66
Phenothiazine as an Anthelmintic in Horses
amount of water used, the cost of chopping the
straw and the difficulty of handling such bulky
material, the cost of the plant, etc. The answer
to these objections lies either in the monetary value
of the final product or in the necessity of producing
the food irrespective of its cost. Let us say at
once that it was probably the latter consideration
which stimulated the intensive research on the
subject which was carried out in Germany during
the last war, and that even Beckmann's process is
unlikely to prove economical in times of plenty,
when natural highly nutritious forage is at hand in
abundance. It is not difficult, however, to visua-
lize conditions either in war or peace when the
treatment of straw for food might become of great
importance. A shortage of fodder may be secon-
dary only in time of a shortage of food for man,
and it is not an infrequent companion of an army,
even a mechanized one—in fact, one may say that
it is sooner or later inevitable in a war zone. But
even in peace time the conditions following natural
calamities may make it of vital importance that
material on the spot should be exploited to the full.
Even under normal conditions, such as apply in
certain districts of Asia and Africa where straw is
relied upon to a large extent to maintain an enor-
mous head of cattle over the greater part of the
year, a process of treatment might find a place, as
that of Beckmann does in Europe.
In our own sphere is it not conceivable that an
economic method might be evolved whereby the
grass straw issued under the flattering term of
' hay ' to the Army in India might have its value
increased so that it did more accurately answer to
its official designation ? That the term ' grass
straw' is more appropriate to such forage than
' hay ' or ' grass hay ' will be conceded by all
those who are familiar with the methods by which
it is saved. If there should be any doubt as to its
true nature the chemical analysis and the digesti-
bility trials conducted by Lander [1937] will
dispel it. Calculated on his data, the hay from
military grass farms in the Punjab has the
following composition:
Chemical analysis
Crude protein
Fat .
Soluble carbohydrates
Fibre
Ash .
.
.
.
Digestible nutrittents
.
4.4
1.6
1.3 0.4
.
38.21
18.30
.
38.2
23.3
9.48
The starch equivalent of hay at eleven of the
principal stations in India, according to Sen,
[1938] is 21.5 per cent. The same author found
wheat bhoosa to have a starch equivalent of 22.1
per cent. These figures apply to ruminants and
their equivalent for horses is probably much lower.
It would, of course, be quite wrong to suggest
that methods of treating straw which are applicable
to temperate climates would also be suitable in
the tropics. The shortage of water and often the
shortage of fuel alone make conditions quite differ-
ent, but, on the other hand, the density of animal
population at certain centres, the necessity of
maintaining them on straw throughout the year,
and the abundance of labour, among other consi-
derations, allow one to suppose that attempts to
evolve a system suitable for such localities might
be worthy of consideration.
REFERENCES
Ellenberger, G., Illust. landw. Ztg., 1919, 39, 33-4
Fingerling, G., Illust. landw. Ztg., 1917, 37, 15-16
Godden, W., J. Agr. Sc., 120, 10, 437-56
Lander, P. E., Indian Grazing Conditions and the
Mineral Contents of Some Indian Fodders, Imp. Council
Ag. Res., Misc. Bull., No. 16, 1937 (Govt. India Press)
Sen, K. C., The Nutritive Value of Indian Cattle Foods and
the Feeding of Animals, Imp. Council Ag. Res., Misc
Bull., No. 25, 1938 (Govt. India Press)
Woodman, H. E., and Stewart, J., J. Agr. Sc., 1932,
22, 453
REPORT ON PHENOTHIAZINE AS AN ANTHELMINTIC IN HORSES*
By T. GRAHAME, D. O. MORGAN and J. E. N. SLOANE
(Reprinted from the Veterinary Record, Vol. 52, No. 36, September 7, 1940)
OBJECT OF INVESTIGATION
THE object of the investigation was to determine
(1) THE efficiency of the drug as an anthelmintic
(2) A simple method of administration of the
drug.
(3) The reaction of the animal to the drug.
(4) The minimum effective dose.
SELECTION OF ANIMALS
The first batch of horses examined had been in
the barrack stables sometime prior to the out-
break of the war.
The subsequent examinations were made on
remounts ; these horses were from units in various
parts of England and Scotland and the majority
had been newly acquired by the Army.
Each animal was subjected to a routine examina-
tion and weighed, and special attention was paid
to the teeth faeces and blood. The drug was not
given to any animal that showed any deviation
of temperature or pulse.
Apparent poor condition was not always an
indication that the animal had a high infestation of
helminths, and, conversely, neither was good
condition invariably an indication of a low infes-
tation. It was discovered that many of the
* An investigation conducted under the co-ordination
of The Helminths Committee (Animals Section) of the
Agricultural Research Council.