PUSTULE.
pasture on stiff, retentive, and undrained soil; sudden changes from poor to rich keep, particularly with animals in good health, predisposed to make blood or fatten fast. Youth predisposes to the disease, from the greater activity of the nutritive functions in early life. It is a disease confined almost entirely to yearling and two-year old animals; the writer has, however, seen it in aged cows, etc. A young animal, thriving fast, may suddenly be seized with B. Q., if exposed to cold, showers, or a storm. A check thus induced to the organs of secretion, and particularly to the action of the skin, at once produces the blood-charge and apoplectic effusion peculiar to the dis ease. In various countries where calves are reared by the hand, and not allowed to suckle their mothers, there are many cases of quarter ill when the young animals are transferred from the stable or bare fields to rich grass-lands. The malady is chiefly wit nessed in spring and autumn, particularly when animals are fed on strong autumn grass.
Symptoms.—The premonitory signs are often very insignificant, and usually over: looked. The healthy thriving aspect of a young steer, in a district where the disease prevails, excites the suspicion of the farmer. The animal may be observed with a sleek coat, voracious appetite, quick staring look, suddenly to stop reeding; the eyes become bloodshot; there is slight salivation or foaming at the mouth; and in the space of an hour or less, it will fall helpless, having manifested slight lameness in one of the limbs before dropping. In other cases, the animal suffers from swelling and pains, suddenly developed in one of the joints, whether the fetlocks, knees, or hocks, elbow," shoulder, or stifle. The swelling extends, and the animal falls. In both cases, the limb or quarter of the animal affected swells, the skin is bluish, the veins of the part are distended by black blood, and the creature is perfectly helpless. The suffering is unusually acute; but in many instances the respiration is tranquil, the pulse, however, oppressed and fre quent-. Animals in this state are costive at first, but occasionally violent diarrhcea super venes, and the excrement is tinged by black extravasated blood. Death almost invari ably supervenes in from 4 to 48 hours. Some cases prove lingering, especially if active and proper treatment be employed early; but recovery is rare. The symptoms of approaching death are convulsive twitchings of the muscles, fixed haggard look, grind ing with the teeth, and spasmodic breathing. In some cases, the animal appears quite paralytic, and quietly breathes its last.
Post-mortem appearances.—The quarter affected is found, when cut into, soaked in
black semi-coagulated blood. Similar blood is found in all the vessels of the body,. and all the tissues have consequently a black congested appearance,, particularly the The heart, as in all blood-diseases, is stained both externally and internally by black blood, effused beneath its serous covering or lining, and this appearance has led some veterinarians to believe the immediate cause of death to be inflammation of the heart. Such is not the case. The blood extravasations indicate the peculiar condition of the circulating fluid. In some cases in which a joint has been affected some hours before severe constitutional symptoms have appeared, the tissues around the joints are infiltrated by a yellow semi-solid exudation or lymph, which is capable of producing. malignant pustule if inoculated in man or animals. Abscesses and sloughs are occa sionally met with in and around the' diseased joints.
Treatment.—In the earliest stage, blood-letting to the extent of 5 or 6 quarts. Administer half-ounce doses of niter-in solution every half-hour for 4 or 5 hours. Give the animal much water to drink, and if chances of recovery are observed, 4-oz. doses of Nindererus's spirit, or solution of the acetate of ammonia, must be given every 4 hours. As the animal rallies, it may be desirable to administer a mild purge of Epsom or Glauber salts. The local treatinent consists in incisions Into the swollen parts, care being taken that the joints are not penetrated. The incisions must be washed with the following lotion: Chloride of zinc, 1 drachm; water, 12 ozs.; dissolve and apply with linen rag or lint, confining the moisture by gutta-percha or oil-silk. Treatment is not often successful, but we have the greatest facilities for Prevention by deep draining, whereby many pasture-lands have been rendered per fectly safe—after having repeatedly ruined tenant-farmers—from destruction by black quarter. In some hill-lands, where drainage does not appear the cause, the malady may be prevented by giving to all the cattle on the farm a weekly dose of an ounce of niter. The animals that thrive most rapidly should have the medicine rather more frequently, though not to such an extent as to reduce their condition.
The flesh of animals dying from this disease should not be used for human food. •It has destroyed whole families, and though In this cold climate accidents are rare, never theless they have occurred. Butchers have lost their arms, and persons have lost their lives from being inoculated in cutting up meat from oxen that have died of quarter ill.