Hopkinsville Kentuckian., 1900-11-16
DISEASES OF WILD BEASTS.
Consumption and Pneumonia Common
Snakes Die Of Cancer

What diseases are wild beasts ir
captivity subject to?" was the ques-
tion a writer for the Washington Star
put to leading animal trainer.
"Well," was the reply, monkeys
Cor the most part die Of consumption
and pneumonia Antelopes, moose
deer and other browsing beasts die be-
cause proper food cannot be found
for them. In my opinion, the tannin
in the bark and twigs which these ami
mails feed most largely upon is what
their systems need in order to keep
them in a healthy condition. OF
course, very little Of this is found in
the hay and other foods which are fed
TO these animals in captivity. In re-
gard to the far-western animals of
this country there seems to be some
peculiar quality of The alfalfa and
othergrasseso ofthe prairie which is alb
solutely necessary for their susten-
nance and well being. think that
the climatic change has very little in
fiuence upon them | have shipped
lots Of mule deer. black-tailed deer,
antelope and Rocky mountain sheep
to Europe and the continent, but they
did not live one year You see that
moose, for instance, live largely upon
licbcn and bark. OF course, these
foods cannot be secured so far from
the forests, and hay proves to be very
poor substitute. have no doubt but
if these animals could be supplied
with their natural food they would
live as long rs lions and tigers.
"All the African, Indian and Aus
tralian animals come to this country
through a general depot in Germany.
Ifany weakly specimens arrive in that
country they are kept there until they
recover. While in transit across the
ocean it is very common thing for
noncarnivora to go without food for
ten days, and they are often seasick.
This is particularly true Of llamas, an
telopes and camels. There is a good
deal Of ignorance about the medical
treatment Of wild animals. Those
which feed upon grass are treated in
sickness much the same as a horse.
In the case Of lions, tigers and beasts
OF the cat family generally the same
medicines which are given to a dog
under similar circumstances are used.
cone Of the most difficult of species
to keep alive is the South American
tapir. They are brought chiefly from
the Amazon river and belong to the
pig family. Like the monkeys, they
all die Of consumption. Snakes, as a
rule, die Of cancer. have often tax
en from the mouth Of a python pieces
of decayed tissue as large as a walnut.
This disease is produced by he habit
of the snakes striking their fangs in
TO wood or any hard substance with
which tl,ey come in contact. The
ianga aIe usually broken off in these
attacks and cancer supervenes. As
soon as / dc'eltthe cancerous growth
in the mouth Of a snake know that
fhe reptile is doomed
Il ,emember magnificent Bengal
tiger, which went mad from convul-
siors brought on by eating TOO much,
and in a frenzy the tiger ate off her
own tail close up TO the body, and de-
voured every inch Of it, including the
hair.
"About three years ago I lost three
rare Koodoo antelopes in a very curl
Gus manner. They were confined in
a stable which was infested with rats.
Late one night | heard a great hubbub
in the stable. Opening the door |
found the antelopes springing all over
the stable. striking their horns against
the flooring overhead and. acting as
if they were frightened out Of their
wits. ] noticed that they looked at
a particular corner, and when / saw
rat come out the effect was magical
upon the antelopes. | tried in vain to
quiet them, and the next morning
they were found dead in the stable.
They had died from fright"