Diseases of Sheep. 



323 



racter, and restore the proper secretion of healthy matter. In 

 other instances the sore deepens instead of l)ecoming daily more 

 shallow. This proceeds either from the deposit of some latent 

 splinter, or dirt, in which case poultices are beneficial to promote 

 the discharge of the foreign matter, or it is occasioned by the 

 acrid character of the fluid corroding the adjoining parts. Poul- 

 tices are useful in this case also ; but, if deep sinuses are formed, 

 they will probably require to be laid open with the knife. 

 Wherever a sore assumes this fistulous appearance, it indicates a 

 necessity for sustaining the general system by bark and tonics. It 

 may also be laid down as a general maxim, that, whenever the 

 inflammation becomes violent and extensive, it should be promptly 

 checked by fomentations and poultices, and, if a vital part is me- 

 naced, by the free use of local bleeding. This simple explana- 

 tion, concise as it necessarily is, will materially assist in forming 

 a judgment whether our four-footed patients are progressing 

 favourably to a cure, or whether their case is hopeless and not 

 worth the expense and trouble of further attention. 



The Scab, or the Rubbers, is a complaint so well known to 

 every breeder, by its mischievous effects and highly contagious 

 character, that it seems scarcely necessary to describe it at any 

 length. It originates, like some other cutaneous complaints, in 

 the propagation of vermin in the skin. In its commencement the 

 cuticle appears unnaturally red and florid. This is followed by a 

 pustular eruption, accompanied by extreme itching. The conflu- 

 ence of the pustuleSj when breaking, occasions an extensive sore, 

 and this is soon covered by the scab : but the healing process does 

 not proceed, for the itching causes the sheep to rub himself 

 against the posts and rails until the scab is removed, and the sore 

 is made worse by exposure. At length the animal dies of ex- 

 haustion; about a fortnight occurring between the first infection 

 and the pustular eruption. 



Although fat sheep, or those in improving condition, seem less 

 liable to be attacked with scab than others, it is not, as some have 

 supposed, a disorder in the blood, and to be cured by change to 

 richer pasturage : it is strictly a cutaneous and local disease, 

 although, like other local complaints, it will seriously and even 

 fatally injure the constitution if not checked in its early stages. If 

 speedily discovered sulphur ointment will prove a remedy, but in 

 more serious cases in order to effect a cure it is necessary to 

 dress the sheep with the mercurial ointment given in the Appen- 

 dix (No. 1), which operation is performed according to the fol- 

 lowing directions : — Divide the wool in two parallel lines, about 

 two and four inches from the back on both sides, and also one 

 line down the shoulders and thighs; lay on the ointment close to 

 the skin with your forefinger as you make the divisions ; lay another 



