Chapter 62

_Treatment._--Medicinal treatment for tapeworms in cattle is usually unsatisfactory, but the bluestone treatment used for stomach worms and mentioned above (p. 522) sometimes expels tapeworms. Arsenic in doses of 1-1/2 to 3 grains has been claimed to give good results in the treatment of calves for tapeworms. From results obtained at the Oklahoma Experiment Station in the treatment of tapeworms of sheep it would appear that the efficacy of the bluestone treatment against these parasites may be increased by the addition of tobacco. For use on cattle the bluestone and tobacco mixture may be prepared as follows: 13 ounces of snuff or powdered tobacco is soaked over night in about 8 gallons of water. To this decoction is added 1 pound of copper sulphate which has been dissolved in 2 or 3 quarts of boiling water. Sufficient water is then added to the mixture to make a total of 9-1/2 gallons. The doses of this solution are the same as for the simple copper sulphate solution, described on page 522, namely:

Calves 3-1/2 to 4 fluid ounces. Yearlings 6 fluid ounces. Two-year-olds and over 12 to 16 fluid ounces.

ROUNDWORMS.

A large roundworm (_Ascaris vitulorum_) measuring 6 to 12 inches in length, sometimes found in the intestines of cattle, especially calves, may cause inflammation and occasionally rupture of the intestine. Infection occurs through the swallowing of the eggs of the parasite in feed or water which has been contaminated with the feces of infested cattle.

A number of species of small roundworms, varying in size from an eighth of an inch to an inch or more in length, occur in the intestines. Of these may be mentioned the hookworm (_Bunostomum phlebotomum_) and the nodular worm (_[OE]sophagostomum radiatum_). The former is about an inch long and is found in the small intestine. The latter is somewhat smaller and is found in the cecum and large intestine. Hookworms, when numerous, may cause anemia and other symptoms similar to those caused by stomach worms (see p. 519). The injury to the mucous lining of the intestine from the bites of hookworms may cause severe inflammation, and affords an avenue of infection with the germs of various diseases. The adult nodular worms apparently do not attack the wall of the intestine, but derive their nourishment from the intestinal contents. Several species of small, very slender roundworms (_Trichostrongylus_), less than a quarter of an inch in length, sometimes occur in the small intestine and fourth stomach, and a severe gastroenteritis, or inflammation of the stomach and intestines, has been attributed to them. One species of small roundworm (_Cooperia punctata_) burrows in the wall of the small intestine and causes caseous nodules in the mucous lining. This parasite sometimes occurs in very large numbers in the intestines of cattle in certain sections of the country, and apparently does considerable damage.

_Nodular disease_ of the intestine, due to young nodular worms which burrow in the intestinal wall during a certain stage in their life history, sometimes apparently produces serious effects, particularly in young cattle, but commonly has little or no perceptible influence on the general health. It, however, often renders the intestine unfit for use as sausage casings, and as it is widely prevalent among cattle the loss from this source is considerable. The greenish or yellowish nodules with cheesy contents are frequently mistaken by the inexperienced for lesions of tuberculosis.

The life histories of the various small roundworms occurring in the intestines of cattle, so far as they have been worked out, are very similar to that of the twisted stomach worm as described on page 519.

_Treatment for intestinal roundworms._--The preventive measures are similar to those recommended in the case of the twisted stomach worm (p. 521). Medical treatment is generally not very satisfactory. According to the Oklahoma Experiment Station, the addition of 1 per cent of tobacco to the bluestone solution used in the treatment of stomach worms in sheep is effective in the removal of hookworms. The bluestone and tobacco mixture described on page 524 may be of value in the treatment of hookworms in cattle. It is asserted by one author that 2 or 3 drams of rectified empyreumatic oil in a mucilaginous emulsion, followed the next morning with a purgative of 1 to 1-1/2 pounds of sulphate of soda, will expel the large roundworms (_Ascaris vitulorum_).

PROTOZOA.

A number of species of protozoa have been reported as parasites of the intestines of cattle. To one species has been attributed a serious disease of cattle in Switzerland known as red dysentery, but so far comparatively few cases of this disease have been recorded in America. It is probably more common than is generally supposed. Calves particularly seem most likely to be affected.

FLUKES IN LIVER AND LUNGS.

