330 CATTLE. 



sole dependence for a correct diagnosis rests upon the discovery of the 

 parasite, or, at least, upon positive evidence of contagion The acari 

 can be detected upon the hair and surface of the epidermis by the aid of 

 an ordinary magnifying glass, or they may be seen with the naked eye 

 as minute white points moving about when the infested animal stands in 

 full glare of the sun on a warm day. 



Treatment. It is of the utmost importance to cleanse the skin, 

 removing crusts, etc., before the parasites can be effectually eradicated. 

 For this purpose use soft soap and water, and give the animal a thor- 

 ough scrubbing, especially in regions where the skin has been rubbed. 

 If the crusts are not all removed by the first washing, apply sweet oil to 

 soften them. They may then be washed off the following day. To 

 kill the mites apply thoroughly with a brush the following mixture. 



1 ounce Creolin, 

 1 ounce Oil of Tar, 

 ^ pint Soft Soap, 

 ^ pound Sulphur, 

 1 pint Alcohol. 



Wash it off in two days with soap and water. Three or four days 

 later a second application should be made to destroy all remaining 

 acari. It is essential that the stable or stalls where the affected 

 cattle have been should be cleansed and whitewashed, or saturated 

 with sulphuric acid, one pint to three gallons of water. 



I<ousiness. The lice of cattle are of two kinds, the suctorial lice, 

 which are found only upon mammals; and biting lice, which attack both 

 mammals and fowls. Those belonging to the first variety are the short- 

 nosed ox-louse, and the long-nosed ox-louse. The short-nosed ox-louse 

 is larger and the harder to exterminate. It infests almost exclusively 

 the neck and shoulders, and those parts are frequently worn bare by the 

 animal in its efforts to rid itself of these tormentors. The full grown 

 females of the short-horned ox-louse are from one-eighth to one-fifth of 

 an inch long, and fully half that in width, while the males are slightly 

 smaller. The males have a broad, black stripe running forward from 

 the end of the body to near the middle of the abdoman; the females 

 have no indication of this stripe. The true pumping organ, consists of 

 a slender, piercing tube which may be greatly extended in order to 

 reach the blood of the infested animal. 



The females deposit their eggs on the hair, attaching them very near 

 the skin by means of an adhesive substance. The long-nosed ox-louse 



