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Solutions to Calculus for JEE

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(9.) Injury may, however, result to pregnant ewes, which must on
this account be carefully handled. Some farmers arrange a stage,
with sides, to hold the pregnant ewes, which is lowered carefully into
the vat, and raised after the proper time.
(10.) In case a patent or proprietary dip, especially an arsenical
dip, is used, the directions given on the package should be carried
out to the letter.

CHORIOPTIC MANGE, SYMBIOTIC MANGE, FOOT SCAB.

This disease was studied in Germany by Zürn in 1874, and by


Schleg in 1877. It has not yet been seen in France.
Causation. The sole cause is the presence of Chorioptes scabiei
(v. ovis). Contagion is favoured by the animals being in poor
condition. The disease extends very slowly. Only 2 to 3 per cent. of
the animals are affected, and the sufferers are usually those with fine
skins.
German shepherds consider this disease to be due to an excessive
allowance of salt, because it is most common during the winter,
when the sheep are housed. Needless to say, this theory is incorrect.
Symptoms. Sometimes this form of mange attacks the limbs and
develops very slowly. It commences about the pasterns, and
gradually extends upwards towards the knee or hock. It really
advances beyond these points. The parasites are much smaller than
those of common scab, and are often overlooked. The sheep stamp
their feet and scratch and bite the infected parts, sometimes
transferring the disease to the lips and face, where it may persist for
a time.
Fig. 262.—The left-hand figure shows the adult male parasite of chorioptic scabies
of the horse (the corresponding parasite of sheep is almost identical), ventral view.
The central figure shows the young female parasite of chorioptic scabies, ventral
view. The right-hand figure shows the adult female parasite of chorioptic scabies
with egg, ventral view. All × 100. (After Neumann.)

In very old standing cases which have been entirely neglected, it


may be met with in the region of the armpit and thigh, the limbs
becoming swollen so as to suggest lymphangitis. In the folds of the
hock and pastern the thickening of the skin may lead to the
formation of yellowish or brownish crusts, according to whether the
exudation is merely of a serous character or accompanied by
bleeding.
The diagnosis is easy. The parasites are found in the thickness of
the crusts, and are readily recognised under the microscope.
The prognosis is not grave, because of the comparative rarity of
the disease and its mildly contagious character. This disease,
moreover, never attacks the head or body, but remains localised in
the lower portions of the limbs.
Treatment. The crusts should be removed by washing or by
standing the animals for a time in warm water. Simple cleanliness
often suffices, but, to save time, some anti-parasitic may be used.
The condition is easily cured even without disinfecting the folds.
MANGE IN THE OX.

Bovine animals may be attacked by three varieties of mange, all of


which have long been known.

SARCOPTIC MANGE.

This is not of any great clinical importance, as it is purely


accidental, and only results from the conveyance of sarcoptes from
other animals, such as the horse, sheep, dog, goat or cat, to an animal
of the bovine species. That the disease does occur, however, is shown
by the following excerpt from a report by Professor McFadyean: The
animal showed no symptom of skin disease at the time of purchase,
but soon after it was brought home it was noticed to be rubbing, and
the skin began to assume an unhealthy appearance. When seen in
January (four months after purchase) it was rather poor, although it
had been in very good condition when sold. Almost the entire skin
had become affected, including that of the legs down to the top of the
hoofs. There had been extensive loss of hair, and the skin was thick,
grey, wrinkled, and dry. At some places it had become thrown into
thick folds. Only a few scabs or crusts had formed where the animal
had recently rubbed itself. In some scurf scraped from what seemed
to be the parts most recently invaded, numbers of acari were without
much difficulty found with the microscope.
A good many cases of mange of undetermined character have been
reported as occurring among cattle in various parts of England
during the last year or two, and in a number of instances the disease
was believed to have been contracted during exhibition at a show. It
is not improbable that some or all of these were cases of this
sarcoptic mange, and in view of its very contagious character it is
desirable that care should be taken to exclude from shows animals
exhibiting any symptom of the disease.

