AN INVESTIGATION OF AN OUTBREAK OF SEPTICAEMIA 
IN POULTRY. 
By R. A. Whiting, D.V.M., Associate in Animal Pathology, Purdue 
University Agricultural Experiment Station, Lafayette, Ind. 
The history of this outbreak of septicaemia hemorrhagica 
is as follows: My attention was drawn to the outbreak by! the 
receipt of the carcasses of a chicken and a turkey accompanied 
by a letter from the owner giving the following information: 
He had recently lost a cow from a highly acute disease. The 
symptoms given by the ownef were as follows: high body tem¬ 
perature, nervous symptoms such as frothing at the mouth, draw¬ 
ing the neck to one side, partial paralysis and later there was 
labored breathing and diarrhoea. At about the same time that 
the diarrhoea set in, the cow layecl down and was unable to get 
up, gradually becoming depressed, then comatose and died in 
48 hours from the onset of the disease. The carcass was re¬ 
moved to the rear of the hog pasture and left exposed for the 
hogs to feed upon which they did to the extent of engorgement. 
The! following day all of the hogs were slightly indisposed and 
did not eat their regular ration and exhibited a profuse diarrhoea 
which persisted for several days. In the meantime they were 
continually eating portions of the beef carcass of which small 
undigested portions were present in the cliarrhoeal discharge. No 
deaths occurred among the hogs, although they ate nearly all of 
the carcass. 
Chickens and turkeys were allowed the freedom of the front 
portion of the hog pasture which contained hog feeding troughs 
and shelters. They were seen to feed upon the fresh hog manure 
which contained the undigested portions of the beef carcass. 
Several of the chickens and turkeys were found dead within a 
few hours after they were noticed feeding in the hog lots. Some 
appeared stupid and died in from 20 minutes to an hour after 
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