74 



DIARRHOEA OR ENTERITIS. 



Feathering out is a very trying period in the life of a chick, 

 corresponding to teething in the life of a child. There is a double 

 tax upon the chick's system: the ordinary demands of growth 

 must be met, and the little body must be covered with feathers. 

 It is a time when even the most careful poultryman must expect 

 some fatalities, and the careless or lazy poultryman must not be 

 surprised to see his flock melt away like snow before the sun in 

 springtime. When the poultryman goes to feed his chicks he 

 notices one or two, perhaps more, standing around in a listless, 

 dejected way, wings drooping or outspread, with possibly a white 

 threadlike substance which has just exuded from the bowels 

 clinging to the fluff around the vent. The chick may throw up 

 its head and gape. In a few hours it will be dead. Its digestive 

 system is deranged, and it is suffering from what is known as 

 Diarrhoea or Enteritis. 



It is better, far better, to avoid this disease than to attempt to 

 cure it. The poultryman should realize what a critical period 

 feathering out is, and strive to meet it. Especially should he be 

 careful about what he feeds his chicks, making no sudden changes 

 in their bill of fare. Nor should he let them become chilled or get 

 drenched in a shower. If, in spite of all precautions, chicken 

 cholera makes its appearance, the house and brooders should be 

 thoroughly cleaned, all drinking vessels scalded, and air-slacked 

 lime sprinkled lightly about. Some good remedies are as fol- 

 lows : "Boiled rice upon which has been sprinkled a little cinna- 

 mon, lime water to drink, boiled milk and dry bran." In mild 

 cases add one or two drams of sulphate of iron to a pint of drink- 

 ing water. In very serious cases where the diarrhoea is accompa- 

 nied by pain, fever or bloody discharges, give 1-8 grain pow- 

 dered opium and two grains subnitrate of bismuth every four 

 hours. 



COLDS AND BRONCHITIS. 



Fowls are very susceptible to colds. The reason is, I sup- 

 pose, that they are subjected to great changes of temperature. 

 Poultry houses are so built that the sun shines full upon them, 

 and at midday even in winter the interior is often very warm. It 

 is generally when the temperature is highest that the fowls are 

 working the hardest. The conditions are analogous to what they 

 would be were a man obliged to wear a heavy fur coat all the time 



