DISEASES OF POUI^TRY. 99 



The food of affected birds should be nutritious, 

 easily digested, and not too wet. Middlings and meal, 

 rice flour or dry bread may be mixed with boiled milk 

 into a stiff paste and fed either alone or with the ad - 

 dition of boiled and finely -chopped beef or hard-boiled 

 egg. The ration should be light until the diarrhea is 

 checked and other symptoms of improvement are seen. 



ASTHENIA, GOING LIGHT. 



A disease in fowls in which the most noticeable de- 

 parture from the normal condition was their extreme 

 emaciation has been investigated by Dr. Dawson of 

 the Bureau of Animal Industry. The appetites of the 

 affected birds were voracious, there was no evidence of 

 existing diarrhea, but on the contrary slight constipa- 

 tion. The disease was chronic, ending in death in 

 about three months. There was no increase in tem- 

 perature. The comb and wattles were paler than 

 usual. There were 350 fowls on the premises 30 of 

 which had died and 100 were sick at the time of the ■ 

 investigation. The diet consisted of a morning meal 

 of mash made of six parts bran, four parts of mid- 

 dlings, and two parts of meat meal with condition 

 powder and charcoal. They had plenty of small 

 gravel and crushed oyster shells. At night, wheat, 

 corn and oats were fed. Adult Brahma fowls seemed 

 most susceptible. The disease makes itself known 

 through loss of flesh and was, therefore, called "going 

 light." The symptoms appeared to be aggravated by 

 damp weather. The disease did not exist, so far as 

 could be ascertained, upon any of the neighboring 

 premises. 



Examination after death reveals extreme emaciation 

 of the muscular system and almost complete absence 

 of fat. The walls of the duodenum were reddened and 



