NationalLibraryOfScotland/medical-history-of-british-india huggingface dataset:
236
THE INDIAN JOURNAL OF VETERINARY SCIENCE AND ANIMAL HUSBANDRY. [V, III
give an indication of the losses sustained over a period of years in one of the largest
cattle breeding farms in the Punjab (Jehangirabad) :—
Year.
1931
1932
1933
1934
.....
.....
.....
.....
No. of births.
72
68
144
88
No. of deaths.
32
39
43
25
Percentage.
47
57.3
30
38.4
Deaths occurred between the months of May and August and affected animals of
ten days to four months old and those which survived the infection rarely proceed-
ed to healthy maturity. Outbreaks of the disease have been recorded on the
premises of a certain Military Dairy Farm. In 1933, one occurred in the early
summer (May) followed in 1934 by 2 outbreaks, one in early summer (May and
June) and the second in the early winter (October and November). During the last
outbreak on this farm, out of the total number of calves, varying in age from 2
days to 10 weeks, 17 animals developed typical symptoms of the disease with a
mortality of 35 per cent. The history of these several outbreaks, the clinical
features of the disease and the extensive post-mortem and bacteriological
examinations of the diseased cases enhances the opinion that a specific disease of
calves, pyosepticaemic in character, is common in the Punjab and enzootic on
certain farms.
The most recent outbreak on the premises of a Government Military Dairy
Farm serves as an illustration of an outbreak comparable in all respects to those
occurring on other farms during the last few years and investigations undertaken
are precisely similar.
SYMPTOMOLOGY.
The syndrome varies with the age of the animal affected and includes severe
pyrexia (Chart I) in some cases attended by prostration (Chart II) Animals
not decumbent usually take their milk ration normally. Respiration is of a
hurried shallow type, and a dry cough is usually present. The abdomen is "tucked
up" and in a minority of cases, a moderate degree of diarrhœa, of a lightish colour
and of an extremely offensive odour, is present. In one or two cases swelling of
the joints is noticed. Grinding of the teeth and groaning are constant symptoms
in more severe cases. Yellowish, granulometous nodules are frequently present
on the buccal mucosa, on the gums, and the under surface of the tongue These
show a tendency to soften and ulcerate. In a few cases, especially in the outbreak
PYOSEPTICAEMIA OF CALVES.
237
Chart 1. Cow calf No. J. 331 Raseeli (¾ Fr. ¼Sah), 10 days old,
Govt. Military Dairy Farm, Lahore Cantt. Disease calf
pneumonia. Admitted 7th October 1934 ; Died 13th Octo-
ber 1934.
238 THE INDIAN JOURNAL OF VETERINARY SCIENCE AND ANIMAL HUSBANDRY. [V, III
Chart 2. Cow calf No. J. 333 Dildar (¾ Fr. ¼ Sah) 6 days old, Govt. Mili-
tary Dairy Farm, Lahore Cantt. Disease calf pneumonia. Admitted
9th October 1934 ; Destroyed in extremis 24th October 1934.
240
THE INDIAN JOURNAL OF VETERINARY SCIENCE AND ANIMAL HUSBANDRY. [V, III
of junction of the interlobular septa. These abscesses showed a tendency to early
insipissation and fibrous encapsulation. Lesions in the joints were those of sero-
fibrinous arthritis with necrosis and ulceration of the articular cartilage.
HISTO-PATHOLOGY.
Gastro-intestinal tract. The changes are relatively slight. In acute cases;
they are those of acute enteritis somewhat haemorrhagic in type. In more
subacute cases Payer's patches show a tendency to hyperplasia without any evi-
dence of bacterial embolism leading to necrosis and ulceration. The capillary
vessels of the mucous coat are congested and cellular infiltration of the mucosa is
present, along with slight necrosis of the glands of the coat.
LIVER.
The changes are those to be expected in disease of a septicaemic type. In
addition to these changes, small areas of cellular infiltration develop in and around
the lymph channels of the portal tract. These probably represent centre of
embolism although no bacteria are found. The cells present have proliferated
from endothelial cells.
