Shenandoah herald. [volume] (Woodstock, Va.) 1865-1974, 1880-09-01
Chicken Cholera No. 3.
CAUSE.

iS1 HNNS@ NOe Wv H' JNANy VI
them hit wide of the mark.
Several poultry raisers claim that
Impure water is the sole cause of
chicken cholera. They argue from
the fact that when confined in yards.
and supplied with plenty of pure
water, their fowls were free from
cholera, but when, at the close Of
the breeding season, they were
turned out to range at will, they
drank from pools of stagnant water,
took the cholera and died. am
willing to admit that foul water is
the cause of a good many chicken
ailments, and know that it acts as
a powerful cooperating cause
where chicken cholera is concerned;
but also know; that foul water alone,
will not produce cholera. 1 have
known hocks Of chickens that never
had drop of water, except what
they drank from the leakings of the
barn-yard, under the sink-dra;n, and
in hog-wallows, and yet they never
had the first symptoms Of cholera;
while on the other hand, [ have
known fowls that were kept in large
yards, and supplied with pure fresh
water three times a day die off
with cholera until the yards were
almost depopul2ted-
A few poultry raisera have adj
vanced the idea, that roosting in
houser is al the root Of the evil
where poultry cholera Is concern
ed. That won't do my friends;
you cannot lay the blame to the
houses, when it is well known that
fowls that rooSt in the tree-tops,
frequently fall victims to cholera,
while those that roost in houses
may escape the dread disease. Over
crowding is no doubt a fruitful
source of disease, and is also an
other of the cooperating causes, but
but turning the chickens out to
roost in the trees wouldn't help the
matter much. When roosting in
trees, every chicken wants the very
highest limb, and they are very apt
10 crowd too close together for COM
fort or health,
Others claim that lice are the
cause of cholera. That don't look
reasonable either. | have seen fowls
and chicks that were literally COW
cred with lice, and actually died
from the effects of their ravages, but
no symptom OF cholera was pre-
sent,and | have also examined fowls
that were sick, and those that had
died with cholera, and found
them entirely free from vermin
Some poultry raisers and writers
have maintained, that improper food
should be held responsible for chol-
era, l have no doubt but that i'm
proper food, or sudden change OF
diet in hot weather, produces dys-
EMERY among fowls, l knew Of
one or two focks that were attack
ed with genuine cholera as result
Of feeding butchers offal during the
cholera season, but | am quite GER
tain that the ofal acted only as an
exciting cause.
Indigestion has been put forward
as one of the causes that produce
cholera, but indigestion is result,
not cause, If fowls are proper
ly supplied with gravel, they will,
when in health, digest almost any
thing. Sometimes a hen will eat
more dry grass than she can carry,
and die from the effects, but if her
owner had sense enough to open
the crop and remove the obstruction,
his hen would probably recover.
One ignorant poultry raiser, even
claimed that green grass would pro.
duce cholera, and another said
his fowls always had cnolera after
meal of green food of any kind.
Green grass or other green food, if
ted in large quantities to fowls that
are kept where they cannot get a
supply of green food daily, may
cause dysentery Or diarrhea, or even
genuine cholera; but in the latter
Icase-the green food would only be
one of the exciting cause that help.
ed to develop the disease that was
already in the system.
might go on and name many
other causes which different writers
and poultry raises have claimed
would produce chicken choleta, but
it is not necessary. l have shown
the fallacy Of some of the most pop
Mar errors in regard to the cause Of
cholera. and in my next, will give
what l believe to be the true cause
of this dangerous disease.