Weekly Arizona journal-miner., 1908-02-26
GIVES RESULT OF EXPERIMENTS
IN ARIZONA.
From THURSDAYS Daiiv)


states government, who was in Pres
colt and other portions of the Terri
tory last year, making experiments i'm
the field concerning the deadly loco,
weed, has issued synopsis of the re,
suits of his investigations, which fol-
lows:
The word "loco,' from the Spanish.
meaning crazy, nas been applied for -
great many years 10 a disease Of stock
and sheep in the scmiarid regions OF
the west. There has been a general
belief among stockmen that the disease
Is caused by certain weeds known IA
loco weeds. The name loco weed has
been applied TO large number Of
plants, but two are considered espcci-
ally obnoxious--Aragallus LAMBERT and
Astragalus mollissimus.
More or less dcsultory Investigations.
| by scientific men have been made on
this subject. the general result Of which
has been to imply that the disease was
produced by some other cause than the
loco plants. Later Investigations nave
made il seem quite probable that the
cause Of the disease must be sought in
some other direction. The investiga-
tions here recorded were undertaken TO.
clear up first Of all the doubt concern
ing the source Of trouble.
The first essential point was to de-
monstrate whether the loco weeds did
or did not cause the disease. The work
Of the first season, the summer Of 1905,
accomplished this demonstration In n
very satisfactory way. II was clearly
proved that Aragallus LAMBERT would
poison horses, sheep, and cattle and
that Astragalus mollissimus would poi
son horses. Astragalus mollssimus
does not poison cattle because they
very rarely eat II.
; The work Of the second season, the
summer Of 1906, was mainly devoted
10 diagnosis Of the disease The ex'
p ternal symptoms described by stock
T. men were in general corroborated. The
!, head, rough coat, slow, staggering gait,
u movements showing lack of muscular
Q coordination, sometimes more or less
$ paralytic symptoms, generally dis
= eased nervous system, and in the later
l. stages Of the disease extreme enact
q alton
Z The principal pathological changes
y are pronounced anemin Of the whole
u system, diseased stomach walls, and IN
n acute eases a congcsted condition OF the
N walls OF the stomach, while in chronfr
eases there are frequently ulcers. Gen
orally speaking, locoed cattle have
n ulcers in the fourth stomach. There in
an excess of fluids in the various cavi-
ties If the body. This is especially
noticeable in the epidural space Of the
at spinal canal Here the effusion In more
ed or less organized, presenting the ap'
"a pearance Of a gelatinous mass, which Is
re. especially abundant in the lumbar re-
no gion and about the exits Of the spinal
mis- nerves. In most lococd females the
ne ovaries are found in diseased eondi
'io tion.
lie The third stage If the work was th'
err devising Of remedial measures. tins
ter was undertaken in the summer of l'o'
his This work naturally had two phases
ar az attempts to eradicate the weed an'
(2) attempts TO cure the locoed AM
Tor mails.
ups In regard to the possibility of killin
is the weeds. il was found that this cou
va readily be done in the ease Of fence
has pastures. This is especially fcasibl
avs with Astragalus mollissimus, because
the occurs in comparatively small patehe
ing Aragallus LAMBERT has wider distr
AXE hutton, but il Is not at all impossibl
TO destroy this weed when in pasture
on There seems 10 be no way OF riddin
inc. the ranges Of these weeds. however
has In regard To the Second phase
the remedial work. IL was found that loo
lrge ed cattle can in most eases he cured J
yet course Of treatment with strychnin
,een while locoed horses can generally
ndi- eured by a course Of treatment wi
,wn. Fowler's solution. The animals und
lux treatment must not be allowed to @
10 the loco weed and should bc given N
only nutritious food but, so far ms pc
,han sible, food with laxative properties.
bach tais end magnesium sulphatc was a
this ministcrcd to correct the constipati
lsior which is almost universal among loco
animals. 1t should be noted, too, IN
ncy, magnesium sulphate may serve to sol
any extent as an an,idote To the poison.
one It may be added in regard to
the question Of immunity, that loco pois'
only ING comes IN slow and cumulati