SMALL-POX IN SHEEP. 251 



Had all the flocks seized been inoculated, I am quite sure 

 that the outbreak of small-pox would not have been brought 

 to so quiet a termination. Had I inoculated Mr Gidding's, 

 Mr Dark's, and Mr Church's flocks, I have no doubt whatever 

 that many more farms would have been infected by this 

 time; and it is satisfactory to notice how very insignificant 

 the losses were amongst the non-inoculated as contrasted 

 with the inoculated flocks. 



The losses on 3811 sheep were 221 before inoculation 

 had been practised, and the loss since has amounted to 537, 

 or a total of 758 on 3811, viz., very nearly 10 (19.89) per 

 cent., whereas on 1310 sheep not inoculated the loss 

 amounted only to 21 sheep, or T6 per cent. 



On all the farms where the separation system was carried 

 out, the cases were very severe, but removed as a rule before 

 they could contaminate other animals. The exception to 

 this was Mr Church's flock, in which one or two mild cases 

 were observed late. The mortality on the cases at Hillwood 

 was as high as 70 per cent, so that it could not be said 

 that the disease was not virulent in character. Again, at 

 Horton the cases were very severe: one animal recovered 

 with difficulty, and the second died from a confluent variety 

 of the disease. They were both confluent cases that 1 

 examined at Avebury, and one of the sheep at Stanton was 

 very severely affected. 



Symptoms of Small-pox in Sheep. There are three 

 important stages of this disease, viz., invasion, suppuration, 

 and desquamation. Usually within a week, and sometimes 

 exceeding this time, after a sheep has been in contact with 

 diseased animals, or has been inoculated, slight fever marks 

 the invasion of the disease. The shepherd notices that the 

 animal is dull, its ears are drooping and wool clapped. On 

 the parts of the skin free from wool, a flea-bitten appearance 



