Milford chronicle., 1917-05-04

The habitation Of men is not by any means the
only abode which il is necessary to keep clean
The spce-and span idea of the housewife should
by all means be carried into the poultry houses
and plants by the breeders who aim 70 reap pro-
fit from their flocks.
The spring cleaning D." then is as much a job
for the breeder as it is for the housewife While
it is true that the abode of Mr.. and Mrs Chick en-
and all the little chickens should be regularly
cleaned at all seasons throughout the year, yet It
is especially important that extra efforts along
this line should be made in the sprinRtime- for Il
is then that the lice and mites make their first
drive upon the members of the flock. To nip
them in the bud, 50 to speak. means much to-
ward your future success Of keeping them down
/ TO a minimum
While there are many other things about the
plant which may have accumulated over winter
( and which must be gotten rid of. yet the most
vital Of all is the lice and mites that have possibly
gotten fOothold during the declining days OF
winter.
These are by far the worst Of all external para
stes with which the birds are bothered and which
the poultryman is called upon 70 combat.
Lice represent one Of the most dangerous Of
chicken evils. and this especially pertains to the
youngsters. Chick mortality is often largely the
result of the presence on their bodies and in their
quarters Of lice and mites which the average poul-
tryman or breeder makes no effort to eradicate.
Chicks will apparently be in the very best OF
health and vigOr OIe day and drop over and die
the next. The breeder gazes in amazement at the
turn affairs taking but generally fails to real
ize the cause. and just goes right along hatching
and Matching, paying little or no attention TO the
2
he loses the bulk of all the youngsters hatched.i
He is not an observant breeder. Whenever a !
flock of youngsters. or older birds too. for that
matter, develop the death grip you should set I
about at once to learn the cause. When this end /
has been accomplished the cause should at once
be removed. When these conditions crop out in /
your fOcks go after the lice and with their eradi-
cation. much of your troubles will be at an end.
The better way. however. is to take steps be
fore hand and to prevent this condition from aris-
ing. Every person engaged in the raising of chick
ems must of necessity know that fowls breed lice
and that lice are dangerous. As self preservation
is the first law of nature so is the prevention Of
lice in and about the plant and on the birds the
first law to gaining success in fowldom.
1t is much easier to prevent the birds from be-
coming infested with lice than it is to rid them of
these parasites once they have gained fOothold
Seek to preserve the strength Of the little chick by
keeping the lice from its body and you will thus
eliminate much Of your poultry troubles.
There are many kinds of lice but the two that
most concern the poultryman are those known as
head lice and body lice. These together with the
little red mites which are also of the louise family
are most commonly known. and incidentally, are
the ones which give the pOultryman the most
bother.
The head lice are of the large grey variety and
ire those which lurk about the head Of the chick.
They are extremely hard to find. being very feet
# foot, and to discover them it is necessary to
)art the fluff about the head very quickly The
lverage poultryman will pick up a chick and even
lart the fluff on the head. but simply because he
ioes not see grey louse concludes at once that
here are none there Be not deceived Don't ,
hink because you happened not to see hun that
dr. Louise is not there. Take the precaution Just
Is though you had spied him the first time you in
The body lice are those that infest the bodies of
he chicks, and while they are not as speedy as .
re those of the grey variety they are neVerthe-
ess swift and hard to locate.
Body lice are not as dangerous to the birds as
re the head lice and will not kill so quickly but [
nless they are eradicated or kept down tn a mini
1um they will administer the dose of a slow DEATH
There are many preparations on the market for
he treatment of lice both liquids and powders, /