The Newark journal., 1919-10-23

locoed cattle, the same lack ot muscu- lar control being evidenced, the animal shaking and trembling and perhaps rearing and jumping backward when suddenly alarmed A badly locoed steer shows a violently shaking head, particularly after it has become heat ed. and sometimes becomes frantic and runs into Instructions in an utterly un- reasonable way. Locoed cattle grad ually lose flesh. have staring eyes rough coats, go to water less and less frequently, and eventually die of star yation.
 The symptoms of sheep poisoning are not so marked as those in horses and cattle the lack of muscular control not being so noticeable. However, locoed sheep soon develop weakness and sum- ble and fall about and rise again only with great difficulty. There is some confusion between this condition and grub in the head" and at times it is difficult 10 distinguish between sheep affected by the grub of the sheep gad- fiy and those poisoned by loco weeds.
 Can Cure Valuable Animals.
 Most locoed animals can he cured, but they should be worth enough To warrant q somewhat extended course of treatment. The first and most lm- portant need is to supply them with plenty of nutritious feed, such as al- Galfa, grain or meaf, and proper pas turage. so that they will Dot be oblig- ed t0 resort to loco weed for food. Medical treatment. such as is outlined fully in Farmers, Bulletin 1o54, recent F issued by the United States depart ment of agriculture, should he follow ed. Rapid reeoyeries can hardly be expected. IS the condition existing h ease of chronic loco poisoning has been developed b. weeks or months of loco feeding, which means that the rate of recovery must necessarily be slow. However. where 1the animals are treated carefully and conscien- tiously along lines suggested hy the United States department of agricul- ture, much valuable range stock may be saved.
 Loco poisoning can be largely pre- vented by proper handling of live stock. As the stock commonly eea- tract the habit of loco feeding in times of short feed, stockmen should provide plenty of good hay at such periods On some ranges the loco weeds have a def initely limited distribution and in such cases, if animals are kept away from the infested areas until the grass is started few become locoed
 Kill Out Loco Weeds.
 It is relatively simple to clear out the loco plant by cutting the roots for two to three inches below the surface. However, as the seeds Of loco plants live for years and do not ecrminate in the season following their growth, it is necessary to continue the exter- mination work for several seasoGs af- fer the original plants have been killed Many stockmen believe it is necessary 10 remove all of the loco roots in order to control the pest, but this is err6- ne0us, Badly infested tracts of land nave been cleared under the direction of the Gnited States department of az riculture. and in many of these pas tures kept under observation for ten years very few loco plants have ap- peared. One ranehman in New Mex ico reports the cleaning up of m 80- acre pasture and later on a pasture of e.ght sections where previously the weed had covered one,fourth of the total area. Although this work cost S3 an acre, it has been money well spent, as practically no trouble from loco weed has since developed.