The Barre daily times. (Barre, Vt.) 1897-1959, 1914-01-31
COMBATING HOG CHOLERA.
Government Is Meeting With Success in
Experiments.

Washington, D. c., Jan. 30.-The de
partment of agriculture, during the pas
year, has been conducting campaigns il
Indiana, Missouri, Iowa, and Nebraska
to control the contagious disease of hogs
known as "hog cholera" by means o.
anti-hog cholera serum and farm quar-
antines. In one county (Pettis county
Missouril where there was loss of Il
per cent. in 1911 and 25.6 per cent. il
| 1912 of all hogs raised, there was only
loss of l4.7 per cent. up to November
1913 This decrease was due to the us,
of the serum, which, although not used
there by the departments agents until
August, 1918, materially reduced the loss
About 10000 hogs were raised during
the past year and OF the 10000 that
died Of the hog cholera only about 600
were lost after the active use of serum
and quarantine measures were inaug-
urated.
In every county where these measures
were employed, even though begun after
the disease had continued its ravages for
some time, there was less loss from hog
cholera tnan in either of the two pre-.
ceding years.
In addition to its great function as
preventive, it has been found THAI
the anti-hog cholera serum would cure
a large proportion of hogs in the early
stages of the disease and render them
immune after recovery. However, If
hogs are not treated by this serum, from
rs TO 100 per cent. of all affected herds
die. This serum, so far as Is known,
is the only thing that win prevent the
disease.
OF hogs actually sick when treated,
the departments inspectors lost but Is
per cent. during the past summer OF
well hogs in diseased herds, two and
eight-tenths died after being treated and
of hogs in exposed herds less than one
per cent. died after being inoculated with
the serum. In an infected herd there
is always a certain proportion Of hogs
that are well.
The Inspector examines the hogs when
he arrives, takes the mperature of all
hogs in the herd and separates the sick
from the well. The temperature is an
indication of the sickness. The tenn
perature of sick hog, unless the hog
is near death, will run above l04 degrees
and sometimes as high as l07 or l0S
degrees Fahrenheit.
Some states are engaged in the manu-
faeture of serum to cure this disease.
This serum requires special treatment
to preserve its quality and a qualified
treat an average hundred-pound hog
costs about 80 cents at liberal esti-
mate. The treatment is by hypodermic
injection.
The department in initiating its cam
paign against the devastating hog dis
ease has only been able to commence
in few of the districts where the chol-
era was the most widespread and where
the active cooperation of the state Was
offered in enforcing the ordinary quar-
antine measures, etc.
The object of the department has been
to endeavor to control the disease and,
if possible, to eliminate it from the coun-
try. To secure this end the best efforts
of the farmer himself are necessary. The
against this devastating sick
ness during 1913 was planned in the
territory selected along three lines.
/. The education and organization of
the farmers in the districts selected, to
DC cdlIlcu oub primarily Ny tue Sldbc
college.
2. The enforcement of sanitation and
restrictive regulations by the state vet
erinarian.
3. Active supervision by the bureau
of animal industry of the department
and the incubation of diseased herds
and exposed herds with the anti-hog
cholera serum.
A county in each state was selected
as unit and the method of work in
that county was, briefly, for the state
college to secure the cooperation of in
active farmers in each town
ship in the county. These men were
JAILED volunteer assistants and they were
10 keep in close communication with the !
inspector stationed in that |
area, keeping him informed OF conditions |
and securing statistics concerning the !
hog industry. In this manner conditions |
we're pretty we'll learned in the territory |
under inspection. When an outbreak !
IF hog cholera was reported the depart
nent's inspector went to that outbreak |
ind saved all the hogs he could by treat
nent with serum. As the disease is very |
aasily transmitted, he then protected all !
nerds in the immediate vicinity by in
)culation. The idea was to form zone