SPECIAL REPORT ON DISEASES OF CATTLE
TEXT
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E. BY Drs. ATKINSON, DICKSON, EICHHORN, HICKMAN, LAW, LOWE, MARSH, MOHLER, MURRAY, PEARSON, RANSOM, TRUMBOWER, and WOODWARD. * * * * * R
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apart while the examination is being made. Any sharp edges of the molars must be removed by the tooth rasp, such as is used for horses. Any supernumerary tooth which interferes with
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he swelling of the glands, when submitted to proper treatment, disappears in a comparatively short time. In other cases, however, they remain enlarged, even after the animal recovers
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e local vegetation is responsible for it. It is more prevalent some years than others, and is most common in old countries, where the soil is more or less depleted. Cattle pastured on
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_Symptoms._--Dullness; drooping of the ears; dryness of the muzzle; dry skin; staring coat; loins morbidly sensitive to pressure; fullness of the left fl
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s with reluctance, moans occasionally, and has a tottering gait. The ears and horns are alternately hot and cold; in cows the secretion of milk is much diminished, and that which is s
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SONS AND POISONING. By V. T. ATKINSON, V. S. [Revised by C. DWIGHT MARSH, Ph. D.] DEFINITION OF A POISON. To define clearly the meaning of the word "poison" is somewhat difficult
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neral weakness and loss of condition. _Treatment._--The antidote for arsenic is a solution of hydrated oxid of iron in water. It should be prepared fresh by mixing a solution of sulp
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return is hastened by excitement and in a short time again disappears, continuing to disappear and reappear until death results. As the poisonous effect advances the intervals bet
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ELS, AND LYMPHATICS. By W. H. HARBAUGH, V. S. [Revised by Leonard Pearson, B. S., V. M. D.] THE CIRCULATORY SYSTEM. In cattle, as in human beings, the heart, blood vessels, and l
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petite are depressed or checked. The dung is hard, and to void it appears to cause pain. These symptoms usually develop gradually, and, of course, they vary considerably in different
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ns with the respiratory apparatus. A cough is said to be dry, moist, harsh, hollow, difficult, paroxysmal, suppressed, sympathetic, etc., according to its character. It is a very impo
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∞ F., falls to 103∞ or 104∞, the pain decreases, the stiffness disappears, and the patient eats a little. The pulse softens, but remains quicker than normal. Now, day by day the patie
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han normal. If suddenly aroused from the drowsy state, the animal appears startled and stares wildly. When moving about it may stagger, the hind quarters swaying from side to side. I
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ste material resulting from the destruction in the system of fats, sugars, starch, and such other foods as are wanting in the element nitrogen, and do not form fibrous tissues, but go
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ptomaines of bacteria growth; hence the prevalence of "red water" in marshy districts and on clayey and other impervious soils, and the occurrence of bloody urine in the advanced stag
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t to be guarded against is the supply of water that has drained from marshes or impervious soils, rich in organic matter, as such water is charged with nitrites, ptomaines, etc., whic
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otash, but at times is displaced by oxalic or other acid and then appears as gritty, sandy particles in the stem. This gritty, insoluble silica is especially noticeable among the hors
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e, driving on icy or otherwise slippery ground, carrying in railroad cars, kicking by vicious attendants, and fastening or throwing down for operations. The diet should be good, not o
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f the winds. The same is to a large extent true of smut; hence, wet years have been often remarkable for the great prevalence of abortions. Abortions have greatly increased in New Zea
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ead, or the head without the fore feet, examine. If one hind foot appears without the other, make examination. The presenting limb or head should be secured by a rope with a running n
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lvis, and the neck advancing, the head is bent back and the poll and ears either enter the pelvis or strike against its brim. The two forefeet present, but they make no progress, and
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at the lower jaw may be reached and availed of. In case neither the ears nor the orbit can be reached, a cord should be passed around the neck of the calf as near the head as possibl
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he heart (palpitations), sunken, staring eyes, coldness of the skin, ears, horns, and limbs, perspiration, weakness in standing, staggering gait, and, finally, inability to rise, and
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or the hair stands erect, especially along the spine, and the horns, ears, and limbs are cold. The temperature in the rectum is elevated by one or two degrees, the pulse is small, har
