Diseases. 131 



the birds to bathe too frequently whilst they are casting their 

 feathers, as at this time they are, to a greater or lesser extent, 

 more delicate in health, and consequently much more liable 

 to take cold than under ordinary circumstances; or it may 

 be produced through negligence or forgetfulness by leaving 

 the window of the bird-room open all night, particularly in 

 foggy or damp weather, or through the birds being placed in 

 a current of air (a draught). It generally begins with catarrh or 

 a common cold, and the first symptom usually observed is a 

 sort of wheezing noise, or what may be designated, and probably 

 is, a bird cough. As soon as you observe a bird making this 

 noise, you may safely conclude that it has a bad cold, and 

 you ought to remove it to a warm room, and cover the cage 

 partly to keep it cosy. Nourishing food should be given to 

 it at once; a little hard-boiled egg, chopped very small, and 

 a little arrowroot biscuit should be grated and mixed with it, 

 and a piece of gum acacia about the size of a pea should be 

 dissolved in its drinking water, and likewise a small piece of 

 Spanish liquorice, or a weak infusion of linseed, given in place 

 of the drinking water. If these precautions are neglected, the 

 bird will most probably get worse, become languid, and look 

 dull and h'eavy about the eyes, and will gradually become 

 weak and lose its flesh, and ultimately be seized with diarrhoea, 

 which, if neglected, soon terminates in death. Great prompt- 

 ness is necessary in the first stage of this disease, which 

 does not always appear in the same form, although catarrh is 

 generally the forerunner of it. Its action upon birds varies 

 the same as in human beings, and some linger under its 

 influence much longer than others ; however, if it once becomes 

 fairly established in any form, and latent phthisis or tubercular 

 phthisis sets in, there is no remedy for it. 



It may, however, even when very bad, be considerably allayed 

 by proper attention and treatment ; nourishing diet and warmth 

 are essentials which cannot be dispensed with. A little white 

 bread sopped in warm new milk may be given with advantage 

 in this stage of the disease, but care must be taken not to 

 allow it to get sour. A little tincture of digitalis (foxglove) 



K 2 