KIDNEY.
The changes are those of acute catarrhal nephritis with capillary haemor-
rhages and the development of nodules in the interstitium, similar in type to those
described in the liver.
SPLEEN.
Marked distension of the spleen sinusoids and cellular infiltration composed
of monocytes, endothelial cells and macrophages. Malpighian bodies are increased
by a lymphoid hyperplasia in which no bacteria can be seen.
LUNGS.
The lesion commences as an acute interstitial pneumonia accompanied by
a relatively slight congestion of perialveoler capillaries. In the early stages, there is
only slight exudation into the alveoli, but the lymphatic spaces of the interstitum
become grossly distended by a fibrinous exudate rich in cells, in which monocytes
predominate. There is a coincident increase of the polyblastic cells of this tissue,
PYOSEPTICAEMIA OF CALVES.
241
and at the angles of junction of the interstitial septa, the formation of cellular
nodules. Similar nodules develop around the adventitious sheaths of the bronchio-
les, the walls of which become slowly infiltrated. The terminal phase of the in-
fection is the production of bronchiolitis rapidly forming a focus of a localized
catarrhal pneumonia, which undergoes a slow central necrosis followed by
abscess formation. At this stage of the process, there is a tendency for fibrous
encapsulation of abscesses. The severity of the process abates, and results in a
fibroid type of pneumonia in which chronic catarrhal changes remain. In the
more acute type of pneumonia as affecting younger animals, a pure type of fibrinous
pneumonia, chiefly apical, is seen.
BACTERIOLOGY.
In acute cases representing a septicaemia, one has little difficulty in obtaining
from the blood pure cultures of the organism about to be described. In the more
chronic cases characterised by septic broncho-pneumonia, a very mixed infection is
found, but with careful and selective bacteriological methods one can, with little
difficulty, isolate the same organism that is found with readiness in acute cases,
while in all instances this organism can be isolated from the gastro-intestinal
tract.
When it appeared probable that the infection was an organism of the colon
typhoid group, it became the routine to attempt haemo-cultures in broth PH. 7.4
containing .1 per cent. malchite green as an inhibitory factor. Even in the
subacute cases, growth was usually obtained in pure culture, from the intestinal
contents and the pus from the lung abscesses after dilution. Cultures were puri-
fied, when necessary, in Mc.Conkey medium.
The predominant type of organism, and in most acute cases the only type of
organism isolated, was a short bacterium, motile, aerobic, measuring 2 × .6 microns
with a tendency to coccobacillary forms. On agar, the colonies were dew drop-
like, translucent, and on richly seeded slants a thin delicate glistening surface
growth developed after 24 hours ' incubation.
BIOCHEMISTRY.
The organism produces acid and gas in glucose, dulcite, mannite, maltose and
xylose. No reaction is produced in lactose, saccharose, salicin, rhamnose and
inosite. Litmus milk remained alkaline. The Vosges-Proskauer and Indol tests
were negative and nitrates were reduced.
Antigen prepared from 24 hours old agar culture standardised to opacity tube
No. 4 was tested against high titre serum obtained from Kasauli. The organism
was agglutinated at maximum titre 1 in 5000 by B. enteritidis serum and at a
dilution of 1 in 2400 by B. aertrycke high titre serum of maximum titre 1 in 5000
E
242
THE INDIAN JOURNAL OF VETERINARY SCIENCE AND ANIMAL HUSBANDRY. [V, III
No reaction was obtained with Para. B. serum. Positive and negative controls were
established in the usual way, but no agglutination absorption tests could be per-
formed through lack of supply of high titre serum to conclusively identify the
organism which was tentatively judged, through virtue of its biochemical and
agglutination reactions, to be a strain of Salmonella enteritidis Gaertner. Pure
cultures of the organism were finally sent to the Imperial Institute of Veterinary
Research, Muktesar, and to the School of Tropical Medicine, Calcutta, for exact
serological typing. The sera obtained from 3 diseased calves and 3 of the cows
which gave birth to diseased calves (unfortunately only 3 cows were available on
the premises at the time of this test)—were submitted to agglutination test
against antigens prepared from stock strains of S. enteritidis, S. aertrycke and the
Salmonella-like organism described. The sera of 3 healthy calves born at the
same time as the diseased calves, were used as control. The enteritidis and aer-
trycke antigens used were readily agglutinable at the full titre 1 in 5000 by high
titre homologous sera.