PSOROPTIC MANGE.

This condition has also been termed dermatodectic mange. This is


very rare, and, like the former, of trifling clinical importance.
Causation. It is due to infection with Psoroptes communis (v.
bovis). Poor condition, want of grooming, bad hygienic surroundings
and general neglect, facilitate its spread.
Symptoms. It commences at the base of the neck, in rarer cases
at the sides of the neck, along the withers, and at the root of the tail;
thence it gradually attacks the croup, loins, back, shoulders, sides of
the chest, and finally all the body with the exception of the limbs.
It produces violent itching, the animal continually scratching itself,
even causing raw sores. At first the epidermis is elevated in little
miliary points, which may be isolated or confluent, and are filled
with serosity. This fluid discharges, gluing together the hairs; it then
hardens and produces adherent crusts, which increase in number
and size. The skin exhibits large numbers of bare, mangy points;
these have irregular margins, and are covered with thick, grey, scaly
crusts. The psoroptes are found under these crusts.
The skin becomes hard, dry, fissured and cracked, and sometimes
forms large folds on the sides of the neck, shoulders and chest.
The influence of the seasons on the development of this disease
has been well shown by Gerlach and Muller. The disease commences
about the end of autumn, when the animals are stabled. It continues
to extend until February, but diminishes as soon as the animals
return to the fields in spring. The crusts fall, the hair again grows,
and the animal appears to be cured, but the disease again revives
during the autumn. The psoroptes lie hidden during the summer
round the poll and the horns. The disease seldom attacks animals at
grass and in good condition, or those over three years old. Calves,
yearlings, and two-year-olds in poor condition suffer most.
When the disease is very extensive, the animals lose condition and
may even die.
Diagnosis. Psoroptic mange in the ox may be mistaken for
several cutaneous diseases, to which it has a certain resemblance, as
for instance phthiriasis and the first stage of ringworm.
These different diseases, however, show their own distinctive
symptoms on a careful examination.
The prognosis only becomes grave when the disease has been
neglected and the animals are greatly reduced in condition. When
recent, this form of mange can readily be cured by the application of
parasiticides.
Treatment. As in dealing with all transmissible diseases, the
animals must be isolated and washed with soap, and the diseased
parts must be dressed with some parasiticide, such as sulphur
ointment. The best preparations are: Benzine and petroleum in equal
quantities; concentrated solution of sulphuret of potassium (8
ounces to the quart); Helmerich’s ointment; diluted creolin solution;
decoctions of tobacco; ointment of pentasulphuret of potassium, and
oil of cevadilla.
One or two applications are generally sufficient to effect a cure,
and relapses are not likely to take place if the stable is disinfected. In
America the disease is common in the West and North-West, where
it is treated by the lime-and-sulphur bath recommended for sheep
scab (which see). Large vats are constructed, and the oxen are
lowered into these by means of a wooden cage controlled by
machinery, which is operated either by a small engine or more
frequently by a horse.
The food should be of good quality, for good general health plays a
great part in resisting parasitic invasions.

CHORIOPTIC MANGE.

