Another great advantage of the heated Brooder House (and we speak of this as entirely separate from the heat under the hovers) is that it allows the chick to seek different degrees of temperature. There is one temperature under the hover; another temperature outside of the hover, on the hover floor; still another degree on the main floor of the Brooder House; and, then, there is the outdoor temperature.
When the chicks are first placed under the hovers, during the first day, we carry the temperature at 95 degrees, and then slowly decrease this by raising the hover. Where an adjustable hover is not used this may be accomplished by turning down the lamp.
CHAPTER XX
Handling Birds on Range—The Youngsters Must Be Kept Growing All the Time
The birds leave the Brooder House for their permanent Summer home on the Colony Range, so far as the pullets in the flock go, at eight to nine weeks of age.
The Colony Houses are prepared for the new tenants by being thoroughly sprayed with a solution of Kerosene and Carbolic Acid, in a proportion of one to five—one Carbolic and five Kerosene. Before spraying, the canvas drops to the windows are let down, and after spraying the House is left twenty-four hours in a perfectly closed condition, before the drops are raised. The floor is then covered with straw litter to the depth of four inches; the five gallon drinking fountain is filled and placed on its stand close to the door; the feed box receives its quantity of mash, and the grain is scattered over the litter.
We practice the filling of from six to eight Colony Houses at a time, and with this coming season of 1912 we shall increase that number to ten.
The Colony Houses are raised about eight inches from the ground, by blocks, and, as it is not advisable for the small birds to get under the House for the first few days, we have sets of boards which fit around the House to prevent their making the mistake of huddling under the House at night, instead of going up into it.
A Corning Wrinkle
Another preparation, on the outside of the House, is the digging of a ditch, in the shape of a crescent, about two feet back of the House, the ditch tapering out to nothing at the two ends, the dirt being thrown to the side away from the Colony House. All houses face due south. The heavy storms of the Summer come rushing up, as a general thing, from the west and northwest, and this ditch, together with the mound of earth back of it, prevents the rush of wind and rain getting under the Colony House, protecting the large number of chicks, that, on occasion of sudden storm, collect there for shelter. It has been found that this materially reduces the mortality resulting from these heavy Summer showers, accompanied by a strong wind. The ditch also keeps dampness entirely away from the ground under the Colony Houses, which is also a very great advantage.
All being now ready at the Colony Houses, a large wire cage (the one now in use being eight feet long and two and a half feet wide, and eight inches high, with sliding doors at each end, and two soft leather handles to carry it by) is placed at the door opening into the chick runs from the Brooder House, and the youngsters are quietly driven into the cage. When a sufficient number to carry safely has been driven in, the cage is carried out, placed on the wagon and driven to the Range. The birds at this time are from eight to nine weeks old, we having found it is better to have a sufficient amount of brooder room to carry them to this age before placing on Range, as they are then much better feathered, and are less affected by changes of atmosphere.