254 AGRICULTURE OF MAINE. 



GLANDERS. 



We note no increase in glanders this last two years ; 128 

 horses were destroyed during 1905 and 1906, and 128 during 

 the years of 1903 and 1904. The disease seems to prevail mostly 

 among team horses in the eastern part of the State. It is very 

 necessary that every precaution be taken to guard against the 

 spreading of this most insidious disease and in cities or wherever 

 public watering troughs are located it should be the duty of 

 some one to see to it that the troughs are cleaned out and 

 thoroughly scrubbed at least once a week, and veterinarians 

 should be prompt in reporting suspicious cases. 



TUBERCULOSIS IN SHEEP. 



Tuberculosis among sheep is a very rare disease and within 

 the last ten years we have had but very little trouble in this line. 

 It appears in the Maine Cattle Commissioners' Report for 1896, 

 that trouble was reported with a flock of sheep in the town of 

 Belfast ; three of the sheep were killed and their lungs were 

 sent to Dr. Charles D. Smith, who was at that time pathological 

 examiner for the Board. And his report was, " I find masses 

 from the size of a split pea to a marble, which upon examination 

 proved to be tubercular." Since that time w^e have had no 

 trouble with sheep until this last year, when one case was 

 reported in the town of Belfast and two in the town of Dexter. 

 The two Dexter flocks contained some 350 sheep and lambs and 

 a large proportion of these were pure blooded and very valuable. 

 At the time they were reported to the Board the disease had 

 advanced to such a stage that they were dying oflf very fast and 

 after a careful examination it was decided by good authority 

 that the trouble was tuberculosis and the entire flocks were 

 destroyed. We were unable to give the cause of the disease in 

 these two flocks. They were all in one neighborhood and the 

 farms upon which they were owned joined, and as we have had* 

 no more trouble we are led to believe that there is no more dis- 

 ease in that section. 



There is no question but that the disease was first brought 

 into Maine by buying it in some zvay. Now the pure blood 

 buyers are protected by law, but the grade buyers as yet have 

 no protection and during the Portland investigation the farmers 



