320 
THOMAS WALLET. 
period of lamb-bearing, at the time of parturition and in the sub¬ 
sequent nursing, is great care in management demanded and a 
sufficiency of nourishing food required in order to prevent loss 
and disappointment. 
Excitement is up to a certain point good for all animals, but 
there are few in which it may with greater ease be pushed to ex¬ 
cess than in the sheep; it is especially to be guarded against in 
the case of in-lamb ewes, as it is frequently an exciting cause to 
the development of latent disease and often causes premature 
birth. 
Fatigue , clipping and exposure to cold wind (a chill) induce 
congestion of the lungs. 
Age .—Young animals are peculiarly predisposed to diseases 
depending upon rapid tissue changes for their production ; and 
old animals to diseases of a debilitating or asthentic character, 
hence the large percentage of deaths in the old “crocks” at 
lambing time.* 
* While it is impossible that I can deal at length with every individval dis¬ 
ease of this class, I may briefly refer to joint-ill, navel-ill, and lambing or milk 
fever. 
Joint-ill , except as a purely sporadic affection, is always due to a combina¬ 
tion of two sets of causes—first, to a depraved or impoverished condition of the 
blood of the mother (nearly always in my experience brought about by injudi¬ 
cious management) and in consequence of which the milk contracts deleterious 
properties; second, to the combined effects of cold and wet. In some cases the 
actual cause is inflammation of the umbilical vein, as a result of which abscesses 
form in the liver and supperative inflammation of the joints (pyaemia) follows. 
Judging from the clinical characters and course of the disease we are warranted 
in the conclusion that the actual cause is a micro-organism—a micrococcus 
probably. 
Navel-ill or navel-pocking is the result, in the first place, of a depraved con¬ 
dition of the mother’s system; and, in the second place, to the action of septic 
germs on the clot of blood which is always formed in the umbilical vein of newly- 
born animals. If the system is healthy no injurious influence is exerted by septic 
organisms ; if the contrary, the altered blood acts as a splendid pabulum for their 
development—septic (or sometimes erysipelatous) inflammation is set up, the 
products of which become absorbed and set up putrefactive inflammation of the 
joints, particularly those of the hind limbs; but in some cases the inflammatory 
action extends along the cellular tissue to the fore legs in a forward direction, and 
to the abdomen, thighs and hind legs in a backward direction, the involved parts 
quickly becoming of a black or purple hue from mortification. Both in joint-ill 
and in navel-ill the condition of the blood of the mother should be improved and 
