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X. — Report of the Health of Animals of the Farm. By 

 Professor J. B. SiMONDS, Principal of the Rojal Veterinary 

 College. 



The chief occurrence of importance which has taken place since 

 my last Report, in relation to diseases of " the Animals of the 

 Farm," has been the outbreak of some remarkable cases of 

 blood-poisoning, on three farms in particular, in the Western 

 'Counties of England. The first of these cases to which the 

 attention of the College was called, and subsequently published 

 in the Veterinarian, occurred at Stoke-under-Ham, Somerset. It 

 appears that, as far back as August last, several sheep which ex- 

 'hibited symptoms of blood-poisoning died, in rapid succession, 

 after a very short illness, on a farm in the occupation of Mr. 

 Darby, The animals are said to have become suddenly pros- 

 trated, and to be unable to walk with a steady gait. Their 

 throats rapidly swelled, and their breathing became much im- 

 peded ; death took place in the course of a few hours, even 

 in those which survived the longest. 



The carcases of these sheep were skinned and opened in the 

 **Home Field" — a meadow adjacent to the premises — and a 

 considerable portion of the flesh, which had been preserved for 

 the dogs, was subsequently eaten on this same meadow. In 

 close proximity to this field, and also to the farmstead, is a pond 

 of stagnant water, which receives the drainage of the stables and 

 straw-yards, as well as the surface-water from the meadow in 

 question. At this time Mr. Darby had eleven horses on the 

 farm, which were daily used more or less for agricultural work. 

 On August 23rd, a four-year-old horse at pasture in the Home 

 Field was taken suddenly ill, and died in about twenty-four hours 

 from the attack. He was opened in the straw-yard, about thirty 

 feet only from the pond, and the intestines and other viscera 

 were buried close by, and on a higher level, thus favouring the 

 gravitation of the animal matter towards the pond. 



On October 3rd, a five-year-old horse was attacked, and died 

 in about three hours. The viscera of this animal were dealt 

 Avith in a similar manner to that of horse I\o. 1. This death 

 was quickly followed by others, so that by October 27th, the day 

 on which the matter was brought to the notice of the College, 

 four horses were already dead, and others were reported bv the 

 veterinary surgeon, Mr. Ware, of Martock — who came to town, 

 bringing with him some of the diseased viscera — to be rapidly 

 sinking. jNIr. Ware also reported that two pigs, a dog, a cat, 

 and two ferrets, which had eaten of the raw flesh of this horse, 

 were dead ; and that a labourer, who had removed the carcase 

 of the horse which died on October ord to an adjacent village 



