300 MAKING POULTRY PAY 



and the boxes are then filled with dry, powdery, air- 

 slaked lime, heaped up so that the roost rests entirely 

 upon the lime and does not touch the box at any point. 

 Vermin will not get to a roost protected in this way. 

 Another simple yet effective device is to place the 

 ends of the roosts in tin cans containing kerosene. A 

 slot or groove is cut in the can, a, half way down, 

 to hold the end of the roost, b, as shown. The bottom 

 of the can is kept filled with kerosene. These cans are 

 nailed to the side of the building and effectually pre- 

 vent all lice from crawling into the roosts. 



Limber neck is a complaint common to chickens 

 in the middle and southern states. It is caused by 

 ptomaine poisoning from eating putrid flesh. The 

 •disease is a paralysis of the neck, and death is not 

 caused by maggots gnawing through the craw, as is 

 commonly supposed. Poultry keepers in England and 

 France feed their birds on maggots, but where mag- 

 gots are, the poison which causes this trouble is likely 

 to be found. Turpentine is a good remedy, but probably 

 the most effectual is Venetian red, say half a teaspoon- 

 ful to each bird daily. Mix this with dough and roll 

 into strips one inch long. 



Rats are one of the worst pests around the poultry 

 house as they not only steal much of the grain but 

 carry off eggs and young chicks. Persistent trapping 

 and poisoning will keep them subdued. The best baits 

 to use in trapping are small pieces of Vienna sausage 

 (Wienerwurst) or bacon. One of the cheapest and 

 most effective poisons is barium carbonate, or barytes, 

 a mineral without taste or smell. In the small quanti- 

 ties used for poisoning rats and mice it is harmless to 

 larger animals. Its action is slow but reasonably sure. 

 Mix one-fifth barytes with four-fifths cornmeal or 

 one-eighth barytes with seven-eighths of its bulk of 

 oatmeal. Then mix it with water in the form of a 