This disease has also been termed dermatophagic and symbiotic


mange.
It was first described in 1835 by Kégélaar, and has been the subject
of investigation by Hering, Gerlach, Delafond, and Mégnin.
Causation. It is produced by the Chorioptes bovis, and is
transferred with difficulty, even by cohabitation.
Symptoms. This form of mange in the ox does not affect the
same parts as in other animals. In the horse, etc., it attacks the limbs,
whilst in the bovine species it is usually found at the base of the tail.
It causes slight itching. The diseased region becomes covered with
numerous little pellicles, the hairs gradually fall, crusts form, and the
skin shows deep cracks. When the disease is completely neglected, it
may extend to the loins, back, sides of the body and shoulders. It
may also affect the perineal region, the inner surface of the thighs,
and in fact the whole of the body if the animals are young and in poor
condition.
Diagnosis. At the outset it is difficult to distinguish between
chorioptic and psoroptic mange, and the use of the microscope is
necessary. On a superficial examination chorioptic mange may be
mistaken for phthiriasis when the latter attacks the posterior
portions of the body, particularly the base of the tail, and when it is
accompanied by eruptions, loss of hair, and intense itching.
The distinction between the two conditions, however, is extremely
easy after an examination of the two parasites.
Prognosis. The disease is of slight gravity, and does not threaten
the animal’s health unless neglected for so long a time that the
parasites invade all parts of the body. In that case the disease may
cause anæmia and loss of condition.
The treatment of this form of mange comprises nothing special,
it being sufficient to proceed as directed in the previous article.
The stables ought always to be thoroughly disinfected.

MANGE IN THE GOAT.

The goat suffers from the attacks of sarcoptes, psoroptes, and


chorioptes, but up to the present time only two forms of mange have
been described, sarcoptic and chorioptic mange.
Psoroptes have only been found about the eye, where the
disturbance they produce is comparatively trifling.

SARCOPTIC MANGE.

This disease was noticed in 1818 in goats imported into France


from Thibet.
Henderson published the history of a Persian goat which conveyed
sarcoptic mange to men and horses. In 1851 Walraff noticed an
epizootic mange which attacked the goats in the Prattigau valley of
Switzerland, which was transmitted to men and sheep and which
exhibited the clinical characters of sarcoptic mange.
Causation. This disease is due to the presence of Sarcoptes
scabiei (v. capræ).
It sometimes occurs in an epizootic form, as Walraff’s observations
show, but it seems specially to attack goats in Asia and Africa.
This mange may be transmitted by the goat to sheep, in which
animals it attacks the head and muzzle; it is particularly contagious
in sheep having coarse, dry fleeces.
Similarly sarcoptic mange of sheep may be conveyed to the goat, in
which animal it extends all over the body.
Symptoms. This mange causes intense itching. It first attacks the
head and ears, then the trunk, belly, udder, and limbs. If the disease
is neglected it becomes generalised very rapidly, and the animals
waste away and die in a very short time.
At the commencement little crusts, which discharge a viscous
liquid, are found about the head. The goats rub themselves raw, and,
as in facial mange of sheep, there appear dry, scaly, branlike patches.
After a time the diseased area extends, the wool falls, and the skin
becomes dry, thick and wrinkled. The appearance is exactly like that
of sarcoptic mange in sheep, the lower part of the head being seldom
invaded. The animals lose condition, waste and die of exhaustion.
Diagnosis. The parasite is readily recognised, and the
practitioner, moreover, is often put on his guard by the epizootic
character assumed by the disease.
The prognosis is grave. Walraff declared the mortality in Grisons
(Switzerland) to be as high as 20 per cent.
The treatment is identical with that of psoroptic mange in sheep.
After the animals have been sheared and washed with soap, they
should be completely immersed in a bath of the character mentioned
in connection with sheep scab. If only one animal is infected, it may
be sufficient to dress it repeatedly with an ointment containing some
parasiticide.

CHORIOPTIC MANGE.

This form of mange was noted by Delafond in 1854 at the Jardin


des Plantes (Paris) in some angora goats, and by Mollereau in 1889.
The disease studied by Delafond had invaded both sides of the neck,
the eyes, withers, back, loins, and base of the tail. It was
characterised by partial loss of hair, the finer hair falling and the
coarser remaining in position.
In Mollereau’s case the disease was located in one of the hind
pasterns, and assumed the form of a thickened band, which
produced an œdematous swelling. The chorioptes were discovered in
a thick crust formed by the drying on the hair of the discharge due to
their punctures.
Diagnosis. The parasites can easily be found under the crusts,
and, once recognised, distinguish the disease from any other
infection.
Treatment. Ointments containing some parasiticide and
solutions of sulphuret of potassium generally suffice, the disease
having little tendency to become generalised.