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e temperature raised, though not invariably so, the head, horns, and ears being especially hot and the veins of the head full, while the visible mucous membranes of nose and eyes are
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ducts. Man is susceptible to foot-and-mouth disease, but it never appears during the frequent epidemics of scarlatina. Among other contagious forms of mammitis I may name one which I
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cord is cut off too close to the navel and left untied and when it tears off at the navel. (Pl. XIV.) It may also bleed when torn across naturally, if it is sucked by the dam or anot
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des failing to come together. Apart from this, the trouble rarely appears after the calf has been some time on solid feed, as the paunch then extends down to the right immediately ove
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ive inflammation of the lungs. The infection clings to a stable for years, in many cases rendering it impossible to preserve and raise the calves. It has frequently coincided with abo
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h the technical names and a scientific classification of each, it appears desirable to describe some of the characteristics of forms in general and of a few classes into which they ma
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nd, if the animal should be of little value, irritable, advanced in years, and the fracture is a serious compound or comminuted one, the wiser course would generally be to put the cre
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ed in a stall until the parts become reunited and the lameness disappears. Fracture of the posterior parts of the bone (ischium), which forms the point of the buttocks occasionally o
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idered as secondary or predisposing causes. Sometimes the disease appears without any apparent cause. On the whole, it may be said that any of the above-mentioned factors may have mor
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iter saw with a rigid back may be used. Various types of dehorning shears or clippers are in general use. One type of dehorner has a stationary knife edge with its cutting edge shaped
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tively rare. Tumors are independent. For instance, their nutrition bears no relation to the nutrition of the body. A lipoma, or fatty tumor, in the subcutaneous tissue, may go on inc
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or acids, such as sulphuric acid, hydrochloric acid, caustic potash, arsenic, silver nitrate, or chromic acid, but it is difficult to limit the action of these drugs. The injection,
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ng the fluid become firm, smooth, and dense. Outwardly the tumor appears fluctuating, though tense, while the skin which covers it may be normal, denuded of hair, or covered with har
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le highly fed and closely stabled for a long winter. The erythema appears in patches, and as it is most common near the end of the winter it is known as the "spring eruption" or "spri
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When they are small and pedunculated, they may be snipped off with shears and the stump touched with nitrate of silver. When they are broad and flattened, they may be dissected out an
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hich is to facilitate their movements and enable them to retain the tears in the ocular cavity. The eyelid is composed of a fibrous inner membrane ending in a stiff arch near the bord
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ay possibly be taken for the growth of a tumor. This generally disappears with the improvement of the health of the animal. Warts not uncommonly appear on or about the eyelids of catt
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ntations and the injection of soapy water or oil and water. SCURFY EARS. Cattle are subject to scurfy ears, which may be owing to a generally morbid condition of the skin, or may b
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wever, much interest was manifested in regard to it for a number of years, and as our cattle are still prohibited from some foreign markets on account of its previous existence here,
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hened pleura; these can be appreciated, however, only by those whose ears have been trained to distinguish between the different sounds which reach the ear when applied to the chest w
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ll insure the prompt discovery of every herd in which the disease appears, as well as the destruction of all diseased and exposed animals and the thorough disinfection of the premises
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._--Foot-and-mouth disease has prevailed in Europe for a great many years and has occasioned tremendous economic losses there. In Italy, France, Switzerland, Germany, and Russia the
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s in the mouth and by the location of the disease at the tips of the ears, end of the tail, or upon the lower part of the legs, usually below the knees or hocks. The lesion of ergotis
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uld be final. In blackleg the animals affected are usually under 2 years of age. The swellings are quite evident, and usually occur on the legs, above the knees or hocks, and are dis
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vestigated tuberculosis in that country and who says that "30 or 40 years ago tuberculosis was unknown in Argentine cattle, and it is still unknown among the native (criollo) cattle.
