I 



RINDERPEST IN SWINE WITH EXPERIMENTS UPON ITS 



TRANSMISSION FROM CATTLE AND CARABAOS 



TO SWINE AND VICE VERSA ^ 



By WlIiLIAM HUTCHINS BOYNTON 



{From the Bureau of Agriculture, Manila, P. I.) 



TWO PLATES AND 10 TEXT FIGURES 



INTRODUCTION 



This investigation was commenced with the purpose of posi- 

 tively determining the role that pigs may play in the spread 

 of rinderpest in the Philippine Islands. 



During several years of experience in handling rinderpest in 

 the field, Dr. Stanton Youngberg, chief veterinarian, Bureau of 

 Agriculture, has frequently noticed, and has also received reports 

 from veterinarians on rinderpest quarantine work in the field, 

 that in localities where rinderpest is present pigs also develop 

 an ailment practically simultaneous with the appearance of 

 rinderpest in cattle and in carabaos. 



There is one instance where it was practically proved that 

 pigs were the cause of an outbreak of rinderpest among cattle, 

 carabaos, and swine in the Philippines. In February, 1908, 

 Doctor Youngberg was ordered to investigate an outbreak of 

 disease on Romblon Island, which was causing serious losses 

 among cattle and carabaos. 



The disease proved to be rinderpest, and this was the first 

 time it had made its appearance on that island. The outbreak 

 was very virulent, and the mortality was high. 



It was at first difficult to account for the introduction of the 

 disease, as no cattle or carabaos had been imported there for a 

 long time. However, it was ascertained that hogs had been 

 and were being imported from Capiz, a province on Panay 

 Island and situated some 120 kilometers south of Romblon. At 

 that time rinderpest was prevalent in Capiz Province. 



Information was obtained to the effect that hogs which had 

 been kept in the same pens with those imported from Capiz 

 sickened first and that many died ; after this, other hogs in the 

 village became infected, and then the carabaos and the cattle 

 began to die. During this outbreak it was noticed that when 

 a village was found infected with rinderpest hogs had previously 

 died in considerable numbers. 



' Reprinted from Phil Agr. Rev. (1916), 9, 288. 



215 



