POULTRY HYGIENE AND SANITATION 497 



tions, it is possible to treat the whole flock collectively, with 

 reasonable certainty of benefit. 



3. In the case of individual birds of high intrinsic value, the 

 extent and the nature of the treatment must be decided by the 

 poultryman himself. Here, however, there will be a much greater 

 number of diseases that can be profitably treated. 



Prevention Rather than Cure. The aim of all poultrymen, 

 whether engaged in a large commercial business, a small backyard 

 poultry plant, or the production of fancy specimens, should be so 

 to care for the birds, and to institute such sanitary measures, that 

 disease will be prevented, rather than to try to cure disease after 

 it is firmly established. This accords with the present attitude of 

 the medical profession, and bears out the old adage, "An ounce of 

 prevention is worth a pound of cure." Vigorous health is the 

 first requisite in preventing and combating disease. The elemen- 

 tary principles involved in maintaining a flock in healthy condition 

 and free from disease will now be considered. 



Hereditary vigor of constitution helps to throw off disease, 

 and must be bred into flocks in which it is lacking. Selection must 

 go on continuously from year to year for this purpose. 



Practising sanitary and hygienic care, that is, a system of 

 management absolutely hygienic and an environment perfectly 

 sanitary. 



Maintain a careful oversight, and immediately isolate or slaugh- 

 ter any diseased bird or birds, with prompt and thorough disinfec- 

 tion whenever any signs of disease appear. 



Poultry Hygiene and Sanitation. Given healthy birds of vigorous 

 constitution, an important necessity is to have absolute cleanliness. 

 While some poultrymen may succeed for a time in defiance of this, 

 yet the time is sure to come when neglect of cleanliness will make 

 itself felt. Of course, disease may come in spite of all precautions, 

 yet the possibility of its doing so can be reduced to a minimum. 



The word " hygiene " is practically synonymous with cleanli- 

 ness, hence its use in the following discussion. The essentials of 

 hygienic care may be summed up in the following groups: Clean 

 housing; clean feeding; clean yards and runs; and clean birds. 



Clean Housing. The first step toward securing a clean house, 

 if a dropping board be used, is to remove the droppings at least 

 once a week, and sometimes oftener. If an absorbent is used, a 

 good plan is to clean the dropping boards whenever the droppings 

 become wet or if they do not dry quickly. In a moist state they 

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