TUBERCULOSIS AND THE STATION HERD. 

 F. L. Russell. 



Since some years before 1886 until within two 3xars, some of 

 the cattle kept on the College farm have been affected with 

 tuberculosis, whenever the College has kept any cattle. Before 

 1886, cattle occasionally died from this disease or in absence of 

 ■exact knowledge of their condition were sold for beef or other- 

 wise disposed of on account of age or unthriftiness. 



Well bred young animals were sold to improve other herds 

 and sometimes carried tuberculosis with them. This is a very 

 common way of spreading tuberculosis, but with our present 

 knowledge, it ought to be very generally avoided. 



In 1886, the College cattle were so badly diseased that it was 

 considered best to kill the entire herd, as at that time there was 

 no known means by which the diseased animals could be detected 

 with any certainty. After the herd was destroyed the barns 

 were disinfected with some care and no new stock was intro- 

 duced for about a year. 



In 1889, considerable new stock was purchased from different 

 sources and in less than a year from the time they were pur- 

 chased, two of them were found to be diseased and were killed. 

 Again the barn was disinfected, but new cases of disease were 

 frequently being discovered in the herd. In 1892, tuberculin 

 became available for the detection of tuberculosis, and some time 

 before it was used in other parts of the State, we were conduct- 

 ing experiments to test its value. 



In 1893, we had become convinced of the value of tuberculin 

 as a revealer of the presence of tuberculosis and took what was 

 then rather radical ground, and after testing every bovine on the 

 farm, down to the youngest calf, those that reacted to the test 

 were killed. This made a large hole in the herd and required 

 the sacrifice of some of the most valued animals, but we believe 

 the results have fully justified the course taken. 



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