192 THE DISEASES AND DISORDERS OF THE OX. 



The duration of cases of foot-and-mouth disease of average 

 severity varies from six to fifteen days, from the day of rise of 

 temperature to the subsidence of the fever. It will be evident 

 that the more virulent the outbreak the greater the emaciation 

 of the animal and the fatality of the disease. Should, however, 

 complications arise, the disease is necessarily protracted. It is 

 when the udder is inflamed, and when the feet are much in- 

 volved, that the loss is especially great. Indeed, the loss in 

 regard to the milk-supply is often very serious, and so also is 

 the loss of flesh in fattened animals. 



In severe cases almost complete cessation of the secretion 

 of milk may ensue, and even in ordinary cases the quantity is 

 diminished by one-third of the entire volume. 



It has been proved that the germs cannot be destroyed by 

 means of boiling the milk, and hence it is very clear that on 

 no account whatsoever should the milk of cows suffering from 

 foot-and-mouth disease be supplied for the use of human 

 beings. 



The description we have given above applies especially to oxen, 

 but it may be taken as a fair general account of the disease. 

 However, we now proceed to consider specially the case of sheep 

 and goats. These animals, when .attacked with the malady, 

 become very much emaciated, lose their appetite, and manifest 

 febrile symptoms, which are, however, usually less severe than 

 those of cattle, albeit that the temperature may rise as high. In 

 fact, foot-and-mouth disease, as it appears in sheep, is not in 

 the general way so serious a complaint as it is when affecting 

 oxen. The sheep or goat lies down at a distance from the rest 

 of the flock, looks dull and weak, can only with difficulty be 

 made to move on, and when walking walks unsteadily. A 

 peculiar smacking sound is made with the lips, which the animal 

 keeps moving, as if in the act of sucking. This is very charac- 

 teristic, as, indeed, we pointed out above. The mouth is hot and 

 full of thick saliva, and the vesicles break out especially on the 

 incisor pad. More rarely they are seen on the whole of the lining 

 of the mouth and on the tongue, and even on the eyes they are said 

 to be sometimes present, [n the case of these animals, however,^ 

 the eruption is more frequently present on the feet than in 

 the mouth ; but actual vesicles are not usually seen. It is most 

 generally the case that the skin around and between the claws is 