No. of animal.
Calf J 292
Calf J 326
Calf J 324
Cow Jownisheen Dam of Calf 292 .
Cow Sepoy Dam of J 324 . . .
Cow Merdock Dam of J 326. . .
Healthy Calf No. 3 . . .
„
„ No. 4
„
„ No. 5
S. gaertner.
—1 in 40
—1 in 120
—1 in 60
..
..
..
..
..
..
S. aertrycke.
—1 in 40
..
—1 in 40
..
..
..
Calf organism.
1 in 120
— 1 in 250
—1 in 120
1 in 250
1 in 300
1 in 250
..
..
..
Unfortunately, through an error, the cows' sera were not tested against
aertrycke and gaertner antigens. At about this time, the cows involved in the dis-
ease outbreak were transferred to different farms in the Punjab and a complete
radical test of the animals could not be accomplished. About 3 months later it
was possible to obtain serum from 9 calves and 6 cows. The cows were those
that gave birth to diseased calves and the calves had all undergone an attack of the
disease.
PYOSEPTICAEMIA OF CALVES.
243
No. of animal.
Calf J 335. .
Calf J 328 . .
Calf J 292 . .
Calf J 318 . .
Calf J 16 . .
Calf J 324 . .
Calf J 327 . .
Calf J 322 . .
Calf J 332 . .
Cow Sonvenier .
Cow Merdock .
Cow Akson . .
Cow Jell .
Cow Jeolikote . .
Cow Jownisheen .
S. gaertner.
..
..
..
..
..
..
..
..
..
..
..
..
..
..
..
S. aertrycke.
..
..
..
..
..
..
..
..
..
..
..
..
..
..
..
Para. B.
..
..
..
..
..
..
..
..
..
..
..
..
..
..
..
Calf
organism.
1 in 80
..
..
..
..
1 in 80
1 in 80
..
..
..
1 in 60
..
..
..
..
TRANSMISSION EXPERIMENTS.
These were divided into two groups :—
(a) Attempts to transmit the disease by what might be termed potentially
natural methods; and
(b) Attempts by the inoculation of pure cultures of the organism isolated
from diseased calves with recovery of the organism in pure culture
from the experimental subjects.
A difficulty existed in the obtaining of suitable experimental calves. Indian
bred calves are notoriously refractory to inoculation experiments and can usually
resist inoculation with pure cultures of freshly isolated virulent strains of organisms
which, on inoculation into 3/4 bred calves of European descent would rapidly prove
fatal. The calves used for experiment were of indigenous breed about six months
old.
E 2
244
THE INDIAN JOURNAL OF VETERINARY SCIENCE AND ANIMAL HUSBANDRY. [V, III
IN CONTACT EXPERIMENT.
1. Two country bred calves were placed in the same stable as two diseased
calves showing slight diarrhœa and pneumonia. They remained perfectly healthy
and the experiment was discontinued after one month, during which time the sick
calves had died.
2. Two calves were drenched with fæces emulsified in sterile milk from a severe
case of the disease. No reaction followed during the month that the calves were
kept under observation.
3. Two calves were inoculated intravenously with 5 c.c. of blood taken from two
recent acute cases of the disease, without any reaction.
4. The buccal mucosa of a healthy experimental calf was rubbed with a rough
towel and a pledget of sterile cotton wool soaked with saliva of a diseased calf
showing mouth lesions was kept in contact with the rubbed membrane for 15
minutes. This calf remained healthy.
