Contagious Abortion. 413 



been detached. The symptoms of pneumonia or of muco-ente- 

 ritis are usually in evidence, with or without diarrhoeal or dysen- 

 teric discharges. Acute cases are extremely contagious. 



In sub-acute cases the lesions are confined to the buccal mucosa, 

 as curdy white, raised concretions with ulcerous surfaces, frothy 

 lips and refusal of the teat, but without marked hyperthermia or 

 constitutional disturbance. Contagion is little marked, the dis- 

 ease appearing enzootically in flocks, or even as but one case in 

 each of several flocks. 



Mortality. Eight per cent, of acute cases may perish, but the 

 sub-acute nearly all recover. 



Prevention. When the disease has appeared in a flock, or in 

 its vicinity, the mouths of the lambs should be examined daily 

 and affected subjects and their dams carefully separated. A 

 thorough disinfection of the fold and mammae is imperative. 



Treatment. Use antiseptics on the mouth, selecting the non^ 

 poisonous articles. Borax may be rubbed freely on the patches. 

 Solutions of sulphite, bi-sulphite or hyposulphite of soda (i oz. 

 to r qt. ) may be used at frequent intervals on the mouth and mam- 

 mae ; chlorate of potash (5 : 100); sodium salicylate (i : 100), iron 

 chloride (i : 100) may be used. Ulcerous patches may be cauter- 

 ized by iron sulphate, silver nitrate, or the potential cautery. 

 Besnoit advises mercuric chloride ( i : 1,000) for cutaneous lesions, 

 but this would be unsuitable for either mouth or lips. The 

 strength must be sustained by the dam's milk given through 

 a tube or syringe. For gastric lesions the sulphites may be given. 



CONTAGIOUS ABORTION. 



Definition : Premature expulsion of non-viable foetus. Synonyms. Sus- 

 ceptible animals : cows, goats, sows, mares. Accessory causes : Ice cold 

 drinks at periods of ovulation, frozen aliments, ice cold bath or rain storm, 

 mechanical injuries, unwholesome fermenfescible food, indigestible foods, 

 close stabling, heavy milking, early breeding, inbreeding, stagnant water, 

 ergot, smut, vegetable irritants or ecbolics, constitutional diseases, irritation 

 of generative organs, death of foetus, urinary calculi, odor of carcass or car- 

 rion, contagion, experimental infection between cows, between mare and 

 cow, relation to omphalitis. Nocard's streptococci and bacilli, Bang's 

 bacillus with best growth in two distinct grades of oxygenation, Galtier's 

 observations, bacterium of the Colon group in America, infection of the 



