52 
Journal of Agricultural Research 
Vol. I, No. i 
the exceptions noted, until after the medicine has acted. About io a. m., to a dog 
of ordinary size, give four io-grain capsules filled with ethereal extract of male fern 
(Oleoresina aspidii, U. S. P.), administering at the same time about an ounce of water 
or milk, preferably the latter. By a io-grain capsule is meant one which will hold 
io grains of quinine. Forty-five minutes later give a second dose, consisting of four 
capsules (io-grain) filled with freshly ground areca nut, and with this give as before 
about an ounce of water or milk. It is important that the areca nut be freshly 
ground. This treatment is usually followed by profuse defecation and the expulsion 
of the tapeworm, if any is present, in 30 minutes to an hour after giving the areca nut. 
No untoward aftereffects have been noted in any case among several hundred dogs 
treated with this remedy. The patient is usually ready for his evening meal. 
In administering the medicine an assistant stands the dog up on his haunches and 
holds the dog's mouth open by firmly grasping the upper jaw in one hand, the lower 
jaw in the other. The capsules are dropped on the back portion of the tongue, and 
enough water or milk is thrown in the animal *s mouth to make him swallow. After 
administering each of the two doses the dog's head should be tied up as high as he 
can hold it and not choke. If this detail is omitted, the patient will almost invariably 
throw up the dose. During the remainder of the day the dog should be kept in 
confinement and the fecal discharges gathered up and burned, buried, or otherwise 
disposed of in such a manner as to prevent the possibility of contaminating the feed 
or water of sheep or other live stock. 
Incidentally it may be remarked that treating dogs for tapeworm will 
rid them not only of the sheep-measle tapeworm but also of other species 
of tapeworm whose intermediate stages are found in live stock, one of 
which, the gid parasite, fortunately as yet not widespread in the United 
States, affects the brain of sheep with almost invariably fatal results. 
Though in certain localities coyotes harboring tapeworms are undoubt¬ 
edly responsible for some of the infestation of sheep with tapeworm cysts, 
yet it is the dogs accompanying the sheep more or less constantly day and 
night and depositing their feces laden with tapeworm eggs in the imme¬ 
diate neighborhood of the sheep which are the chief source of infestation, 
and if this source is removed by keeping the dogs free from worms, the 
sheep can be kept practically free from tapeworm cysts of all kinds. 
In addition, it is important that the carcasses of all dead sheep be 
destroyed by burning them in order to remove this source of infection of 
dogs and coyotes. 
SUMMARY 
Sheep measles, or tapeworm cysts in mutton, were first recorded in 
England in 1866 and the parasite named Cysticercus ovis in 1869 by 
Cobbold. C. ovis usually has been considered identical with Cysticercus 
cellulosae , the pork-measle parasite, and also has been confused with C. 
tenuicollis. It has been considered an intermediate stage of a human 
tapeworm, Taenia tenella or T, solium , and also of a dog tapeworm, 
T. hydatigena or T . marginata . 
Cysticercus ovis is the intermediate stage of a dog tapeworm, Taenia 
ovis (Cobbold) Ransom. It may attain its full development in sheep in 
less than three months after infection, and in the dog the tapeworm may 