5. A similar negative experiment was conducted on a calf after scarification of
the mucous membrane. It was concluded, as a result of these experiments, that
the disease could not be induced by direct transmission methods.
Attempts were then made to transmit the disease by inoculation of pure
cultures of the organism isolated from the diseased calves.
1. An eight months old calf was inoculated intravenously with 1 c.c. of a
freshly isolated 48 hours old broth culture. The temperature at the time of
inoculation was 101. 8° F. (Chart 3). After one week, the fever abated although
symptoms of malaise were present. On the 26th day, the animal developed
pneumonia. Eventual recovery was protracted. An agglutination test performed
6 weeks after the inoculation showed a serum titre of 1 in 600 against the
organism inoculated.
2. The experiment was repeated on a calf about 3 months old. This animal
developed typical septicaemia and died on the 5th day after inoculation. The
lesions on post-mortem were severe enteritis of haemorrhagic type involving the
abomasum and the small intestine. Fibrinous pneumonia was present and the
pleural and pericardial sacs were distended by a yellowish sero-fibrinous exudate.
The organism was readily isolated in pure culture from the heartblood and other
organs.
3. Two calves of 4 months old were drenched with 50 c.c. of 48 hours old
broth culture of the organism and showed a complete absence of reaction.
4. One calf about 8 months old was inoculated subcutaneously with 5 c.c. of
freshly isolated broth culture. The temperature at the time of inoculation was
101. 4° F. On the following day, the temperature suddenly rose to 105° F.
(Chart 4). After 10 days' illness, this animal appeared somewhat brighter and
PYOSEPTICAEMIA
OF
CALVES.
245
Chart 3. White cow calf indigenous breed about 8 months, No. 16, Disease calf pneumonia, Admitted 19th October
Discontinued 14th December 1934.
246 THE INDIAN JOURNAL OF VETERINARY SCIENCE AND ANIMAL HUSBANDRY. [V, III
Chart 3.—Continued.
PYOSEPTICAEMIA OF CALVES.
247
Chart 4. Red indigenous calf, 8 months, No. 15, Disease calf pneumonia, Admitted 19th October 1934,
Discontinued 14th December 1934.
248
THE INDIAN JOURNAL OF VETERINARY SCIENCE AND ANIMAL HUSBANDRY. [V, III
Chart 4.—Continued.
PYOSEPTICAEMIA OF CALVES.
249
then relapsed on the 23rd day with typical pneumonia, recovery from which was
protracted. The inoculation produced an intense and extensive suppurating
swelling extending into the dewlap.
Examination of the pus revealed a gram positive micrococcus and cultural
examination yielded a pure culture of the organism inoculated. The primary
culture showed a tendency to the same Gram. + reaction but sub-cultures were
strictly Gram - One month after inoculation, an agglutination test of this animal's
serum showed a titre of 1 in 125,
SUMMARY AND CONCLUSIONS.
Calf septicaemia is discussed as regards its etiology and the factors which
determine its incidence in herds.
The disease is one which does not bear easy definitions as it frequently
represents a variety of pathological conditions to which the young are peculiarly
susceptible.
Various factors which determine the incidence of infection are discussed. The
point of view is stressed that hygienic considerations play a most important role
in the genesis of the disease and that a bacteriological etiology, important as it is,
cannot be considered as of primary importance. The methods of infection are
discussed, as well as types and degree of infection with particular reference to
infection of calves by organisms of the colon typhoid group. A detailed account is
given of the disease as it affects calves in the Punjab. From available figures on
work carried out over a period of 5 years, it is shown that calf septicaemia
is a common and serious disease on certain farms at certain times of the year
affecting animals chiefly of the age of 10 days to 4 months with average mortality
of about 35 per cent.
An account is given of the symptomology, essential pathology and histopatho¬
logy of the disease which is septicaemic in young animals and pulmonary in older
animals, the type of pneumonia being a special one.
