at the Post 
Office at New York, N. Y.. under the Act of March 3. 1879. 
NO. 4802 
Improving, Old Style Poultry Houses 
How to Convert Shed-Roof Types into Woods Open-Fronts 
I have a henhouse, shed-roof type, 42 ft. loug, 14 ft. 
deep. I want to remodel this house and make a semi¬ 
monitor by adding a 10-ft. span on south side. IIow far 
apart do I need supports to the 2x4 plate of original 
building? Have some 2x4s and 4x4s. Which do you 
recommend? new Hampshire reader. 
AS FROVED ITS VALUE.—Houses of this type 
are no longer experimental. The Woods’ open- 
front poultry-house lias been in successful use all 
over the American continent and in some foreign 
lands for more than 15 years. These houses have 
been tested and found good under all sorts of weath¬ 
er conditions. Single Comb White Leghorns, show 
birds, have been successfully wintered in these 
Leading authorities agree that Nature’s best rem¬ 
edies for the prevention and cure of diseases, the 
best disinfectants and germicides, are fresh air and 
sunlight. Fowls living in open-front buildings enjoy 
better health, greater comfort, and possess greater 
natural resistance to disease. They lay more and 
better eggs; the fertility and hatchability of the 
eggs is better; the chicks possess greater vigor, are 
more hardy and make better growth with less 
losses. Fowls in fresh-air houses are less affected 
by sudden weather changes than those in closed 
quarters. The deadly chill and extreme dampness 
must wear the whole outfit 24 hours a day, indoors 
and out. Fowls live faster, breathe faster, carry a 
much higher temperature, and require far more 
abundant supply of fresh air—oxygen—in propor¬ 
tion to their weight than man. The normal temper¬ 
ature of man is 98.G degrees F. The normal tem¬ 
perature of the hen has a range between 104.5 de¬ 
grees and 107.4 degrees F., sometimes reaching 110 
degrees in an apparently healthy hen. Even slight 
movement, like restlessness on the roost, results in 
rapid increase in normal body temperature. Loss of 
surplus heat is comparatively slow because of the 
Two Woods Open-front Poultry-houses on the Plant of J. W. Parks, Blair Co., Pa. They have been in successful use the year ’round many seasons. Fiy. 37i 
houses in the bleak, cold, windy Canadian North¬ 
west, with better results than in closed buildings'; 
better health, finer plumage, more and better eggs, 
iand with very much less trouble from frosted combs 
where the mercury often indicates 30 to 40 degrees 
below' zero. After many years exi>erience I prefer 
the semi-monitor type of open-front house because 
it is more economical and convenient, is better light¬ 
ed (sunlight penetrates to practically all parts), is 
better ventilated, provides more room on scratching 
floor and greater comfort for the flocks, and is bet¬ 
ter adapted for use where extreme climatic changes 
prevail. Fowls prefer an open-front house to one 
of the closed type. Though accustomed to living in 
a closed house, they will, when opportunity offers, 
take up their abode in an open-front*house when 
there is one nearby. This fact is not only backed up 
by experience, but is reported as the finding in ex¬ 
periment station tests made by Prof. Dry den. 
ADVANTAGES CLAIMED.—Fresh air day and 
night, plenty of sunlight, dryness, and ample room 
are essentials in poultry housing. These are all well 
provided for in the Woods type open-front house. 
.of the snugly closed house in cold weather is absent. 
4ll users claim less trouble from frosted combs than 
in closed houses under similar conditions. Fresli- 
air -flocks are noted for finer and more lustrous 
plumage and for the ease with which they are kept 
in good condition. The use of the open-front house 
-is more humane than confining fowls in snugly 
closed buildings where the air always is stale and 
dampness prevails. Try staying in an unlieated 
snugly closed building in cold weather; an uncom¬ 
fortable, penetrating coldness that seems to chill 
the very marrow of one’s bones will be noted that is 
not present in the open-frolit house or an open shed. 
“Colder in the house than outdoors” is a common 
enough saying about unheated closed buildings in 
Winter. 
DRESSED FOR OPEN-AIR LIVING.—Nature 
clothed fowls for life in the open. They have ample 
outer garments and heavy underwear, made of the 
best sort of material to protect the body against 
cold and sudden changes. They put on new and ad¬ 
ditional plumage at the approach of cold weather. 
They cannot put aside their clothing at will, but 
splendid insulation of the body, provided by feathers 
and downy underfluff. Dr. Kaupp is authority for 
the statement that “107.3 degrees F. is an annual 
approximate temperature” for hens. Fowls are not 
only dressed for open-air living; an abundance of 
fresh air 24 hours a day is absolutely necessary to 
insure health and productivity. 
HAVE CONFIDENCE.—One of the first things a 
beginner with open-front houses needs is to have 
confidence in the house and the comfort of his flocks. 
If the house is built right the fowls will be safe and 
right, no matter what the weather may be. Neigh¬ 
bors will criticize and make dire predictions; this is 
an ancient right of neighborly privilege and custom. 
Forget it! Those who come to scoff usually remain 
to believe and become open-front house users. Have 
confidence; don’t get cold feet. In cold Alberta, on 
the first night that the temperature began to drop 
rapidly below zero, a beginner with the Woods house 
blanketed the open front. He was worried about 
large single combs of his Leghorns. This was only 
for one night. After that, throughout the Winter, 
though the mercury dropped to 30 degrees below 
