124 EXPERIMENT STATION RECORD. 



to depend largely upon being applied with caution. All operations 



entailed certain dangers and should not be called trivial-. The condi- 

 tions surrounding each case should always he carefully noted before 

 operation. Care was urged in the use of anesthetics. Detailed sug- 

 gestions were made regarding operations in pneumonia, periodic oph- 

 thalmia, fistula, quittor, luxation of the patella, goiter, roaring, and 

 other surgical diseases. The ordinary clinics as held at the annual 

 meetings of the association were severely criticized, for the reason that 

 the operations are usually performed under unsatisfactory conditions, 

 so that they do not represent the best practice of veterinary surgery. 



A paper was read by J. M. Parker on Creeps, an Osteomalacia! 

 Disease of Cattle. Creeps appears in winter and early spring in cer- 

 tain parts of Texas. Pregnant cows appear to be most susceptible. 

 In some localities 50 per cent of such cows are affected. Creeps is 

 apparently identical with osteomalacia. The soil and forage conditions 

 of the locality in which the disease occurs were carefully described. 

 No breeds of cattle are especially susceptible. The first symptom of 

 the disease is lameness. Poor animals are most often affected. Bones 

 of the legs and the ribs break easily. The fat of affected animals 

 tastes like pork, and the bone marrow becomes yellow and h 'inor- 

 rhagic. The etiology of the disease is unknown and no successful 

 treatment has been devised except a palliative one, consisting of the 

 use of better rations. 



Immunization against tuberculosis was discussed by L. Pearson. 

 Work along this line has been carried on for a number of years in 

 Pennsylvania. More than 100 cattle have been used in these experi- 

 ments and some of them have been kept under continual observation 

 since 1900. These cattle have been treated in various ways by living 

 and dead tubercle bacilli, virulent and nonvirulent for cattle. It has 

 been found possible by means of five inoculations of human tubercle 

 bacilli to immunize cattle so that they remain alive for one year when 

 exposed to natural infection. Immunized cattle also stand large doses 

 of virulent cultures without developing tuberculous lesions, except 

 after the use of immense doses. The immunity thus produced is very 

 high, but not absolute. Some time is required for its production. 

 The method is considered to be still in the experimental stage, but is 

 believed to be of practical application. 



G. H. Glover presented a discussion of the cattle-mange problem 

 of the West. Scab of cattle is becoming more and more serious in 

 Colorado. In some localities a loss of 15 per cent is reported. An 

 outline was given of plans for future work in controlling this disease, 

 including a discussion of the conditions which prevail on the range. 

 Mange shows its worst symptoms during times when feed is poor and 

 animals in bad condition. Apparently negative results were obtained 

 in attempting to transmit the disease to healthy cattle. The difhcul- 