Bacteriological examination of a large number of cases shows that the disease
in the Punjab is due to an organism of the S. enteritidis group which was isolated
from the lesions of the disease in the majority of cases.
The blood sera of diseased calves showed evidence of specific agglutinins
against this organism as well as the cows giving birth to diseased calves and
persistence of the reaction was observed three months after complete cessation of
the disease on the farm premises.
Transmission experiments showed that it is impossible to transmit the disease
by direct incontact nor could the disease be produced by feeding pure cultures, but
the subcutaneous and intravenous inoculations of small amounts of cultures into
indigenous calves showed the pathogenic nature of the organism isolated from
naturally occurring cases.
F
250
THE INDIAN JOURNAL OF VETERINARY SCIENCE AND ANIMAL HUSBANDRY. [V, III
The lesions in these experimental animals bore every resemblance to the natural
disease.
REFERENCES.
Christiansen. (1917). Centralbl. F. Bakt. 1. Orig. 79.
Hutyra & Marek. Pyosepticæmia of sucklings 1, p. 187.
Jensen. Kalbarukr. Kolle. Wassermann. Handbueh. d. Path. Mikroorg. Jan.
1912.
Lessaze & Delmer. (1902). " Diarrheia des yeunes veaux." Annales. de. L. Institut
Pasteur.
Meyer. Traum & Roadhouse. (1916). Jour. Amer. Vet. Med. Assoc. 49.
Smith, T. & M. L. Orcutt. (1925). Jour. Exp. Med. 41, 89.
Titze & Weichel. (1903). Berlin Tierarztl. Wochens.
Williams, M. L., & W. W. Diseases of the Genital Organs of Domestic Animals.
Ithaca, N. Y. 1921.
Winzer. Zeitschr. f. Fleisch Und Milchhy. 23.
Ind. Jour. Vety. Sci. & Anim. Husb. Vol. V, Pt. 3.
PLATE XVII.
A typical case of calf pneumonia.
Ind. Jour. Vety. Sci. & Anim. Husb. Vol. V. Pt. 3.
PLATE XVIII.
Experimental calf showing effects of subcutaneous
inoculation of pure culture of S. enteriditis organism isolated
from a case of calf pneumonia.
Ind. Jour. Vety. Sci. & Anim. Husb. Vol. V, Pt. 3.
PLATE XX.
Microphotograph of liver showing cellular modules in
the septicaemic form of the disease.
Ind. Jour. Vety. Sci. & Anim. Husb. Vol. V, Pt. 3.
PLATE XXI.
Microphotograph of pneumonic lung showing infiltra-
tion and hyper plasia of interstitium.
Ind. Jour. Vety. Sci. & Anim Husb. Vol. V, Pt. 3.
PLATE XXII.
Microphotograph of lung showing acute interstitial
pneumonia.
A STATISTICAL STUDY OF THE BODY WEIGHT FIGURES
OF SPECIAL AND ORDINARY FED CALVES AT PUSA.
BY
P. V. KRISHNA AYYAR, M.A.,
Statistician, Imperial Institute of Agricultural Research, Pusa.
(Received for publication on 3rd October 1934.)
(With two text-figs.)
A comparative study of the weekly weights of pail-fed calves during ordinary
and special feeding has recently been made by Sayer [1934]. The present paper
may be considered as a supplement to this study, and attempts have been made
herein to demonstrate the superiority of the special fed calves from a statistical
point of view.
The following are the methods employed for the statistical analysis of the
problem :
(i) The average weekly weights, the co-efficient of variation and the average
per cent. rates of growth of calves under the two treatments for the
different weeks have been estimated and compared by using the ' t '
test.
(ii) The values of z — ½ log 1+r / 1-r where r=the co-efficient of correlation
between age and weight, for both special and ordinary fed calves
have been determined and tested for statistical significance.
(iii) The average rates of growth of the two groups under study as judged
from the regression equations have been compared on the basis of
the errors due to random sampling in the values of the regression
co-efficients.
