PARASITES OP ANIMALS. 135 



This may be moistened with oil, salt-water, or a weak solution 

 of carbolic acid, and' introduced into the windpipe, when if it 

 be twisted round once or twice and removed, it will usually 

 bring away several of the worms. The operation should be 

 repeated at intervals until all the worms are destroyed. All 

 worms removed in this or any other way should be carefully 

 destroyed, preferably by fire, for the embryos are extremely 

 tenacious of life, and if left upon the ground are likely to 

 spread the disease. For the same reason, those birds that are 

 infected should be separated from the healthy ones, and poultry 

 should never be allowed to run in the same yards or grounds, 

 or be kept in the same houses where infected ones have previ- 

 ously been kept, unless the premises- have first been thor- 

 oughly sprinkled with a strong solution of carbolic acid or 

 petroleum-water, to destroy those old worms or the eggs and 

 embryos that may have been discharged from the sick ones. 

 The vessels from which they feed should be frequently and 

 thoroughly cleansed, and they should be supplied with pure 

 water, frequently renewed. 



In extreme cases, the worms may be safely removed by a 

 surgical operation ; but this requires some skill. This is done 

 by first carefully securing the bird, or still better by adminis- 

 tering a few drops of chloroform, placed upon cotton and 

 held to the nostrils. The skin of the neck is then to be di- 

 vided with a very sharp knife, and the windpipe opened by a 

 longitudinal slit about a quarter of an inch long. The worms 

 may then be removed by a pair of small forceps or other suit- 

 able instrument. , The incision in the skin may be closed by 

 one or two stitches, and the wound will generally heal in a 

 few days. By this operation an almost instantaneous cure 

 may be effected, even when the disease has progressed nearly 

 to the point of suffocation ; but in unskilful hands it is not 

 likely to be so successful as the remedies already described. 



The Sclerostoma of the Horse (Sclerostoma equinum Dujardin, 

 or S. armatum Davaine). Figure 83. 



This is a small, slender, cylindrical worm, reddish or brown- 

 ish in color, which lives in the intestines, and in peculiar 

 enlargements of the arteries of horses, asses, and mules. The 



