8 DEPARriHENT OF AGRICULTURE 



death ensuing a few days later from a terminal infection. From the time of her 

 arrival to the date of her falling (barely a month), she was never seen in a recumbent 

 position, and there was no evidence of her having lain down. 



Many inoculations were made into smaller animals with the body fluids and 

 tissues, including emulsions from various portions of the brain and cord, but in none 

 were we favoured with any data indicating a dourine infection. 



The other two mares (58S and 589) have been continually under close observa- 

 tion since their arrival. During the first year much attention was given to the 

 systematic examination of the blood taken from the general and peripheral circula- 

 tion. These examinations consisted, not only in the careful search for the causative 

 parasite of the disease, but also, the enumeration of the various forms of white blood 

 corpuscles. Certain alterations from the normal were found, and to more clearly 

 demonstrate these variations charts and tables have been prepared. These charts and 

 tables appear in connection with our remarks on the * Blood Examinations in Dourine,' 

 at the end of this report. 



On rare occasions only was there any deviation in the temi)erature from the 

 normal, and the temperature chart of either animal would add little to this report. 



Many small animals have been inoculated with blood from these mares, using as 

 high as 150 cc. for rabbits and puppies, and 50cc. for guinea-pigs. In none of these 

 trial animals have we observed any evidence of an infection, nor have they been 

 inconvenienced through the reception of these relatively large amomits of blood under 

 the skin or into the abdominal cavity. There has been noted, however, a slight rise 

 in temperature, in certain of the inoculated animals, appearing from three to ten 

 days after inoculation, but careful and repeated examinations of the blood revealed 

 no patasites, nor has a prolonged period of observation indicated an infective inocula- 

 tion. The animals which presented the rise in temperature were those receiving the 

 largest amounts of blood, intra-abdominally, and the manifestation was then and is 

 still considered to have been caused by the inoculated blood acting as a foreign body, 

 the rise in temperature being attributed to a general disturbance connected with the 

 absorption of the inoculated material. 



Experiments have been conducted to determine whether there was any possibility 

 of stimulating the trypanosomata to increased numbers, for purposes of detection, by 

 bleeding and by keeping blood diluted with citrate and saline solutions at various 

 temperatures from -f 20° C, to + 37° C, but this work did not enable us to detect 

 the parasite. 



In the spring of 1906, two healthy stallions, (650 and 660), natives of eastern 

 Canada, were procured for the purpose of conducting breeding experiments, neither, 

 however, subsequent to covering the mares in question, has given any evidence of 

 infection. One of the mares (589, ' Puss,') was with foal to the stallion 650, which 

 subsequent to the services with this mare was bred to a native mare 670. No evidence 

 of an infection has presented itself in this latter mare. During the summer of 1906 

 she was purposely bred late in the period of oestrum that impregnation might be 

 avoided and she did not become pregnant. During the season of 1907, however, the 

 services were performed early in the oestral period and the mare has not yet shown 

 evidence of pregnancy. 



In October, 1906, arrangenients were made to work the affected mares (588 

 ' Sleepy,' and 589 ' Puss ') and they were early in the spring of 1907, apparently in 

 better physical condition than at any time subsequent to their arrival in Ottawa. 

 Evidence of inco-ordi nation was slight in each case, and in the absence of a direct 

 history pointing to dourine, would have escaped the observation of even experienced 

 observers. They were fat, their coats were sleek and they worked well in harness. 

 The differential blood counts revealed in both cases a condition which could safely be 

 considered normal in our present acceptation of that term, but I do not consider that 

 they had made a full recovery as one 'Puss' (589), was destroyed September 30, 

 1907, after becoming paralyzed to such a degree that she could no longer stand. The 