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of the animal is also manifested by a staring coat and a tough, dry, harsh skin (hidebound). Digestive disturbances are indicated by tympanites, or distention of the rumen by gas, col
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ase. The value of tuberculin for this purpose was tested during the years 1890 and 1891 by Guttman, Roeckl and Sch¸tz, Bang and Salomonsen, Lydtin, Jˆhne and Siedamgrotzky, Nocard, an
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ious effects of tuberculin. After using this test regularly for two years, Mr. Edwards wrote as follows: I have seen nothing to lead me to believe that the tuberculin test had an
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or the discrimination between human and bovine bacilli, and which appears to be favored by Kossel, we must admit that bovine tuberculosis is an extremely important factor in the etiol
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racter of the disease ever takes place. _Symptoms._--The disease appears in four to seven days after natural infection, or may evince itself in two or three days as the result of art
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bservations upon an extensive outbreak of actinomycosis a number of years ago which led him to infer that the animals were inoculated by eating barley straw harvested from pieces of g
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uscular tremors may appear and the skin show uneven temperature. The ears and base of the horns are cold, the coat staring. The animals are dull and stupid and manifest great weakness
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ausing anthrax. (Pl. XXVIII, fig. 4.) Cattle between 6 months and 2 years of age are the most susceptible. Sucking calves under 6 months are rarely attacked, nor are they so susceptib
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n a few days by small irregular ulcers in the mouth. This disease appears sporadically, usually in the early fall after a dry summer, does not run a regular course, and can not be ino
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ure is 106∞ to 107∞ F. An edematous, doughy, and painful swelling appears at the point of infection. This tumefaction spreads more and more, and crackles on pressure. In case of an op
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s on various parts of the body, such as the neck, the chest, and the ears. (Pl. XLVIII and Pl. XLIX, fig. 1.) The changes which they undergo during their parasitic existence were fir
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ess the hair and skin are thoroughly wetted. _Preparation and use of arsenical dips._[8]--After experimenting for many years to discover a practical method for dipping cattle to dest
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gions to those that are not infected, either upon cattle or in stock cars or other conveyer. They are based upon the fact that Texas fever is carried north only by the cattle tick, an
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heep, horses, dogs, and man. In the case of hogs it is generally the ears which are affected. The fly also breeds in dead animals, and all carcasses should therefore be buried deeply
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ate that grub eradication may sometimes be accomplished by the use of arsenical dips, which are extensively used at the present time for destroying cattle ticks. (See p. 497.) It is p
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ich emerge from them, when they succeed in finding a host, enter the ears and gradually develop to the stage at which they are ready to leave the host animal. The females may live sev
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a's head" forms on the surface of the liver toward the stomach, appears in even well-nourished animals; even in cases of a cirrhosis of the liver it is seldom that any effect upon
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s in the mouth and by the location of the lesions at the tips of the ears, end of the tail, or upon the lower part of the legs, usually below the knees or hocks. The lesions of ergoti
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ew worms, 506 Dips-- arsenical, protection of hands in use, 493 cattle, for ticks,
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atment, 278 metacarpus and metatarsus, description and treatment, 282 pelvis, description and treatment,
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529 Medicines, methods of administration, chapter by Leonard Pearson, 7-11 Membrana nictitans of eye, description,
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al products, description and treatment, 69 arsenic, description, symptoms, and treatment, 54 carbolic acid, description and treatmen
U. S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE,
BUREAU OF ANIMAL INDUSTRY.
J. R. MOHLER, CHIEF OF BUREAU.
* * * * *
SPECIAL REPORT
ON
DISEASES OF CATTLE.
BY
Drs. ATKINSON, DICKSON, EICHHORN, HICKMAN, LAW, LOWE,
MARSH, MOHLER, MURRAY, PEARSON, RANSOM,
TRUMBOWER, and WOODWARD.
* * * * *
REVISED EDITION, 1923.
