648 



sheep with the attenuated virus of anthrax has been successfully 

 practised in New South Wales and Victoria since 1888. It gives 

 immunity to the animal, certainly for two years, and, it is generally 

 believed, for life. Inoculation with the virus of anthrax requires a 

 skilful operator, and the preparation of the virus is a matter the 

 sheep farmer cannot undertake. The inoculation of sheep in New 

 South Wales and Victoria is performed by experts at a charge of so 

 much per 1,000 head of sheep. 



TICKS AND LICE. 



Badly bred and badly managed flocks are a nuisance to all the 

 adjoining sheep farms, as such flocks are usually infected with ticks 

 and lice, which spread rapidly in every direction Though sheep 

 troubled with these pests can scarcely be described as diseased, 

 they nevertheless give the flock master almost as much trouble as 

 any of the diseases to which sheep are liable. The remedy is a 

 simple one, easily applied, and should be made compulsory. Many 

 dips for killing ticks and lice are put on the market, all of which 

 are probably effective, and some of the best known ones have been 

 specially recommended by the most careful sheep farmers in Aus- 

 tralia. The remedy for ticks and lice is to dip the sheep soon after 

 shearing in a dilution of some well known " dip." In the older 

 colonies small dips are made of iron suitable for the farmer's flock. 

 These dips can be obtained at a moderate cost, and are easily shifted 

 from place to place, which is a great advantage. 



When a farmer cannot obtain one of these dips, he can readily 

 construct one that will serve his turn by making a framework of 

 hardwood and lining it with tongued and grooved inch pine boards. 

 The size is not material, but if it is to be a permanency, the dimen- 

 sions may be 2\ ft. broad, 10 ft. long, and 4 ft. deep at one end, 

 with it battened slope at the other end to allow the sheep to walk 

 out easily. This clip should be well puddled at the back. With a 

 small flock the half of a large cask can be utilised if the materials 

 to construct a permanent dip are wanting. In such a receptacle a 

 good many sheep can be got through in a day. Before dips were 

 made for curing scab, such means were employed for dressing the 

 diseased animals. A stout fiame about the size of a dining table 

 was covered with bullock hide, and on this the scabby sheep used 

 to be saturated with some scab-killing compound. Any means 

 that will rid the sheep of these troublesome pests is better than 

 waiting till a properly-constructed dip can be erected. 



COAST DISEASE. 



Over a considerable portion of the littoral of southern Australia 

 the sheep are subject to a disease which, for want of a better name, 

 is generally described as the " coast disease." As the districts liable 

 to this disease are limited, and generally not good growing country, 

 the nature of the disease has not attracted much attention. It is 

 the general opinion of those having any experience of coast disease 



