262 



Foot-Rot of Sheep. 



[JULY, 



sheep in a nock affected. Although lameness may not be a 

 marked symptom from the first, yet it is usually the first indica- 

 tion to the shepherd that there is anything the matter with the 

 foot, and by this time, in such cases, the lameness denotes that 

 inflammation and suppuration have set in. 



It will be observed, with perhaps rare exceptions, that in this 

 non-contagious affection the disease has commenced at or near 

 the under surface of the foot, and that the destructive process 

 extends from below upwards. If pus forms and remains im- 

 prisoned within the horny box it will burrow and work its way 

 towards the softer structures of the coronet as a way of exit, 

 because the softer structures offer the least resistance to its 

 progress. The foot becomes swollen round the coronet ; it 

 is hot and tender, and one or more small abscesses may appear on 

 the coronet or at the heels. These abscesses burst, and discharge 

 thick pus, which is frequently mixed with a little blood. 

 The parts may continue to discharge pus, or they may heal up, 

 but even when the outer wound is apparently healing and is 

 closed by a layer of coagulated exudate on its surface, the pus 

 may again be imprisoned, with the result that abscesses appear 

 at other parts of the coronet. Providing there is an exit for 

 the pus at the lower surface of the foot these secondary abscesses 

 will not occur, since the pus, as it is formed, is continually dis- 

 charged from the orifice, which affords a natural drainage to the 

 matter within the foot. If after the injury an outlet through the 

 horn remains for the escape of pus, the case may recover in a few 

 days without any treatment. On the other hand, if the breach 

 in the foot is too small and does not allow for the free escape 

 of the pus, suppuration continues. Granulation tissue and 

 new horny material are formed, and the former grows out 

 from the sensitive parts in the form of what is commonly called 

 proud flesh, from which a continual discharge oozes. The sore 

 bleeds easily, and the foot becomes distorted. 



Treatment. — In many cases of this affection by carefully 

 trimming the foot, cleansing the wounds with antiseptics, 

 applying a dressing if necessary, and removing the affected 

 sheep to drier pastures, the cases promptly recover. In those 

 cases where the injury has been aggravated by extensive 

 suppuration the feet require careful and repeated individual 

 attention. It will be found that although the non-contagious 



