The Golden State: Where & How to Live, Secure, Visit, Enjoy and Thrive in California
Estimating Frame And Brick Houses
Another very important matter in connection with stables is that they should be well ventilated. The pungent ammoniacal air so common in illy ventilated stables is, in a great measure, responsible for many of the ailments that trouble horses and favorite cows, including moon blindness, cough and epizootic tendencies; besides the rotting of leather and the destruction of the finish on carriages are due almost entirely to the ammonia in stable air. The ammonia can be fixed if, after washing the floor, a light sprinkling of plaster of paris be put on it, this will prevent the ammonia from evaporating; a solution of copperas will have the same effect, but the plaster is preferred because of its innocence in other directions.
Ventilation and Light
Ventilation should be provided in such a way as to avoid drafts. Small openings, which may be easily closed with a slide, may be made in the outer wall near the floor, and similar ones near the ceiling, or in the roof —apart from the towers in the roof—through which the foul air can escape. Pure air is of the utmost importance to the well being of a horse, and no cow can produce clean, healthy milk that is obliged to breathe the ammoniacal air of an illy ventilated stable, and children using such milk are adding to their other infantile troubles.
Another important matter in connection with stables is that they should be erected on a good, dry site, or in some position that can be well drained; for while it is necessary to make use of plenty of water in flushing out and cleaning about a stable, yet the buildings and floors should be so arranged that the water will get away quickly and leave the building perfectly dry before night closes in. If the building is of brick or stone care should be taken that efficient damp courses be laid in the wall below the floor line. If built of wood on a stone or brick foundation, a coating of asphalt or a layer of cement should be laid on the top of the wall before the sills or joists are put in place. The eaves should project from 14 to 20 inches, in order to carry any droppings of water clear of the building, as a horse is more sensitive to damp, when at rest, than a man, and a damp wall will be very likely to give a costly animal some sort of lung trouble that will seriously affect its usefulness.
Another thing to be considered is light in the stables. Whatever windows are employed, they should be well up in the wall, high enough to be over the head of the animal. The windows should be small, and should be filled with thick rolled glass or glass that will not allow glaring sunlight to pass through The windows should be arranged to open, so that on hot days they may be used for letting in air and for ventilation A fine wire screen should be placed over the opening to prevent tormenting flies from getting in and annoying the animals.
