CAT

121

CAT

fo° d to t i carria ge thereby effected, both in the bringing thebotto m v 10 Cat ^ e > an( l carting the dung unto the land ; a clayind u ,' oul(i be selected, in a high and dry spot, if possible,

fields fn ,

to OTa ^i otn which the food is to be brought. In large farms,accord' 6 S ' le< ^ 3 with temporary yards may be erectedsaving ? as different fields are in grass or roots, and a great

ttf-' '.

&nd it i

Wit],, 8tl ould ever be borne in mind, that, with cattle, asdrainarr man beings, cleanliness, free ventilation, and perfect°ondit; a « e indispensable to perfect health and a soundc‘Si e no J theb °dy.

ag a in g t s “eds are most cheaply constructed when placedin an ; g 'T a ' s other buildings. If they are to be erectedbe much r situation, the expense of the double shed will"Umhn.. o ' 38 *ban that of the single one, to contain the sameEver ° f c ? ttle ‘

being ^ balding of this description should be capable ofas to reQ 6 • aire d> by a free ventilation ; and so constructedc ^ ea rin</ lre t * le i ea st possible labour in giving the food andbeep t f e aWay Ibe dung; the stalls should be so placed as to. a "’ay l „ n ^ att le dry and clean, with sufficient drains to carry1 ">tnb er f reserv °i r s to receive the ordure. The greaterbuildi n „ r ^ le air-holes should be in the roof; and if theu'gh ag ° av . e gables, there should be a window in each, asCanary^ s . si ble, with moveable boards, or air flights, as ina^arig Q p '"dows, which may be easily opened or shut, byc .° n du Ce . a sm all rope. These precautions will not onlybuiberg ® health of the cattle, but tend to preserve the&n <l dryj n 1C1 ! from the alternate wetting by the breath,f sitHr) 'j 0uld otherwise soon go to decay.

^fetied to Sfl6ds ’ tbe cattle are, in many parts of the country,i^ged i n a f a bes about three feet distant from each other,i ° r 2n a - Ir ? e Parallel to the wall, at the distance of about

ayin 'o''*’'"' p • - - . „ .

°blip

th,

'am.

(]o ; n abes from it, thus leaving sufficient space forthe f "a 6 ^ 00< ^ ’ but this plan is inconvenient, as itn ( | • eed er to pass between the cattle when he feeds' s cons equently attended with loss of time, and

Sn Tlle W danger0US -

Pace f or construction is that which admits a sufficientr °ag with b llssa ge before the cattle, for the feeder to pass. s ingl e 'eel-barrow, when he distributes their food.s , ,s Passarrp. S ’ ^'ree feet will be sufficient for the width ofotfiq p ace > and in double sheds, the heads of the cattle» b® irtcrpaj 1 ot ber, and the breadth of the passage need

f 0 ' llei 'e catti ^ eyond four feet.

*be pu r p Q e are f ed from the outside, through hole3 leftfed • > a sev 6 ’ man y inconveniences may arise from wettli e j"’’ t inn, tlQ e |j e fe°st, or a heavy fall of snow ; but whenp r 1 feeding.. C lan S e of weather can have any influence onT v ender Particularly if due care be taken to keep the

loff* ^“gle shed • Under cover -

a loft Ve the S> Wot| id be’convenient to have a provender-iti» thjg ],. a tfe> for holding, occasionally, hay and straw;afiort) n * s hed ° ' Je provided with flaps in the floor-

attd an easy a Wlta binges, which, when opened, wouldr eq . . en ahl e tj. Cc 5 ss fer putting in the fodder from the cart,° r tnf^' In th’ 6eder to throw it into the racks when'tal]' ars > about case the roof may be supported by postsmay’ ?Pd eight o U ' eU or fr ,ur fe et high, on the top of the

from each other; the flapsh. a d positi on \ r ' n S s > and be made stationary in any°at P'any ni„. ’ a catch.

tfy Bta^’Powsand .„.

them a [ e bou^/.v ,vision8 between them.

Bta Us, m an d oxen are bound to stakes, witli-

, . otmjj ■ — ’ -™‘i« uetween tnem. In some parts,

has a ’ 1,1 othe rs Jv Pairs, with a slight division between8 ° tliat S !,P ar ate stnii 6y ,. a y e not bound, but every cow or oxta ey cannot’ dlv '^ e d from the rest by wooden rails,get out, and so narrow that they cannot

2 i

turn round. Many feeders think the cattle thrive better installs of this description, than when they are bound. Ateach stake there should be a trough for holding provendei,and between these two troughs there should be another forwater, common to the cattle on both sides ; this water-trough,which, as well as the others, may be of stone, and of onepiece, may be supplied by a pipe from a cistern or reservoir;and over them should be a perpendicular rack for straw orhay. But though the double stalls, here recommended, aremuch used for milch cows in different parts of England,they have, in general, only one provender-trough for eachcow, and none for water.

In paving stalls for cattle, the declivity is in general toogreat, which occasions them to stand uneasy. The bestmode is similar to that of paving stables. Wood has latelybeen used with advantage for paving stalls.

In many places, it is the practice to fasten the heads ofthe cattle between two stakes; by which they can neither liedown in comfort, nor dislodge or destroy those tormentingvermin, which frequently prey upon them. No animal canthrive when confined in this manner.

As the dung of cows and oxen is of a liquid nature, it mayperhaps be carried off by means of an iron grating, placedbehind each animal, as nearly as can be, in the spot where itusually drops, and immediately over the stall drain, or over awooden spout, which being continued in a sufficient slope, to apit or reservoir without, will, with the assistance of water occa-sionally thrown down, empty itself therein. Should any obstruc-tion occur, the aid of a rake or a hoe, fitted to the drain, may beeasily applied; especially if the drain be only covered with astrong plank, which may be taken up when necessary. Thegreater part of the dung being thus carried away, the remainderwill be easily removed. Such a contrivance would save muchlabour, and facilitate the keeping of cattle clean; it wouldalso be the means of saving a great deal of litter, when scarceor dear. On this part of the subject it may be observed, thatthe waste of urine and dung, too often seen in even well-con-ducted farms, is much to be deprecated and lamented—every-thing of the kind is valuable, and should be conducted toproper reservoirs judiciously constructed and arranged forthe purpose, to be afterwards used on the land.

Where a great number of cattle are kept, the erection ofsheds or feeding houses on a circular plan, proves veryeconomical, and saves much labour, though a little moreexpensive in the first cost. In this form of building, theanimals stand all round with their tails towards the externalwall, leaving a sufficient passage or gangway behind, forthem to pass to and from their stalls; proper openings arealso to be left in the wall, for discharging the dung, whichmay fall into covered pits on the outside. The openingsshould be so contrived, as to be capable of being shut up insevere weather. The area, or space in the middle, is con-verted to the use of feeding and attendance; and, to renderthe plan complete, there should be a room above, tostore up the different sorts of food that the cattle mayrequire.

The oblong plan likewise admits of much room and con-venience, and is a form in which many cattle houses havebeen lately erected. In this kind of shed, the length of fiftyor sixty feet affords room for a great number of cattle. Theroof is made shelving, 14 feet in the highest part, and six orseven in the lowest. The place for the reception ot the cattleis separated from that wherein the dung is to be deposited,by a wall, or other convenient division, and may be about 18or 20 feet within, to afford good room. The stalls are twelvefeet long, and from 4 feet to 4 feet 6 inches wide ; leavinggang-ways at the heads and behind the cattle, 3 feet or 3^