PHEASANT RAISING IN THE UNITED STATES. 35 
DISEASES OF PHEASANTS. 
By George Byron Morse, M. D., V. S., 
In charge of investigations of diseases of birds and cold-blooded animals, 
Bureau of Animal Industry. 
Health and disease are closely correlated with freedom and con¬ 
finement. In the case of poultry, accustomed by long domestication 
to limited quarters, the larger the range the stronger the bird. The 
converse of this proposition is only too familiar to those who have 
attempted to rear pheasants. In fact, having pheasants in mind, 
one is tempted to formulate the law that the hardier the bird in the 
natural state, the greater the vigilance required to maintain it in 
health in captivity. 
The first principle, then, in pheasant hygiene, is the recognition of 
the fact that health is more or less menaced by confinement, which 
necessitates curtailment of exercise, artificial alimentation, and 
unnatural shelter. It has been the object of the foregoing chapters 
to obviate these dangers as far as possible by suggestions as to the 
location and laying out of the pheasantry, the foods and methods of 
feeding, and the special care of the birds during the breeding season. 
However, as, in spite of the most careful attention, there will still be 
the possibility of diseases, this chapter will indicate methods of 
avoiding preventable diseases, and will suggest curative measures, 
wherever possible, for the others. 
DISINFECTION. 
The subject of disinfection (and along with it that of disinfectants) 
is one of extreme importance in even the most cursory sketch of 
diseases and their treatment. Its importance increases in one’s mind 
in proportion to his apprehension of the extent and seriousness of 
infectious diseases. The fact that many diseases are caused by para¬ 
sites, and are therefore transmissible directly or indirectly from one 
bird to another, or even from other animals to birds, makes apparent 
the necessity for thorough destruction of disease-producing parasites. 
Disinfection of the grounds or runs is of supreme importance, and 
should be practiced not merely for the suppression of an outbreak of 
disease, but regularly as a routine method of preventing such out¬ 
breaks. Fire is the best disinfectant, and where disease agents are 
known to assume very resistant conditions, as, for instance, the eggs 
of worms or the spore cysts of the lowest animal forms like the pro¬ 
tozoa, fire is the only absolutely reliable disinfectant. Where there 
is no danger to buildings, the ground may be sprinkled with kerosene 
and flamed. Even here we must recognize one possibility of failure. 
Earthworms may act sometimes as carriers of disease agents, and 
convey into the ground, on their bodies or in their alimentary tracts, 
390 
