DISEASES OF POULTRY 235 



make into thirty powders. Give one powder two or three 

 times a day in their feed for a week or ten days. 



EGG EATING 



Cause : Is usually due to lack of shell-building mate- 

 rial in the food ; in such case the shell of the egg is thin 

 and easily broken and the fowl craving the lime contained 

 in the egg shell, naturally contracts the habit. 



Treatment: Supply ground bone and oyster shells. 

 Feed green food such as. cabbage, kale, potatoes, carrots, 



etc. 



EGGS WITHOUT SHELLS 

 (Soft-Shelled Eggs) 



Cause: Deficiency of shell material; or it is possible 

 that fright sometimes causes premature expulsion of the 

 eggs before the shell is formed. 



Treatment: Feed ground bone, oyster shells. They 

 contain egg shell producing material. Perhaps the best 

 results are obtained when mixed with wheat bran. Also 

 feed vegetables such as cabbage, potatoes and carrots. 



FEATHER PULLING 



(Feather Eating) 



Cause : Irritation of the skin due to lice, mites or to 

 lack of exercise and improper food. 



Treatment : Feed meat, ground bones and vegetables. 

 Place the food where the fowls are compelled to scratch 

 and work to obtain it. Dust the fowls with Powdered 

 Aloes. 



If due to lice, treat the same as recommended under 

 the heading of Lice. 



GAPES 



(Verminous Tracheo Bronchitis) 

 Cause: A red, parasitic worm, the male measuring 

 about one-fifth of an inch and the female one-half an 

 inch in length. Fowls become infected by eating worms 