(iv) The investigation into the rates of growth has been carried further
by fitting parabolas to the average weekly weights of the calves
under the two treatments.
Sayer [1934] gives in detail the rations employed under the two different treat-
ments (Appendix, Tables 1 and 2). The only striking difference we notice in the
two treatments is the additional milk and grain supplied for the special fed calves.
The average weekly weights in pounds of thirty-three ordinary and thirty
special fed calves with the standard errors have been tabulated in columns 2 and 3
of Table I. Column 4 gives the calculated value of ' t ' for the difference in the
mean weekly weights of the two groups under study.
( 251 )
F 2
252
THE INDIAN JOURNAL OF VETERINARY SCIENCE AND ANIMAL HUSBANDRY. [V, III
TABLE I.
Average weekly weight in pounds of special and ordinary fed calves.
1
Age in weeks.
At birth . . . .
1 . . . . .
2 . . . . .
3 . . . . .
4 . . . . .
5 . . . . .
6 . . . . .
7 . . . . .
8 . . . . .
9 . . . . .
10 . . . . .
11 . . . . .
12 . . . . .
13 . . . . .
14 . . . . .
15 . . . . .
16 . . . . .
17 . . . . .
18 . . . . .
19 . . . . .
20 . . . . .
21 . . . . .
22 . . . . .
23 . . . . .
24 . . . . .
25 . . . . .
26 . . . . .
2
Ordinary fed.
53.82 ± 1.14
57.85 ± 1.08
61.64 ± 1.11
66.45 ± 1.12
70.33 ± 1.11
74.94 ± 1.38
79.91 ± 1.41
86.49 ± 1.62
93.18 ± 1.75
100.25 ± 1.83
107.73 ± 2.23
114.58 ± 2.22
123.24 ± 2.19
132.42 ± 2.26
140.36 ± 2.29
149.27 ± 2.44
156.82 ± 2.40
164.60 ± 2.59
172.27 ± 2.68
179.97 ± 2.90
187.49 ± 3.20
195.09 ± 3.47
202.36 ± 2.38
209.29 ± 4.22
217.09 ± 4.66
224.61 ± 4.71
231.48 ± 5.09
3
Special fed.
49.60 ± 1.21
52.47 ± 1.29
58.73 ± 1.17
64.97 ± 1.37
70.20 ± 1.38
76.37 ± 1.55
81.10 ± 1.79
87.20 ± 1.97
95.47 ± 2.07
102.23 ± 2.35
1.08.40 ± 2.60
117.37 ± 2.71
125.53 ± 3.36
134.43 ± 3.15
143.13 ± 3.16
153.03 ± 3.39
162.47 ± 3.58
173.60 ± 3.74
181.57 ± 3.96
192.87 ± 3.98
203.53 ± 4.31
212.83 ± .41
224.00 ± 4.64
233.90 ± .89
244.03 ± 5.27
254.43 ± 5.32
264.13 ± 5.78
4
Observed ' t ' of
difference between
(2) and (3).
2.5383
3.1974
1.8043
0.8364
0.0734
0.2072
0.5206
0.2784
0.8449
0.6648
0.1956
0.7965
0.5709
0.5185
0.7533
0.9001
1.3108
1.9782
1.9451
2.6196
2.9878
3.1613
4.1500
3.8101
3.8295
4.1967
4.2392
Theoretical value of ' t ' (for n = 60) at the 5 per cent. level = 2.000.
A close examination of the values of ' t ' tabulated in the last column at birth
and first week on the basis of the theoretical value reveals that the average weight
of the thirty-three calves selected for ordinary treatment was significantly more
than that of the calves picked out for special treatment. But it is seen from the
subsequent values of ' t ' that there is no significant difference between the weights
of the two groups until the eighteenth week. From the 19th week onwards the
value of ' t ' goes on increasing and it reaches a maximum for the twenty-sixth
week, showing thereby that there is considerable increase in weight of the special
fed calves. It may be noted that, though at the time of birth the calves selected