Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1913-05-21

ternally; more especially that of che
digestive, reproductive. and respira
tory system. He should know how to
distinguish one organ from another,
also know how these organs look when
normal, and to Il certain extent the
function of these parts. If he does not
know the way these organs look when
normal there is no way for him to
know when they are abnormal; he
could not tell whether the sick bird
was suffering from some trouble of the
crop or the ovaries. The chances are
he will look to everything else before
coming to the right point, while the
real cause is disastrously working in
his flock. He might haphazardly ais
cover a preventive after many trials
which he would have come to immedi-
ately had he known with what he was
dealing This man is working at a
disadvantage since he can neither get
help from others nor himself come t.
the source of the trouble To bring
this fact home one has only to look a.
the inquiries and questions on poultry
which come to the state colleges and
lexperiment stations. over half these
questions arc on some disease or all
ments of the birds; the farmer has a
sick chicken and wants to know what
Ito do A great many of these ques-
tions cannot be answered so that the
farmer can be helped because the
SYMPTOMS and explanation of the
troubles are usually SO vague and
many times so inaccurate that moth
ing can be DONE If these people, on
| the other hand, had knowledge of
| the anatomy of the birds so they could
more specially give symptoms and de-
scription of their troubles they coulG
be helped very materially.
There are several very good reasons
why it does not pay To doctor poul-
| try
| Fiyst-The individual bird is If too
small value to allow man spending
much time in treating it
! sSccond-The supposedly cured bird
| is constantly coming in contact with
| the rest Of the flock which in most
leases is a menace to the spreading Of
1 the trouble and to the outbreaks of
| new epidemes.
| Third--A bird which has been seri-
ously i'll never gets back 10 its former
condition. which fact is shown by the
/
Land even at the show It never has the
glaze and finish that il formerly had
| Fourth-Since the identity eff the
once sick bird and especially its off
Ispring. is very likely to be overlooked
and lost tmore so with poultry than
with other animalsl, these troubles
become much harder to stamp out
/ 1t seems reasonable to give treat
ment only when it can be applied 10 a.
flock conveniently and treatment to
individuals when treatment is simple,
Ieasy, and needs to be administered
but very few times In dealing with
lpoultry diseases, the first step is to
ldiagnese the case, asceftaining the
ldsease, If the bird is alive To find out
lwhere it is suffering, il dead make a
lpost mortem of the organs for any
labnGrmalities; second ascertain the
Icause; third counteract the conditions
Heading to the disease, remove the con-
EDITION. and finally if practical attempt
Ito cure.
The old saying that an ounce Of pre-
Ivention is worth a ton of remedy is
ESPECIALLY true of poultry. Prevention
lis practically the only way We haye
lof fighting The disease. Find ont what
Ito prevent by knowing the diseases and
lwhen Your birds have them. Let him
twho has no knowledge of these dis
leases and the more simple anatomy Of
his birds acquire il by studying his
birds mere closely and also by data
(which he can get from the college of
agriculture in his state. so that he not
lohly can help himself but can help
land be helped by others.