St. Landry democrat. (Opelousas, La.) 1878-1894, 1883-01-27
Kee ing Amin Is Healthy.

seldom considered by agrlculturlsts ex.
cept when disease is actually present
among their ANIMALS, and then it is ire
quently looked upon more as vista
ton of Providence than the result OF in
difference to the laws which govern ami
NAL Ii e. So LONG as animals remain
healthy, their owners are usually salts
fed TO let what they consider well
enough alone; but when sickness does
come. they are seldom prepared to COM
bat it, 1t is not the loss sustained in
the death OF the animals first diseased in
a herd that should be considered, but
what may follow; for when stricken by
disease they often become sources OF
danger to other species, as well as to
mankind.
The bite Of rabid dog may cause the
death of many other animals besides the
dog; SO the wells noWn disease OF the
horse, CHAMBERS, may pass to the groom
or others who may come within its in
fluence; and the tape worm SO common
in sheep in certain regions Of our coun-
try may prove a ttireful calamitt to
hundreds who are so unfortun tie as to
eat the in etted mutton. 1htse and
many other diseases of domestic animals
are directly transmissible from the
lower to hi her, or from animals to
man. consequently the health of the
former becomes subject OF the great
est Importance, and too mu b care can
scarcely be taken to maintain health as
a protective measure. ii for no other
purpose. II. d, 81 rs
1t is not always an easy matter to
source among the lower animals, even
when we a e quite certain that it orig
mattel among them, for many OF the
more common diseases change in APP
pearance, and do not invarl bly, pre- ent
the same characterize. by which they
are usually identified hence CHAMBERS in
horses m y pass to man, and IN the lat-
ter receive quite another name. Hun
dreds of persons have, no doubt, in
Gays gone by, d ed from the attacks Of
trichina. when the presence of this mi
uute parasite was not suspe ted BY at
tending physicians; nd even if it had
been discovered, the hog would not
have been accused of be NC the animal
guilty OF distributing itamong mankind.
Another disease OF swine known at
present as hog cholera, and of late prev
alent in most OF the Western ates,
,vh lie not supposed to be transmissible
to other animals, mustrendertheir flesh
unfit for human food. How many in
1ect.d animals are Slaughtered. the pork
from which is packed for marketss i, OF
course unknown, but it is safe to con-
clude that the uantity is very larae in
3. country where there is no Government
supervision over such matters, and
farmers, when the disease is swept g
away hun reds per week in a county or
town, are not very likely to hesitate to
gave themselves from severe losses il it
can be done by anticipating the killing
time by a few days or weeks. The same
may be said of other S asses OF ami
mails, AMI many an a ling steer and
fever SIN tten COW or fuke-infected
sheep has gone to the SHAMELESS. when
their proper place was in the grouad,
and that too. W tn their ss.jatkets on. :
Although much has been said and
written about bad meat from an mails
sent to our large cities in close, ill
ventilated cars, such meat is neverthe-
found in the stalls of country and village
butchers. which very frequently is from
such animals as we have referred to
above, and of a quality that would not
PASS inspection in our cits markets. 1t
certainly speaks well for the cl mate of
the Tn ted States that we have so few
diseased animals, considering the neg
lect of large majority of our farmers
to pay the least regard to the simplest
laws of hygiene. From the State of ILL
nois westward to the Rock Mountains,
we find hundreds and thousands of |
herds, large and small, that get all the
water they drink during the summer
months from stagnant pools, artificial or
natural, scattered here and there over
the prairies and plains. The water in
these pools is that drained from the
surrounding surface during the rainy
season, orr from melting SHOWS. and |
naturally this water takes with it the
filth from the surface OF the soil; and !
eTen if it appears to be at first clear and +
pure, it soon becomes extremely filthy
from the dropp ngs Of the animals fire.
quenting it These hollows or mud
holes are the principal source from
which stock on the Western plains get
water to drink, although in the valleys
and along streams they fare better, but /
often not much better, as large pro: {
portion of the brooks dry up in summer
or near the mountains are polluted with
the mud from placer mines or chemicals
and pulp from the mills.
How all these abuses are to be recti-
fled it would be difficult to determine,
for, as a recent European veterinarian :
has said THE art of preserving health
embraces large and varied field of hu- s
man knowledge, comprehendins all the
conditions and requirements of universal
existence. Among these are the in
fluences Of climate, of habitation, air, f
food, water, and employment. BY eli