Infections Agalactia in Goats and Sheep 977 



10. Infectious Agalactia in Goats and Sheep. 



There has been observed from time to time, in Italy, Switzer- 

 land and France, an infectious disease of the mammary glands 

 of sheep and goats, characterized chiefly by a gradual decrease 

 in the volume of milk and an extreme atrophy of the glands. 



Clinically the disease presents all the characteristics of an in- 

 fection which is readily transmitted from animal to animal, and 

 involves not only the infection of the mammary glands, but also 

 the articulations, the tendon sheaths and the eyes. Vennerholm 

 mentions one herd of 28 animals, in which, during the course of 

 six weeks, 24, including one buck and one kid, showed symptoms 

 of the disease. The male animals suffered from the disease of 

 the eyes and articulations. 



The malady does not seriously affect the general well-being of 

 the animal. The milk becomes greatly changed, is grayish- white 

 and flocculent, and after standing there appears a precipitate of 

 pus, which is separated from the normal milk by a sharp line of 

 red, due to the presence of red blood cells. The milk acquires a 

 bitter, saline taste ; while the reaction is variable, sometimes 

 feebly acid and sometimes alkaline. In very severe ca.ses the milk 

 may be firmly coagulated and opaque. The quantity of milk 

 may be decreased rapidly, to the extent of 90 to 95%. 



As in the agalactia of the cow, so in the disease of the 

 sheep and goat, there are no marked evidences of acute inflam- 

 matory changes, as exhibited by swellings or tenderness in the 

 gland. The gland tends rather to become atrophied, and finally 

 retracts to one-tenth of its original volume and becomes very in- 

 conspicuous. Later in the course of the disease, without any 

 evidence of pain, there may appear abscesses of a chronic or 

 " cold " character in the udder, as well as in the parotid salivary 

 glands and in the region of the stifle. These abscesses contain 

 a thick yellow pus. In a manner somewhat similar to the forma- 

 tion of metastatic abscesses, .there also appear inflammations of 

 the fetlock, stifle, hip, carpus and elbow, which in some instances 

 constitute the only evidence of the disease, especially in males or 

 in females which are not in milk. Tendo-vaginitis may also 

 appear. 



In a large proportion of cases there appears a well-marked 

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