WHITE DIARRHEA 345 



appearance. The discharge may be creamy or sometimes 

 mixed with brown, and it is more or less sticky or glairy. 

 In many cases it clings so closely to the down as to close 

 up the vent. Many of the chicks peep constantly or utter 

 a shrill cry, apparently of pain, when attempting to void 

 the excrement. The abdomen is enlarged and protrudes 

 to the rear. The post-mortem examination shows no 

 marked lesions. The organs are all pale; the alimentary 

 tract is usually empty except for some slimy fluid. 



The prevention of the disease must rest on the non-intro- 

 duction of bacillus-carriers in the purchase of breeding 

 stock, and by the purchase of eggs and young chicks from 

 flocks that are known to be free from the disease. The 

 widespread infection of breeding birds is shown by the 

 fact that, in a flock in which the losses of the young chicks 

 had been excessive, more than 80 per cent, of the laying 

 liens were shown to have diseased ovaries. The chicks that 

 recover from the infection do not, as a rule, grow as rapidly 

 as do non-infected birds. 



It has been shown conclusively that the feeding of sour 

 milk to young chicks is of value in preventing the spread of 

 the disease. The dishes in which the milk, is kept should 

 be cleaned daily and a fresh supply of milk provided. 



The incubators and brooders should be thoroughly dis- 

 infected after each hatch, and extreme cleanliness should 

 be practised in all regards in the handling of young chicks. 



