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Show SvrSy ;,.i5tjlARRIET MAY WILSON Lice and Mites A prospective poultryman can, with sufficient care, avoid a poultry parasite infestation, but his first consideration con-sideration will have to be to select a site for his operations which is isolated from other poultry. He will then have to fence the site completely complete-ly and construct entirely new buildings build-ings and runs. He should begin with incubator-hatched chicks, and neither nei-ther other fowls nor second-hand crates must be allowed on the place. Even then, he will need to be vigilant vigi-lant to prevent insects being brought in from infested quarters by means of clothing, trucks, wagons, etc. Since very few poultrymen are able to start in this manner, the result re-sult is that practically all of them must wage constant battle against the lice and mites which commonly j infest domestic fowls. ' The chicken mite is a red or gray, blood-sucking insect which feeds during the night and secretes itself in cracks and crevices of walls and roosts during the day. Because of this habit, its presence is sometimes not suspected until a decreased egg production and a generally poor condition con-dition of the poultry betrays the ravages rav-ages of the insect. In heavily infested in-fested coops chickens grow droopy and weak; their combs and wattles are pale, and sitting hens are some-, times found dead on the nest, having hav-ing succumbed to the attacks of thousands of the blood-sucking insects. in-sects. Infested Quarters. Take down all roosts and remove all boards and boxes that may be lying about. Then, with a hand pump, if the place is small, or with a bucket pump or knapsack sprayer for larger houses, spray the entire interior thoroughly with a suitable insecticide. The spray must be driven driv-en thoroughly into all cracks, and the floor, too, must be sprayed to kill any mites which may have fallen fall-en when the roosts were removed. The carbolineums or anthracene oils, derived from coal tar, are extremely ex-tremely effective. It is true that they cost more per gallon than other materials but the number of treatments treat-ments required to Control an infes-. infes-. tation is less than with other insecticides, insec-ticides, and the effect of the carbolineums carbo-lineums is very lasting. Another coal tar product, creosote oil, is cheaper than anthracene, is available avail-able in most cities, and is very effective. ef-fective. It is well to reduce either the carbolineums or the creosote oils with kerosene, to facilitate spraying, spray-ing, using one part of kerosene to three parts of the other materials. Crude petroleum, although not so effective as the other oils mentioned, still is very satisfactory in places where the infestation is not excessive. exces-sive. If a sprayer is not available, it may be applied with a brush. Poultry should be kept out of the building until the oil is well dried into the wood. Treatment to 'Control Lice. Lice are not blood-suckers as are the mites, but they feed either on feathers, or on scales from the skin, and cause serious injury. Treatment may be either by dipping or by dusting, dust-ing, the latter method being favored by the majority of poultrymen because be-cause dipping soils the feathers and in some cases injures the skin of the fowls. One of the most effective, if not, indeed the most so, of all dusting materials is sodium fluoride, It may be bought at from 30 to 60 cents per pound, the price varying with quantity bought and with distance from manufacturing centers. How to Apply the Powder. The so-called "pinch method" has been found to be most effective. When the material is applied by this method, the procedure is as follows: fol-lows: Place the powder on a table in an open vessel; hold the fowl by the base of the wings with one hand and with the other apply small pinches of the chemical among the feathers, next to the skin; place a pinch on the head, one on the neck, two on the back, one on the breast, one below the vent, one on the tail, one on each thigh, and one scattered scat-tered on the underside of each wing when spread. Distribute each pinch somewhat by pushing the thumb and fingers among the feathers as the powder is released. One application of .sodium fluroide to all fowls on a given premises will completely destroy de-stroy all lice present, but it is necessary neces-sary that the treatment be thorough and that every fowl be treated. For more extensive information relative to the control of lice and mites, send five cents to Superintendent oi Documents, W ashington, D. C, asking for Farmers' Bulletin No. 801. SHORTAGE OF HORSES AND MULES A reprint from the Yearbook of Agriculture for 1930 indicates that the production of horses and mules in the United States is now much below replacement needs. NUTRITIVE VALUE OF CEREALS A convenient and inexpensive way to add nutritive value to cereals is to mix the dry cereal, before cooking, cook-ing, with dry skim milk, in the proportion pro-portion of one-half to one cup of dry skim milk to each cup of cereal. |