]2^4 Buffalo Disease. 



is increased by the fact that it may l)e transmitted to hogs, 

 among which it may also cause considerable loss. 



In Italy the infection is especially widespread in the districts of Salerno, Eome 

 and Terra di Livorno. In Hungary the disease occurs almost exclusively in the 

 southeastern counties (in 190S, 98 buffaloes were affected in 56 townships, and 95 

 of them die<l; considerably less than in former years). In Eussia, Egypt, East 

 and West Indies, and Jndo-China the disease frequently occurs in enzootic form. 



The dangerous character of the disease is readily recognized by the following 

 data: In Italy, in a herd of 1,400 buffaloes, 200 died in the year 1S82 within ten 

 days; in another herd of 1,300 buffaloes, 530 succumbed. In one township of the 

 infected districts of Hungary, 52 of 237 buffaloes died within one week; in another, 

 of 663, 89 died within a short time. The losses in the Netherland-West Indies (in 

 Bantam and Batavia alone) amounted, between 1888 and 1891, to 11,000 buffaloes. 



Etiology. The established cause of the disease, the bacillus 

 (bipolaris) bubalisepticus, appears in all its principal charac- 

 teristics as a variety of the bacillus bipolaris septicus (see 

 page 79). 



Tenacity. Blood dried in the air loses its infectiveness in 24 hours. On the 

 other hand, when kept in closed glass tubes at room temperature its virulence is lost 

 in 40 days. Carbolic acid (2%), sulphuric acid (5%), and alcohol (87%) render 

 equal quantities of blood harmless (Oreste & Armanni, Sanfelice). 



Pathogenicity. According to the 

 investigations of Eatz, rabbits are 

 most susceptible to artificial infec- 

 tions; somewhat less susceptible are 

 the guinea pig, the mouse and the 

 pigeon; to a still lesser degree, 

 chickens, while the dog and duck are 

 not at all susceptible. Of the large 

 animals the horse succumbs to sub- 

 cutaneous infection in an average of 

 20 hours, cattle in from 20 to 48, and 

 Fig. 28. Bacillus huhaiiscpticus. liogs in from 20 t_o 40 hours The in- 



Smear i.rejiaration from rabbit OCUlatlOUS rCSUlt lU mamiestatlOnS 01 



blood. Polar staining. a general infection with edematous 



swelling at the point of infection. 

 Buffalo calves die from a cutaneous or subcutaneous infection 

 inside of 24-36 hours with similar symptoms, while infection is 

 not successful when virulent cultures are fed, but buffalo calves 

 treated in the latter manner wall develop an immunity against 

 a subsequent virulent infection. Sheep inoculated with virulent 

 buffalo blood die with symptoms of an acute pharyngitis 

 (Reischig). 



The bacteria are present in large numbers in the blood, 

 in the serous exudates and the feces of the infected animals. 

 They may also pass into the saliva, bile, milk and the urine. 



Natural infection may occur through wounds of the skin 

 and mucous membranes. Such infections are favored in pas- 

 tures which contain thorny plants and pools of water in which 

 the animals lie for hours, thus constantly reinfecting the water. 



In the great majority of the cases, however, natural in- 



