Los Angeles herald., 1910-01-23

n f the making or poultry houses
like the making of books, there is
" no end. They are found in all
sizes, shapes and conditions, according
to the taste and ability of the builder
They range from the costly establish
inent, better and more comfortable
than many homes, furnished with more
than is necessary for the care and
comfort of the arStocrats of poultry
dom, down to the tenement house of a
dry goods box or worse.
While there is diversity of opinion
among the poultry breeders as to the
best way of housing fowls, they are
unanimous in condemning any building
that does not protect the chickens from
drafts and moisture. 1t is far better
for a fowl to roost in the trees or on
the fence than in a drafty or damp
house.
Breeders have a variety of ways in
arranging interiors as well as eXterl-
ors. One breeder insists upon his
chickens going up a ladder to their
sleeping apartments and using the
room under the bed chambers for a
dust bath room. Another claims that
the only suitable house for poultry is
one that has a bedroom and a living
room where the biddies can scratch
and sing the whole day through.
Houses of this character may be
needed in the colder parts of the coun-
try, where stormy weather is preva-
lent, but they are not necessary in
Southern California. If one has the
money to spend and is raising poultry
for pleasure fine buildings with all the
modern improvements will add greatly
to his enjoyment. But the man or
woman who is in the poultry business
for revenue wants the house that costs
the least to build, so long as it gives
the needed protection to the fowls and
which calls for the smallest amount of
labor in its care.
Every cent above the necessary cost
and each added moment of work in its
care, is so much taken from the prof
it's of the business.
/ do not believe in housing many
fowls under one roof, even if divided
into separate apartments, as vermin
and disease will spread more quickly
under such conditions. We do not
have to prepare for the long winters of
the north and east: what little stormy
weather we have is no hardship to the
fowls provided they have comforta-
BILE place to stay in while the storm Is
on and have a dry spot for feeding.
Any house that has an abundance of
good, pure air, that is free from drafts
weather is suitable for this climate.
The most practical and economical
poultry building for this section is, in
my opinion, the shed-roof Open-front
house. The one I prefer above others
is feet long. 31a feet wide, feet high
in back and A feet in front, and as
nearly tight in back and sides as pos
sible
Use half-inch boards for back and
ends-shoe boxes furnish the best ma
terial, with laths for battens. Use
2x1 strips for stills and plates, except
in 'front.' where 3X1 are used at top al
bottom. Shakes for the roof. The door
is made of shakes or thin boards,
nailed to two pieces of 1X2, and it ex-
tends across the front, hanging from
the top. 1t is kept up at an angle of
go degrees the year round. except with
the growing stock, when it is closed
in stormy weather When down it
leaves a siX-inch opening at the bot
tom.
The raised door gives a dry feeding
place in wet weather. Two roosts rest