MANGE IN THE PIG.

The pig suffers from one variety only of mange. It was described by
Viborg, Gürlt and Spinola, who found a sarcopt in the mange of wild
boars in 1847. Hertwig and Gerlach made a similar observation some
years later. Delafond in 1857 discovered the sarcopt of mange in the
pig.
Causation. Sarcoptic mange in the pig is due to the presence of
Sarcoptes scabiei (v. suis), although the pig may contract
(temporarily) the sarcoptic mange of goats.
Contagion is favoured by poor condition, over-crowding, dirt and
bad hygienic surroundings.
The primitive races of pigs resist the disease better than the
improved races. This mange can be conveyed to man and to other
animals.
Symptoms. It usually commences about the head, ears, and eyes,
and extends to the quarters, internal surface of the thighs, etc. In the
early phases it is impossible to discover the little galleries under the
epidermis, but closely placed reddish papules may be seen. The
active proliferation of the epidermis, together with discharge, causes
the formation of dry crusts of a greyish-white, silvery tint, adherent
while still thin, easy to detach at a later stage, and sometimes ⅜ of
an inch in thickness. The skin becomes wrinkled, the bristles are
shed or loosened in their follicles, and are glued together in little
bunches before falling. As these patches extend over the whole
surface of the body, the animal appears to be bespattered with dry
guano (Muller).
Under the crusts the skin is rough, excoriated, and, about the
thorax and abdomen, is indurated, and sometimes measures 1 to 1½
inches in thickness. In other parts, particularly at the base of the
ears, the papillæ are hypertrophied; they become as large as a pea, or
even a bean, and, lifting the crusts which cover them, assume the
appearance of the warts sometimes found on the cheeks of dogs or
the teats of cows. Sarcoptes may be found under these epidermic
growths, though in order to obtain them the skin must be scraped
until it almost bleeds.
The dimensions of these parasites render them visible to the naked
eye. They are the largest variety of the sarcoptinæ, the egg-bearing
female being half a millimètre in length. Guzzoni has found in the
ears specimens of smaller size.
Mange in pigs develops slowly. When it affects the whole body, it
prevents fattening and causes loss of condition.
Diagnosis. This is the only parasitic disease which affects the
entire surface of the body and presents these peculiar powdery
crusts.
Treatment. All the styes should first be carefully disinfected.
Treatment is commenced by vigorously scrubbing the animal with a
brush dipped in soap and water, and thus getting rid of the crusts as
far as possible.
The animals are afterwards dressed with decoctions of tobacco,
with Helmerich’s ointment, or the other mixtures above mentioned.

DEMODECIC MANGE.

This mange is produced by parasites of the family Demodecidæ


(Demodex folliculorum), which live in the hair follicles and
sebaceous glands of several species of mammals.

DEMODECIC MANGE IN THE OX.

This was described in 1845 by Gros, and in 1878 was found by


Faxon in Illinois in the skins of cows prepared for tanning. It has not
been met with in France. The skins examined by Faxon showed
numerous rounded enlargements, resulting from dilatation of the
hair follicles in the regions of the neck and shoulders.
By pressing on these enlargements a whitish, greasy, sebaceous
material was ejected, very rich in demodectes.

DEMODECIC MANGE IN THE GOAT.

This was first noticed by


Niederhaüsern, at the
Bern Veterinary College,
in a goat which showed
little nodosities over
different parts of the
trunk, varying in size
between that of a pea and
that of a hazel-nut. By
forcibly compressing these
enlargements a yellowish-
grey semi-solid material,
containing a considerable
number of demodectes,
was caused to exude.
In 1885 Nocard and
Railliet found the same
parasite in a young he-
goat; the pustules were
spread over the sides and
flank. Treatment
consists in opening the
pustules and dressing
Fig. 263.—Demodex of the pig, them a few times with an
magnified 250 diameters. (After anti-parasitic lotion.
Railliet.)
DEMODECIC MANGE IN THE
PIG.

