Gapes is given in every poultry book as one of the prominent poultry diseases, but are not common in the Northern and Western States.  Gapes are caused by a parasitic worm in the windpipe.  Growing chicks are affected.  The remedy is to move the chicks to fresh ground and cultivate the old.

Limber neck is not a disease, but is the result of the fowl’s eating maggots from dead carcasses.  It can be prevented by not allowing dead carcasses to remain where the chickens will find them.  No practical cure is known.

Lice and Mites.

The parasites referred to as chicken-lice include many different species, but in habit they may be classed as body-lice and roost-mites.  The first, or true bird-lice, live on the body of the chicken and eat the feathers and skin.  The roost-mite is similar to a spider and differs in habits from the body-louse in that it sucks the blood of the chicken and does not remain on the body of the fowl except at night.

Body-lice are to be found upon almost all chickens, as well as on many other kinds of birds.  Their presence in small numbers on matured fowls is not a serious matter.  When body-lice are abundant on sitting hens they go from the hen to the newly hatched chickens, and may cause the death of the chicks.  The successful methods of destroying body-lice are three in number:  First, dust or earth wallows in which the active hens will get rid of lice.  Such dust baths should be especially provided for yarded chickens and during the winter.  Dry earth can be stored for this purpose.  Sitting hens should have access to dust baths.  Second:  The second method by which body-lice may be destroyed is the use of insect powder.  The pyrethrum powder is considered the best for this purpose, but is expensive and difficult to procure in the pure state.  Tobacco dust is also used.  Insect powder is applied by holding the hen by the feet and working the dust thoroughly into the feathers, especially the fluff.  The use of insect powder should be confined to sitting hens and fancy stock, as the cost and labor of applying is too great for use upon the common chicken.  The third method is suitable for young chickens, and consists of applying some oil and grease on the head and under the wings.  Do not grease the chick all over.  With vigorous chickens and correct management the natural dust bath is all that is needed to combat the lice.

The roost-mite is probably the cause of more loss to farm poultry raisers than any other pest or disease.  The great difficulty in destroying mites on many farms is that chickens are allowed to roost in too many places.  If the chicken-house proper is the only building infected with mites the difficulty of destroying them is not great.  Plainness in the interior furnishings of the chicken-house is also a great advantage when it comes to fighting mites.  The mites in the daytime are to be found lodged in the cracks near the roosting-place of the chickens.