1908.] Suppression of Tuberculosis. 



499 



the valuation. The State bears all expenses connected with the 

 matter. The flesh of the slaughtered animals is examined, and, 

 if approved, is allowed to be consumed. In the course of three 

 years about 20,000 head of horned cattle have been offered by 

 cattle owners to the State, and, after examination by veterinary 

 surgeons, 12,000 of these were taken over and slaughtered ; 

 8,000 were rejected as not suffering from tuberculosis. About 

 83 per cent, of the animals slaughtered were suffering from 

 tuberculosis and about 17 per cent, from other diseases. 



Belgium. — The system at present in force dates from 1897, 

 when the sale, exhibition or exchange of breeding animals 

 clinically affected or suspected of tuberculosis was prohibited. 

 This prohibition, however, has since been withdrawn. Cattle 

 clinically affected may be ordered to be slaughtered by the 

 veterinary inspector, but testing with tuberculin is voluntary, 

 and the owner can keep reacting animals for three years. The 

 owners of slaughtered animals receive compensation to the 

 extent of 70 per cent, of the value ; half value is allowed for 

 pigs. Imported cattle are submitted to the tuberculin test. 



In 1905, out of 426,000 cattle slaughtered at the abattoirs, 

 16,571, or 3 -9 per cent., were found tuberculous ; in addition, 

 2,646 were ordered to be slaughtered as clinically affected.* 

 It appears that the owners of tuberculous cattle very often 

 prefer to sell their animals to low-class butchers rather than 

 report them to the veterinary inspector, and, in any case, only 

 report them at a very late date ; whereas, to prevent the 

 spread of infection, the slaughter of clinically-affected cattle 

 should take place at the earliest possible date. The tuberculin 

 test was carried out on 149 farms in 1905, on 18 of which no 

 tuberculous animals were found. The total number of cattle 

 tested was 2,805, of which 52 per cent, reacted; many of the 

 farms, however, where the test was carried out had long been 

 recognised as centres of tuberculosis. Cattle owners in 

 many cases object to the test owing to the depreciation in 

 value which results in the case of reacting animals, and it 

 would seem that there are very few farms on which any serious 

 attempt at the formation of non- tuberculous herds has been 

 made. The test was applied a second time on 21 farms in 



* Bulletin du Service de la Police Sanitaire des Animaux Domestiques, 1906. 

 No. 25b. 



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