Diseases of cattle, sheep, goats and swineMoussu, G. (Gustave)
Science
Diseases of cattle, sheep, goats and swine
Moussu, G. (Gustave)
Veterinary medicine
The general =symptoms= of loco disease are quite familiar to all stock
raisers. Perhaps the most characteristic are those of cerebral origin,
and are shown in peculiarities of gait and action, which may be compared
to a drunken condition. The brain disturbances may consist in impairment
of the special senses or in irregular motor impulses, which produce
incoherent muscular action. In some cases the animal becomes blind. More
frequently the animal makes errors in judgment of the size and distance
of objects. These visual disturbances are often quite ludicrous. The
animal often takes fright, apparently at imaginary objects, or at
objects which under ordinary circumstances would cause no alarm. Locoed
horses are somewhat dangerous for driving purposes on account of their
tendency to run away. Such horses are frequently attacked with kicking
fits without any apparent cause. The sense of hearing is often affected,
and the response to sounds is irregular and out of proportion to the
volume and character of the sound. Irregularities in muscular movements
of sheep may assume a variety of forms. The animal may simply carry its
head in an extended or otherwise unnatural condition. In some cases the
back is arched. Trembling is a characteristic symptom. In locoed horses
a great difficulty is sometimes experienced in persuading them to go
backward. Locoed sheep are exceedingly difficult to manage. The
different members of the flock may suddenly take a notion to run away in
different directions, with the result that it is almost impossible for
the shepherd to prevent their becoming separated. In cattle the disease
appears to be rare, although symptoms, so far as observed, are
essentially the same as those in sheep and horses. Occasionally locoed
cattle manifest dangerous symptoms, and attack men and other animals.
In chronic cases of loco the animal gradually becomes more emaciated and
crazy. In sheep the fleece may be shed in patches or as a whole. The
animal becomes unable to care for itself, and is apt to fall into the
water while attempting to drink. Fits of trembling are of frequent
occurrence, and the animal finally dies of inadequate nutrition and
total exhaustion. In chronic cases of loco disease in horses the animal
is usually left to its own resources on the range. During the later
stages it may remain for weeks at a time upon a small area of ground
without taking water. Dr. Wilcox saw a number of such cases in horses
that were almost unable to walk. Under such circumstances the animals
seldom or never lie down. One horse which was seen remained for a period
of two weeks, in 1897, upon a piece of ground about 150 feet square.
During this time the horse had no water.
Numerous autopsies on locoed sheep and horses revealed slight congestion
of the brain membranes in all cases. The lungs and heart were in normal
condition. Fatty tissue was considerably reduced in quantity, and the
muscles were paler in colour than under normal conditions.
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