Two species of flukes occurring in the liver and lungs are known to affect cattle in the United States. These parasites are flat, leaf-like worms; one of them, the common liver fluke (_Fasciola hepatica_, fig. 19), is less than an inch in length, while the other, the large American fluke (_Fasciola magna_, fig. 20), is considerably larger when full grown. In their life history these flukes depend on snails as intermediate hosts. At a certain stage of development the young flukes leave the snails, become encysted on stalks of grass (fig. 21), or fall into drinking water, and finally may be swallowed by cattle. Stiles writes as follows:

Flukes may produce a serious, often fatal, disease, more especially in younger animals. The symptoms are somewhat similar to those produced by worms in the stomach. The first symptoms are generally overlooked, the disease not attracting attention until the appetite is diminished; rumination becomes irregular, the animals become hidebound, and the coat dull and staring. The staring coat is due to the contraction of the muscles of the hair follicles. The visible mucous membranes become pale, eyes become dull, there is running at the eyes, and the animal gradually becomes emaciated. As the disease advances the milk supply is lessened, fever appears, there is generally great thirst, but the appetite almost ceases; edematous swellings appear on the belly, breast, etc.; diarrhea at first alternates with constipation, but finally becomes continuous. The disease lasts from two to five months, when the most extreme cases succumb.

Most of the German cattle are said to be infested with liver flukes, but even when a large number are present the nourishment of the cattle is not disturbed. Thickening of the gall ducts, so that a so-called "Medusa'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 the cattle's health can be noticed, and so long as a portion of the liver tissue about twice the size of the fist remains intact, the nourishment of the animal may be comparatively good. It is rare that one sees a generalized edema in slaughtered cattle as a result of fluke invasion, and even in the heaviest infections of young cattle only emaciation is noticed.

_Treatment._--Medicinal treatment is unsatisfactory. The disease may be prevented to a considerable extent by giving animals plenty of salt, and by introducing carp, frogs, and toads into infected districts; these animals destroy the young stages of the parasite and feed upon the snails which serve as intermediate hosts.

The drainage of wet pastures and the avoidance of swampy lands for grazing purposes are important measures in the prevention of fluke diseases.

Railliet and others have recently recommended the application of lime to fluky pastures, having discovered that very weak solutions are destructive not only to fluke embryos but to snails. This application is to be made during the summer months at the rate of about 500 to 1,000 pounds of lime per acre. The same authors also recommend extract of male fern for the treatment of fluke disease. Moussu states that the average dose for cattle is 1 gram of the extract for each 10 kilograms of live weight; that is, 10 grams for a young animal weighing 100 kilograms (about 220 pounds) up to 50 grams as a maximum for large animals weighing 500 kilograms (about 1,100 pounds) or more. The extract is mixed with about 5 times as much non-purgative oil and the dose is administered each morning for five consecutive days two hours before the animal is allowed to feed after having been fasted over night. The extract of male fern used should have a guaranteed strength of 22 to 25 per cent of filicine and 3.5 per cent of filicic acid.

TAPEWORM CYSTS OF LIVER AND OTHER VISCERA.

Three kinds of tapeworm cysts are found in the viscera of cattle. One of these (_Multiceps multiceps_, or _C[oe]nurus cerebralis_) will be further referred to in the discussion of gid (p. 528). All these are the intermediate stages of tapeworms, which live when mature in the intestines of dogs, wolves, and other canines. The eggs of the tapeworms are scattered over the fields in the droppings of infested dogs or wolves, and when swallowed in food or water by cattle hatch out and the embryos migrate to the liver, mesentery, lungs, brain, or other organs, where they develop into cysts, variously known as hydatids, bladder worms, water balls, etc. When organs of cattle thus infested are eaten by dogs or wolves the cystic worms are also liable to be swallowed and then develop into mature tapeworms. To prevent cattle from infection with these parasites stray dogs, wolves, and coyotes should be killed wherever found, and dogs too valuable to kill should be kept free from tapeworms. As a precaution against infection with tapeworms, the viscera of cattle, sheep, or hogs should not be fed to dogs unless cooked.

HYDATIDS (_Echinococcus granulosus_) form tumors (fig. 22) of varying size (sometimes as large as 6 inches in diameter) in the liver, lungs, and other organs. Their contents are liquid, resembling water. The presence of these parasites can not be detected in the living animal and there is no medicinal treatment for them. Organs containing hydatids should be destroyed by burning in order to prevent their being eaten by dogs. This is especially important, as dogs infested with the tapeworm stage of this parasite are a menace to human beings on account of the danger of infecting them with hydatids, which develop in man if the eggs of the hydatid tapeworm are swallowed.

THIN-NECKED BLADDER WORMS (_TÊnia hydatigena_, fig. 23) are most commonly found attached to the mesentery and omentum. There is no medicinal treatment.

