196 POULTRY DISEASES 



its feet rapidly, rolls its eyeballs, l)en(ls its neck round to one 

 side, opens and shuts its beak alternately, and moves the 

 whole body to and fro. 



After one or two minutes the spasms cea.se and the bird 

 gets up, staggers and may at first support itself with its beak 

 and outstretched wings and finally falls because of a fresh 

 attack or it may gradually recover from the first attack with- 

 out any immediate renewal of the spasms. 



Hemiplegia sometimes follows as a sequel of this disease. 



Epileptiform attacks are sometimes caused by internal para- 

 sites. 



Treatment should consist of a physic. During the attack 

 the bird should be cared for to prevent its injuring itself. 



MYELITIS 



Myelitis is an inflammation of the spinal marrow^ or its 

 membranes. There are indications of a deep seated burning 

 pain. It is accompanied by various nervous and vascular ir- 

 regularities of function. 



Myelitis in the cervical region of the bird has been ob- 

 served and is noted to manifest itself by paresis and hyperes- 

 thesia of the wing, lateral flexion of the neck during repose 

 so that the beak may be directed backwards. During feed- 

 ing the head may be carried in a normal position. 



POLYNEURITIS 



Ohler has shown that ])irds fed on a diet wholly of wheat 

 bread develop a polyneuritis similar to polyneuritis gallinarum 

 as produced in fowls with a diet of polished rice. The dis- 

 ease made its appearance in from twenty-one to eighty-two 

 days, with an average of about forty days. 



In the large majority of the fowls the first symptoms of 

 paralysis were a slight unsteadiness, together with evidence 

 of an involvement of the nerves supplying the extensor mus- 

 cles of the legs, manifested by a high step and a tendency 

 1o bring the foot down with a flop. In many fowls there 

 seems to be difficulty in cocirdination early in the disease. In 

 such cases the fowls teeter slightly forward as if trying to 

 balance on their toes and walking is with a decided ataxic 

 gait. As the disease progressed in all cases walking became 

 more and more difficult, until the birds could only squat in 

 the cages, and this condition was soon followed by one of 

 complete paralysis. The disease usually began with periph- 

 eral paralysis and later an involvement of the higher nerve 

 centers. When fowls were fed on white bread nuide without 

 yeast, they came down with a polyneuritis somewhat sooner 



