INPUT ARTICLE: Article: If you project stress and frustration while applying nail caps to your cat, your cat will sense your mood and feel similarly anxious and frustrated.  To keep your cat happy and relaxed throughout the process, talk to it kindly from time to time, and rub its belly and neck between each nail cap application. Place your cat’s rump on your lap.  Tuck its head into the crook of an elbow.  Rub your cat’s belly and neck gently to reassure it. The best place to cradle the cat is in a sofa or chair with large, soft arms.  This will enable you to lean the arm supporting your cat’s head against the armrest. Using your thumb and index finger, gently squeeze the top and bottom of the paw.  Place your index finger on the paw pad of the nail you’d like to cap.  Above the nail you’d like to cap, push down and out (away from the cat’s body) with your thumb.  The claw you’d like to cap should then pop out. Fill the applicator tip with adhesive.  Squeeze one or two drops of adhesive into a nail cap using the applicator tip.  This will fill the nail cap with adhesive.  Squeeze the sides of the nail cap gently to evenly distribute the adhesive within.  Slide the nail cap on your cat’s extended nail until it stops.  Continue to extend your cat’s claws and apply nail caps to the other nails on each paw. If you’re trying to prevent your furniture from being scratched and torn, you probably only need to apply nail caps to the cat’s front paws. Understand that it may take your cat some time to adjust to wearing the nail caps.

SUMMARY: Soothe your cat during the process. Cradle your cat in your lap. Extend your cat’s claws. Put the nail caps on.


INPUT ARTICLE: Article: Traditional barns are typically stick-framed, the same way that most homes are. Arrange your wall studs vertically along the top of your foundation’s sill plate, spacing them at a distance of 16–24 inches (41–61 cm) on center. To secure each stud, drive two nails down through the bottom of the interior edge and into the sill plate. Complete your wall frame by attaching a top plate that mirrors your sill plate, sinking a pair of nails into the top of each underlying stud.  The sill plate is the first piece of lumber you'll put down for your foundation. On most structures, the sill plate consists of a series of boards laid out around the outer edges of the foundation and secured with bolts, masonry nails, and/or steel straps.  For a more rustic look, try framing your barn with rough-cut 4x6 oak posts spaced 8–12 feet (2.4–3.7 m) apart on center. Call your local saw mill to ask about having custom posts cut to the exact specifications you need. to frame the roof. Choose a type of roof that suits your aesthetic preferences and spatial needs, as well as the typical climate conditions where you live. Barns in high-rainfall areas, for instance, may benefit from steeply-sloped roofs. Once you’ve decided on a particular style, measure the roof and use the dimensions you get to plan the layout of your trusses, which you can then cut and fasten assembly-line style.  In the past, barns almost always featured gambrel roofs, which consist of four flat planes that come together in a point at the center. If you prefer, you could also go with a simpler style for your barn, such as a gable, skillion, hip, or even a flat roof.  The roof is one of the most important parts of the barn, as it serves to provide shade, deflect precipitation, and keep the interior of the structure covered. If you’re not confident in your ability to build a sturdy, watertight roof yourself, it’s best to hire a contractor to come in and make sure the job gets done right. Start by cutting sheets of 1⁄2 in (1.3 cm) plywood into sections and nailing them into place on your roof trusses. Then, roll out overlapping sheets of roofing felt and nail or staple them along the edges to secure them. From there, you can put down shingles or standing seam metal sheets, which are the two most common types of materials used to roof traditional barns.  Roofing felt acts as a buffer to protect your roof’s sheathing from damage, block out moisture, and insulate against heat and cold. Plan on putting down a layer of roofing felt no matter what roofing materials you ultimately go with. Corrugated metal roof panels can provide a simple and long-lasting option if you have a little more money to spend. They’re easy to install, environmentally-friendly, and capable of withstanding extreme temperatures, sun exposure, and precipitation for up to 70 years! Board & batten siding is a type of pre-cut wood siding responsible for giving old-fashioned barns their distinctive appearance. Purchase your siding in individual panels pre-cut to the desired size for ease of installation. Fasten the panels to the exterior walls of the barn by driving nails into both ends of the top and bottom.  It may be necessary to trim the final board on each wall to comfortably fit the remaining space. If you prefer the DIY approach, you can also create your own board & batten-style siding by nailing 2x10 boards onto your wall studs with 2x4 boards positioned perpendicularly in-between. Last but not least, you’ll need a way to get yourself and your livestock in and out of the barn. Barn doors are available in both swinging and sliding styles, though sliding doors are far more common. To install sliding barn doors, mount a narrow backing board over the entrance cutout and screw on the metal track hardware included with your door’s installation kit. Attach the roller straps to either side of each door’s upper edge, then carefully lift the doors and set them down in the track, making sure the wheels are aligned properly.  Barn doors can be quite heavy, and may be too cumbersome to manage by yourself. Ask someone to give you a hand hoisting the doors up onto their tracks once you’re done installing the mounting hardware.  Don’t forget to measure the wall you want to put your door in so you’ll know what size doors to buy and how far they’ll be able to open in either direction. This will be especially important if you’ll be herding large animals through the entrance.

SUMMARY:
Construct a standard stick wall frame out of 2x6 studs. Build a series of trusses Install your roofing materials of choice. Cover your barn’s frame with board & batten siding. Mount a set of large sliding doors for the main entrance.