CATARRHAL ENTERITIS IN BIRDS. 



Causes : microbes, diagnosis from fowl cholera, less virulent, rapid and 

 deadly, and comparatively harmless to the rabbit, debility, youth, age, un- 

 suitable food, ill-health : bacillus gallinorum, bacillus coli communis, bacillus 

 of duck cholera, spirillum Metchnikowi. Symptoms : dullness, fever, languor, 

 inappetence, thirst, pale comb, greenish faeces, erect plumage, drooping 

 wings and tail, sunken head, gaping, staggering, somnolence, bloody faces, 

 violet comb, low temperature, death in one to three weeks. Diagnosis : by 

 restriction to one flock or species, and immunity of rabbits. Mortality 

 80 ft> . Prevention : separation of sick and healthy, disinfection of roosts and 

 yards, pure food and water boiled or acidified, immunization. Treatment : 

 boiled food with antiseptics, antiseptic enemata, stimulants, tonics. 



Causes. A number of different microbes are implicated in pro- 

 ducing and maintaining catarrhal enteritis in the domestic 

 poultry. All forms of the disease are therefore closely related to 

 the well known fowl cholera, which is, however, to be differen- 

 tiated, by its more intense virulence, rapid progress, and its deadly 

 effect when inoculated on the rabbit. As in other forms of micro- 

 bian enteritis, that of fowls is undoubtedly favored by general 

 and local debility, youth, old age, unsuitable food and other 

 health depressing causes, yet as the specific pathogenic microbe 

 -has been in many cases identified, it is well to consider some of 

 the different species. 



Bacillus gallinorum found by Klein ( 1889) in the blood of 

 chickens suffering from an infective diarrhoeal enteritis, is ovoid, 

 with rounded ends, from 0.8 to 2/u, long and 0.3 to 0.4/i thick ; 

 often in pairs. Stains in aniline colors. ^Erobic (facultative 

 anaerobic) non-liquefying, non-motile, asporogenous. Culture 

 easy in neutral, alkaline or slightly acid media at room temper- 

 ature, or better in thermostat. On gelatine plate films, it forms 

 grayish white, superficial colonies, becoming flat homogeneous 

 white discs, brownish under transmitted light. The deeper 

 colonies are small spherical and brown or yellowish by trans- 

 mitted light. On agar it forms a thin gray layer with irregular 

 margins, which extends over the entire surface. In bouillon it 

 causes turbidity and in 24 hours a precipitate of bacilli to the 

 bottom. 



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