[Illustration: USDA seal]
WASHINGTON:
GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE.
1923.
* * * * *
Transcriber's note: Minor typos have been corrected, tables have been
modified where necessary to fit within the constraints of a text file, and
footnotes have been moved to the ends of the sections. Inconsistencies in
spelling (e.g., D'Arboval/D'Arborval) and hyphenation (e.g.,
postmortem/post-mortem) have been resolved in all cases where it was
possible to divine the author's intent with a reasonable degree of
certainty. The occasional error which could not be resolved was marked
[sic]. Italicized letters and words are enclosed by _underscores_.
Subscripts are represented by an underscore and curly braces: _{2}
(for example, SiO_{2}). Ligatures which cannot be reproduced in the Latin-1
character set are enclosed in [brackets] (for example, C[oe]nurus).
* * * * *
[Extract from "An act making appropriations for the Department of
Agriculture for the fiscal year ending June 30, 1924, and for other
purposes," approved February 26, 1923. Public--No. 446.]
For printing, binding, and distribution of the publications entitled
"Diseases of the Horse" and "Diseases of Cattle," $200,000:
_Provided_, That said publications shall be deposited one-third in
the folding room of the Senate and two-thirds in the folding room of
the House of Representatives, and said documents shall be distributed
by Members of the Senate and House of Representatives.
CONTENTS.
Page.
Administration of medicines. By LEONARD PEARSON 7
Diseases of the digestive organs. By A. J. MURRAY 12
Poisons and poisoning. By V. T. ATKINSON 51
Diseases of the heart, blood vessels, and lymphatics.
By W. H. HARBAUGH 73
Noncontagious diseases of the organs of respiration.
By WILLIAM HERBERT LOWE 87
Diseases of the nervous system. By W. H. HARBAUGH 101
Diseases of the urinary organs. By JAMES LAW 113
Diseases of the generative organs. By JAMES LAW 147
Diseases following parturition. By JAMES LAW 214
Diseases of young calves. By JAMES LAW 247
Bones: Diseases and accidents. By V. T. ATKINSON 264
Surgical operations. By WILLIAM DICKSON and WILLIAM HERBERT LOWE 289
Tumors affecting cattle. By JOHN R. MOHLER 303
Diseases of the skin. By M. R. TRUMBOWER 320
Diseases of the foot. By M. R. TRUMBOWER 335
Diseases of the eye and its appendages. By M. R. TRUMBOWER 340
Diseases of the ear. By M. R. TRUMBOWER 355
Infectious diseases of cattle. Revised by JOHN R. MOHLER 358
The animal parasites of cattle. By B. H. RANSOM 502
Mycotic stomatitis of cattle. By JOHN R. MOHLER 532
Index 538
ILLUSTRATIONS.
PLATES.
Page.
PLATE
I. Position of the first stomach (rumen or paunch) 48
II. Stomachs of ruminants 48
III. Instruments used in treating diseases of digestive organs 48
IV. Microscopic anatomy of the liver 48
V. Ergot in hay 48
VI. Ergotism 48
VII. Diagram of the circulation of the blood 86
VIII. Position of the lung 90
IX. Kidney and male generative and urinary organs 145
X. Microscopic anatomy of the kidney 145
XI. Calculi of kidney and bladder 146
XII. Fetal calf within its membranes 210
XIII. Pregnant uterus with cotyledons 210
XIV. Vessels of umbilical cord 211
XV. Normal position of calf in utero 211
XVI. Abnormal positions of calf in utero 211
XVII. Abnormal positions of calf in utero 211
XVIII. Abnormal positions of calf in utero; surgical instruments
