292 DISEASES OF CATTLE, SHEEP, GOATS, ETC. 



a number of years ago, which led him to infer that the animals were 

 inoculated by eating barley straw harvested from pieces of ground 

 just reclaimed from the sea. While the animals remained unaffected 

 as long as they pastured on this ground or ate the hay obtained from 

 it, they became diseased after eating the straw of cereals from the 

 same territory. Others have found that cattle grazing upon low pas- 

 tures along the banks of streams and subject to inundations are more 

 prone to the disease. It has also been observed that food gathered 

 from such grounds may give rise to the disease even after prolonged 

 drying. Actinomycosis is not infrequent in southwestern cattle and 

 is generally supposed to be the result of eating the prickly fruit of 

 the cactus plant, causing wounds of the mucous membrane and sub- 

 sequent infection with the parasite. Much additional information 

 of a similar kind must be forthcoming before the source and manner 

 of infection in this disease and its dependence upon external condi- 

 tions will be known. It is not at all improbable that these may vary 

 considerably from place to place. 



Treatment. Until recently treatment has been almost entirely 

 surgical. When the tumors are external and attached to soft parts 

 only, an early removal may lead to recovery. This, of course, can 

 only be undertaken by a trained veterinarian, especially as the vari- 

 ous parts of the head and neck contain important vessels, nerves, and 

 ducts which should be injured as little as possible in any operation. 

 Unless the tumor is completely removed it will reappear. Disease of 

 the jawbones is at best a very serious matter, and treatment is likely 

 to be of no avail. 



The iodide of potassium is given in doses of 1% to 2^ drams 

 once a day, dissolved in water, and administered as a drench. The 

 dose should vary somewhat with the size of the animal and with the 

 effects that are produced. If the dose is sufficiently large there ap- 

 pear signs of iodism in the course of a week or ten days. The skin 

 becomes scurfy, there is a weeping from the eyes, catarrh of the 

 nose, and loss of appetite. When these symptoms appear the medi- 

 cine may be suspended for a few days and afterwards resumed in the 

 same dose. The cure requires from three to six weeks' treatment. 

 Some animals do not improve under treatment with iodide of potas- 

 sium, and these are generally the ones which show no signs of iodism. 



If there is no sign of improvement after the animals have been 

 treated four or five weeks, and the medicine has been given in as large 

 doses as appear desirable, it is an indication that the particular animal 

 is not susceptible to the curative effects of the drug, and the treatment 

 may therefore be abandoned. 



It is not, however, advisable to administer iodide of potassium to 

 milch cows, as it will considerably reduce the milk secretion or stop it 

 altogether. Furthermore, a great part of the drug is excreted through 

 the milk, making the milk unfit for use. It should not be given to 

 animals in advanced pregnancy, as there is danger of producing 

 abortion. 



The best results are obtained by pushing the drug until you see 

 its effect. The many tests to which this treatment has been subjected 



