INTKODUCTION 



Eighteen years ago, when the first edition of this book 

 appeared, no interest was taken in Veterinary Hygiene 

 outside the profession, and even within it the subject was 

 not taught in the schools, nor formed part of the examina- 

 tion of the Eoyal College of Veterinary Surgeons. 



During the last few years the interest taken in the 

 matter has been phenomenal ; the particular lines along 

 which it has travelled have been in relation to State and 

 Municipal Hygiene, especially the latter, for the necessity 

 of placing the Inspection of both Meat and Milk on an 

 organized basis and under properly trained experts is begin- 

 ning to be generally recognised. 



The time is at hand when Veterinary Officers of Health 

 will have to be created throughout the Kingdom, as a 

 branch of preventive medicine safeguarding the pubhc 

 health. Such appointments will in no way clash with 

 Medical Officers of Health, nor is one subordinate to the 

 other ; both confine themselves to the special animal they 

 are trained to deal with, and the only duties they have in 

 common are those of watching over the interests of the 

 pubhc health, for which purpose co-operation on both sides 

 is essential. 



The other public department in which the Veterinary 

 profession will have to take a larger share than in the past, 

 is the State Control of Contagious and Infectious Animal 

 Diseases. The early history of this Department, its failures 

 and successes, its strength and its weakness, have been fully 

 dealt with in Chapter XL The only point to which we 

 would here refer, is the branch of the public service to 



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