142 
The Rot in Sheep. 
spring:, when it is commonly wanted. But cattle are not very 
fond of it, nor does it yield a sufficient burden to pay the farmer 
for the expense of cultivatin<^ it." 
Several writers on agriculture remark that when burnet consti- 
tutes a moderate proportion of meadow-hay it imparts a stimu- 
lating property to the fodder, thereby rendering it more suited 
for feeding with turnips ; but if burnet be cultivated by itself 
and made into hay, the provender is coarse and unpalatable, and 
rejected as a rule by most animals. 
Most authors, however, on the diseases of the sheep, place 
their chief reliance on medicinal agents for the cure of rot ; the 
particular remedies they advocate depending rather on their own 
preconceived notions of the disease than on any precise informa- 
tion of its nature. We give a few extracts : — 
Sir G. S. Mackenzie directs attention to the beneficial use of 
mercury, but says that " it would, perhaps, be improper to admi- 
nister this agent internally. The safest and most effectual method 
of applying it is in the form of the common blue ointment, and 
a trial of this is strongly recommended to those whose flocks are 
liable to rot. It should be applied to the bare skin in the region 
of the liver ; and the size of a nut rubbed in till it is all dried up 
twice a day for a week or ten days. This, in conjunction with 
wholesome food, will in all probability prove to be the most 
effectual treatment. Mercury is well known to be a specific for 
diseased liver of the human body, and on that account we may 
presume that it will be efficacious in the cure of the same organ 
in sheep, and it is also recommended as the most effectual means 
of destroying the fluke-worm." 
Mr. Youatt, adopting the views of those who regard the affec- 
tion as an inflammatory one of the liver, advises at its com- 
mencement that the animal be bled to the extent of " 8, 10, or 12 
ozs.," and that this be followed up by an aperient, consisting 
of 2 or 3 ozs. of Epsom salts ; and he adds, " the physic 
having operated, or an additional dose, perchance, having been 
administered in order to quicken the action of the first, the 
farmer will look for further means and appliances. Friction with 
mercurial ointment on the region of the liver has been recom- 
mended, but not by those who have had opportunity to observe 
its secondary effects on the ruminant. Still the disease under 
consideration, with evident determination to the liver, requires 
the agency of this powerful but dangerous medicine. Two or 
three grains of calomel may be given daily, but mixed with half 
the quantity of opium, in order to secure its beneficial, and to 
ward off its injurious, effects on the ruminant. To this should 
be added — a simple and cheap medicine, but that which is the 
sheet anchor of the practitioner here — common salt." 
