284 AUSTRALIAN AGRICULTURE. 



Gapes. Choking and suffocating symptoms indicate 

 this disease. The cause is found in numbers of small 

 worms which infest the windpipe and throat, causing the 

 patient to gasp for breath. When taken early, it may be 

 sufficient to give, for two or three days, a morsel of 

 camphor the size of a grain of wheat, and to put camphor 

 in the drinking water, or a little turpentine or sulphuric 

 acid may be given daily in meal, taking care, of course, 

 that deficiencies in diet and shelter be improved. In 

 fully-developed cases, the worms n:ust be removed by 

 introducing a feather or a loop of horsehair, saturated 

 with kerosene, into the throat, and turning it round during 

 withdrawal, the operation to be repeated several times, till 

 the worms are extracted. 



Loss of Feathers and Feather-Bating. This trouble 

 is supposed to be caused by want of green food or having 

 no dust bath, but it is often a symptom of depraved, 

 morbid apetite, not easily cured. Additions of meat to 

 the feed, sulphate of iron in the drinking water, and a run 

 on fresh grass, aid in curing. 



Vermin. They used to be,and may be still,in neglected 

 cases, the most serious drawback to poultry-keeping in 

 warm climates. During dry summer weather the little 

 pests, peculiar to fowls, attack human beings, or horses, 

 and may become fearful scourges. To keep them in check, 

 sitting and broody hens should be put apart from others, 

 then rubbed on the head and under the wings with sulphur 

 ointment, and dusted with flour of sulphur and lime daily. 

 The fowls should also have shady, damp places in which 

 to roll and clean themselves. The vermin, be it well 

 understood, cannot travel or live in damp places, nor do 

 they like dry dust. Soda-resiu-petroleum spray mixture 

 and hot lime-water are most effectual for clearing them off. 



Scaly Legs. Caused by small parasites. Usually a 

 dressing with kerosene is effective ; rub it in freely, and 

 after an hour or so, wash off with Condy's fluid or carbolic 

 soap. In very bad cases use soda-resin-petroleum mixture, 

 washing afterwards. 



Soft-Shell Eggs. Lime material, or crushed bone, 

 oyster shells, lime-stone (not lime) wanted in feed. 



