Green-Mountain freeman. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1844-1884, 1873-04-16
agricultural.
Prevention of Cattle Diseases

diseases the nature of which cannot be deter
mined by such means as are available; and IN
New Jersey that fatal disease pleuro-pneumo-
MIA has been raging unchecked for consld-
cradle time. A word of advice to farmers
and stock owners will be opportune. and NAV
be the means OF saving some valuable herds |
from destruction.
o. the first appearance of disease the af- |
fected animals should be at once isolated from
the REMAINDER of the herd, and such pre-
cautionary means adopted as will prevent the |
remainder OF the herd coming in contract
with them.
When there is the slightest ground for
suspicion, any newly purchased animal
should be kept sepa ate for time sufficient
to allow latent germs of disease to NANTES
themselves. The greatest care should he |!
exercised IN cleaning and disIn Getting Sheds |
and places which have been used by affected
animals; and such sheds, ETC., should lot / e
used Tor healthy stock for period Of TIN tt
or four weeks after the disappearance of tie
disease. The persons who attend to the dis
eased animals should not 90 amons the
healthy ones, for many diseases are 50 h.gh- |
ly contagious that they may easily be prop
agated by the clothing of the attendants.
BY the steady pursuance. on the part OF ti.1
stock owner, Oi strict precautionary nea>-
uTes and by the exercise Of vlgilant care AMI
attention, many diseases which are conIa-
glous or infectious and not epiz )otc may oi
en- be prevented from spreading to any great
extent PleurO- pneumonia Is one OF tht
most fatal of the prevalent diseases in ouI
country, and is essentially a gi,u>
disease; we believe there has never been "a
case Investigated where 1t was proved t"
have originated spontaneously, Though cattl
which uUcleanllness or bad feeding nave
predisposed to it take the infection mo,
readily than healthy stock.
In England, where the disease has for
many years been the chief bugbear Of stock
owners, the efficacy Of isolation 10 prevent
ing its spread has long been Acknowledged,
and many farmers now, on the app sarance ul
pleuro-pneumonia. slaughter the If etc an
lmals at once, preferring to suffer the fire.
loss to rlsking the spread of the dIsea.t
among then stock. But previous to the pass
ing OF restrictive laws, certain unprincIplcd
cattle dealers and jobbers soon 8 they mad
a case OF disease among their stock, disposed
in hurry of all their cattle which had been
exposed to the Infection, and thus spread the
disease far and wide.
An immense number of live cattle from
Holland and North Germany were impo. ted
into England, ard those cattle were often in
ported 10 diseased state, and, Immediately
on landing, were bought up and distributed
all over the country. This kept going on
from bad to worse and the losses from con-
tagous and, therefore, partly avoidable dis
eases, became serious affAir The climax
was capped in 1868, when the terrible cattle
plague or rinderpest of Central Russia wac
imported. 1tspread rapidly and was intense
ly talal-not more than two or three per
cent. of the animals attack ed recovering. In
the dalrylng districts Of Cheshire and Som
ersetshire, whole townships were swept clear
of cattle. Parliament speedily began to
move IN the matter, and acts were hurriedly
passed constituting central and local author
tiles who were empowered to investigate and
declare any place to be infected with cattle
p ague and draw a Gordon around it; there
upon, all movement OF cattle therein alb
soluteIy stopped, except so far as a farmer
could move his cattle from one part OF bis
farm to another without crossing a road :;
and where no disease was known to be ex-
listing, farmers were not allowed to move
cattle along road without license from an
officer appointed to issue them. All the an
mails ffected with the disease or which had
been in contact with affected animals were
Immediately slaugh tered and buried in quick
lime, their hides having been previously so
sashed as to render them useless. The far
IDers whose cattle were thus unceremoniOusy
dealt with were compensated for their loss
out of the public funds.
By the time the organization ha1 got into
working order there was scarcely a township
in the country where the disease had not
shown itself, hut such vigorous measures as
above described son bore fruits, and the
weekly list of in ected places grew smaller
and smaller till the dIseAse was finally Grad
raI -.
into manageable limits, no fresh outbreaks
occurred which could not be traced to some
movement OF cattle 10 violation of the law,
and the offenders 10 such cases. when detect
ed, were very heavily punished.
Tie rinderpest having been so successful
stamped out, and such perfect organizatIUu
called into existence, the Chamber OF Agri
culture, which is the English Farmers Club
began to take up the question Why not
now the country is clear of disease, keep II
clear? And if successful with rinde' pes
cannot we be SO with other contagious dr.
eases? During the time that the moveme Mt
of cattle were under restriction on account
OF the cattle plague, it was noticed that th,
mortality from other diseases was much les
than it had ever been before. Eventu all
the law was continued and enlarged sc as I,
include 10 its operation, In addition to cattl,
plague, pleurO-pneumonIa, foot and mOutt
disease, sheep-pox, sheep scab, and glauders
There is now in every county a local uthOr
ity whose duty it is to appoint prOperll
qualified veterinary insp scvors, and ON an,
case OF disease being reported to them to III
vestlgate and determine the character thereo'
The owner of the diseased animal is tnei
served with a notice requiring him t. keel
the affected animal separate, and the farm /,
visited weekly by the inspector who rep1rt
on the number of cattle on the farm t
number affected. etc., to the local authority
who in turn send report of all cases in the
county to the central authority, who publish
and circulate weekly report of the state .
the disease throughout the country. Til
local authority have power to order any Is
eased animals to be slaughtered on compeu
sating the owners of them.
Foreign cattle are only allowed to be land
ed at certain ports, and there they are quar-
antined for set period before they are DIS
persed through the country. Since the &C
has been in operation several cattle at, cte'
with rinderpest have been landed, but th
disease has not Overleaped the sanitary cor
don and has been promptly stamped out.
Ut course such stringent law as the on
described above, though we'll suited to a com
pact country like England, would be simpl,
impractcable here, yet some organization i
needed If only to prevent the importation 0
contagious disease and existing laws ough
TO be more generally enforced Tor if the ia
tai rinderpest were once to obtain tootin,
and be disseminated the consequences woulC