therefore these results provide further evidence of the presence caprae can cause significant reduction in fibre quality

t reduction in fibre quality (King

of benzimidazole resistant nematode populations on the 2
farms.
Resistince of cyathostomes to benzimidazole anthelmintics
was first reported in Australia by Barger and Lyle (1979)
and subsequently was shown (Kelly ef a / 1981) to occur
widely in New South Wales and Victoria. The findings
reported here provide further evidence of benzimidazole
tolerant cyathostomes in New South Wales and confirm that
ivermectin is highly effective against these strains. In these
trials both ivermectin and mebendazole totally removed patent
infections of S. vulgaris, S . edentatus and T . asei.
References
Arundel, J . H . (1978) - Parasitic Diseases of rhe Horse, Postgrad.
Ctee V e t . Scl. Univ. Sydney, Rebiew N o 18
Barger, I . A . and Lisle, K . A . (1979) - Ausr. ref. J . 55: 594.
Bello, T. R . , Norfleet. C. M . and Carol. M . (1981) - J . equine
Vet. Sci. 1: 14.
Campbell. W . C . (1981) - N.Z. vei. J . 29: 174.
Egerton. J . R . , B i r n b a u m . J . , Blair, 1.S . , Chabala, J . C . , Conroy,
J . , Fisher, % HI. ., Mrorik, H., Ostlind, D . A . , Wilkins. C. A.
and Campbell, W . C . (1980) - Br. vet. J . 136: 88.
Egerton, J . R . , Brokken, E . S . , Suhayda, D., Eary, C . H . , Wooden,
J . W . and Kilgore, R . L . (1981) - Vet. Parasit. 8: 83.
Hotson, I . K . (1982) - J . S. A f r . b e [ . Ass. 52: 348.
Kelly, J . D . , Webster, 1 . H . , Griffin, D . L., Whitlock, H . V . ,
Martin, I . C. A . and Gunawan, M . (1981) - A u s r . vef. J . 7:
163.
Roberts, F . H . S. and O’Sulllvan, P. J . (1950) - Ausr. J . agric.
Res. I : 99.
Slocombe, J . 0. D . and McCraw, B . X I . (1981) - Am. J . Let. Res.
42: 1050.
Whitlock, H. V . , Kelly, J . D . , Porter, C. J . , Griffin, D. L . and
Martin I. C . A . (1980) - Vet. Parasit. 7: 215.
(Accepted for publication I5 February 1985)
Transmission of Damalinia ovis and Damalinia
caprae between sheep and goats
Victorian Department of Agriculture, G . J . HALLAM
Division of Veterinary Field Services,
Box 421,
Horsham, Victoria 3400
Goat numbers have increased markedly in recent years,
largely in sheep areas and joint grazing is common.
Shecp and goats are host to Damalinia species ( D . ovis
and D . caprae respecLively), which are considered to be
specific for that host (Blood et a / 1979). Infestations with
D . ovis can lower fleece quality (Kettle and Pearce 1984;
Wilkinson 1977) and similarly, infestations of goats with D.
1980).
This trial was conducted to determine if D . ovis could be
transmitted to goats and if D. caprae could be transmitted
to sheep, and if the lice could reproduce o n the aberrant
host. The work was carried o u t at Longerenong Agricultural
College in Western Victoria from October 1978 to February
1979.
All animals were housed under cover in concrete-floored
pens. Corriedale sheep with approximately 25 mm of wool
and Angora-cross goats with approximately 35 mm of hair
were used. Each animal was individually identified and
allocated to groups A or B . G r o u p A consisted of 2 goats
infested with moderate numbers of D. caprae, 2 goats free
of lice (control goats) and 2 sheep free of lice. Group B
consisted of 2 sheep infested with moderate numbers of D .
ovis, 2 sheep free of lice (control sheep) and 2 goats free of
lice.
O n 10 October 1978, each group was placed in a 3 m x 3
m pen. The pens were well separated to prevent cross-
infestation.
Commencing 2 weeks after penning, each of the 4 originally
non-infested animals in both groups was scored for lice by
the method of Kettle and Pearce (1974) a t weekly intervals.
Scoring involved a single parting of the wool or hair a t 13
sites o n each side of each animal. A score of one was
recorded a t each site when lice were seen and a score of 0
was recorded when no lice were seen. The score for each
animal was the sum of all 26 sites, giving a range of 0 to
26. D . ovis and D. caprae appear very similar t o the naked
eye and without microscopic examination it is difficult to
differentiate them. In the absence of a comprehensive
reference of classification of these 2 species of lice, identi-
fication was made in conjunction with the Regional Veterinary
Laboratory, Hamilton, Victoria. There are obvious differ-
ences in the shape and markings of the abdomen and in the
length and thickness of the antennae. The lateral abdominal
markings of the dorsal surface of D. caprae are darker and
broader than those on D. ovis, and D. caprae is broader in
proportion to its length than D. ovis.
The results are presented in Table 1. I n group A, trans-
mission did not occur from the infested goats to the non-
infested sheep, and observations on this group were con-
cluded. The control goats did become infested. In group B,
D. ovis were present o n both the control sheep and the goats
after 14 days contact. T h e louse scores on both the sheep
and goats increased to a peak a t week 8. After this time,
each of the 4 initially non-infested animals was individually
penned for a further 7 weeks to study the persistence of the
lice that had been transferred. There was a slight decrease
in the number of D. ovis on the sheep and a more marked
decrease of this species o n the goats. This corresponded to
an increase in the average daily temperature. After week 13,
the D. ovis infestations on the goats stabilised.

