24 BULLETIN 301, U. S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE. 
carbolated water or with castile soap, followed by an application of 
hydrogen peroxide. 
Thus far no widespread disease among foxes has made its appear- 
ance. When diseases occur they mainly affect the digestive organs, 
and usually can be traced to improper feeding. Indigestion and 
inflammation of the bowels are not uncommon among cubs. Isola- 
tion in clean, dry quarters is the first step toward a cure, and rest and 
fasting are better than medicine. A spoonful of milk diluted with 
six spoonfuls of boiled water will quench thirst and aid in maintaining 
strength. The feces should be examined daily. Constipation is 
frequent, and it is especially dangerous to yixens during the first- 
three days after the birth of their cubs. It can generally be cor- 
rected by a laxatiye diet, as milk, liver, or veal, but in extreme cases 
a dose of castor oil or an injection of soapsuds may be necessary. 
A protracted attack of diarrhea can usually be checked by a purge of 
castor oil followed by small doses of laudanum. Generally, however, 
a day or two of fasting followed by short rations of cooked milk or 
milk and eggs, at intervals of two or three hours, will effect a cure. 
During such an attack vitality runs low, and care must be taken to 
keep the afflicted animal in a warm, dry place. It should have access 
to water that has been boiled. Growing cubs are frequently subject 
to weakened and distorted legs. This disease, known as rickets, 
can be prevented by including ground bone in their meat rations and 
by adding limewater to their milk. The bones of calves and those 
from the briskets of beeves are comparatively easy to crush so that 
foxes can swallow them. 
At quarantine stations, where imported animals are examined, 
particular attention is directed to symptoms of rabies and mange. 
The fact that rabies, or hydrophobia, is communicable to man makes 
it doubly dreaded. Fortunately it has not appeared among domes- 
ticated foxes so far as known. Mange is characterized by a loss of 
fur. It is caused by a tiny parasite, somewhat like the itch mite, 
and is, therefore, very contagious. Were it to obtain a foothold 
among domesticated foxes, it would seriously hamper and perhaps 
ruin this branch of the fur industry. All animals showing a tendency 
to have bare spots should be isolated at once. The diseased parts 
should be treated daily with ointments, as petrolatum or a mixture 
of lard and sulphur. 
Foxes serve as hosts for a number of other parasites. Lice and 
fleas infest their hair and skin, while roundworms and tapeworms 
drain their vitality from within. The death of a fox has occasionally 
been attributed to lice. Eyen if not fatal, lice and fleas diminish 
the vigor of their hosts and should be persistently combated. Some 
fox breeders dip all their animals in a solution of creolin or a similar 
nonpoisonous dip shortly after the cubs are weaned. It is well in 
