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CYCLOPEDIA OF LIVE STOCK AND COMPLETE STOCK DOCTOR. 



Man has long been recognized as standing in the front rank of sus- 

 ceptibihty to tuberculosis. Yet, even in his case, the prevalence of the 

 affection bears an intimate relation to his outdoor life. What is true^ 

 of man is equally true of horses. The horse in his wild state is free 

 from tuberculosis. 



III. Predisposing Cause of Tuberculosis. 



A predisposing cause is close buildings, a lack of ventilation. Air 

 rendered impure by being breathed again and again predisposes strongly 

 to tuberculosis, and has been even looked upon as the primary cause. 

 Dark stables are usually close, dirty and damp, and all these conditions 

 conduce to tuberculosis. Darkness hinders the development of organic 

 coloring matter in living bodies, whether chlorophy in plants or hcemo- 

 globin in the blood of animals. Haemoglobin is the main oxygen 

 carrier in the blood, and in case of its deficiency the tissues are not prop- 

 erly aerated. The result is as if the inhaled air contained little oxygen, 

 so that darkness further intensifies the evil of rebreathing deoxygen- 

 ated air. The extraordinary mortality from tuberculosis among pris- 

 oners, monks, nuns and miners, serves to further accentuate this con- 

 clusion. 



Insufficient feeding, indigestion, or in-nutritious food, contribute to 

 dibility and lessen the power of resistance. Hence, in poor, half starved 

 animals when once introduced it makes rapid and extensive ravages. 

 Conversely, over-feeding will act in the same way, developing indigestion 

 and thereby robbing the tissues of their proper nourishment. 



How to know. — Loss of condition — the coat loses its luster somewhat, 

 the hair becomes dry and the skin loses its mobility and mellowness. 

 The cough may become more frequent and paroxysmal under excite- 

 ment. The appetite fails somewhat and the breathing either dry or 

 husky or moist and gurgling, with a succeeding deep inspiration with 

 perhaps a sound distinct from the respiratory murmur which reveals the 

 diseased state ; or there is obstruction in the breathing organs or passages. 



When these symptoms occur a skilled veterinarian should be called 

 and his treatment and directions implicitly observed. Unprofessional 

 curative treatment is not practical, 



IV. Tuberculosis in Cattle. 



Cow. — Tuberculosis is acute or chronic. In cattle it usually comes on 

 very slowly and assiduously and follows the chronic course. The symp- 

 toms vary according to the organs involved. It may exist in the cow 

 for months, even for years, without any suspicion on the part of the 

 owner of anything amiss. There may be an occasional cough, short, 

 weak, dry, wheezy, and aroused and repeated by opening the stable door 



