PSEUDOMEMBRANOUS STOMATITIS OF PIGEONS 

 AND CHICKENS. 



Contagious and destructive nature of the disease. Mode of extension 

 from the mouth and pharynx. Causes : bacillus diphtherias columbarum ; 

 its characters : pathogenesis to birds, mice, rabbits, Guinea pigs ; dogs, rats, 

 and cattle immune ; diagnosis from bacillus diphtherias. American disease. 

 Incubation. Symptoms : prostration ; wheezing breathing ; sneezing ; diffi- 

 cult deglutition ; false membrane on fauces ; necrotic changes in mucosa ; 

 perforations ; lesions of internal organs ; blood infection ; nostrils stuffed ; 

 bill gapes ; lesions on eye, tongue, gullet, crop, intestine ; diarrhoea ; vomit- 

 ing. Skin lesions. Course, acute, chronic. Paralysis. Mortality. Prog- 

 nosis. Diagnosis from coccidioisis, from croupous angina of Rivolta, from 

 aspergillus disease. Treatment : isolation ; destruction of carcases ; hatch- 

 ing ; destruction of dead wild birds and rabbits ; exclusion of living ; quar- 

 antine of new birds ; disinfection ; locally, antiseptics by inhalation, swab- 

 bing, and internally, iron in water. 



This afEectioii prevails in certain countries and causes heavy 

 losses among young pigeons, so that it might with great propriety 

 be included among animal plagues, which should be dealt with 

 by the State. The malady is a local inflammation leading to the 

 formation of false membranes and its usual course is to progress 

 from the mouth and pharynx, to the na.sal passages, lachrymal 

 ducts and sacs, the larynx, trachea, bronchia, intestines and skin. 



Causes. The essential cause of the disease is held by lYoeffler 

 to be the bacillus dipththeriee columbarum, which is a short bacillus 

 with rounded ends, a little longer than the bacillus of fowl 

 cholera and not quite so broad. It is usually found in irregular 

 clusters, especially in the interior of the hepatic capillaries. It 

 is aerobic, non-motile, non-liquifying, and grows on nutrient gela- 

 tine, blood serum or potato. In gelatine it forms a white surface 

 layer, and .spherical colonies along the line of puncture, which 

 show a yellowish brown tint under the microscope. On blood 

 serum and potato it forms a grayish white layer. 



Pathogenesis. The bacillus is inoculable on other pigeons and 

 as it usually appears in the young birds in the nest, .still fed by 

 the parent bird, it is probable that no inflammation nor abrasion 

 is necessary to make it take. Pure cultures inoculated in the 

 mouth gave rise to the usual local type of the disease. When 

 inoculated subcutem it caused a local necrotic inflammation. 



