SHEEP SCAB. 



11 



the skin, setting up an irritation Avhich causes the animal to bite 

 and scratch. In this way avooI is pulled out in small tags and the 

 fleece often presents a ragged or broken appearance. The bearded 

 seeds or thorns sometimes penetrate the skin, causing an abscess. On 

 close examination the causative agent can usually be found and 

 removed. 



Eczema, Avildfire, summer sores, inflammation of the sebaceous 

 glands, rain rot, shear cuts, sunburn, and the effects of alkali dust on 

 areas denuded of wool may be mistaken for scab by those who are 

 inexperienced. 



-Scabby buck with entire hind quarters and flank affected. 

 is due to dip stain from hand dressing.) 



(The discolored area 



Eczema is an inflannnatory condition of the skin and is usually 

 accompanied witli itching and the formation of crusts and in some 

 cases scabs. It is differentiated from scab by the fact that it does 

 not cause the characteristic thickening of the skin found in common 

 scab and the mite is not present. 



Wildfire, so called, affects sheep mainly in the Northwestern States. 

 It causes the sheep to bite and scratch, and the pulling of the wool 

 causes breaks in the fleece. Upon examination of the infected sheep 

 the skin is found to be red and inflamed but is soft to the touch. It 

 is not hardened and thickened, as in scab. 



