Contagious Foot Rot in Sheep and Cattle. 107 



sheep or cattle. Thorough cleaning followed by sprinkling with 

 dilute sulphuric acid (10:. 100), carbolic acid (5: 100) mer- 

 curic chloride solution (i : 500), chloride of lime (4 ozs. to gall.) 

 or even freshly burned quicklime will serve a good purpose. To 

 the mercuric chloride or lime-chloride add enough quicklime to 

 whiten the surface and show if any part has been missed. When 

 the new sheep arrive at home keep them for a fortnight in past- 

 ures and premises separate from the rest of the flock, and where 

 there can be no drainage to a place occupied by other sheep, ex- 

 amining them closely and frequently for any indication of lame- 

 ness or diseased feet. Then subject them to an antiseptic full 

 bath or footbath, according to the season; before adding them to 

 the home flock. 



For home precautions avoidance of all the conditions named as 

 accessory causes is important. Mud puddles, pools, marshes, 

 and soft, wet, stoneless pasturages are to be avoided and, when 

 available, the tracks may be laid with gravel, broken brick, or 

 other material which will wear down the hoofs. In the absence 

 of such wear the toes must be pared at frequent intervals, a 

 stout knife or toe clippers being used. A dewy morning or wet 

 day greatly facilitates this work. Three legs may be tied to- 

 gether, the fourth being left to be operated on. The operator 

 kneels with his leg across the neck of the sheep, to keep head 

 and body still. This must be especially attended to in winter 

 when the sheep are confined. Standing on manure heaps in 

 pens and yards is most injurious, and thus a clean, smooth, stone, 

 brick or cement floor should be furnished, when possible. Keep 

 the range clear of foreign bodies, splinters of stone, nails, glass, 

 broken crockery, and metallic objects. Next comes the question 

 of overdriving as a cause of pedal inflammation, and overstimu- 

 lating food as a constitutional cause. 



Treatment. The first consideration is the separation of the 

 sound from the infected animals, pasturages and premises. It 

 may even be desirable to divide the diseased into two lots, one 

 including those slightly affected and which will get well on one 

 or two dressings, and the other containing the bad, advanced 

 cases, which will demand more continuous treatment and from 

 which there is a greater risk of infection spreading. 



If the feet are overgrown or distorted these must first be pared. 



