490 Veterinary Obstetrics 



duration, the disease was nevertheless carried and an outbreak of 

 abortion resulted. 



When the owner of a stable of healthy mares, drives one of 

 them into an enclosure or places her in a stable where the disease 

 exists, the mare may become infected and spread the malady to 

 other animals upon the farm. In one outbreak observed by us, 

 (American Veterinary Review, Vol. 21, page 303) an outbreak of 

 infectious abortion in mares was apparently brought about in this 

 way. The owner had a band of some 25 presumably pregnant 

 mares, which were mostly highly valuable trotting animals, but 

 included one grade draft mare, which was used for general work 

 and was driven here and there to various farms without anj' par- 

 ticular thought of harm. Somewhere in the course of her work, 

 apparently, she became infected, aborted and transmitted the 

 disease to the other mares upon the farm, leading to quite serious 

 losses, although the course of the disease was fortunately arrested 

 before the loss of foals was complete. 



The owner of pregnant mares will always do well to guard 

 them cautiously against infection which may be carried by per- 

 sons upon their clothing, hands or shoes. Neighbors coming 

 from farms where the disease exists should on no account be 

 permitted in the stable, barnyards or fields where the pregnant 

 mares are kept. The owner of pregnant mares should also be 

 careful, in reference to his own person, that he does not come 

 into stables or enclosures where abortion exists. 



Probably one of the most dangerous bearers of the infectious 

 abortion of mares is the ignorant or careless veterinarian. We 

 have already related that dystokia is common in abortion, 

 occurring near the end of gestation ; various sequelae also occur 

 after abortion, which cause the veterinarian to be called in 

 attendance. 



In these cases the obstetrist necessarily gets his person, clothing 

 and instruments soiled with the contagion, and by either of these 

 agencies may be the carrier of the disease from one stable or band 

 of mares to another. The veterinary obstetrist here assumes a 

 profound responsibility and should take every precaution known 

 to modern medicine to avoid the transmission of so serious a 

 malady to animals belonging to other clients. He should not 

 make a second call, under any conditions or circumstances, until 

 his clothing has been changed and his person has been amply 



