410 ANNUAL REPORT OF THE Off Doc 



we had to change our plan a little in handling tuberculosis. Up to 

 last July, we always arranged to pay some indemnity for cattle that 

 were condemned for tuberculosis. They were appraised under the 

 same plan as we appraise in foot-and-mouth disease, and we could 

 pay |40. for a non-registered animal or $70. for a registered animal, 

 and we could pay them that indemnity, but on account of the money 

 we used up for foot- and- mouth disease and our not being able to get 

 any more from the Legislature, we had to cut out the indemnity for 

 cattle out of this appropriation. Some of you may think that is an 

 injustice and I am rather surjjrised myself to find that so many of 

 our farmers are keeping on with the tuberculin test although they get 

 nothing for the animal destroyed except what they get after slaugh- 

 tering from the butcher, for the offal, hide, etc. 



In reference to contagious abortion — that is not a reportable dis- 

 ease; the Board is not compelled by law to handle contagious abor- 

 tion, but from the letters received from our people in the State, there 

 is no disease that the breeders are so much interested in as they are 

 in abortion. Now we have been trying to do a little work in it, but 

 I do not blame you if you think it has amounted to nothing; in fact 

 we have a pretty hard proposition there in knowing what to recom- 

 mend in reference to abortion and sterility in dairy cattle, and we do 

 not have very much trouble with that subject in other species of 

 animals, but in nearly every mail we have a few letters from some- 

 body who wants to know what is to be done for abortion and sterility, 

 and we have been recommending them to isolate tlieir animals and 

 use local douches, etc. of antiseptics, and I do not know whether 

 much has been accomplished in that line or not. I doubt if it pays 

 a man to bother with it. As far as I can see at present, I think there 

 is hope of doing something in pure bred herds, where they want to 

 raise calves, especially. I believe that there is something that can 

 be done, but it is nothing that you can do yourselves yet and I doubt 

 if it will be anything you can do for a good while in the future. I do 

 know of men that can do something for that kind of condition, and 

 at the present time the Board is trying to make an effort to have some 

 men trained to go out on cases of that kind and do something for the 

 herd owners at the expense of the state, to demonstrate that it is pos- 

 sible to accomplish something. At the present time a herd owner 

 does not feel justified in paying for services when he don't believe 

 there is going to be any results obtained from it, and I do not recom- 

 mend you to do it until we can demonstrate to you that it can be 

 done properly. I will be glad then if you will be interested in it, 

 but as far as native herds are concerned, I doubt if it is worth both- 

 ering with ; take your chances and put up with it as you have done 

 in the past. 



Hog cholera has not been so bad as in other years. I think the re- 

 strictions we had on the foot-and -mouth disease, disinfecting cars, 

 cleaning up the shipping station and preventing shipments, to some 

 extent, from other states, had a very good influence on hog cholera. 

 We are still using the serum treatment and the quarantine in hand- 

 ling the disease, and where the disease is reported promptly, I think 

 we have very good results. I think in any herd of hogs if the owner 

 watches the herd carefully and reports the disease promptly and has 

 it attended to with vaccination, I think there is very little excuse for 