TABLE 1
Scores’ for lice on originally non-infested animals after contact with infested animals
Animal W e e k s after contact
identification 0 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15

Group A t
Goat 1 0 0 0 1 2 5 5 3
Goat 2 0 3 5 5 5 5 9 10
Sheep 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Sheep 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Group B#
Goat 1 0 0 0 3 1 10 18 17 9 7 9 6 8 6 8
Goat 2 0 4 2 5 0 2 8 16 9 11 0 6 4 4 8
Sheep 1 0 22 22 23 23 23 23 23 25 22 21 17 19 22 13
Sheep 2 0 17 20 22 21 23 23 22 22 18 19 20 16 18 13

A t each inspection every animal was scored 0 for absence and 1 for presence of lice at 26 sites giving a range of 0 to 26 for
each animal.
t Group A animals w e r e exposed to D. caprae infestation.
+ Group B animals were exposed to D. ovis infestation.
Infested animals were introduced at week 0 and removed at week 2.
All four animals in group B were individually penned at week 8.

344 Ausfralian Vrferinai-yJournal, Vol. 62, No. 10, October, 1985

 D. ovis were considered to be reproducing on the goats,
because many young nymphs were observed on the goats,
49 days after they were isolated from the sheep. The life
cycle of D. ovis is approximately 35 days comprising 10 days
for egg development, 20 days for nymphal development and
five days pre-oviposition periods for females (Murray and
Gordon 1968). Some of the nymphs observed were just
visible to the naked eye and therefore only a few days old.
Because these animals were so closely confined for the
entire trial, it could be expected that the transmission of lice
between animals would be more rapid than under field
conditions. Furthermore, goats have a habit of not freely
mixing with sheep in the field and this could further reduce
the rate of transmission between these 2 species.
D. ovis naturally transferred from sheep to goats and
reproduced o n the goats in this trial. This occurred despite
excessive humidity, due to penning and summer temperatures,
which can reduce lice numbers (Scott 1952; Murray 1963,
1968; Murray and Gordon 1968). D. caprae did not transfer
from goats to sheep.
Goats must be considered as a possible source of reinfes-
tation of sheep, and where goats and sheep graze in close
proximity, programs t o control D. ovis need to include both
species. Where legislation involves sheep lice, authorities
need to consider the role of goats as a reservoir of D. ovis.
I wish to thank G . Ault f o r his assistance and Longerenong
Agricultural College for the use of its facilities.
References
Blood, D. C., Henderson, J . A. and Radostitis, 0. M . (1979)-
Veterinary Medicine, 5th edition, Bailliere, London.
Kettle, P . R. and Pearce, D. M. (1974)- N.Z. J. Exp. Agric. 2:
219.
King, N. 9 . (1980)-External parasites in Goats, Proc. No. 52, Post-
Grad. Found. vet. Sci., Univ. Sydney, p . 215.
Murray, M . D. (1963)-Aust. J . Zool. 11: 173.
Murray, M. D. (1968)-Aust. J. Zool. 16: 725.
Murray, M. D. and Gordon, G . (1968)-Ausr. J . Zool. 17: 179.
Scott, M . T. S . (1952)-Ausr. J. agric. Res. 3: 60.
Wilkinson, F. C. (1977)-Proc. 54th A n n . Conf. Aust. vet. Ass.
1977.
(Accepted for publication 8 M a y 1985)
Isolation of equine herpesvirus 1 from the brain
of a horse affected with paresis
Department of Agriculture, C. .. CARROLL
176 Wellington Parade,
Melbourne, Victoria 3000
Department of Agriculture, H . A WESTBURY
“Attwood” Veterinary Research Laboratory,
Mickleham Road,
Westmeadows 3047
In recent years there have been numerous reports from
North America and Europe which have implicated equine
herpesvirus 1 (EHVI) infection as a cause of ataxia, paresis
and paraplegia in horses. Isolation of virus from the central
nervous system of affected horses has rarely been made, but
has been described by Little and Thorsen (1976) and Thein
(1981).
In Australia infection of horses with E H V l is commonly
associated with respiratory disease but sporadic episodes of
abortion due to E H V l have been reported in New South
Wales (Sabine et a / 1982) and Victoria (Westbury et a/ 1978).
During 1981 and 1982 we investigated sporadic cases of
clinical disease suggestive of central nervous system disease
caused by E H V l but failed to detect any significant change
in the serum antibody titres to EHV 1.
