Vilas County news. [volume] (Eagle River, Vilas County, Wis.) 1896-1927, 1904-10-03
WHOLE DISTRICTS LIABLE
Animals Serious Menace and Should
Be Destroyed if They Have Pro-
civty for Wandering-Cats Es-
:. peciaIly are Observation-Disclosures
in London Trying to Avert Danger.

/ Sdl uCu cO COpCC1o11J u uC Ill CuC COu-
gested districts of large cities, where
domesticated animals are allowed to
roam freely from one home to another
and are petted and played with by
children. So thoroughly convinced
are the health officers of London that
diseases are carried in this way that
the authorities of that city have been
| investigating the matter and are try
ing to devise some method to avert the
danger. That something must be
/ done soon is regarded as a pressing
necessity, for it has been found upon
investigation that the districts where
diseases are the most numerous are
in almost every case the abiding places
Of innumerable stray dogs and cats.
These cases of infection spread by
animals are met with much more fire.
qUently than is generally supposed
III London, where an investigation is
being made by the officials, many dis
eaess of malignant type have been
traced directly to household pets
which carried the contagion from chill
/ dren in other families. An officer OF
! the London health board said, in com
menting on this matter, recently:
Diseases Due to Animals.
"Such cases are found largely in the
! congested districts. Wherever you
! find human beings densely crowded
there You will be certain to find col
lections of dogs, cats, parrots, pigeons,
poultry and all kinds OF tame animals
and birds. | am sure that if phi 81
clan in the poor neighborhoods OF any
city had the time to trace the origin
OF the cases of infectious diseases that
/ he treats he would find some start
ling results. I would not pretend to
say how many contagious diseases
/ are brought to the home by the dog or
4 the cat, but | know there must be o
1 very great percentage Of them. 1t
would seem rather hard, perhaps, to
suggest that the jewellers in the crowd
eG districts of the large cities in all
parts of the world should give up their
household pets altogether, but it is
certain that such course would be for
the public benefit. But one thing
is apparent: If these pets have a pro
clivity for wandering they Should by
all means be destroyed, and no cat or
dog should be allowed to remain in a
house where there is contagious
disease On the contrary, we find
cats and dogs not only in the same
house where there is malignant dis
ease, but passing freely in and oUt of
the same room in. which the patient is
located. 1t is in such cases as this
in the crowded cities that the domes-
tic animals become a serious menace,
not to members of the family alone,
but to the entire neighborhood and to
the entire city, and, perhaps, the coun-
try"
The Wandering Feline.
The wandering cat is the greatest
source of danger to any city or town,
/ The evil that it does as a carrier OF
disease has been made subject OF
special study by DR.. A. w. Martin, the
health officer for Gorton, an outlying
district of Manchester, England. He
says that the recent great increase OF
diphtheria in London was dUe to the
disease being conveyed by f1eas from
infected animals. He clearly shows
that pigeons and fowls suffer from a
form of diphtheroa, and are infested
with feas He also shows that the
cats of the neighbOrhoOd congregate
wherever there is pigeon cote or
fowl run, and from these facts he de-
ducts that the cats bring the infected
feas from the birds into the house,
and thus spread the disease.
DR.. Thomas Darlington, commission
er of health of New York, does not
hesitate to say that contagious dis
eases are spread by dogs and cats and
other domestic pets.
ST always believed" said Dr. Darling
ton the other day, that dogs and cats
and other domestic animals conveyed
contagious diseases. There has been
some question about this in the medi-
cal faculty, but as far as am concern
ed I have no doubt that such is fact.
I became convinced of this during my
private practice, and all my experience
in the past has strengthened me IN
this belief.
Pet Animals Blamed.
''T could select cases which | am
sure have originated from pet animals.
I recall one case in particular where
the dog died from a sore throat. Two
children in the family had diphtheria.
and 1 suspected that the trouble had
it's origin with the dog, so I examined
it's throat and found it with all the
symptoms of diphtheria.
81 am perfectly satisfied that tUber-
culosis is interchangeable between ami
mails and persons, and l have no doubt
that a considerable portion of this dis