122 POULTRY DISEASES AND THEIR TREATMENT. 



posed to stand or walk. Sometimes the nodules ulcerate, dis- 

 charging a stringy pus and exposing the cavities of the joints 

 to the air. The development of fistulas cause the death of the 

 bones. The disease is slow in its development and advanced 

 stages are seen only in old birds. The birds lose weight and in 

 advanced stages diarrhea sets in and death from exhaustion 

 follows. 



Early stages of this disease are often mistaken for rheuma- 

 tism on account of the stiffness and soi'eness of the joints. 



Etiology. — The cause of this disease is a disturbance of the 

 normal physiology of excretion so that the uric acid which 

 should be excreted by the kidneys is first retained in the blood 

 and then deposited within the body as crystals of urate of soda. 

 The disturbance is probably due to a diet which is too rich in 

 proteids. 



Treatment. — In case of articular gout Salmon recommends 

 rubbing the affected joints with camphorated or carbolic oint- 

 ment. In well developed cases it is more profitable to kill the 

 birds than to treat them. Visceral gout is not usually recog- 

 nized while the bird is alive. Prevention is the only reliable 

 treatment for either form of gout. Birds should be kept under 

 sanitary conditions and given plenty of green food. When sev- 

 eral birds develop the disease it is well to give the whole flock 

 Epsom salts (J4 to J4 teaspoonful per bird) and to reduce the 

 amount of meat scrap and increase the quantity of green food. 



Prognosis. — The disease, especially the articular form, is 

 chronic and advanced cases are only found in old birds. Badly 

 diseased birds may live a long time. Mild cases may recover 

 on corrected diet. 



Other Diseased Conditions of the Kidneys. 



In the examination of dead birds cases are often observed 

 where the kidneys are diseased. They are often enlarged. 

 Sometimes they contain dark points caused by the rupture of 

 small blood vessels, and in other cases they may contain ab- 

 scesses. Micro-organisms have been obtained from some cases 

 of diseased kidneys. Nothing is yet known of the causes of 

 these specific diseased conditions in poultry. Some of the cases 

 of under-development, especially of pullets, are apparently due 

 to enlarged kidneys. In such cases the birds usually lose their 

 appetite, become emaciated and their feathers are roughened. 

 No dependable diagnosis of diseased kidneys can be made on 



