The new enterprise., 1905-06-08

ance of the poultry business and their
raids on the fowls will do more to
destroy the prospects Of q dividend |
than anything else known. They are |
constantly at work, never allowing |
the fowls minutes rest from the
everlasting torture. No wonder, then,
that the poor, suffering hen is not
laying her usual quota Of eggs. The
circumstances under which she Is com
PEELED to work are certainly the most
discouragipg any one could imagine
trying to produce eggs and flesh from
the food supplied her, while legions
Of lice and mites are sapplng her very
life blood. Very often a setting hen
will leave the nest or die thereon. II
the farmer, the owner, will blame the
fowl and say she is no good, and II the
latter, he will say the death was
caused by cholera, when nine times out
Of ten the cause was lice.
If your hens are lousy you will find
that although the lice are almost in
visible to the naked eye, they do an
immense amount Of damage. So much
so that we feel safe in asserting that
the person who is successful in rails
ing poultry and makes money in the
business is one who keeps down the
lice, one who will not tolerate them
about the premises, 1t is compara-
lively easy to rid fowls Of lice, by
the use Of good insectlcide and read
ers who are troubled with this pest
are advised to keep a supply always
on hand and use it early and often,
for lice breed very fast.
There are many varieties Of lice
which infest poultry, the exact num-
ber being nine. These live and breed
on fowls, They lay their eggs or
nits on the down Of the feathers; the
nits hatch in ten days, so you see, If
they are not kept down and continually
warred against you will have three
crops Of them each month in warm
weather.
The hen louise does not suck the
blood of the fowls, but eats the skin
and feathers thus they are a source
of much irritation and discomfort to
the fowls.
By the introduction Of a single
lousy bird among your fowls, this pest
is spread through the while flock, 1t
is a good rule to look each new fowl
over carefully, and as a precaution-
ary measure give 1t a good busting
with insect powder before allowing 1t
to run with the rest Of your poultry.
Hens are seldom free from lice en-
tirely, yet it should be the practice
Of the breeder to keep them as free
from them as possible,
Another pest which is Of no little
importance is the mite This is not a
louise, but is a blOod-sucking creature
There are several varieties Of mites,
They live in the nests, cracks OF the
houses, old knot holes, etc. These ver'
min attack the fowls at night and suck
the blood of their victims, Cracked
roosts, dirty nests and cracks In the
walls are favorlte breeding places FOR
them; in fact, they will stay and breed
in any place which will afford them
a hiding place by day and from which
they can attack the fowls at night
In straws. filth, or behind the sheath
ing Of the poultry house these mites
can be found, and they should be
avoided by careful methods OF lhe
breeder, who should not allow sucl
places to exist in his coops. These
mites will live for a long time ano
have been found in vacant poultry
houses long after the fowls have beer
removed from them.
Don't try to find an excuse for th'
existence Of lice and mites on you
premises: there are no valid ones Thes'
vermin can be overcome, and 1t Is th'
duty every poultry raiser owes t'
himself that his fowls be free IRON
vermin of all kinds.
Look for mites in all cracks o
the buildings, in the nests IN IN
cracks of the roosts, and behind IN
sheathing boards. They are sometime
found on the fowls In the daytime, pu
not often, as it is not their natura
abiding place. -
Lice are always found on the birds
and sometimes they will leave I'd
fowls and crawl over the hands OF hu
man beings when the birds are han
died, but they do not stay on or Nv
on the human body. To prevent lie
and other vermin, the poultry nous
should be whitewashed, all cracks D
filed with plaster, and roost pole
and nests painted with kerosene AN
lastly, dust the birds with a good IL
scot nnydnp