Hopkinsville Kentuckian. [volume] (Hopkinsville, Ky.) 1889-1918, 1907-04-04
WHITE DIARRHoEA
And It's Cause Discussed by
Buchanan Burr.


cnbators during the past four seas
ons over thirty-fve thousand eggs
running my machines as in a labora'
tory and my brooders as the infants
ward of hospital, may give to these
facts and theories some weight
White diarrhoea gets its name from
a thin whitish, sticky discharge from
the.vent of chicks which on exposure
TO the air thickens and adhering tn
the vent causes stoppage and the
accumulation within of faecal mat
ter and urine, thus causing death.
1t is a symptom Of several abnormal
conditions, most of which being
preventable, it ia the plrpose.of this
article to call attention. 10 them.
The causes Of White Diarrhoea
may be divided into three classes:
% Prenatal caused by weak, fat,
Mnmature, or improperly fed breed
jnG stock, or by stale eggs at the
time of setting. (2) Defective in
cubation. 90 Errors of feeding and
brooding.
The causes in the first class are
well understood and the remedy lies
in the selection of only healthy
mature stock, not forced for egg
production prior to the use of eggs
for Matching, plenty of fresh air,
water and exercise. The eggs from
immature pullets hatch well but a
percentage of the chicks are thus
troubled. The main cause of this
symptom, however, is found in de.
fective incubation.
Of the causes of white Diarrhoea
after Matching we have those due to
feed and those due to brooding.
The principal cause due to feeding
comes as one can readily see from
feeding too soon after Matching, as
the chick when born has its entire
abdominal cavity filled with the
unabsorbed yolk, the viscera being
pushed back and up to make room |
for it. They should not be disturbed |
for from forty-eight to sixty hours
after Matching, being left in a tenn
perature of about 95 degrees during
that time. Any food given before
the yolk has been nearly absorbed
will start up peristaltic action in the
gizzard and intestines and these
being crowded out of place will
cause peritonitis and death or cause
the absorption of the yolk to cease
and lean to the symptom we are
discussing. Almost as fatal to the
chick is the pernicious habit advocat- |
ed by most writers and dealers in
chick feed, of feeding bright, sharp,
grit at the first meal to chicks. A
chick will pick up anything bright
and the large quantity of sharp grit !
taken into the tender and empty |
gizzard sets up violent infamma-
ton extending into the intestines,
causing closing of the bile duct and |
death through the White Diarrhoea.
AS the grit is only needed to form |
the frame work of the feathers and |
bones and to a less extent to me-
chanically separate the food, or
binary clean, sharp sand and fine
gravel on the floor of the pens
where they are fed is all that is
to healthy development
and after the first week a small |
amount of artificial grit may be US
ed.
Different successful poultrymen
use different feed for growing chicks
but my method is cracked corn,
wheat and fine oatmeal, mixed and
kept before them all the time with
an equal mixture of corn meal and
beef scraps always within reach.
AS soon as the chicks are placed /
In the brooder, water should be
placed before them and kept there
fresh and clean all the time. This
is ita |, as if always there, they
quickly learn to drink and go to the
font only when thirsty, whereas If it
is only placed before them at in.
tervals it becomes a play thing and
the chicks drink too much at one
time, leading to chilling and diarrh-
Oea. The prepared food containing
wild mustard, too much millet and /
other weed seeds which irritate are
responsible for some cases. Millet.
in large quantities to very
obsolxo oo,,ooc -. -