COW BYRE OR MILKING SHED.

Otago Witness, Issue 2660, 8 March 1905, Page 8

COW BYRE OR MILKING SHED.

(Fbou Our Own Correspondent.)

The accompanying sketch of a byre' is my idea of what a milking shed ought to be. I have only drawn it tc accommodate 1C oews ;- but it will be readily seen that it oan foe enlarged indefinitely to suit any number cows. It will be- seen that I .have made the storage rooms for ensila»ge, hay, and roots unduly large ; but they can 'be curtailed to suit tha builder's idea,. If there is plenty of room to store winter feed, it is an encouragement to grow something to fill up space, as it looks bad to see an empty shed, especially if r hard winter ensues. The sketch is selfexplanatory, I think. The small tramway running down the centre, on which to run a truck to convey the feed, will be found a great saving oSs labour, also greatly helping to keep the byre tidy and clean, as when feeding from behind the cows there is always a certain amount of litter scattered about and wasted, whereas feeding Ifrom the front, any fodder that may fall can be picked up and put into the troughs, being quite clean. I have drawn i.t £p_ scale of Bft to the inch, thus the feedi/isr- trough is 2ffc wide, and should be about the' same depth. The stalls are shown as Bft x sft. Some dairymen consider 4ft 6in, or even 4ft, quite wide enough : but with anything like a decent sized cow sft is little enough. The bails and root and hay rooms can all be built under one roof for 10 cows. That would be 45ft by 36ft. T-ne height of the walls ishould be at least 9ft, and considering the little extra expense, I should put in a 10ft stud. By all means have plenty of light and ventilation. I think light even of 'nore importance than air, as it is only in dark corners that microbes can exiat. Like all otiher evils,Vthey love the darkness. Skylights are far before side lights, as it is harlv -Dossible to reach every corner of a ■building with windows in the walls, and wherever a shady corner is found in a byre it smells damp and musty at the least. It will be. understood that if the silos arc erected they would have to be under a separate roof, as the walls should be 14ft at least. If the shed is to accommodate more than 10 cows, then the passage for carrying the milk out should be placed about the centre, with dcor opposite, to get to the separator or milk room. Such a shed as I have outlined could be built for from £6C to £70 — that is, taking the average price of timber at 12s v a hundred. The situation is of great importance. It should be built on a site where drainage is easy — that is the main point : distance from a road and other things can be overcome, but situation means everything as regards drainage, and without drainage it is impossible to produce good milk from any shed that may be built. ANTIQUA OTIS.