no ANNUAL R15PORT OF THE Off. Due. 



REPORT OF THE STATE VETERINARIAN FOR 



1908/== 



Harrisburg, Pa., July i, IDOD. 

 Hon. N. B. Critclifield, Secretary of Agriculture, Harrisburg, Pa.: 



Sir: I have the honor to present the following report of the 

 work of the ofificeof the State Veterinarian and of the State Livestock 

 Sanitary Board for the year 1908: 



Pennsylvania re(]uires a much larger number of domestic animals 

 to supply its needs than are raised within the State. Large num- 

 bers of these animals are, therefore, shipped in from other states, 

 and a few from foreign countries. The State is for this reason 

 always exposed to the danger of invasion by contagious and infec- 

 tious disease. Reference was made in the report for 19(37 to the 

 discovery of two diseases in Pennsylvania that were not known to 

 exist on this continent, namely, epizootic lymphangitis and bacterial 

 dysentery. In this re])ort it is necessary to record the invasion of 

 the State late in 1908 by another exotic disease — aphthous fever, or 

 foot-and-mouth disease, which on account of its destructive and 

 highly contagious nature, and the large number of exposed and 

 diseased animals shipped into the State and distributed about on 

 numerous farms, presented the most serious situation the State 

 Veterinarian and the State Livestock Sanitary Board have been 

 called upon to meet since the Board was established. On account 

 of the great extent of the w^ork involved in the suppression of this 

 disease, it will be necessary to present the subject in a special report. 

 Only a summary of the developments in 1908, and of the w'ork done 

 in that period, can be given here. 



The disease was introduced by cattle shipped into Pennsylvania 

 through the stockyards at East Buffalo, New York. The infection 

 was carried to the East Buffalo stockyards* by cattle shipped from 

 the Detroit stockyards, which had been infected by some diseased 

 cattle from Michigan. The occurrence of the disease in Michig:an 

 and the subsequent infection of the Detroit and East Buffalo stock- 

 yards Avas not known however, until after the discovery of the 

 disease in Pennsylvania. The dis.ease was oilficially diagnosed here 

 by the State Veterinarian on November 9th, and the Chief of the 

 Bureau of Animal Industry of the United States Department of 

 Agriculture and the Commissioner of Agriculture of New York were 

 immediately notified by telegraph. 



In the m.eantiuK^ a large number of shipments of cattle had been 

 made through the infected pens at the East Buffalo stockyards to 

 various points in Pennsylvania. Some of these cattle passed 



♦This report was written by the Deputy State Veterinarian. At the time when this report 

 should have been written the State Veterinarian and the entire office force were occupied with 

 urerent work in connection with the suppression ol' foot-and-mouth disease. Before an op- 

 portunity occurred to prepare the report. Dr. Pearson met with an accident, the effects of 

 which made it necessary for him to give up all work. 