GID.--Bladder worms (_Multiceps multiceps_, or _C[oe]nurus cerebralis_), which are occasionally found in the brain of cattle and cause gid, "turnsick," or "staggers," deserve mention, as they are rather common among sheep in the Northwest. As already alluded to, these worms are the intermediate stage of a tapeworm found in dogs, and their life history and the means of preventing infection have been briefly discussed above (see p. 527).

Cattle harboring this parasite show symptoms indicating an affection of the brain, walking or turning in circles, dizziness, uneven gait, impaired vision, etc.

Treatment consists in trephining the skull and removing the parasite, an operation which requires a skillful operator and is frequently unsuccessful. Unless the parasite is removed affected cattle almost invariably die.

TAPEWORM CYSTS IN THE MUSCLES, BEEF MEASLES.[19]

Small tapeworm cysts (_TÊnia saginatÊ_), about the size of a pea, found in the muscles of cattle are the larvÊ of the common tapeworm of man. Cattle become infected from feed or water which has been contaminated by the feces of persons harboring the adult tapeworms, and human beings in turn become infected by eating raw or rare beef infested with the larval stage (measly beef).

To prevent cattle from becoming infested with this parasite care should be taken that human feces are not placed where they will contaminate the feed or drinking water.

This parasite is very common in cattle in the United States, at least 1 per cent being infested. As a result considerable loss is entailed through condemnations of beef carcasses by meat inspectors, because of the presence of tapeworm cysts. All this loss could be avoided and the danger of tapeworm infestation in human beings from this source could be removed by the observance of proper precautions in disposing of human excreta. At the same time much sickness and many deaths from diseases (hookworm, typhoid fever, etc.) caused by soil pollution would be prevented, and farm life would be rendered much safer than under the poor sanitary conditions which are responsible for the high percentage of tapeworm cysts among cattle in the United States.

THREAD WORMS IN THE ABDOMINAL CAVITY.

Thread worms (_Setaria labiato-papillosa_) 2 to 4 inches long are frequently found in the abdominal cavity. They seem to cause little or no trouble. The embryos produced by these worms enter the blood vessels. According to NoÈ, they are spread from one animal to another by stable flies (see p. 503), but this has not been definitely proved. The roundworms found occasionally in the anterior chamber of the eye (see p. 531) are perhaps immature forms of this species which have reached this location during their migration.

LUNG WORMS.

Lung worms (_Dictyocaulus viviparus_, fig. 24) in cattle are thread-like worms 2 to 4 inches long, found in the bronchial tubes and producing a condition known as verminous bronchitis. The life history of the parasite is not fully known, but infection is evidently derived through the medium of pastures where infested cattle have grazed. In the later stages of the disease the cattle cough, especially at night. Young cattle are more seriously affected than old animals.

_Treatment for lung worms._--Various treatments have been advocated for lung worms, including fumigating with different substances and injections of remedies into the trachea by means of a large hypodermic syringe or by a special spraying apparatus, but none have been very successful from a practical standpoint. About all that can be done is to feed affected animals well and protect them from exposure, removing them from the pasture and keeping them in dry yards or stables maintained in a cleanly, sanitary condition.

The methods of prevention in general are similar to those described under the discussion of the twisted stomach worm (p. 521).

PARASITES OF THE BLOOD.

Certain flukes (_Schistosoma bovis_ and related species) which live in the blood vessels (the large veins) of cattle in tropical and sub-tropical countries cause bloody urine and diarrhea, the feces being mixed with blood. These parasites have not yet been discovered in the United States, although the natural conditions are such in some parts of the country that they are liable to become established if introduced.

The embryos of _Setaria labiato-papillosa_ (p. 529) which occur in the blood may be found by microscopical examination. They apparently cause no trouble.

The organism which causes Texas fever is a protozoan parasite (_Piroplasma bigeminum_) of microscopic size, which lives in the blood and attacks the red blood corpuscles. For a discussion of this parasite and the disease which it produces see page 476 of this volume.

Other parasites which live in the blood cause serious diseases known as surra and nagana (p. 500), but as yet neither of these diseases has gained a foothold in the United States.

PARASITES OF THE EYE.

Small roundworms, one-third to four-fifths of an inch in length, may occur in the ducts of the lacrimal glands. Several species all belonging to the same genus (_Thelazia_) are known. They sometimes escape from their usual location and may be found on the surface of the eyeball beneath the lids, or even in the eyeball. It has been supposed by some writers that the worms seen in the interior of the eyeball ("snakes in the eye") are immature stages of _Setaria labiato-papilosa_ (see p. 529) which have gone astray from the normal course of their migration, but the correctness of this supposition is uncertain.