This was well described for the first time by Csokor. It was
afterwards seen by Neumann and Lindqvist.
The isolated pustules are of the size of a grain of sand, but when
confluent may reach the size of a hazel-nut. They are sometimes dark
in colour, often deep-seated, are surrounded by a zone of
inflammation, and appear in places where the skin is fine (the groin,
neck, belly, etc.). The demodex becomes lodged and multiplies, not
in the hair follicles, but in the sebaceous glands. Csokor regarded this
disease as contagious; in a herd of one hundred he found twenty-two
pigs affected with it. Lindqvist, however, found but one case in a herd
of two hundred.

NON-PSOROPTIC FORMS OF ACARIASIS.

These are produced in farm animals by arachnide belonging to the


families of Trombidiidæ and Ixodidæ.
(1.) The Leptus autumnalis is considered to be the larva of the
Trombidium Holoscriceum, or silky trombidion. It lives in late
summer and autumn, in the grass.
Symptoms. The animals show intense itching, and cannot sleep
owing to burning sensations. They continually rub themselves, and
thus, secondarily, produce excoriated papules and patches
resembling those of eczema. When the papules are very numerous,
particularly if the animals are thin-skinned, more or less extensive
erythema may be produced.
At the points attacked the skin swells, becomes red, and
sometimes even violet, and exhibits irregular, isolated or confluent
swellings, ¼ to ⅜ of an inch in diameter.
The parasite most commonly becomes fixed round the lips, the
forehead, the cheeks, the sides of the neck, and the extremities.
The diagnosis is easy, the discovery of the parasite removing all
doubt.
The condition is of slight importance. The parasites do not live for
more than a few days on the animal’s skin, so that they only produce
temporary disturbance.
Treatment consists in bathing the parts with some lotion, such as
2 to 3 per cent. creolin or 2 per cent. chloral, or in applying mixtures
of oil and petroleum, etc.
(2.) Ixodes hexagonus, I. ricinus, and other species of the tick
family (Ixodidæ) attack sheep, goats, and oxen in France.
Symptoms. In sheep the ixodidæ usually affix themselves at
points where the skin is tender and unprotected by wool, as for
instance the thighs, armpit, and upper part of the neck. Their bites
produce irritation, followed by an intense burning sensation, and the
formation of a red blush round the point bitten.
In the ox the ticks fasten on the neck, behind and within the ears,
and also wherever the skin is tender. Until the last few years little
importance was attached to their development, but since it has been
proved that Rhipicephalus annulatus is the active factor in
desseminating Texas fever, ticks have attracted much attention.
It seems, moreover, to be proved by the researches of Lignières
that a form of piroplasmosis exists in France, and it seems possible
that the Ixodes ricinus may be a means of propagation.
The diagnosis of acariasis produced by ticks is easy, for the
parasites attain large dimensions.
Prognosis. It is difficult at present to say what importance should
be attached to this form of acariasis, but its existence and possible
consequences should be noted.
Treatment. Some authors have recommended killing the ticks by
touching them with benzine, petroleum, essence of turpentine, etc.,
but these methods do not always succeed. Applications of
concentrated solution of chloral are more effective. When the
parasites are so large as to render this possible it is better to remove
them by hand, taking care at the same time to remove the rostrum,
which, if left in place, might cause more or less suppuration. In
countries where ticks are numerous and large numbers of cattle are
infested, the parasites are destroyed by smearing and dipping.
Fig. 264.—Ixodes ricinus. (After Railliet.) A, Natural size; B, ventral surface; C,
dorsal surface.

(The cattle ticks of America are of especial importance in relation


to the disease known as Texas fever. Those who wish to study the
entomology of this subject are referred to the masterly account and
fine coloured illustrations of Salmon and Stiles, “Cattle Ticks of the
United States,” Ann. Rep. U.S.A. Bureau of Agriculture, 1900, p.
380.)

