Meade County news., 1913-06-26
A TIMELY WARNING FROM THE VETERINARY
Of THE STATE AGRICUL LTURAL COLLEGE
Farmers Are Told to Watch Their Herds Carefully for Symp
toms Of the Corn Stalk" Dseasez-Experments Show
that the Trouble Comes from Germ
Vaccination May Help
[By DR.. T. P. Haslam, K. S. A. CT

the corn stalk disease only short
time before. The claves received in
addition a very small amount of al
falfa hay. The experiment kept up
from about the middle of November
until the first of January. The steer
showed Some slight symptoms, being
drowsy and having loss of appetite
for few days. When he recovered
the skin upon the end of the nose
pealed off; he did not, however, de-
velop the corn stalk disease. The
other showed no symptoms whatever.
Positive conclusions cannot be drawn
from experiments upon two animals,
but it still seems safe to presume that
these suckers are not the primary
cause of the disease.
In few instances a germ disease
(haemorrhagic septicaemia) has been
reported among cattle running on corn
stalks. Inasmuch as the post mortem
appearances of some cases of corn
stalk disease showed many points in
common with those of haemorrhagic
septicaemia, a search was made for
this germ. At first we were Unable
to cultivate any germ resembling this
bacillus which causes haemorrhagic
septicaemia, but later by the use of
certain methods we were able to cul-
tivate a germ from all of the cases
sent in. This organism differs in
some respects from the bovus septi-
Gus germ, although they agree in
many respects. After finding this in
certain number of cases, expert
ments were instituted to see if the
disease could be reproduced in
healthy cattle by inoculating them
with it. A culture derived from a
case sent in by DR.. H. c. Gale OF
Clyde, Kansas, was inoculated into a
calf; the calf died within twelve
hours. The symptoms were not en-
tirely typical. Post mortem showed
the LESSONS of heamorrhagic septicae-
mia. The germ was cultivated from
the brain of the dead animal and in
oculated into another calf; this calf
lived for about fifty-six hours and de-
veloped very good case of the corn
stalk disease. The germ was culti-
waited again from it's brain in consid-
cradle numbers. 1t is believed that
the reason the symptoms of the first
calf we're not typical was that too
large a dose was given which pro-
duced death from the poison inject
ed and did not give the germs time
to develop. 1t is probable that this
germ is the cause of the disease.
This conclusion however, must be
thoroughly tested. In order to do
this it will be of great assistance il
the people losing cattle from the corn
stalk disease will send the heads to
us. The simplest way is to put the
brain into a small tin bucket which
has a tight fitting lid. This should
then be put into a candy bucket
and the candy bucket filled up with
broken ice and sawdust. A small hole
should be made close to the bottom
of the candy bucket in order to let
the water out as the ice melts 1t
should be sent by express to the vet
erinary department of the State Agri-
cultural College. The college will
gladly pay the express on the brains
of cattle dying from corn stalk dis
ease which are properly collected.
Anyone after reading these directions
Gan properly remove, pack and ship
the brains Wherever possible we
recommend that the local veterinar-
ian be consulted in regard to the work.