Worms in the eyes and lacrimal ducts may cause inflammation, in which case the eyes may be syringed with an antiseptic, such as a weak solution of coal-tar stock dip, and iodoform ointment applied if the condition is severe.

When worms are present in the eyeball itself, their removal depends upon surgical treatment, usually not advisable, as the worms in that location either cause but little trouble or disappear without treatment.

FOOTNOTES:

[11] Further information may be found in a very full report on "Insects Affecting Domestic Animals," issued as Bulletin 5, new series, of the Bureau of Entomology of this department.

[12] Further information on fly repellents may be found in Bulletin 131 of the Department of Agriculture.

[13] For further information consult Farmers' Bulletin 1097.

[14] For further information consult Circular 115 of the Bureau of Entomology.

[15] For further information consult Farmers' Bulletin 857.

[16] For further information see Farmers' Bulletin 909.

[17] For a fuller discussion see Farmers' Bulletin 1017, issued by the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

[18] For a more complete discussion consult Farmers' Bulletin 1057, Bulletins 130 and 152 of the Bureau of Animal Industry, and Bulletins 15 (technical series), 72, and 106 of the Bureau of Entomology, all issued by the United States Department of Agriculture.

[19] For further information consult Bureau of Animal Industry Circular 214.

MYCOTIC STOMATITIS OF CATTLE.

By JOHN R. MOHLER, V. M. D.,

_Chief, Bureau of Animal Industry._

INTRODUCTION.

Numerous letters have been received by this bureau in recent years relative to the existence of a disease affecting the mouths and feet of cattle in certain Eastern and Central Western States. Later reports indicate that the malady has made its appearance in the Southwest, where it has caused much alarm among the stockmen owing to its similarity to the foot-and-mouth disease of Europe. The disease, which is to be discussed under the name of mycotic stomatitis, has been carefully investigated by this department on various occasions, and it is with the view of giving the results of these clinical investigations as well as to assert its noninfectiousness and to differentiate it from the virulent foot-and-mouth disease, which it so closely simulates, that this article is prepared.

NAME AND SYNONYMS.

The name stomatitis signifies that there is present in the affected animals an inflammation of the mucous membrane of the mouth. This inflammation, which quickly develops into ulcers, is one of the principal and most frequently observed lesions. Mycotic stomatitis refers to that form of stomatitis which results from eating food containing irritant fungi. Thus the name not only suggests the cause of the disease, but also indicates the location of the earliest and most prominent symptoms. Other names which have been applied to this disease by different writers are sporadic aphthÊ; aphthous stomatitis; sore mouth of cattle; sore tongue; benign, simple, or noninfectious foot-and-mouth disease; mycotic aphthous stomatitis; and sporadic stomatitis aphthosa.

CHARACTER OF THE DISEASE.

Mycotic stomatitis is a sporadic, or noninfectious, disease which affects cattle of all ages that are on pasture, but more especially milch cows. It is characterized by inflammation and ulceration of the mucous membrane of the mouth, producing salivation and inappetence, and secondarily affecting the feet, which become sore and swollen. Superficial erosions of the skin, particularly of the muzzle and of the teats and udders of cows, may also be present, with some elevation of temperature and emaciation.

CAUSE.

This disease, as its name indicates, results from the eating of forage containing fungi or molds. It is probable that more than one fungus is involved in the production of this disease, but no particular species has been definitely proved to be the causative factor. Several attempts have been made by the writer to determine the exact cause and also to transmit the disease to other animals by direct inoculation, but with negative results. Suspicion, however, has been directed by various observers to the Uromyces and the red and black rusts that occur on clovers. These fungi cause very severe irritation of the lining membrane of the mouth, producing sometimes a catarrhal, at other times an aphthous, and occasionally an ulcerous stomatitis. The fungus of rape, etc. (_Polydesmus excitiosus_), is very irritating to the mouths and feet of cattle, causing severe inflammation and in some instances producing symptoms that have been mistaken for foot-and-mouth disease. The fungi (Penicillium and Puccinia) found on grasses have also been credited with the production of stomatitis. The fact that this disease disappears from a locality at a certain time and reappears at irregular intervals would suggest the probability that certain climatic conditions were essential for the propagation of the causative fungi, since it is well known that the malady becomes prevalent after a hot, dry period has been followed by rain, thus furnishing the requirements necessary for the luxuriant development of molds and fungi. Owing to this fact the disease is observed in one locality during one season and in an entirely different section another year, but reappears in the former center when favorable conditions prevail. In this way the affection has occurred at irregular intervals in certain sections of both the United States and Canada.

SYMPTOMS AND LESIONS.