and sutures 212
XIX. Monstrosities 212
XX. Instruments used in difficult labor 212
XXI. Instruments used in difficult labor 213
XXII. Supports for prolapsed uterus 246
XXIII. Supports for prolapsed uterus 246
XXIV. Instruments used in diseases following parturition 246
XXV. Skeleton of the cow 282
XXVI. Devices for casting cattle 302
XXVII. Surgical instruments and sutures 302
XXVIII. Various bacteria which produce disease in cattle 360
XXIX. Upper or dorsal surface of the lungs of the ox 368
XXX. Broncho-pneumonia 368
XXXI. Contagious pleuro-pneumonia 368
XXXII. Contagious pleuro-pneumonia 368
XXXIII. Foot-and-mouth disease 384
XXXIV. Tuberculosis of the lungs of cattle 416
XXXV. Tuberculosis of the liver 416
XXXVI. Tuberculosis of lymph gland and of omentum (caul) 416
XXXVII. Fig. 1.--Tuberculosis of sirloin and porterhouse cuts
of beef. Fig. 2.--Tuberculosis of pleura of cow,
so-called "pearly disease" 416
XXXVIII. Tuberculosis of cow's udder 416
XXXIX. Actinomycosis 450
XL. Actinomycosis of the jaw 450
XLI. Actinomycosis of the lungs 450
XLII. Section of muscle from a blackleg swelling 464
XLIII. Necrotic stomatitis (calf diphtheria) 464
XLIV. Normal spleen and spleen affected by Texas fever 504
XLV. Texas fever 504
XLVI. The cattle tick (_Margaropus annulatus_), the carrier of
Texas fever 504
XLVII. The cattle tick (_Margaropus annulatus_) 504
XLVIII. Portion of a steer's hide showing the Texas fever tick
(_Margaropus annulatus_) 504
XLIX. Fig. 1.--Tick-infested steer. Fig. 2.--Dipping cattle
to kill ticks 504
L. Facsimile of poster comparing ticky and tick-free cattle 504
TEXT FIGURES.
FIG.
1. Hornfly (_HÊmatobia serrata_) in resting position 504
2. Hornflies (_HÊmatobia serrata_) on cow horn 505
3. Buffalo gnat 506
4. Screw worm (larva of _Chrysomyia macellaria_) 506
5. Screw-worm fly (_Chrysomyia macellaria_) 507
6. The warble fly (_Hypoderma lineata_) 508
7. Short-nosed blue louse (_HÊmatopinus eurysternus_) of cattle 512
8. Long-nosed blue louse (_HÊmatopinus vituli_) of cattle 512
9. Red louse (_Trichodectes scalaris_) of cattle 513
10. Egg of short-nosed blue louse (_HÊmatopinus eurysternus_)
attached to a hair 513
11. Mite which causes psoroptic scab of sheep 514
12. Portion of the wall of the first stomach with conical flukes
(_Paramphistomum cervi_) attached 519
13. Twisted stomach worms (_HÊmonchus contortus_) 519
14. Twisted stomach worms (_HÊmonchus contortus_) enlarged 520
15. Embryo of twisted stomach worm (_HÊmonchus contortus_)
coiled on tip of grass blade 521
16. A drenching tube made from an ordinary tin funnel, a piece of
rubber hose, and a piece of brass pipe 522
17. Piece of lining of fourth stomach showing cysts of the encysted
stomach worm (_Ostertatia ostertagi_) 523
18. A tapeworm (_Moniezia planissima_) which infests cattle 524
19. The common liver fluke (_Fasciola hepatica_) 526
20. The large American fluke (_Fasciola magna_) 526
21. Portion of grass stalk bearing three encysted cercariÊ of the
common liver fluke (_Fasciola hepatica_) 527
22. Hydatids (_Echinococcus granulosus_) in portion of hog's liver 528
23. Thin-necked bladder worm (_TÊnia hydatigena_) from abdominal
cavity of a steer 529
24. Lung worms (_Dictyocaulus viviparus_) of cattle 530
SPECIAL REPORT
ON
DISEASES OF CATTLE
ADMINISTRATION OF MEDICINES.
By LEONARD PEARSON, B. S., V. M. D.
