Vol. .XIII. No. .328. 



THE AGRICULTURAL NEWS. 



"3SI 



VETERINARY NOTES. 



■TREATMENT AND CONTROL OF NEMA- 

 TODE AND TICK DISEASES. 



The tijlluAving- extiacts, dealing with Nematodes 

 (riJiiiiil wonn.s) an<l ticks, an* tVoiii paper.s read at the 

 i-ccent International Veterinaiy Congress. They form 

 an inteivsting continuation of inforniatinn jiublished 

 in the Agricultund JVew.^ (Septenilur 12) (jn 

 tuberculo.sis: — 



Neiiiatodfs are Hineiiable to tlic ii.se of certain antliel- 

 jniiitii-s toniied veniiifuge.s. 



Fioiii the plianiiaccilogical point (jf view, it is better to 

 use the drugs in their natural state than the active principles 

 which they contain, for the reasons that they often contain 

 adjuvants, are less likely to cause accidents, and are less 

 expensive. 



The choice nf vermifuges depends U])on the nature of 

 tlie parasites and more paiticularly upnn their habitat. 



(1) The nematodes of the digestive .system. 



For the treatment of conditions caused by those parasites 

 the drugs selected must be such as are not readily absorbed 

 by the nnicous niemljrane of the alimentary tract. In order 

 to render the parasites acces.sible to the action of the medica- 

 ments, their administration should l>e preceded by a pur- 

 gative, the verndfuges l)eing given fasting on the following 

 day. The doses emphiyed shouhl not lie too small. 



Instead of mixing a purgative with the anthelmintics, it 

 is preferable to administer the anthehnintic first and then 

 a purgative at an interval of some hours. 



(a) The nematodes of the small intestine. In the case 

 of animals which have a .simple stomach, the nematcxles of 

 the stomach and small intestine are fairly easily accessible 

 to vermifuges. In rundnants they often pass into the first 

 .stomachs and fail to exert any etf'ect. 



For the treatment of Ascaridesin the Ki|uidae, antimony 

 tartarate and arseidons aciri aie preferidile. For the Ascarides 

 • if the ](ig, areca nut. and for those of the dog and cat, 

 areca luit and semen-contra. 



Ank3dostonuasis of the dog is principally treated with 

 tliymol or with mixtures containing male fern. 



In the treatment of parasitic gastero-enteritis in the 

 .sheep, it is as a rule uece.s.sary to u.se a drenching tube which 

 is introduced into the mouth, or better still, into the 

 as(i])hagus. The animals .should lie drenched in the stand- 

 ing position, and shr>tild be kept as ijuiet as possible. The 

 most efficacious medicaments appear to he creosote and 

 thymol. 



(b) The nematodes of the large intestine. It is difficult 

 to reach parasites in the large intestine with vermifuges 

 administered per os; administration per rectum offers a great- 

 er chance of success. Further, intravenous injections of 

 atoxyl may be tried, especially for those forms which become 

 encysted. The (Esophagostomes and Trichocephala of the 

 small animals are liest treated by means of thymol clysters, 

 as suggested by Brumpt. 



(2) The nematodes of the respiratory tract. 



The method of choice in the treatment of the meta- 

 .strongyloses (verminous bronchitis and pneumonia) is the 

 spraying of anthelmintic liquids (contaiinng creosote or 

 chloroform) into the respiratory tract. 



Syngamosis of birds may be treated l)y carliolized 

 iidialations, or, more particularly, by intratraclical injectiojis 

 ijf salicylate of soda. 



(3) The nematodes of the circulatory systcnn, the closecl 

 cavities, the tissues, and t'lt; urinary apparatus. 



We are practically unable to reach these parasites. 

 An attempt should always lie made to treat the conditions by 

 the admiinstration of drugs by the mouth, and Viy the intra- 

 venous injection of anthehuintics, such as atoxyl, collargol, etc. 



(4) The nematodes of the eye. 



The intraocular nematodes can apparently lie killed by 

 the instillation of anthehuintics, and of collargol in fiarticular. 



Extraocular nematodes can be expelled by the injection 

 of slightly irritating li(juids under the eyelids. 



I'ONTKOL OF TICKS. 



Ticks can be destroyed by means of dips containing 

 arsenic. The dipping tanks are placed along the line separ- 

 ating the afJected from the free districts. The sanitary 

 .service keeps watch so that no animal carrying ticks strays 

 into the free area. The infected and healthy areas are 

 separated from each other by an i)itermediate zone, and this 

 greatly assists the campaign against the ticks. The majority 

 of stockowners possess their own dipping tanks. The dry 

 vegetation is freijuently burned during the summer. 



luununization is readily carried out; more than 25,000 

 breeding animals have been vaccinated by my method against 

 protoplasms. A reliable method of vaccinatiiig against 

 anaplasma remains to be discovered. 



The procedure of inoculating the blood of recovered 

 animals and injecting trypanblue at the onset of fever is 

 a dangerous one in areas infected witli auaplasmosis. 



Great attention should be paid to the acclimatization of 

 breeding animals. Before startitig to improve the breed of 

 animal* in an infected area, information must be obtained 

 regarding the type of parasites and ticks present, the geiveral 

 i-onditions of the district, and the rjuality of the breeding 

 animals it is intended to employ. 



.\part from the parasites which they transmit, the ticka 

 possess varialile injurious (jualities of their own which render 

 them more or less formidaMe 



EXPERIMENTS WITH SWEET SORGHUM. 



From time to time (piestions have been asked as to the 

 possibility or advisability of cultivatiug some of the sweet 

 varieties of .sorghum in the West Indies as a .source of 

 sugar supply. 



In the United States it has been found that the better 

 varieties of sorghum give a large yield per acre, are easy of 

 cultivation, and have rather a high sucrose content. Never- 

 theless, the juice contains (piite a large percentage of gummy 

 materials, which, on concentration, prevent crystallization. 



The results of experiments made in India are given in 

 Bulletin No. 41, 1914, of the Agricultural Research 

 Institute, Pu.sa. 



The conclusion arrived at is that, as a source of sugar 

 supply sweet .sorghum is not worth growing in India. Even 

 in America it is only grown to make syrup, for which there 

 is a demand in that country. 



Two reasons are given for this conclusion. First, the 

 high glucose ratio of the juice militates against the produc- 

 tion of good crystaline sugar. Second, the yield of sugar per 

 acre is oidy about one-third of the average yield of sugar-cane. 



It is however stated that as a source of fodder, sweet 

 sorghum seems very valuable, being ijuick in growth, and 

 very nutritious. 



It would therefore ap|-iear that it would scarcely be 

 advantageous to attempt to I'ultivate this plant in the West 

 Indies, except for the latter purpose, for which it may be 

 well suited here, especially if it has any drfiught-resisting 

 power. ' 



