DISEASES OF THE DIGESTIVE TRACT 83 



In describing this outbreak among ducks the owner wrote 

 in part, as follows: 



"Regarding the success I have had in the treatment of 

 cholera among the ducks with the sulpho-carbolates of sodium, 

 calcium, zinc and copper, I will, as best I can, give you an 

 idea as to how the results and the conditions under which 

 we had to work." 



"To begin with we had a large number (about 500) to 

 handle and had to send away for the tablets, which delayed 

 us in beginning the treatment of the disease, and of course, 

 conditions were pretty bad when we did get started. 



"Next we ran into a long stretch of cold weather, the feed 

 froze up nearly as soon as we put it out in the troughs 

 if It was moistened and the drug mixed with it, same thing 

 happened with the water, so we were sure that the ducks 

 were not getting enough of the sulphocarbolates. However, 

 the death rate dropped down about one-fourth in two weeks! 

 As soon as the w^eather warmed up several snows fell at 

 intervals of about a week, so that the pens were wet and it 

 was hard to disinfect them and difficult to keep the ducks 

 from drinking the water that stood about in the pens. In 

 this way they avoided getting the drug that was dissolved in 

 the water in their drinking fountains. We finallv got around 

 that by sprinkling the yards heavily with some' coal-tar dip, 

 so that the ducks would not drink this water, but would go 

 to the fountains. This was made rather expensive for the 

 water from the outside would run into the pens and soon 

 dilute the dip already out so that the ducks would soon 

 be drinking this water again.- This meant more dip, and the 

 cost of the dip was soon an important item. A considerable 

 quantity of the sulphocarbolates used under these conditions 

 was wasted, for when the feed or water would freeze we 

 had to chop it out of the troughs and thus lose some. The 

 cost of what we used amounted to seven cents per duck. 



"If we let up using the drug the ducks would begin dying 

 again, but I do not think it had a fair trial during the first 

 part of the treatment. As soon as the weather got better 

 the death-rate was lowered, and now I believe we have the 

 disease under control. Under favorable conditions I believe 

 this means of controlling cholera would work very nicely. 

 That it will render a flock immune for any length of time I 

 rather doubt, I gave my chickens a three weeks' round 

 of the treatment and for a month now they have been all 

 right, but this morning I noticed a few of them acting as 

 if they were in the cholera business again. I fed a few of 

 them some 'medicated charcoal' that a poultry-food firm puts 

 out and this seemed to check the disease and put them back 

 in good condition. This checks the diarrhea they have within 

 a day or so and they soon get well." 



Treatment: Eradication.— The germs are found in 

 the discharge from the bowel and are caried on 



