130 



FARMER'S CYCLOPEDIA OF LIVE STOCK 



is present in any given outbreak. The 

 only way, therefore, to furnish imme- 

 diate protection to the herd, is to make 

 use of a vaccine which will be effective 

 against all three diseases or whichever 

 one happens to be present. 



Swine plague — As already indicated, 

 this disease is of a highly infectious 

 nature, accompanied with symptoms of 

 pneumonia and occurring in outbreaks 

 of greater or less extent, frequently in 

 connection with both the bacterial and 

 non-bacterial form of hog cholera. The 

 chief symptoms are pneumonia, cough, 

 reddening of the eyes and a flushed con- 

 dition of the skin on the belly, nose and 

 ears. The disease usually runs a rapid 

 course. In some cases the animals die 

 within a day or so, while in other cases 

 it is protracted for a week or longer. 

 In making post mortem examinations 

 on hogs affected with swine plague, the 

 lungs will be found in a heavy and con- 

 gested condition, such as is seen in 

 other forms of pneumonia. In swine 

 plague the chief seat of infection is in 

 the lungs, and some form of pulmonary 

 disease is nearly always the direct cause 

 of death. As a rule, infection with 

 swine plague takes place through the 

 air passages; while in hog cholera, as 

 already stated, infection occurs through 

 the water or food. The reddening of the 

 skin sometimes occurs in cases which 

 show symptoms of swine plague and 

 indicates that hog cholera is also pres- 

 ent. 



Swine plague was recognized as a dis- 

 ease distinct from hog cholera in 1886, 

 and is now generally distributed through- 

 out the country. The disease is known 

 as "sehweineseuche" in Germany, and 

 is frequently referred to as infectious 

 pneumonia of swine. 



There is obviously no satisfactory 

 treatment for this disease, since, if pos- 

 sible, it is even more fatal and quicker 

 in its results than hog cholera. The 

 only hope for the control of the disease 

 lies in the expected practical oiitcome 

 of experiments now being carried on to 

 perfect the general vaccine for infectious 

 hog diseases. From certain experiments 

 just reported from Germany it would ap- 

 pear that hog cholera and swine plague 

 are two forms of the same disease caused 

 by a filterable virus. 



Swine erysipelas, also known as roth- 

 lauf in Germany and rouget in France 

 is sometimes referred to as diamond 

 skin disease, on account of the fact that 



the reddened patches on the back as- 

 sume a diamond shape. The disease is 

 peculiar to swine and largely attacks 

 adult hogs. It rarely appears in ani- 

 mals under three months of age. Swine 

 erysipelas is a highly infectious disease, 

 which often remains as a permanent, 

 stationary infection in certain localities. 

 The disease has not been positively iden- 

 tified in many localities in the United 

 States and appears to be at any rate of 

 much less importance with us than the 

 three forms of infectious hog diseases 

 already mentioned. Swine erysipelas 

 occurs under the form of a true erysip- 

 elas and uricaria or nettle rash, in the 

 form of skin ulcers or gangrenous 

 places, and in the form of a bacterial 

 heart disease. In fact, animals which 

 have apparently recovered from swine 

 erysipelas may suddenly die as a result 

 of the localization of the bacteria of the 

 disease in the heart. A system of vacci- 

 nation against this disease has been de- 

 vised in Europe, by means of which it 

 it claimed on good authority that swine 

 erysipelas may be largely controlled. 

 The vaccine has already been used in 

 thousands of cases and appears to bring 

 the desired results. 



Infectious sore mouth — In Wisconsin 

 and various other hog raising states, a 

 disease is quite prevalent among young 

 pigs under the name of infectious sore 

 mouth. This trouble appears in pigs 

 from a few days to several weeks of age 

 and seems to be highly infectious. The 

 disease may be rapidly spread from one 

 pig to another of the same litter, by 

 reason of the infection of the sow's 

 teats by the first pig in which the dis- 

 ease appears. The lining of the mouth 

 and lips becomes greatly inflamed and 

 swollen and the swelling extends back 

 over the skin of the face toward the 

 eyes and throat, in some cases causing 

 quite extensive ulcers. The mouth be- 

 comes so sore that the pig is unable to 

 suck the sow and the disease may be 

 recognized by the ulcers on the lips 

 which soon slough off, leaving bleeding 

 patches. In controlling this disease it 

 is necessary to isolate the healthy pigs 

 at once and disinfect the pens in which 

 the disease occurs. Perhaps the best 

 treatment to adopt consists in dipping 

 the pigs head foremost into a bucket 

 containing permanganate of potash at 

 the rate of 1 ounce to a gallon of 

 water. The head should be held under 

 as long as it is safe and the operation 

 may be repeated daily for a week until 



