312 Missouri Agricultural Report. 



and in fact is so common that one may easily be mistaken in his 

 diagnosis, especially if only one animal is examined and this ani- 

 mal be one that shows the severe pneumonia type of cholera. 

 It is always best to examine a number of animals if in doubt, as 

 a correct diagnosis is essential in any of these cases. 



Investigators connected with the United States Bureau of 

 Animal Industry, namely, Drs. Dorsett, McBride and Niles, 

 discovered some ten years or more ago that the blood serum of 

 swine that had been made hyperimmune to hog cholera pos- 

 sessed immunizing properties when injected into susceptible hogs. 

 This important discovery has been put into large practical use 

 in many states and has been the means of saving many thousands 

 of hogs from cholera. Notwithstanding the great good that has 

 been done in the past, I believe the coming years will see far 

 better results through the more intelligent use of serum along 

 with proper sanitary measures. 



It is impossible to control a disease of this kind which is 

 spread in so many different ways by simply one or two in a 

 neighborhood vaccinating and doing their best to get rid of the 

 infection and the rest of their neighbors allowing their hogs to 

 die of cholera and not using any precautions to get rid of the 

 disease; it requires a combined effort. If we can get the hog 

 raisers to feel that it is their duty and their gain to get rid of 

 the disease and maintain healthy herds, then we can begin to 

 see results. It is more necessary for organization and co-opera- 

 tion to successfully combat this disease than it is to have hog 

 cholera serum for controlling it. 



You may now ask, how are we to do it? First, organize 

 your neighborhood into an "anti-hog-cholera club;" then as 

 soon as there is an outbreak of cholera get busy; do not be 

 ashamed to let your neighbors know about it if you have the 

 disease on your own farm; warn them to guard against it, and 

 they will not go near your pens to carry it home to their own 

 hogs. Then get the serum and vaccinate all your well hogs, 

 clean up, burn all dead animals, also the infected litter and 

 trash in your pens, and disinfect all yards and sheds. This can 

 be done quite easily by sprinkling fresh air-slacked lime freely 

 about the yard, and the use of some good coal tar disinfectant, 

 whitewash your sheds, applying the whitewash with either a 

 brush or force pump. Dip your hogs occasionally to keep them 

 free from lice, or better put them in a close pen and sprinkle or 

 spray them with crude oil. Give some good conditioner which 



