AUSTEALIAN STEINGHALT. 549 



giving rise to lameness. In Anderton v. Wright (Wigan County 

 Court, 1871, "Veterinarian" for 1871, p. 522), "His Honour said 

 that it was perfectly clear that stringhalt constituted unsoundness." 

 This disease not only impairs the present and future usefulness 

 of an animal, but also, as a rule, greatly increases the difficulty of 

 treatment in case of injury to a limb affected with it, on account 

 of the unnaturally high sensibility of the part. 



Australian Stringhalt. 



SOURCES OF INFORMATION.— This disease, which appeuis 

 to be of a nervous origin, is peculiar to Australia, where it affects 

 large numbers of horses in certain districts. As I have no practiail 

 acquaintance with it beyond seeing two or three cases of it in 

 horses imported to Calcutta from Melbourne, the following notes 

 and extracts have been taken from veterinary reports made to the 

 Minister of Agriculture for Victoria (Australia) by Mr. W. T. 

 Kendall, M.R.C.V.S. (Principal of the Melbourne Veterinary College) 

 and Mr. Edward Stanley, F.R.C.V.S., both of whom have had much 

 practical experience of it. 



HISTORY. — As far as Mr. Kendall can learn, Australian string- 

 halt was not seen before 1865 or 1867 in Victoria, where it made 

 its first appearance in some of the oldest-settled districts, such as 

 Dandenong, Heidelberg and Fern-Tree Gully. It seems to have 

 been imported to New South Wales from Victoria. 



OCCURRENCE. — It appears to follow in the wake of agricul- 

 ture, and breaks out most frequently in paddocks which have been 

 ploughed and then laid down in grass, although it is not exclusively 

 confined to them. As a nde it prevails in low-lying rich lands 

 and river flats, but sometimes it occurs on high ground. It 

 always comes on suddenly, and without any assignable cause. 



CONTAGIOUSNESS.— Mr. Stanley gives several instances to 

 prove his reasonable assumption that an animal suffering from 

 Australian stringhalt may indirectly communicate the disease to 

 other horses, by oontaminating the herbage on which they are 

 grazing. 



SUSCEPTIBILITY.— It attacks all classes of horses at grass, 

 irrespective of age, sex or condition ; but rarely affects horses 

 which are exclusively stable-fed. Animals under eighteen months 

 old and ponies are least liable. Mr. Kendall has met with a few 

 instances of foals and yearlings which became infected. Horses 



