The Abilene reflector. [volume] (Abilene, Kan.) 1883-1888, 1884-03-06
Nphtheria from Chickens.
Inotice an extract from the Lonf

| I notice an extract from the London
Times in New York paper. stating
| hat German professor (Gerhardt of
Wurzburg) has determined to his salts
faction. by experiment and observation,
that diphtheria is sometimes cOmmuni-
Gated to persons BY means of fowls.
This will be q new idea to many peo-
pie, but after all ought not to surprise
Fowls frequently have throat diseases
which sometimes kill them, and diph-
! iberia is attributed usually to some
want of cleanliness about the premises,
when it cannot be traced to cOntagiOn
from some person. it should be an addi-
tional reason to all who keep fowls to
| give them more attention in the way Of
cleanliness. And want of cleanliness
is. after all, the cause of more failures
| with fowls than probably any other enc
thing. In addition, if diphtheria can
be traced to this cause, one would sup
pose that every possible precautiOn
would be taken to guard against It,
though of course it VIII not.
The stables set apart for horses and
cattle are cleaned every day, and some
times several times q day. 1t is not al
WAYS done in the best manner, or in a
manner to make the best use of the eX-
crements, but it is done generally as a
matter OF course, and without complaint
about 1.-The trouble: But when il
comes to fowls it is very different. In
the first place no pains are often taken
to so arrange the rOosts that the drop
pings can be readily scraped or shoveled
I'D n
some disinfecting substance which
makes it safe to let them accumulate
for few weeks. They are simply let
alone and allowed to accumulate not
only for weeks, but for months and
even years. Fermentation sets in after
awhile, or very soon in warm weather,
chemical changes occur affecting the
commercial value, disgusting odors
arise which first affect the fowls, and
then are waited over the neighbOrhood.
and insects of many kinds are bred in
the pile, some of them hen lice, and
these at once attack the fowls. In
many cases .'hen cholera" is developed,
and the owner wonders and mourns at
the extraordinary run of ''bad luck" he
is having, though / cahnot see that
as natural 4 result as it would be to
make the cellar of his house a dumping
place for vegetable and animal filth
year after year. In fact. the latter
would be less pestilential, as the tight
floor of most dwellings, with second,
sometimes third floor above, is par
tial protection; but the filth under a
hen rooSt goes straight to the fowls
above, unless n friendly breeze sends it
in another direction.
Roup is form of diphtheria, as any
one will see who notes the swelled
throat and eyes of the suffering fowl
and its painful attempts to breathe.
The exuding fluid or moisture from the
mouth and eyes is undoubtedly poison
Gus, as is probably the breath also. The
rule is to exclude all sick fowls from
the flock at once, which is right, but
not enough 1t is far better to exclude
all causes of disease, and thus prevent
it. A sick fowl is a poor thing to spend
time on in doctoring. Its value is
slight at most, while to attend properly
to it re JuireS about as much time as a
horse worth more than hundred
fowls. In general, fowls of only ordi- !
nary worth had better be killed as soon
as they are seriously sick. as a man
whose time is worth dollar a day &c
him cannot afford to spend many hours
on a sick fowl. But in works of clean
illness he works for bis whole flock, and
also for his family. He promotes
health and neatness, and this ought 10 |
be as great pleasure to him as it /
usually is to see his house kept in neat
order by q tidy wife. The slip-shod
Indifference to the appearance and con-
dition of out buildings and premises, so
often manifested, is disgusting and dis
graceful, and the quarters set apart for
fowls are usually the worst of all. That
there is close relation between such
premises and the health of rural fami-
lies admits of no doubt whatever.
Farmers have advantages for health
which no possible care in the great
cities can equal, and when they heed
lesslv render them nugatory by care
lessness, they have to blame but them
p, in Country Gentleman.