DISEASES OF SHEEP. 327 



circulation to be completely fitted for the support of life, what- 

 ever interferes with this function is a cause of serious disease, 

 tending to deprive the animal of its due support, and thus produc- 

 ing general want of nutrition and resulting weakness. This is 

 precisely the result of this parasite and is so far operative as its 

 effect on the bowels may be. 



The symptoms of this disease are signs of general weakness, 

 paleness of the lips and eyes, thin pale skin, loss of flesh, dry, 

 harsh fleece, and more or less diarrhea which soon produces 

 marked emaciation. These results are very gradual and slow in 

 their course, the sheep or lamb seems to be not doing well, but 

 the advance of the disease and the continuous change for the 

 worse occurs so gradually that the shepherd scarcely realizes the 

 extent of the injury until the more serious symptoms occur. A 

 persistent diarrhea is the most marked characteristic of Ihe 

 disease. 



The tumors increase in size as the worm within grows. In 

 time the worms escape and remain loose in the intestines, there 

 becoming full grown and reproducing their kind. Not all the 

 young worms are thus encysted in these tumors, but only as it 

 were a sufficient number to insure the continuance of the race, 

 should by some accident the worms at large be destroyed. Con- 

 sidering this fact on the general knowledge and experience with 

 other parasites it might be well supposed and believed that this 

 encystment of a portion of the race should be one of the means 

 by which nature provided for the continuance of life, of what- 

 ever form it may be, and that in case the sheep died from the 

 effects of the parasite, there should be a remnant left as we say 

 for seed; and by the intervention of some intermediate bearer 

 the parasite might have its life insured, so to say, that the race 

 might not be completely extinguished. 



Treatment in such conditions as these is evidently a difficult 

 matter to suggest. For the worms that are loose in the bowels 

 the common antidotes might be useful, such as turpentine, given 

 in the usual manner, or other medicines destructive to these 

 creatures. These combined with tonics and with general good 

 care and feeding, with pure water, may tide over the period of 

 life of the race or make the animal an uninviting place for the 

 parasite to live. As to the encysted worms, these are beyond 

 reach unless it may be of such easily absorbed remedies as tur- 

 pentine, which passes through the blood and thus reaches every 

 part of the system. 



It is clear that such methods of prevention as may be found 

 effective will be the most useful. And one of the most effective 

 of these is a rotation of crops, and short feeding intervals be- 

 tween the crops not exceeding one season at the most. If one 

 might be able to start with a flock of completely unaffected sheep, 

 and then by a wise and thoroughly managed continuous quaran- 

 tine, so to speak, by which infection may be averted, then the 

 land may be completely freed from this obnoxious parasite, and if 

 this method were generally followed, and no fresh stock be intro- 



