84 American Fisheries Society. 



measures, it seems highly probable that a greater variety in 

 kind of food will assist in combatting the disease. Such pro- 

 cedure is indicated by the examination of several 2-year and 3- 

 year-old brook trout which had been removed as fingerlings 

 from infected troughs at the Bath hatchery and placed in the 

 spring pond, where they secured only natural food. It was 

 found that the trout were still "carriers" of the organism, though 

 not in numbers evidently to interfere with the normal function- 

 ing of the intestinal tract. These examinations were made in the 

 summer and again at the time of the spawning function in the 

 fall and their appearance at both times was that of normal and 

 healthy fish. 



Sanitary Measures to be Tried Out* In order to check the 

 ravages of this and other diseases, it has been directed that all 

 the State hatcheries be given a thorough course of disinfection 

 this fall. The directions for this, which have been sent out, 

 are as follows : 



Every trough, race or other receptacle in which fish have 

 been must be thoroughly sterilized. The ordinary tarring process 

 used in all our hatcheries should be sufficient for this if particu- 

 lar care is taken to cover every surface which has been touched 

 or will be touched by water with a complete layer of tar. There 

 must be no holes in this coating and all corners and inaccessible 

 spots must be thoroughly and carefully treated. This applies 

 to plugs, screens and trays as well as to troughs. All brooms, 

 brushes, feathers, cloths and similar implements used about the 

 hatchery should be collected and destroyed, preferably by burn- 

 ing. All pans, spoons and other metallic implements or utensils 

 must be thoroughly sterilized by washing with soap and hot 

 water, prolonged boiling and the use of such disinfectants as 

 chloride of lime. To be effective this sterilization must be 

 thorough and universal and the progress of the work must be so 

 conducted that at some moment of time after the shipping of the 

 last fish and before the arrival of the first eggs there will be in the 

 hatchery absolutely nothing which can carry the infection which 

 has not been thoroughly sterilized. This is of prime importance, 

 as one infected brush kept over through this period may reinfect 



• Excerpt from: Diseases of fish in State Hatcheries, State of New York 

 Conservation Commission, Twelfth Annual Report for 1922, Legislative Doc. 

 No. 29, 1923, p. 66-79, 2pl. fig. 10-14. 



