600 HORSE, SWINE AND POULTRY DISEASES 



soap. (A 3 per cent solution of cresol soap is made by adding 2 

 tablespoonfuls (1 ounce) of compound solution of cresol to 1 quart 

 of previously boiled water.) 



Clean Incubators and Brooders. This is carried out by thor- 

 ough scrubbing with boiling water and old-fashioned kitchen soap. 

 If, however, this should not be considered sufficient, there may be 

 applied, after the scrubbing, a spray with a 3 per cent solution of 

 cresol soap, made as directed above, except that the water used in 

 making the dilution need not be boiled, as suggested for egg disin- 

 fection. 



Another excellent method of disinfection is by means of for- 

 maldehyde gas. The most widely accepted method of employing this 

 disinfectant is that known as the permanganate-formaldehyde 

 method. This consists of setting free the formaldehyde gas of the 

 commercial product formalin (40 per cent formaldehyde in water) 

 by the action of permanganate of potash. A modification of the 

 method, known as the permanganate-diluted formalin, is particu- 

 larly satisfactory because the addition of the water insures the mois- 

 ture conditions needed for the best results from the formaldehyde, 

 these conditions permitting also a marked reduction in the required 

 amount of formaldehyde. As a preliminary to all directions for 

 this method of disinfection it should be stated that the best author- 

 ities do not consider formaldehyde efficient at a temperature lower 

 than 60 F. nor with a humidity less than 65 per cent. 



Where one has an incubator room, the room should be disin- 

 fected with the incubators and brooders in it, together with all other 

 movable appliances of the poultry farm, such as feed and drink- 

 ing utensils, trap nests, and other appliances. All detachable parts 

 of these appliances should be removed and placed about the room 

 in such positions that the gas may have easy access to all surfaces. 

 Incubators and brooders should be thrown wide open. Now, plug 

 up all openings, doors, windows, and cracks with bits of cloth or 

 rags. Cracks and other openings offering perfectly flat surfaces 

 may be satisfactorily scaled with strips of adhesive plaster or wet 

 strips of newspaper. For a room containing 1,000 cubic feet (say 

 10 feet square and 10 feet high, or 10 feet by 12 feet and 8 1-3 

 feet high) there must be used 11 ounces of permanganate of pot- 

 ash, 11 fluid ounces of formalin, and 9 fluid ounces of water. The 

 procedure is as follows: 



In the center of the room, upon the dirt floor or upon a base 

 sufficiently large to protect the floor from stains by the red perman- 

 ganate which may be spattered around, place a basin or flat earthen 

 vessel with flaring sides that will not hinder the exit of the gas gen- 

 erated. In the bottom of this container place 11 ounces of per- 

 manganate of potash for every 1,000 cubic feet of space in the room. 

 Have at hand 11 fluid ounces of formalin and 9 fluid ounces of water 

 for every 1,000 cubic feet. Mix the formalin and water in a pail 

 and pour the entire amount on the permanganate of potash. Leave 

 the room immediately, closing the door tightly, and allow it to 

 remain closed for from four to eight hours. After this the doors and 



