140 Agricultural Bacteriology. 



made by means of animal inoculation. These things 

 -emphasize the importance of not killing the suspected 

 animal, but to secure it, and watch the progress of the 

 disease. If rabies is present the animal is certain to die 

 with well marked symptoms which can not be mistaken. 

 If the dog is suffering from various other troubles that 

 cause it to be nervous, or if it has inflicted the bite 

 through provocation, an entirely different history will 

 result. Every effort should be made to secure the dog 

 that has bitten other dogs, animals, or persons. If the 

 suspected dog has been killed, the head should be re- 

 moved and sent to a laboratory for examination ; most of 

 the laboratories connected with the state boards of health 

 are equipped for such work. Care should be taken not 

 to injure the brain else diagnosis may be impossible. 



The wounds made by a suspected animal should be 

 cauterized immediately to destroy the virus possibly pres- 

 ent. This can be done by the use of strong carbolic or 

 nitric acid or, if neither of these are available, by the use 

 of a hot iron. Only about sixteen per cent of people 

 bitten by rabid animals develop rabies and this is greatly 

 reduced when the wounds are properly treated. 



The preventive treatment is given in Pasteur Institutes 

 which have been established in the various cities. Some 

 of the states have such institutes in connection with the 

 laboratories of the boards of health. Recently farther 

 improvement has been developed so that the vaccine can 

 be sent by mail to the resident physician, who admin- 

 isters it. In this way a person can take the treatment 

 at home and at much less expense than formerly. 



Rabies in other animals. Next to dogs, cattle seem 

 to be most frequently affected, probably because rabid 

 dogs have more opportunity to bite them than any other 



