SECTION III 



DISEASES OF SHEEP. 



INTRODUCTION. 



The duties incumbent on the shepherd are of a 

 most arduous kind ; and he that performs them 

 rigidly, even with a moderate range of pasturage, 

 will have little leisure time on his hand. Sheep 

 are accustomed to enjoy an ample district of country 

 for feeding, and being widely scattered, the shepherd 

 has little opportunity of watching the condition of 

 their individual health. Some will naturally be 

 seized with maladies, unobserved by the shepherd, 

 and in many instances die without being seen in 

 some sheltered corner, where they retire for quiet, 

 when overtaken by disease. 



It is of great importance to have shepherds well 

 versed in the different complaints to which sheep are 

 liable, and to be able to distinguish the disease 

 immediately on its earliest appearance. The diseases 

 are comparatively few, and these in general well 

 marked. 



The sheep is not that stupid and defenceless 

 animal which many suppose him. In extensive 

 mountain ranges, where they but seldom see man- 

 kind, and where they are not dependent on the 

 protection of the shepherd, sheep will be found to 



