282 dadd s veterinary medicine and surgery. 



Lice on Horses. 



Lice, in a majority of cases, may be attributed to want of clean- 

 liness; for they are rarely if ever seen on the body of an animal 

 with clean skin. Brush and curry-comb, and clean stables, are, 

 therefore, the preventives. 



A short time ago I had occasion to visit a stable, located in 

 Waukegan, 111. There I saw a horse almost perfectly hairless, ex- 

 cept the mane and tail. I asked the owner what occasioned the 

 depilation of the hair. He informed me that the horse's body was 

 completely infested with lice; that he had tried all sorts of rem- 

 edies without success, and, at last, thought he would try kerosene 

 oil, and, accordingly, rubbed the body all over with it, using about 

 two quarts. He said " it killed all the lice, but came very near 

 killing the horse. It made him perfectly crazy ; his limbs became 

 swollen to the proportions of a young elephant, and the hair all 

 fell off." 



The remedy I have found most efficacious is composed of 



No. 30. Crude cod-liver oil 1 pint. 



Pulverized lobelia 2 oz. 



Mix. 



This should be thoroughly rubbed all over the body by means 

 of a stiff brush; at the expiration of four hours, carefully wash 

 the horse all over with soft soap and warm water. It may be 

 necessary to make a second and even a third application, on suc- 

 cessive days, ere the parasites are all killed. The parasites can be 

 seen with the naked eye ; therefore the owner of the horse rau&t 

 be the judge as regards the number of applications needed. 



At a meeting of a Farmer's Club, "Lice" formed the subje<:t 

 for discussion. Dr. J. R. Smith explained that lice, as well as 

 all similar insects, breathe through holes in the body. These 

 holes are minute spirules, constantly kept open by an elastic ring f 

 and surrounded by a fringe of extremely delicate hair, which pre- 

 vents the intrusion of any solid particles. To kill the insect it 

 is only necessary to close these breathing-holes, and this is done 

 by smearing them with any kind of grease or oil. You may 

 catch a cat erpillar and examine him with a magnifying glass, and 

 you will find these spirules arranged in two rows, one on each 

 side; (hen, if you take a moth or butterfly, you will find the 



