Report of State Veterinarian. 55 



hogs from the public markets for stock purposes on account of the fact 

 that the yards are permanently infected with hog cholera and shipments 

 therefrom would spread cholera throughout the State. By injecting 

 stock hogs at the yards with serum they can safely be shipped to the 

 country for stock purposes. A great many hogs are received at the 

 public markets which would be more profitable as stockers than for 

 immediate slaughter. Piggy sows are often slaughtered and tanked, and 

 thrifty shoats are slaughtered when they could be taken to the country 

 and fed out at a good profit. I£ the State will prepare to supervise the 

 injection of stock hogs at the public markets we can stop a waste that 

 amounts annually to a great deal more than the entire cost of maintain- 

 ing the State Veterinary Department. I recommend that arrangements 

 be made as promptly as possible to stop the waste caused by slaughtering 

 piggy sows and thin hogs that would be very profitable if taken to the 

 farms in this State. 



TEXAS FEVER. 



We were greatly disappointed in the results of our tick eradication 

 work in Southern Missouri during the past season. A total of $4,498.97 

 out of the veterinary appropriation was spent upon this work, and in 

 addition to this, the cattlemen of Oregon county spent $364.44, making a 

 total of $4,854.41, spent by the State and cattle owners in tick eradica- 

 tion work. In addition to this the Federal Government paid out the sum 

 of $5,157.15 in co-operation with the State in this work, making a total 

 of $10,011.56. 



Of the State appropriation $1,083.03 was paid out in work in Ripley 

 county, $364.44 in Oregon county, $1,415.40 in McDonald county, and 

 $1,392.34 in Newton and a small area in Jasper county, and $172.40 in 

 Ozark county. 



In all of the localities where tick eradication work was carried on 

 there were a few people who refused to keep their cattle free from ticks 

 or to round them up for inspection. At the beginning of the year a 

 supply of material for making the arsenical dip was purchased and dis- 

 tributed for use of the cattlemen in disinfecting their cattle without any 

 charges. This arsenical solution is veiy effective in destroying ticks and 

 it is not harmful to the cattle. The State has therefore paid the salaries 

 and expenses of the men, furnished the dip and done everything that 

 could possibly be done to encourage eradication of the Texas fever ticks 

 from quarantined areas in this State, and thereby to get the quarantine 

 removed. In Ripley county there was such a per cent of the owners who 

 refused to keep their cattle free from ticks or to round them up for in- 

 spection that the work there was dropped September 1st, it being evident 



