The Southern farm gazette. (Starkville, Miss.) 1895-1909, 1902-12-01


any great outlay. The modern
idea of great hog hotel with
every convenience for the herds
man to feed and care for his herd
generally sacrifices the hog to the
man. These big houses in which
hogs feed, drink and sleep are
soon damp, stuffy loud-smelling
and lack the dryness and sun
light essential to health.
Many au am bitiousbreeder mas
wrecked his business by building
a large hog house. When disease
attacks the herd, as it is sure to
de in such conditions, he helpless
because his herd lacks the vigor
to resist disease. Every farmer
who accepts the fact that shelter
is necessary can study his sur
roundings and by little outlay
and use of his ingenuity secure
shelter at such points as will be
convenient for feeding and hand
ling his herd and also avail him
self of the cheapest and best d S.
lnfcctants, sunshine and fresh
air, in every nook and corner of
his shelter.
The conditions oflots, buildings
and material at hand are radical
ly different on the farms that a
good plan for one may be poor
one for another. Your corres-
pondent's thirty-three hogs can
be well-housed in house 2Sx6
feet, divided into four parts 7x6
feet, which is a good size pen for
a SOW to farrow in. The house
should open onto a feeding floor
12x28 feet on which the feeding
and stopping is done. 1t is i'm
possible to keep a pen dry and
sweet when pigs and hogs are
fed inside. The size of the pen
given will keep cleaner than one
twice or three times as large, as
the pigs will pass out for slop
and feed and ease themselves
at some corner outside instead of
in corner of larger pen.
Health and cheapness as we'll as
convenience in feeding are Sc
cured by such an arrangement.
These pens and floors can be
located in different lots as con-
venience for feeding and grading
a herd may demand. The feed
ing floor being on the south is
easily kept clean and dry aud be-
ing sheltered from north winds
and catching every ray of sun
light will be used for sun baths
by pigs and sows.
We build these houses of floor
ing or ship-lap, so no wind can
whistle through. They have a
drop window on the south that
can be closedor opened, as weath-
er demands. The houses are
about thirty inches high in the
rear and four feet in front. The
roof should fit so neatly TO the
sides that no wind drives in TO
carry off the warmth of SOW and
pigs. With a small entrance
twenty inches wide that can be
closed by swinging door or
sacking when sows farrow there
will be no chilled pigs even in
zero weather. Such a pen we
have found more satisfactory
than our large hog house built
years ago before we had much ex-
perience.
To all young men contempla.
ting building large hog house
with all modern conveniences we
say wait and try the cottage plan
of having each family by itself.
1t is in the line of economy and
health.
AS to the cement floor it NAV
do we'll for feeding floor but is
too cold for pigs and sows to
sleep on. Bed as we'll as one may
they will come in contact with
the cement floor. Wehave cement
floors for cows and horse stables
and are not so enthusiastic for
them. They can be made rat
proof, which is a great point; so
can the board floor if it is laid on
a SiX-inch foundation of cinderS