THEILERIASIS OF CATTLE IN INDIA.
25
The symptoms described above present a striking contrast, in several essential
points, to those observed at Lahore, during November 1928, in an outbreak of
natural theileriasis which occurred amongst a batch of twelve pure-bred Friesian
stud bulls imported from South Africa. These observations, as made by
Dr. J. T. Edwards and incorporated in a manuscript report left by the late
Mr. Hugh Cooper, were as follows : " The symptoms of the disease consist of
suddenly occurring and prolonged fever. The temperature remains constantly
very high (105° to 107°F.) but no other symptoms are exhibited for the first few
days. As soon as parasites (T. mutans) appear in the blood stream, however, the
temperature begins to waver, to fall and rise again, but usually it never becomes
so high as in the early stage. It is with the appearance of the parasites in the
blood that other symptoms are shown. The most striking and characteristic
symptom is profuse lachrymation. A watery discharge may also exude from the
nostrils. The affected animals exhibit pica, or depraved appetite, to a marked
degree. The coat becomes harsh and ' staring ' and the animals become pro-
gressively weaker, and lose condition, when the superficial lymphatic
glands are seen distinctly protruding beneath the skin. The loss in
condition occurs in spite of the fact that the animals may feed quite
well until within a day or two of death. The flanks particularly become
hollow, and in the bull which died at Lahore breathing became hurried
and apparently very painful, as seen in pleurisy. This symptom might
have been attributable to the extreme anaemia exhibited. Estimations
made show that the red blood-corpuscles are probably reduced in some
cases to as low as about one-fifth of the normal. The visible mucous membranes
become markedly anaemic in appearance, and in the latter stages some degree of
icterus is present. Diarrhoea may supervene, and death is usually protracted.
In the bull which died at Lahore, until very shortly before death it appeared that
recovery might still take place, as parasites had become markedly reduced in number
in the blood, and the animal was still able to move about readily ". It should be
mentioned that the rate of mortality in this outbreak was relatively low, for death
occurred only in three (25 per cent) out of the twelve animals affected, the degree
of severity of the affection observed in the remaining nine animals being stated to
be as follows :—" Very severe affection, 1 ; marked affection, 6 ; marked affection
with relapse, 2." It is noteworthy that the appearance of the parasites at a late
stage of paroxysm (on the seventh day) also constituted a feature of the disease
which occurred amongst a batch of imported pedigree bulls of American origin, at
Allahabad, early in 1927 [Edwards, 1930].
Symptoms of lachrymation, associated with catarrhal rhinitis and an enlarge-
ment of the superficial glands, were also a characteristic feature of another out-
break of theileriasis which occurred, during 1930, amongst a batch of imported
Dutch bulls, at the Military Dairy Farm, Kirkee (Poona), whilst some of these are
also reported to have developed "pica " during the course of their voyage to India.
E