﻿14 BULLETIN 1138, U. S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE. 



possible length of the test was ryo days. It has been observed that, 

 as a rule, if pigeons maintain their weight and are in good condition 

 after feeding 32 days on a ration, they will not develop the disease 

 during an additional 23-day period. Bach of the three pigeons in 

 this pen gained in weight, the average being 4.6 per cent. 



Pens 19 and 20 were fed rations which contained 15 and 25 per cent 

 of lamb tongue No. 619. This sample was prepared from approxi- 

 mately 50 lamb tongues. The result obtained from pen 19 was about 

 the same as that from pen 15, getting 15 per cent of lamb muscle No. 

 680, and indicates a low antineuritic value. Pen 20, getting 25 per 

 cent of lamb tongue, yielded rather better results than pen 19, the 

 survival period being 41.8 days as compared with 23.8, and the loss 

 in weight only 6.5 per cent as compared with 14.5. Two birds in 

 pen 20 were in fair condition at the close of the test, while all the pig- 

 eons in pen 19 had developed polyneuritis. The change in weights 

 of the pigeons on the lamb-muscle rations are shown in Figures 11, 12, 

 and 13. 



TESTS WITH HOG MUSCLE. 



RESULTS WITH UNCOOKED FRESH MUSCLE. 



The feeding tests with hog muscle yielded the most interesting 

 results of all of the experiments. The first lot of tenderloin, No. 681, 

 which was purchased frozen, consisted of the tenderloin muscle from 

 approximately 20 hogs. The results with uncooked fresh muscle are 

 seen in Table 6 and Figures 14, 15, and 16. 



In pen 21, pigeon 33 developed an infection of the eye early in the 

 test and died on the forty-third day without any symptoms of poly- 

 neuritis. The data for this bird are excluded from the average for 

 the pen. The three other birds w T ere in good condition at the close 

 of the test and each had gained in weight, the average being 3.1 per 

 cent. 



The birds in pen 22, on the ration containing 25 per cent of the same 

 lot of tenderloin, were all in fine condition at the close of the test. 

 One pigeon, No. 38, lost 3.2 per cent in weight, but by referring to 

 Figure 14 it will be noted this bird was gaining in weight after an 

 earlier loss. The average gain in weight for the pen was 7.1 per cent. 



Pens 23 and 24 were fed rations containing 15 and 25 per cent of 

 muscle obtained from four fresh pork hams representing the same 

 number of hogs. The hams weighed from 8 to 10 pounds each. 

 Every pigeon in each of these pens was in fine condition at the close 

 of the test and each had gained very considerably in weight, the gains 

 ranging from 10 to 20.6 per cent. The average gain for pen 23 was 

 13.6 per cent and for pen 24 it was 16.8 per cent. 



Pens 25 and 26 were fed rations containing 15 and 25 per cent of 

 another lot of frozen pork tenderloin, No. 702. Every bird but one 

 in these pens was in fine condition at the close of the test and had 

 gained in weight from 5.2 to 14.8 per cent. The one bird, No. 183, 

 was in fair condition and had lost only 1.6 per cent in weight. The 

 average gain in weight for each of the two pens was 10.1 and 11.0 per 

 cent, respectively. 



