16 DEPARTMENT OF GAME AND FISHERIES No. 9 



Treatment. — Removal of all infected and contact animals and thorough 



disinfection of the premises with "torch" and disinfectants are advised. If, 



however, the epidemic should take place during the whelping season this is 



difficult to secure owing to the danger of disturbing the females at this period. 



The Laidlaw-Dunkin vaccine and serum should be used on all animals showing 



symptoms of the disease. While we have no data showing the efficiency of the 



vaccine and serum under controlled experiments, results in the field show 



sufficient promise to warrant their use without delay. Medicinal treatment is 



quite useless. 



REFERENCES 



(1) Rudolf, J.— Deutsche Tierarztliche Wochenschrift, 38, 1930, pp. 728. "Beitrag zur 

 Staupe beim Silberfuchf, Nerz und Waschbaren. 



(2) Wood, F. W.— J.of the Amer. Vet. Med. Assoc, Vol. LXXVII., N.S. 30, No. 5, 

 November, 1930, pp. 569-586. "Recent Advances in the Prophylaxis and Treatment of Canine 

 Distemper." . . , ,, 



(3) Dalling, T. — Veterinary Record, Vol. XI, No. 42, pp. 1051-1052. "Distemper m Fitch. 



Tuberculosis in Raccoon 



Last November, the carcass of a raccoon was brought to the Ontario 

 Experimental Fur Farm for autopsy to see if the cause of death might be 

 determined. The owner stated that several of his raccoon were acting in a 

 manner similar to the one that had died. They all seemed to be wasting away 

 in flesh and were unthrifty. Some were in a very thin condition, while during 

 the summer they all appeared to be healthy and in a good state of nutrition. 

 Their appetite appeared variable, fur dry and roughened, and their eyes appeared 

 dull. All of the animals seemed to have a pronounced hacking cough and some 

 had difficulty in breathing. The raccoon were given all the milk they would 

 drink. This was kept before them in pans all the time, as the owner stated that 

 raccoon seemed to have a preference for milk. 



The dead raccoon, on autopsy, showed that the carcass was thin. The 

 external body tissue was yellow and jaundiced. On opening the abdominal 

 cavity, a peculiar, flat, sickening odour was noticed. The omentum was a pink 

 red colour with numerous tubercular nodules throughout, their size ranging 

 from an eighth of an inch to one half an inch in diameter, yellow-gray in colour. 

 The mesenteric chain of lymphatic glands was also infected. A large tubercular 

 abscess, about two and one-half inches in diameter, was located in the small 

 intestine. The thoracic cavity was filled with a serous fluid. The lungs were 

 covered with numerous small nodules about the size of pin heads. The sub- 

 maxillary lymph glands were enlarged. The carcass appeared hydremic 

 throughout. 



In discussing this case with the owner, he stated that he owned one cow 

 which did not appear to be doing well. She was hard to keep in good condition, 

 in spite of the fact that she was well fed and was given a tonic in her feed as a 

 conditioner. During the past year she had frequent attacks of indigestion 

 and at times would become bloated. This cow's milk was used to supply the 

 family, which besides the owner and his wife, consisted of three small children, 

 a baby about one year old, one child three years old and one seven years old. 

 All of the children were fond of milk and drank a considerable amount of it 

 daily. The balance of the milk was used to feed the raccoon. 



The symptoms shown by the cow are quite diagnostic of bovine tuberculosis. 

 Since the milk from this cow was being fed in large quantities to the raccoon, 

 it is likely they became infected from it. 



The owner was urgently advised to cease using the milk in his home without 

 delay and to secure milk from a source known to be free from tuberculosis until 

 he could have his own cow tested for tuberculosis. 



