490 POULTRY DISEASES AND PARASITES 



Then sieve through a piece of window screen upon a news- 

 paper and allow the powder to remain as sifted for one 

 or two hours. The gasoline will tend to evaporate all the 

 moisture from the powder and when dry, it should be light 

 and flakey. The powder may be apphed immediately or 

 kept for future use in an air-tight vessel. 



To apply, use a sifter. Grasp the fowl by the legs with 

 its head downward and sift the powder into the plumage. 

 Ruffle the plumage with the hand so that the powder will 

 work down between the feathers to the skin. Apply well 

 under the wings. 



Blue ointment (merciu-ial) has been found satisfactory 

 when worked into the feathers about the vent. The 

 mercurial ointment may be made by thoroughly mixing the 

 following: 



Mercury .... ... 1 pound 



Lard . 1 " 



Vaseline . . . . 1 " 



Liver Enlargement.^ — ^This condition is sometimes some- 

 what difficult for the ordinary producer to diagnose in the 

 live bird. It is usually accompanied by an increase in the 

 fowl's weight and frequent evacuations of dark yellow semi- 

 liquid feces. It is sometimes accompanied by excessive 

 thirst. With postmortem examination, however, the liver 

 will be found enlarged, mottled in color, easily torn apart, 

 and greasy. This disease is most likely to occur toward the 

 end of winter when the supply of green feed has been deficient. 



The treatment consists of feeding the whole flock liberally 

 of succulent feed of some kind, first giving the birds a wet 

 mash containing a teaspoonful of Epsom salts for each 

 bird in the flock. 



Mites. — ^There are more species of mites thaii lice, but, as 

 in the case of lice, it is not necessary for the practical poultry- 

 man to distinguish between the different species, aside from 

 the scaly-leg mite mentioned elsewhere. The mite is a tiny, 

 spider-like parasite with piercing mouth parts. It does not 

 live on the body of the fowl as does the louse, but goes upon 

 it from the nest or perch to gorge itself with blood. Mites 