HYPODERMOSIS IN THE OX (WARBLES).

Causation. This is a parasitic disease characterised by


subcutaneous swellings due to the presence of larvæ of the
Hypoderma bovis. The larva is met with throughout Europe. It
attains the perfect stage during the summer, from the middle of June
to the commencement of September.
The female deposits her eggs on animals with fine skins. These
eggs are elliptical, and provided with a kind of tail of a brownish
colour. They soon become converted into larvæ, provided with rows
of little spines.
The manner in which the eggs are laid is not exactly understood,
nor are we better informed regarding the hatching of the young
larvæ. Until recently it was believed that the larva perforated the skin
as soon as it quitted the egg, and then penetrated as far as the
subcutaneous connective tissue. Recent observations, however, have
upset this view. It is probable that this larva, like other gastrophili, is
swallowed by animals of the bovine species, and passes through the
intestine into the surrounding tissues by a path which is yet
unknown, possibly by the blood-vessels, whence it makes its way
after a longer or shorter interval into the subcutaneous connective
tissue.

Fig. 265.—A, Hypoderma bovis, natural size. B, larva of the hypoderma escaping
from a “warble.” (After Railliet.)

Certain recent observations seem to support the latter view, which


is also corroborated by known facts regarding hypodermic myiosis in
man. The eggs are laid in summer, and the swellings indicating the
presence of the larvæ only appear during the winter. Henrichsen
found young larvæ in the fatty tissue situated between the
periosteum and spinal dura mater, between the period from
December to March.
Symptoms. Whatever the mode of development of the larvæ,
cutaneous swellings appear between the months of February and
March on the back, lumbar region, quarters, shoulders and ribs, and,
less frequently, over the chest, belly and thighs.
They vary in number. Commonly there are from ten to twenty, and
it is only in rare cases that less than four or five are found. As soon as
they attain the subcutaneous connective tissue they act as foreign
bodies, causing a circumscribed inflammation, and finally
suppuration. In this way the so-called “warbles” are produced.
Each larva is surrounded by a thick wall, forming a cavity, which
communicates with the outer air by a minute aperture.
When the swelling is sufficiently advanced the larva may be
extricated by pressing with the fingers around the base of the warble.
A few days before it leaves its shelter the larva enlarges the little
opening by thrusting its last rings into it. Soon after the larva has
escaped the discharge of pus ceases, and the skin wound heals.
Diagnosis. The times at which the swellings appear and the larvæ
are present render the diagnosis easy.
Prognosis. This is seldom grave, for the larvæ rarely cause death.
In cases where they are present in very large numbers, however, they
may set up purulent infection.
Treatment. No really effective treatment against warbles is
known. Curative treatment consists in squeezing out or killing the
larvæ when in the subcutaneous tissue, but this is practically useless,
as the dead larvæ then set up prolonged suppuration.
CHAPTER III.
RINGWORM.

