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KAURA
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and provided with clean drinking water and should not be overcrowded.
Regular drenching of the whole stock with a suitable vermicide mixture, as
recommended later under the parasitic infestations of the digestive tract, is
likely to prove useful. Those vermicides which are excreted by the lungs and
act as pulmonary and bronchial disinfectants are especially useful, e.g.
turpentine oil (1-3 drachms) or carbolic acid (5-15 minims) or lysol (5-15 minims)
given in milk. This method has the additional advantage of destroying stomach
parasites which are so often simultaneously present. Generally the treatment
of individual cases is difficult on account of the peculiar location of these worms.
However, they may be killed by pouring about ½ to 1 drachm of chloroform
into the nostrils or better 3 to 4 drachms of the following iodine mixture may
be given slowly by means of an intratracheal injection, to be given by a
qualified veterinarian :—
Iodine 1 part.
Potassium iodide 10 parts
Distilled water 100 „
(Mix up and make into emulsion by adding equal parts of olive oil and tur-
pentine oil.)
The general measures recommended for the prevention of parasitic diseases
may be adopted.
(ii) Parasitic gastritis.—This is caused by two species of wire worms
(Haemonchus contortus and Mecistocirrus digitatus). The former parasite
(Plate XII, fig. 3) is about an inch long and its female possesses a peculiar
appendage covering the vulva situated at about the posterior fourth of the body
and visible to the naked eye. The latter parasite (Plate XII, fig. 4) which is
more common in India is about 1 to 1½ inches long, is stouter than the former
parasite and its females do not possess any appendage over the vulva. The
males of both worms are comparatively small and possess a peculiar expansion
or ' bursa ' situated at the posterior end and visible to the naked eye. In
either case the eggs (Plate XII, figs. 6 and 7) are passed out in the faeces and
hatch under suitable conditions of warmth and moisture, and the young larvae
crawl up the grass blades and infest any animal ingesting them.
The parasites cause marked digestive disturbances, loss of appetite and
constipation followed by diarrhœa. There is progressive loss of condition
(Plate XII, fig. 5), the animal becomes anaemic and in advanced cases swellings
develop on dependent parts of the body. The animal may show convulsions
and die of extreme emaciation. The condition can be diagnosed by the
symptoms mentioned above, detection of the worm eggs in the faeces and
parasites in the fourth stomach on post-mortem examination.
On an infected farm parasitic gastritis can be controlled by regular drench-
ing of young stock with 3 to 4 ounces of 1 per cent solution of copper sulphate.
It is not necessary to fast the animals before drenching. After drenching,
the animals should not be given any feed or water for 2 to 3 hours. This
treatment does not require subsequent purgation. The solution is best pre-
pared by dissolving 4 ounces of copper sulphate crystals in a pint of boiling
water in an enamelled or earthen vessel and then diluting it to 3 gallons with
cold water.
(iii) Intestinal infestation with large round worms.—This infestation is due
to Ascaris vitulorum, the male of which possesses a specially curved tail and is
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