go Veterinary Obstetrics 



many cases the owner is not fully convinced of the dangers from 

 the disease and may carelessly violate any quarantine regulations- 

 imposed. 



There is tlie additional danger that employees of the owner, or 

 others, may violate the quarantine without his knowledge or con- 

 sent, and thereby start the disease anew in a way which may be 

 exceedingly confusing, or might work serious injustice to the 

 owners of healthy stallions. The feeling between competing- 

 stallion owners in a community is not always of the best, and 

 they may seek to do a rival a very great injury. 



The castration of stallions does not insure inability to spread 

 the disease. It is a well known fact that such castrated animals, 

 which have previously been used for breeding purpo.ses, will con- 

 tinue to copulate with mares which are in estrum and may, 

 therelDy, spread the di.sease. It has been recorded that geldings 

 have contracted the malady and it is perfectly rea.sonable to- 

 suppose that the accident occurred in this manner. The castra- 

 tion of stallions is, con.sequently. not wholly safe and, if it is at 

 all allowed, it should be accompanied by other safeguards which 

 would prevent any accident. If such stallions are removed from 

 breeding areas to city stables, where they are put to work, in case 

 they have sufficiently recovered, they may cea.se to be dangerous- 

 .so long as they are under reasonable supervision 



The castration of mares has not been largely applied to the 

 control of this disease, but may prove of important police value. 

 If a mare has been exposed, but apparently not infected, there 

 may still linger a question of her safety, even though she has- 

 not shown symptoms of the disease and, unless she is highly val- 

 uable for breeding purposes, it may be better, in some cases, to 

 completely exclude her from breeding by causing her castration. 

 Since this operation is comparatively safe upon the mare and is- 

 readily carried out by an ordinary operator, it might well be 

 largely employed in these outbreaks, and the animal then jiut to 

 work. 



Diseased mares should, in the present state of our knowledge, 

 be destroyed. They occasionally recover their general health 

 and ability for work but, as already stated, we have no data ta 

 show that such mares ever become entirely .safe as breeding ani. 

 mals and the danger to the horse breeding industry, as compared 

 o the small value of the few apparently recovered mares, is so 



