526 IOWA DEPARTMENT OP AGRICULTURE 



treatment. In addition to that, we have been able to save a very large 

 per cent of animals in those herds w^hich were just beginning to show in- 

 dications of disease. So out of the animals treated in herds where the 

 disease had already begun, we only lost those animals that showed ad- 

 vanced disease, and a small per cent of those in which it had just begun. 

 We found that by the treatment of the herd before they became in- 

 fected, we saved practically the entire herd. Out of four or five thou- 

 sand animals treated by the simultaneous method, none were lost in well 

 herds. Our plan was to treat all hogs, both in well and diseased herds. 

 All hogs showing no rise in temperature were given simultaneous treat- 

 ment. The results in all three counties were practically the same. Our 

 loss in all herds treated was small, with the exception of those herds 

 showing a large per cent of animals well advanced in the disease. In 

 all well herds the average was practically nothing; taking the whole 

 average, it was less than one-half of one per cent; Avhile in those animals 

 that were diseased, we only lost those that were advanced, and a small 

 per cent of those just beginning. 



We have found from experience in treating hog cholera in the dif- 

 ferent states that we have but one epidemic swine disease causing ex- 

 tensive loss. We used to hear about swine plague and hog cholera. We 

 take no account lately of what was once termed swine plague. When- 

 ever hogs are dying in appreciable numbers on the farms, we find that 

 a careful investigation shows the presence of hog cholera. Of course I 

 except some diseases of young pigs which are easily recognized; for in- 

 stance, ulcerated sore mouth, which occurs in the spring in young pigs. 

 If you could insure your hogs against dying from hog cholera, you 

 would not be in very much danger of losing them from any other in- 

 fectious disease in this country. In Europe they have one or two other 

 diseases. I would like to have you bear that fact in mind. 



If you have a potent serum, carefully administered, you can control 

 this one disease of swine by the serum treatment. Any serum firm 

 wanting to ship from one state to another must be under federal super- 

 vision and have a license; within the state they are under state super- 

 vision only. If it were known that any private manufacturer was selling 

 poor serum in the state of Iowa, I think his license would be taken 

 away from him. Our contention is that if a good serum be carefully 

 used, it will give good results, and even better than we have claimed for 

 it. One herd of hogs may be extremely susceptible and require a larger 

 dose than another on the other side of the road, which may have a 

 great deal more natural resistance and will survive where the first one 

 would succumb. So a dose of serum for a hog in one herd is not nec- 

 essarily a dose for a hog in another herd. The user must judge as to 

 what the conditions in the herd are, and whether the herd under con- 

 sideration needs a large dose or a medium dose. Not being able always 

 to determine this point, it is necessary for the user of serum to give 

 a good-sized dose to almost all hogs. So one trouble with the use of 

 serum has been that the dose was too small. A hog weighing 100 pounds 

 may be saved by 22 per cent serum; that is about the average dose 

 ordinarily. If you want to have nice results in all herds, always give a 



