6i4 



THE BOOK OF POULTRY. 



of use when tlie lameness has the character of 

 gout iq.v.), and is a somewhat dangerous 

 medicine to administer freely. 



Liver Disease. — Of late years persistent and 

 early in-breeding, combined with high feeding, 

 and want of exercise, and the injudicious use of 

 condiments, have caused a great increase in 

 cases of disordered liver amongst poultry, which, 

 however, differ much in symptoms, nature, and 

 seriousness. Poultry highly fed in small yards, 

 during summer, unless adequately shaded and 

 plentifully supplied with fresh green food, are very 

 liable to gradual enlargement or hypertrophy of 

 ihe liver. The symptoms are not very definite, 

 consisting chiefly of sluggishness in motion and 

 appetite, and a tendency to somewhat yellow 

 evacuations. The condition, when once fully 

 set up, cannot be cured, but may be kept in 

 check by shade, a more spare diet, green food, 

 and an occasional dose of salts or carbonate of 

 potash. Congestion is due to very similar 

 causes, and the symptoms are similar, but more 

 sudden and severe, and more evidently bilious, 

 sometimes reaching to a distinct yellow shade 

 about the face. There may be lameness, as in 

 the next more severe stage. Maize causes 

 many cases. The treatment, which in spite of 

 the greater severity is more hopeful in this case, 

 owing to its more sudden onset, is a course of 

 saline purgatives, such as lo grains of potass- 

 bicarbonate and 6 of Epsom salts twice a day 

 for a few days, or alternated with 6 grains of 

 rhubarb ; or if the attack has seemed very 

 sudden, a grain of calomel first will be very 

 useful, to be followed by a little of the B.P. 

 dilute nitric acid in the water for a day or 

 two, afterwards giving the above salines. Actual 

 inflanunation of the liver is a disease of the 

 same class, but of an acute kind, and is 

 speedily followed by death unless the attack 

 can be relieved. The causes may be as 

 before, but in our experience exposure to wet 

 and cold, in conjunction with other causes tend- 

 ing to congestion, produces inflammation much 

 more frequently than heat does. There will be 

 .somewhat similar symptoms, but with evidently 

 more suffering, and especially the bird will show 

 tenderness or pain. The skin is almost always 

 yellow, and the evacuations yellow or tinged 

 with blood. The bird may seem too tender to 

 move about much, and very often there is lame- 

 ness, especially in the right leg ; if such lame- 

 ness accompanies other symptoms, the character 

 of the disease is nearly certain. Only energetic 

 treatment is of any avail. The bird is to be 

 held frequently over boiling water, when the 

 steam will relieve the pain and inflamma- 

 tion ; and half a grain each of calomel and 



opium must be at once given, repeated after 

 four hours ; then lo drops of chlorodyne may be 

 given every four hours for two days. All water 

 to be acidulated with nitric acid as before, and 

 the bird kept quiet, and only allowed a small 

 quantity of bread and milk. If the urgent 

 symptoms disappear, careful diet and small 

 doses of salines, with iron tonic, will complete 

 the cure. None of these functional diseases, 

 though they may weaken the progeny, neces- 

 sarily impart any constitutional taint. But the 

 case is very different with scrofulous disease of the 

 liver, the most common development in poultry 

 of the tuberculous taint. To stamp it out is the 

 only remedy for this kind of liver disease, as 

 much as in the case of pulmonary consumption, 

 for both of which see paragraph on Tuberculosis. 



Paralysis. — Loss of power to move may 

 occur suddenly or come on gradually, and be 

 either almost general, or confined to one set of 

 limbs or the legs. The cause may be rupture 

 of a blood-vessel on or in the brain, allying 

 it closely to apoplexy {q.v?^, and in such cases 

 known usually by the sudden onset ; similar 

 treatment will sometimes be successful. True 

 disease or injury of the nerves is hopeless, except 

 in two cases, (i) It may result from sudden 

 injury, as by a blow on the back from something 

 falling, or from rushing under a low perch, or 

 through the entrance-hole of the house ; in such 

 a case rest and quiet for a few days, painting 

 iodine tincture every day on the spot believed to 

 have been struck or bruised will often be followed 

 by recovery, being injury and not disease. (2) 

 The other case is that of a hen or pullet subjected 

 to excessive sexual intercourse, under which the 

 poor bird's nervous system entirely breaks down. 

 Such a case is often known by the back being 

 nearly stripped of feathers, as well as the legs 

 being paralysed. In this case seclusion and rest 

 for a while, with a little iron tonic and a tea- 

 spoonful of coca extract in half a pint of water, 

 generally cures ; but care must be taken to give 

 the male bird a greater number of mates, 01 

 to restrict his company to an hour or two daily. 



Peritonitis. — Inflammation of the lining mem- 

 brane of the abdomen. Now and then caused 

 by injuries; more usually due to the escape of a 

 ruptured ovum, or egg, into the abdominal cavity, 

 and in a less acute degree by excessive straining 

 or over-stimulation of the reproductive organs, 

 in which way many cases are directly due to the 

 stimulating condiments so largely advertised. 

 As to symptoms, peritonitis may usually be sus- 

 pected whenever a hen in full laying, with bright 

 red comb, and with no previous illness, shows 

 evident pain and distress, but does not seem 

 egg-bound. Severe cases are practically hope- 



