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SOME NOTES ON SURRA IN BURMAH.*
Outbreak amongst Military Police Ponies at Mandalay, July 1896.
A number of ponies, Mounted Infantry and Transport, of the Yamethin Battery, arrived at
Mandalay from Yamethin on the 26th April 1896.
On the 1st of June a pony was found to be suffering from fever, and also showing suspicious
symptoms of Surra ; he was promptly segregated, and treated with Arsenic. This animal died on the
23rd June. No microscopic examination of the blood was made. This pony had been to Zagobin and
May-myo; he is supposed to have contracted the disease on the road.
Case 2.—This animal had been in poor condition for a long time, so was excused duty, received
tonics including Arsenic, also an extra ration of grain. On the 1st June he was admitted suffering from
fever a few days later the case became very suspicious, so the animal was isolated. He died on the
29th June. There was no microscopic examination of the blood. A noteworthy fact about this case is
that the pony had not been out of Mandalay.
On the 20th July there were twelve cases of fever in the sick-lines, an examination of the blood was
made in all these cases, and two animals were found to be suffering from Surra. Both animals were
destroyed.
On the 22nd June a transport pony arrived from May-myo, showing suspicious symptoms of
Surra. The case was segregated, however, on the 7th July; the Commandant being satisfied that the
case was Surra, had him destroyed. It is suspected that the disease was contracted on the May-myo
road.
The ponies of the battery have not been allowed out to graze ; the grass (Doob) is brought in by
Burmans, and is always dried in the sun for at least one day before it is given to the animals. The
allowance is thirty pounds for each pony ; the grain ration is paddy, quality good ; ration for Mounted
Infantry five pounds, and for transport animals four pounds per diem. Water appeared to be of excel-
lent quality.
The buildings used as stables are long sheds with thatched roofs. The lines are kept in a sanitary
condition.
There is a Police Post at May-myo, which is situated on the Shan plateau at an elevation of 3,600
feet, and is some forty miles distant from Mandalay.
The stages are Tonbo, Nyaungbaw, and Thondaung. Tonbo is at the foot of hills, the land is low¬
lying, i.e., paddy fields, &c., &c. ; there is a good deal of bamboo jungle about. The Tonbo stream runs
alongside of the road, but once the rains commence, pools of stagnant water are formed all over the
place. The grass obtained here is rank.
Nyaungbaw is on the Zebingyi plateau. Water from a running stream ; the grass is coarse.
Thondaung.—Good grass is procurable, but that growing on low-lying parts is most inferior,
Water-supply from a running stream.
May-myo.—The grass excepting in the swamp and its vicinity is good. Water from wells and
stream.
The Commandant informed me that all his ponies did well at May-myo. Thirty animals, very poor
in condition, were sent there as an experiment, and every one of them picked up wonderfully. The ponies
have been changed once a month. May-myo is certainly a bad place for Surra ; if I remember rightly,
a certain Mountain Battery came down from Bhamo, as it was unhealthy for the mules, and went to
May-myo. The result of the change was anything but satisfactory, for they suffered heavy losses from
this disease.
Mandalay.—On the 28th July I visited the lines, and found that several ponies had been isolated
owing to having abnormal temperatures. I determined, however, to examine specimens of the blood of
all animals in the lines, the result being that I discovered thirteen cases of Surra ; these were isolated.
On the 30th I examined all animals found fit on 28th, and discovered two more cases. On the 1st
August I found a fresh case and on the 5th two more cases, one from among the line ponies, the other
out of a batch of animals that had arrived from May-myo the day previous. I destroyed sixteen of
these cases, and placed the remaining two under treatment.
A party with twenty-three ponies left Mandalay on the 16th May and returned on the 21st. Nos.
12, 13, 14, and 15 were of this party.
With regard to the post-mortem appearances of this disease in Burmah, one lesion is rarely if ever
absent, viz., some change in the mucous membrane of the stomach, more especially of the cuticular
coat, pigmentation, erosion, or ulceration. The positions in which these changes are most constantly
met with are along the line of junction of the cuticular with the villous portion, and also at the lesser
curvature. If an animal be destroyed during the early stages, discoloured muddy yellow patches may
be observed ; if examined closely, one or all of them may present an eroded appearance. These changes
are in most cases no doubt due to thickening and proliferation of the epithelium which degenerates and
breaks down, leaving the yellowish shallow ulcers; these, owing to progressive degenerative changes,
become deeper, until in many cases, perforation occurs. The ulcers may cover an extensive surface. I
have seen some six or seven cases, in which from half to three quarters of the cuticular coat was in an
ulcerated state, and it was while making post-mortems with another officer of the department that we
* Veterinary-Captain G. H. Evans, Superintendent, C. V. D , Burmah.
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