450 THE dairyman's manual. 



present. If it is so found, the animal should be at once 

 slaughtered and buried deei)ly as a means of safety from 

 its spread among the herd or from worse effects upon 

 persons who might use the milk. Other indications of 

 the disease are emaciation, dullness, dry harsh skiu, 

 swollen glands under the jaws, paleness of the mem- 

 branes, sunken dull eyes, and a mawkish or fetid breath. 

 Sometimes cows give a bluish -colored watery milk as a 

 natural peculiarity, but such animals, although free from 

 disease, are unprofitable and should be quickly weeded 

 out of the herd. 



MILK FEVER. 



This disease is one of the most serious that affect dairy 

 cows and has been a subject of study and discussion 

 among veterinarians for fujly a century. It occurs 

 mostly among the best class of cows and the most pro- 

 ductive milkers, and usually appears from twelve or 

 twenty-four hours after calving up to the third day. 

 There are no premonitory* symptoms, excepting a dimin- 

 ished flow of milk or a total and sudden cessation of it. 

 The first apparent symptoms are drooping of the head, 

 whisking of the tail, general uneasiness, striking at the 

 belly with the feet, loss of appetite, and cessation of 

 rumination. A shivering fit commonly occurs. Some- 

 times the cow stands with the head pressed against the 

 front of the stall and exhibits all the attitudes of intense 

 stupor — the mouth is hot, the eyes red, and there is an 

 unconscious treading motion of the hind feet. Breath- 

 ing becomes rapid, the animal is unable to stand and 

 falls to the floor, or lies down heavily. Quite often the 

 cow is supposed to be all right until she is found down, 

 lying on the side or resting on the brisket, with the head 

 turned around to the flank and lying stiffly w^ith the 

 nose close to the belly. The muscles of the neck are 



