268 THE GROUSE IN HEALTH AND IN DISEASE 



proportions, then such measures might be applied directly 

 thereto. 



Recalling the old saw that " Prevention is better than cure," 

 the following points may be kept in view : 



All corpses of Grouse or Grouse chicks infected with Coccidi- 

 osis should be burned, not buried. It may be pointed out that 

 every buried diseased bird is a new source of infection, and the 

 polluted soil is distributed in many and unseen ways by earth- 

 worms, the round worms of the soil, carnivorous beetles, moles, 

 etc., so that the infection can be extended over a much wider 

 area than was originally the case. 



In regard to pheasantries in which havoc has been wrought 

 by Coccidiosis, it is as well to consider the direction of the 

 prevailing winds, and to place the new rearing pens in such a 

 position that they are not wind-swept from the infected and 

 fouled areas. This is not an easy matter in many instances, 

 but should be observed wherever possible. 



In the case of birds kept entirely or partially under domesti- 

 cated conditions (e.g., fowls, hand-reared Pheasants, Grouse in 

 captivity), great care should be taken to burn all droppings 

 and to prevent fouling of food and drink as far as possible. 

 This can be achieved to a considerable extent by providing 

 movable boards on which food and drink can be placed. 

 These feeding boards should be frequently cleansed and scrubbed. 

 All food debris should be burned. The pens should be so con- 

 structed that easy cleansing can be done daily. Lime-washing 

 of all coops, breeding-places, perches, etc., at least once a week 

 is desirable. Wherever possible, healthy birds should be taken 

 off the infected areas, and their coops, etc., placed in new 

 positions, as remote as possible from the former ones. The 

 fouled soil should then be thickly treated with quicklime, 

 which, after an interval of about a week, should be well dug 

 into the soil, the latter being turned to a depth of at least 

 1J feet. No birds should be raised on this land for at least 

 a year. Where the infected run is relatively small, the top 

 soil can be taken off to a depth of 3 or 4 inches and then 



