104 



MASS. EXPERIMENT STATION BULLETIN 378 



follows: 2,545 chickens: 307 turkeys; 55 pheasants; 29 canine feces; 15 

 ducks; 14 rabbits; 10 pigeons; 9 quail; 6 each of canary and mink; 5 each 

 of canine, sheep, and swine; 3 each of bovine semen and bovine skin 

 scrapings; 2 each of bovine feces, canine urine, and feline; 1 each of insects, 

 ruffed grouse, and swine abscess. 



The incidence of the more common and important disease conditions 

 observed in chicks during the past five years is as follows: 



1935-36 1936-37 1937-38 1938-39 1939-40 Total 



Avian tuberculosis 113 1 6 



Coccidiosis 59 35 64 97 82 337 



Enterohepatitis 6 2 7 6 7 28 



Epidemic tremor 26 8 35 22 19 110 



Fowl cholera 3 11 3 16 12 45 



Fowl coryza 5 2 1 8 



Fowl paralysis 39 37 45 11 47 245 



Fowl pox 4 8 30 21 7 70 



Fowl typhoid 4 2 11 4 21 



Infectious bronchitis 19 40 31 48 57 195 



Infectious laryngotracheitis 8 12 9 19 14 62 



Internal parasites 21 23 21 41 26 132 



Kidney disorders 25 17 15 37 21 115 



Leukemia 11 7 3 6 3 30 



Nutritional encephalomalacia 10 1 7 13 8 39 



Paratyphoid 112 3 1 8 



Perosis 10 4 2 4 3 23 



Pullorum disease 44 39 46 49 32 210 



Reproductive disorders 12 22 14 20 21 89 



Rickets 9 8 6 19 19 61 



Tumors 39 53 46 79 53 270 



Gizzard erosions 1 15 14 15 45 



Unknown disease 15 9 11 24 26 85 



Unknown pullet disease 2 6 6 11 9 34 



The 307 turkey specimens were received in 57 consignments. Coccidio- 

 sis 9, enterohepatitis 12, paratyphoid 14, and rickets 8, accounted for 51.8 

 percent of the diagnoses. Pullorum disease was noted in only one lot of 

 poults and these were shipped in from out-of-state. That pullorum disease 

 was present in some breeding flocks is indicated, however, by the isolation 

 of S. pullorum from 6 of the 10 birds examined bacteriologically following 

 the application of the agglutination test to 3 turkey flocks. A potentially 

 important observation was made when S. typhi-mwiimi was isolated from 

 breeding birds over one year of age. Excessive mortality was reported 

 in this flock during the breeding season. Poults from this flock were 

 affected with paratyphoid infection. Fowl typhoid and fowl cholera were 

 not identified in turkeys during the year. Swine erysipelas was identified 

 in one case and ulcerative enteritis in 2 cases. A condition which has 

 been reported to resemble perosis was observed in 2 flocks at about 16 

 weeks of age. Approximately 10 percent of the birds in one flock were 

 affected. 



Among pheasants a cecal infestation with a capillaria species was ob- 

 served for the first time in this laboratory. We are indebted to members 

 of the Zoological Division, Bureau of Animal Industry, L^nited States 



