Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1916-02-06
BUILDING THE HOUSE
FOR POULTRY PLANT
Types of Structures Favored by Ex-
pertinent Station Experts and
Other Poultrymen.
Long Shed Roof House Used al
Beltsville station-Removable
Equipment Aids Convenience.

try are giving attention at this time
of year to plans for poultry plants
on larger or smaller scale. The city
man who plans removal to the country
wants to build the type Of house best
adapted to the requirements of the
amateur. while the rural or suburban
dwelier who has kept poultry for sew
eral years is looking for new ideas in
poultry houses. Both classes are
anxious to know what the experts in
government or state employ as well
as practical poultrymen who make
living from their hens have developed
in the way of up-to-date structures
for housing the poultry flock, be 1t
large or small.
Experiment Station House.
The type of house used at the ex-
pertinent station of the division OF
animal husbandry. Department of Az
riculture. at the big farm at Belts
vile. Nd, has been found well adapted
for use with either large or small
fiocks. 1t is the single long house.
which may if desired. be divided into
rooms or compartments. or used as a
single house for tiocks of from 100 to
500 or more hens. the number that may
De cared Tor. OF course, varying dC-
cording to the length of the house
The structure is of the shed roof
type, facing south. and with practi-
cally the entire front open--that is,
ings on the south side. these being
covered with poultry netting. Inside
the openings are curtains or heaNy
muslin fastened to rollers that allow
them to be rolled up out of the. way
on clear. sunny days. or lowered and
fastened at night or on days that are
cold. rainy or windy,
Roosts are arranged above drop
ping board at the back Of the houses.
and the nest boxes are placed either
at the front, beneath the openings, or.
if convenient, under the dropping
boards
The floor of the house is covered
to the depth of six to ten inches with
clean straw litter. and the hard grain
ration is fed in this. so as to compel
the fowls to dig and scratch for it,
thus getting the needed exercise. Dry
mash hoppers. receptacles for grit,
oyster shell. charcoal, beef scrap. etc.
House Subdivided.
Usually this type OF house is di-
vided into several compartments. each
accommodating from twenty five to
fifty hens. When used as breeding
houses the dividing partitions are al
ways used. so that the breeding pens
of half IA dozen to dozen hens or
pulletS and one male bird may be kept
separate.
Runs twenty-five to fifty feet long
are usually provided to the south of
the houses. these runs being divided
into yards corresponding with the
rooms of the house itself. When
the building is used as a single house.
with no partitions. the runs may be
used alternately, the fowls being al
lowed to range in one or two, while
some green crop. such as rye. wheat,
oats. clover or the like. is grown TO
proper size in the others. when the
fowls are turned into these and the
ones formerly ranged over are plowed
or spaded and planted
Ames College House.
On the poultry experiment farm at
Iowa Agricultural College. at Ames.
Iowa. the A type of poultry house is
favored This, of course. has a peak ed
roof, and the style permits of the use
of such houses as small colony houses.
They may, however. be bull as large
that is. as long-as desired and still
retain the \ type. AS small colony
houses the buildings are about ten by
fifteen feet, seven feet high at the
ridge Such colony houses are calcu-
!
thirty fowls. Used as brooding houses
they will accommodate from 200 to 400
chicks up to six weeks. The small
houses are usually placed on skids or
runners. which allows them to be
moved about from place to place.
one of these small houses. eight by
ten feet. is built of 4x6-inch timbers for
the frame. 2xi jost for scantlings and
sided with shiplap. nailed on smooth
side in. and covered with some good
house and there are small windows at
each side of the door. These windows
are hinged at the tops. SO that they
may be raised to allow egreSs to the
runway. Dropping boards. roosts. nest
boxes and all feed utensils are remov-
able so that all may he cleared out for
cleaning or when tine house is used
for brooding chicks. The structure is
placed on 6x6-inch timber. which may
be used as skids for moving it from
place to place.
Essentials of House.
Whatever type of house is selected.
the essentials are the same-cheapness,
convenience and adaptabilty 10 the
purpose for which il is designed. BY
cheapness it is not meant that the
house should be knocked together of
any old broken material that happens
to be at hand. This is not cheapness,
because much more than the amount
saved in construction of such house
will be lost by reason of sickness
among the fowls and poor results gen.
orally.
No matter how or where the poultry
house is built or the material of which
it is constructed, it must be roomy
enough for the poultryman to work
in it without constantly humping his
head. 1t must be tight. to exclude
drafts and cold winds. 1t must have a
sound roof. to keep out rain. melting
snow, etc. 1t must have plenty of
light and ample ventilation. otherwise
it will be damp in spite of every
effort to keep it dry. 1t must afford
room enough for the hens to be
comfortable when weather conditions
are/such that they must be kept shut
up for day or several days And it
must be SO arranged that it can be
kept scrupulously clean, else disease is
stamped out only at the cost of much
work, long continued effort and heavy
expense.
Movable roosts and dropping boards
are practically essential to efficient
care of the poultry house. So. like
wise, are troughs for wet mash hop
pers for dry mash and other parts of
the necessary laying ration for hens
Plenty of deep litter. renewed with
sufficient frequency to insure that it
does not become foul: dust bins kept
ashes. and enough nest boxes. filed
with clean nesting materials, SO that the
hens will not fight for possession of a
nest and break the eggs that NAV he