In September 1982 E H V l virus was isolated in Victoria
from the brain of a Standardbred gelding affected with
Auatralian Velerinary Journal, Vol. 6 2 , No. 10, October, 1985
paresis and paralysis. The isolation of EHV-1 virus from a
foetus aborted at the same day by a Standardbred mare on
the same farm is also recorded.
The cases occurred on a farm in central western Victoria.
The horse affected with paresis was a 3-year-old Standardbred
gelding, and was introduced to an area of stables and yards
in close proximity to other horses some 2 weeks prior to
death, to be broken for training. About 7 days prior to
death the horse had been observed to be tense and sensitive
about the head. Three days later a mucopurulent nasal
discharge was observed. The owner commenced to treat the
horse the next day with sulphaphenazole.
Forty-eight hours prior to death the horse showed signs
of posterior paresis and ataxia, but could stand readily with
assistance. Within 24 h its condition had deteriorated to the
extent that, after minimal movement, the horse would buckle
a t the carpus then fall into lateral recumbency and pant. At
this time veterinary assistance was sought. The attending
practitioner observed a temperature of 38.5”C and normal
mucous membranes. Following stimulation the horse was
able to rise with assistance. Dexamethasone and tripelenna-
mine hydrochloride were administered. Some hours later the
condition of the horse was unchanged and tiger snake
antivenene, dexamethasone, pethidine and benzathinelpro-
caine penicillin were administered. Twenty-four hours later
the horse could be lifted only with great difficulty. It was
semi-comatose, with glazed eyes, and showed frequent trem-
bling.
In a matter of hours the horse became generally paralysed
in lateral recumbency and was killed with a small calibre
rifle. An autopsy conducted within one hour of death revealed
no evidence of trauma and no gross abnormalities were
observed. Samples of E D T A treated and clotted blood,
kidney, spleen, liver, adrenal, lung, heart, pharynx, brain
and lumbar spinal cord were collected for histology (fixed
immediately in 10% formalin) or virology (chilled on ice in
sterile containers). Tissues for virus isolation purposes were
stored overnight a t 4°C and processed next morning as
previously described (Westbury er a1 1978).
On the day the gelding was killed a foetus and placenta
aged approximately 240 days aborted by a Standardbred
mare on the farm were also transported in sealed containers
to the laboratory for examination. Serum was collected from
5 other horses on the farm on the same day.
Microscopic examination of sections prepared from spec-
imens from the gelding showed an acute bronchiolitis char-
acierised by neutrophil infiltration into and around small
bronchioles. This also extended into small areas of the lung
parenchyma, large bronchioles and bronchi. The liver was
moderately fatty. There was haemorrhage in the zona
glomerulosa of the adrenal gland. Numerous degenerating
neurones (or spheroids) were present in the medulla oblongata
at the approximate level of the lateral sureate nucleus and
the terminal part of the sacral spinal cord.
Specimens from the foetus subjected to histological ex-
amination showed focal necrosis in the thymus, mernbrane-
bound vacuoles in hepatocytes, and in the lung, infiltration
of the alveoli with neutrophils and large foamy multinucleate
giant cells. There was extensive pulmonary haeniorrhage and
air was present in the lungs.
Cytopathic changes and evidence of acidophilic intranuclear
inclusion bodies were seen in the second culture of tissue
cells inoculated with foetal lung and gelding brain suspen-
sions. Micro virus-serum neutralisation tests were used to
confirm the isolation of E H V l virus (Westbury er a1 1978).
Virus isolate3 from the gelding and the aborted foetus were
subsequently shown by restriction endonuclease DNA fin-
gerprints to be E H V I . By Bam HI and Hind I l l the isolates
were identical but were different using Bgl I , Pvu I and
Xho I (Studdert el a / 1984).
Serum samples were subjected to the serum neutralising
antibody test for E H V I . A sample from the gelding had a
titre of 1.4, whereas 5 other horses tested had titres varying
1:16-32 to 1:32-64.
345