CHAPTER XXI. 

 LICE. 



The hog in his natural state is not known to be affected 

 with these parasites. Hence it is clearly a malady that 

 has either been brought on, or allowed to develop under 

 the conditions of domestication. The hog louse is a flat, 

 oval insect of a dark color, and comparable in size when 

 full grown to a flax seed or a grain of wheat. It lives 

 upon the skin of the hog and saps his blood, thus reducing 

 the vitality, and when badly infested the hog may become 

 decidedly unthrifty. 



MEANS OF COMBATING. 



Since wild hogs do not have lice, there must be a nat- 

 ural means of destroying the lice or else the conditions 

 under which the wild hog lives are such that this insect 

 cannot develop. 



The Mud Wallow. — The mud wallow is the natural 

 means of destroying lice. It is a well known fact that 

 many herds of swine are never affected with lice; also 

 that hogs having free access to good mud wallows are not 

 troubled in this way. Hog lice cannot live under a coat- 

 ing of mud ; consequently when a hog has access to a mud 

 wallow and covers himself entirely over with mud, the 

 lice will be destroyed, or at least driven off. One means 

 of destroying lice then, is supplying the pigs with a good 

 mud wallow. While this may have some objections, 

 nevertheless it also has advantages besides the destruc- 

 tion of lice. 



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