Medicines may be administered to cattle in many ways. The channel and
method of administration depend on whether a general or local effect is
desired, the condition of the animal, and the nature of the medicine that
is to be given. The easiest method, and therefore the most common, is to
give ordinary remedies by the mouth with the food, with drink, or
separately. There, are, however, some conditions in which medicines
administered in this way will not act promptly enough, or wherein a desired
effect of the medicine on a distant part of the body is wholly lacking
unless it is applied in some other way.
The various methods of administering medicines to cattle will be considered
below.
BY THE MOUTH.--The simplest way to give medicines by the mouth is to mix
them with the food or water. This can be done when the medicine is in the
form of a powder or fluid, if but a small quantity is to be given, if it
does not have a taste that is disagreeable to the animal and is not so
irritant as to injure the lining membranes of the mouth and throat.
The usual method of administering bulky or unpalatable doses is to mix them
with a fluid vehicle, such as water, milk, molasses, or broth, and give
from a bottle. A dose given in this way is known as a "drench." In
administering a drench the head of the animal should be elevated a little
by an assistant. This is best accomplished when standing on the left side
of the cow's head and by grasping the nose with the thumb and fingers of
the right hand inserted in the nostrils; with the left hand beneath the
chin the head is further raised and supported. If the animal is unruly, it
may be tied in a stall or placed in a stanchion. The medicine can now be
poured into the mouth by inserting the neck of the bottle between the lips
on the right side. Care must be taken to avoid getting the bottle between
the back teeth. The mouth of the bottle should be inserted as far as the
middle of the tongue and the contents poured slowly. If the cow coughs, the
head must at once be lowered to permit the fluid to escape from the larynx.
If medicine is given during coughing, some of the dose may pass down the
windpipe to the lungs and cause a severe or a fatal pneumonia. This is
especially to be guarded against when the throat is partly paralyzed or
insensitive, as in parturient paresis (milk fever). In this disease it has
often happened that drenches have been poured into the lungs, thus killing
the cow.
The quantity of fluid to be given in a drench depends upon the effect
desired and the nature of the medicine. In impactions of the stomach very
large quantities of fluid may be given--as much as a gallon or several
gallons at a time. Usually, however, it is not customary or desirable to
give more than from 1 to 2 quarts at a dose, and not more than a pint
unless it is necessary on account of the irritant quality of the drug that
has to be shielded with a large quantity of the vehicle.
Soluble medicines should be completely dissolved before they are given;
insoluble ones should be finely divided by powdering or by shaking, and
should be well agitated and mixed immediately before they are given. In the
latter case a menstruum with considerable body, such as molasses or
flaxseed tea or milk, will help to hold solids or oils in suspension until
swallowed.
_Balls_ are large pills adapted for the larger animals. Powders or gums are
sometimes mixed with an adhesive substance and rolled into balls for the
purpose of convenience of administration. Balls are not used so much and
are not so well adapted to the medication of cattle as of horses. The
process of solution is slower in the paunch of a cow than in the stomach of
a horse; if the cow is so sick as to have stopped ruminating, a ball may
get covered up and lost in the mass of material in the paunch and so lie
for days, producing no effect whatever.
_Capsules_ are shells or envelopes made of soluble gelatin in which powders
or liquids may be inclosed. Capsules and balls are administered by being
placed on the tongue well back in the mouth while the tongue is drawn
forward and the mouth is held open by a block of wood between the back
teeth. The ball should be dropped, the tongue released, and the block
removed as nearly simultaneously as possible, so that the backward carriage
of the tongue will throw the ball into the throat and lead to its being
swallowed. In introducing the ball care must be taken to avoid having the
hand cut or crushed. After a little experience it is possible to do away
with the block of wood.
BY THE STOMACH.--Medicines are introduced directly into the first stomach
by the use of an esophageal tube or through the cannula of a trocar passed
into the paunch through the side. This method is used in the treatment of
diseases of digestion.
BY THE RECTUM.--Medicines are usually administered by the rectum for the
purpose of controlling the bowels and for the treatment of local diseases.
