Belding banner. (Belding, Mich.) 1889-1918, 1916-08-16

disease. 1t is a peculiar fact that lice
seem to select the most unthrifty hen
| i'm the flock for their special breeding
place. l should think that they would
attack the healthy hens first but the
thrifty fowl can be examined careful
I ly and will be found to have a clean
skin and no lice, while another hen
on the same roost will be fairly
swarming with vernin. The vermin-
infested hen is usually the bird with
generally run down appearance. 1t
| is a question whether lice attack
weak birds or the birds become weak
from the attacks of the lice. have
theory that the strong birds dust
themselves more thoroughly and
Frequently than birds lacking in ,vigor
and forthis reason few lice are seen
on strong healthy hen. 1t is a fact
that lice. multiply rapidly and for
this reason the slightly weakened hen
which picks up few vermin is apt
to be supporting a whole family. OF
them in short time. As the hen
becomes weaker and neglects scratch
ing and busting, the lice become
healthier from living on the hens
unhealthy skin and finally the lice
win but have to seek new home.
Their boarding house keeper. is dead.
Means Of Controlling Lice
At present there are many methods
of keeping down the lice in the farm
fiocks, the homemade compounds are
easily made and the commercial lice
the battle is rather hard but when
lice are once brought under control
or practically eradicated, it is not so
much work to keep the hens and the
hen house i'm good condition.
Lice breathe through fine pores on
the sides of the body and for this rea-
SON any dust that will clog the pores
kills the louise by suffocation. The
healthy hen which wallows or bathes
in road dust continually makes the
lice fight hard for existence and such
hen will usually be free, or nearly
free, from vermin. Most of the pow
ders on the market have Persian in
sect powder, carbolic acid or tobacco
dust as their base, as these products
are very penetrating and much more
effective than road dust in rapidly rid
ding hens of lice. Fresh Persian in
sect powder is very effective remedy
and we have had much success in
keeping hens clean by simply busting
them thoroughly with this powder.
By going out to the coop at night with
an assistant hundred hens can be
busted. in an hour. Hold the hen Sc
curely by the legs and allow the as
sistant TO thoroughly shake the pow
der around the vent, under the wings
and on the thighs and while you hold
the bird with one hand the powder
may be thoroughly worked into the
feathers with the other.
An inexpensive Lice Powder
An inexpensive powder about as
Persian insect powder, cam be made
by pouring a mixture of four ounces
of crude carbolic acid to a quart of
gasoline over about three pounds of
air-slacked lime. This should be
thoroughly stirred in mixing and
when the oil evaporates the remain
ing powder will have strong odor
of carbolic acid, which is offensive to
lice and mites and the powder is fine
enough to clog the breathing pores
of the lice. A coffee can makes a
good holder for lice powder. Punch
the cover six or eight times with<a
single nail and that will allow
enough of the powder to come
through at one time. Too many holes
will cause a serious wasting of the
powder and even II it is cheap the
time taken in making it is possibly
cannot be replenished frequently dur
| ing the busy season in the summer
| when lice are the most dangerous.
The expense of using Persian insect
| pow n may be reduced by mixing
quart of the powder to four quarts OF
| fine road dust. This may be applied
| in the same manner as other powders.
l do not like to saturate the feathers
of white fowls with insect powders as
it gives them a dirty appearance
which lasts many days. For such
birds / believe that the blue ointment
treatment is the best method of kill
ing lice. The standard formula for
this mixture seems to be murcury, so
parts; suet, % parts, and oleate of
mercury, two parts. The necessary
portions can be purchased at the drug
store and the mixture made at home
or the prepared blue ointment can be
purchased from poultry supply
houses. At night the birds can be
caught and each one rubbed under
the vent with a small piece of the
ointment. 1t is said that this will
prevent attacks from lice during an
entire season but probably two ap-
plications during the summer will be
safer. When setting hens it is well
to give them an application of the
blue ointment as this will not only
protect the mother hen but it will
keep the little chicks free from YER
min.
Provide Good busting Places
1t is best to make the hens cooper
ate with you in fighting lice and they
can do this if you provide plenty Of
good busting places. Good garden soil
or road dust is the basis of the hens
dust bath but it can be made of more
value by adding finely sifted wood
ashes, dry slaked lime or flowers Of
sulphur. This mixture can be plac-
ed in long shallow box in the hen
house or a place in the house may be
boarded off as busting place and
this can always be well filled with
clean dust with possibly one of the