DISEASES OP SHEEP. 93 



for these valuable animals. But even drainage may be 

 carried to excess. In some districts of the north where 

 this was the case, and where little nourishment was left 

 in the pastures, an opposite disease began to show itself, 

 called pining, from the gradual decline of the flocks. 

 This is, however, much less common than the rot. 



The fevers and other inflammatory diseases of sheep 

 are becoming more rare, as the treatment of the animal 

 is better understood. Many complaints which arose 

 from bad food are now seldom heard of. There are still 

 remaining some troublesome diseases of the skin, which 

 are also very infectious. The shepherd soon observes 

 the tokens of these diseases in the restlessness of his 

 flock, and their disposition to rub and tear their wool. 

 He therefore mixes one part of mercurial ointment with 

 seven parts of lard, and rubs it into the parts affected. 

 A very common and infectious disorder is the foot-rot, a 

 sort of ulcer forming on the foot. The present way of 

 treating it is, to pare away the loose horn, to wash the 

 foot in chloride of lime, and to touch it lightly with 

 muriate of antimony ; repeating this every day until the 

 whole foot is covered with new horn. The affected 

 sheep must be kept separate from the rest, or the com- 

 plaint will soon spread through the whole flock. It is 

 even said that healthy sheep going into a field where 

 diseased sheep have trod, will take the foot-rot from the 

 soil. 



In the months of July and August our flocks are con- 

 tinually teased and worried by the flesh-fly, and the 

 shepherd has to watch them narrowly to prevent mis- 

 chief. These flies lay their eggs in clusters on any un- 

 protected part of the skin, and if they are not taken off", 

 they become, in twenty-four hours' time, a mass of living 

 and active maggots, ready to pierce the skin, and eat 

 into the flesh of the sheep. Sheep that are suffering 

 from some disease, or whose skin has been accidentally 

 torn or injured, are the first to be attacked by the fly. 

 There are several means of stopping this evil, the most 



