1908.] 



Foot-Rot of Sheep. 



263 



affection is the commoner, it usually affects only a com- 

 paratively few animals in a flock, unless they have all been 

 subjected to like conditions. There is no evidence of the spread 

 of contagion from sheep to sheep, and frequently only one foot 

 is affected. 



Contagious Foot-rot. — Contagious or true foot-rot of sheep 

 is quite a different form of disease to the foot-sore already 

 described. In this country, where the flocks enjoy freedom 

 from such veritable plagues as foot-and-mouth disease and 

 sheep-pox, true (contagious) foot-rot stands as one of the 

 most serious diseases that exist among sheep generally, 

 but it is a disease which is amenable to treatment, and 

 can be prevented. If ^heep-owners, therefore, appreciate 

 the contagious nature of the disease and adopt effectual 

 measures to prevent its introduction into a flock, or promptly 

 combat it when introduced, they will be well repaid for 

 their trouble. 



Experiments have demonstrated the infective nature of the 

 virus or poison of the disease by the application of the in- 

 fected matter from diseased sheep to the feet of healthy sheep ? 

 and by the association of healthy sheep with diseased animals. 

 The disease may affect sheep on dry or wet pastures if the in- 

 fective agent be present. 



It is admitted by those who are acquainted with the diseases 

 affecting the feet of sheep that in some cases of foot-rot, 

 especially in advanced cases, the diseased conditions may be so 

 similar in appearance to foot-sore, that a differential diagnosis 

 is very difficult ; but by carefully considering all the circum- 

 stances, and by examining the fellow sheep, especially the 

 more recent cases of disease, one will find that in foot-sore 

 the trouble begins in the horn at the lower part of the foot. 



Contagious foot-rot is primarily a disease affecting the soft 

 structures of the foot. Any diseased condition of the horn itself 

 is secondary, and is brought about by the separation of the soft 

 from the horny structures through the agency of micro- 

 organisms and the fluids exuded. The disease spreads from 

 sheep to sheep, causing much lameness, loss of flesh, and even 

 death from emaciation. If the disease appears in a flock of 

 in-lamb ewes it is a still more serious matter, as proper treatment 

 cannot be carried out without danger owing to the pregnant 