Sometimes, however, medicines that have a general effect are given in this
way when, for any reason, it is not possible or convenient to give them
through the mouth. Only drugs that are readily absorbed should be given per
rectum for a general effect and in somewhat larger dose or more frequently
than when given by the mouth. Such stimulants as ether, alcohol, or the
aromatic spirits of ammonia, diluted with from four to six times their bulk
of warm water, may be used in this way.
Rectal injections, or enemata, are used in the treatment of constipation.
If it is the purpose of the injection to soften hardened fecal masses, the
water should be comfortably warm and may have a little clean soap in it. If
it is the purpose of the injection to stimulate sluggish bowels to
contraction, the water may be cold.
In giving rectal injections a rectal syringe may be used, or, better, a
piece of one-half to three-quarter inch rubber hose 5 feet long with a tin
funnel attached to one end. The hose is soaped or oiled and introduced
slowly and gently into the rectum 2 or 3 feet. The fluid is then slowly
poured into the funnel and allowed to gravitate into the rectum. The same
apparatus may be used for feeding by the rectum.
BY THE VAGINA.--Medicines are inserted into the vagina, and through the
vagina into the womb, in a manner similar to that of rectal administration.
Most of the medication made use of in this way is for the local treatment
of these organs. Following calving, during outbreaks of abortion, and in an
infectious disease of the vagina, such injections become necessary.
BY THE UDDER.--Injections into the udder are now regularly made in the
treatment of parturient paresis (milk fever). For this purpose a 1 per cent
solution of iodid of potassium is commonly employed, although some other
solutions and oxygen gas are also used. In making this injection so many
precautions are necessary in relation to the sterilization of the apparatus
and the teats and skin that this work should be left to a skilled
veterinarian. The introduction of even a minute quantity of infectious dirt
may cause the loss of the udder. For making this injection one may use one
of the prepared sets of apparatus or a milking tube and funnel connected by
a piece of small rubber hose. The apparatus should be boiled and kept
wrapped in a clean towel until needed. The udder and teats and the hands of
the operator must be well disinfected, and the solution must be freshly
made with recently boiled water kept in a sterile bottle. The udder should
be emptied of milk before the injection is made. After all these
precautions have been observed the milking tube may be inserted and through
it one-half pint of solution introduced by gravity air pressure or by
syringe. There is practically no danger in this mode of treatment if it is
properly carried out.
Injections into the udder are sometimes made in the treatment of garget,
but so far with indifferent success.
BY THE NOSTRILS.--An animal may be caused to inhale medicine in the form of
gas or vapor or to snuff up a fine powder. Sometimes, for the purpose of
local treatment, fluids are injected into the nose.
A medicine inhaled may have either a local or a general effect.
Medicated steam, carrying the volatile products of compound cresol
solution, carbolic acid, balsam of Peru, compound tincture of benzoin,
tincture of iodin, etc., may be liberated beneath the nostrils of a cow so
that she must inhale these soothing vapors; but such treatment is not so
common for cattle as for horses. In producing general anesthesia, or
insensibility to pain, the vapor of chloroform or ether is administered by
the nostrils. As a preliminary to this it is necessary to cast and confine
the animal. Great care is necessary to avoid complete stoppage of the heart
or breathing.
BY THE TRACHEA.--Medicines are injected into the trachea, or windpipe, in
the treatment of some forms of diseases of the lungs, and especially in
that form of bronchitis or pneumonia that is caused by lungworms. For this
injection a large hypodermic syringe, fitted with a very thick, strong
needle, is used. The needle is to be inserted about the middle of the neck
and between the cartilaginous rings of the trachea.
BY THE SKIN.--Although a number of drugs, notably mercury, are so readily
absorbed by the skin of cattle as to render poisoning easy, medicines are
not given in this way for their general or constitutional but only for
their local effect.
Diseases of the skin and superficial parasites are treated or destroyed by
applications in the forms of washes, ointments, dips, and powders.
Liniments and lotions are applied to the skin for the relief of some
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Full text in the local archive
Bibliographic record from the archive catalogue.