The old term “ringworm” is still used to indicate a well-marked


skin disease due to parasitic fungi which grow at the expense of the
epidermis. Other names, such as dermatophytis and epidermophytis,
have been suggested, to indicate the mode in which the parasite
grows. The term dermatomycosis suggests a cutaneous vegetable
parasite.
The dermatomycoses of the domestic animals are caused by fungi
belonging to six distinct genera:—
Trichophyton (horse, ass, ox, dog, pig); Eidamella (dog);
Microsporum (horse, dog); Achorion (dog); Lophophyton (fowl);
Oospora (dog).
Ringworm is common in animals of the bovine species, but very
rare in other domesticated animals, except, perhaps, the horse. It is
caused by the growth of a parasite, Trichophyton mentagrophytes
(Robin), of the genus Trichophyton, family Gymnoascea, order
Ascomycetes.
The ascosporaceous form of reproduction is still unknown, but the
mode of reproduction by conidia is characteristic. In cultures the
mycelium is represented by growing filaments branching off at right
angles, and by separate superficial aerial reproductive filaments of
the conidian form. There is some reason for believing that these
fungi may lead a saprophytic as well as a parasitic existence, i.e., that
they can exist and multiply apart from the animal body.
Their vitality is marked. Various experimenters have transmitted
the disease with crusts kept for eighteen months. Thin declares that
in two and a half years the spores had lost all power of germination.
They resisted immersion in water for two days, but were dead after
eight days. Soft soap and 1 per cent. acetic acid kill them in an hour.
Symptoms. The disease most frequently attacks young animals
and milch cows—very rarely adults or old animals. This peculiarity is
very difficult to explain.
In calves, ringworm seems specially to attack the head, the
neighbourhood of the lips, the nostrils and submaxillary region, as
well as the throat and neck. It assumes the form of circular patches,
over which the hair stands erect.
Gruby in 1842 discovered the parasite of tinea tonsurans, or
herpes, and thus proved that the cutaneous lesions were not due to
any constitutional condition, as was long thought, although dirt, bad
hygienic conditions, and crowded stables favoured the spread of
ringworm.
Direct contact
between healthy and
diseased animals and
the transport of
spores, by combs,
brushes, etc., favour
contagion. The
disease may not only
be conveyed from one
animal to another of
the same species, but
from the ox to man,
and, with somewhat
greater difficulty,
from the ox to the
horse. Cases of
transmission from the
ox to the sheep, pig,
and dog have also
been recorded.
Mégnin in 1890
attempted to prove
Fig. 266.—Calf suffering from ringworm. that all the
trichophytons
producing ringworm
in animals do not belong to the same species, and gave the name of
Trichophyton epilans to that usually found in the ox, because it
causes absolute loss of the hair by growing in the follicle, whilst he
named the parasite found in the horse Trichophyton tonsurans,
because it only grows on the surface of the skin and in the thickness
of the hair, without causing inflammation of the hair follicle and
without invading it.
The epidermis soon undergoes proliferation, and becomes covered
with crusts, which adhere to the hairs, gluing them together, and
finally causing them to be shed, leaving bare patches the size of a
shilling or a florin. The lesion extends in an ever-widening circle,
until it attains, perhaps, the dimensions of a five-shilling piece or
more.
The affected hairs break off level with the free surface of the skin,
rendering the patches more apparent. White hairs are less affected,
and some always remain projecting above the crusts, causing the
patches, when on a white skin, to retain a certain amount of
covering.
At first the crust is closely adherent to the skin, and, if forcibly
detached, exposes the dermis, which is swollen and bleeding.
Gradually the centre becomes detached, whilst the periphery,
representing a more recent lesion, continues to adhere. The crusts
then rest on a thin layer of pus, and the dermis, whilst still inflamed,
is punctuated with numerous minute apertures, representing the
roots of the detached hairs. The pus lifts the crust; gradually it dries
up and forms superposed layers, which may or may not prove
adherent to the parasitic products, and which form a new crust. The
latter is purely inflammatory in character, and is left after the fall of
the first. It no longer contains any parasites, at least within its deeper
layers.
This second crust dries up in its turn, falls away or breaks up,
leaving a smooth spot, over which the hairs again appear, either at
once, or at least after a short period of desquamation.
The disease is accompanied by well-marked pruritus, more
marked at the commencement and towards the end than during the
intermediate period, but, nevertheless, much less acute than in
scabies.
Ringworm may undergo spontaneous cure in from six weeks to
three months. It is more obstinate in calves than in adults, and the
want of grooming tends to increase its duration. If it extends over a
large part of the body the disease may seriously affect the animal’s
health, and the cases described by Macorps prove that where
pruritus is violent it seriously affects the animal’s general condition.
The patches may finally become confluent and the disease extend
over the whole of the neck, shoulder and back, or it may attack the
entire body, leaving it practically hairless.
When the hair has been shed, the crusts and discharge seen at the
outset disappear, and the bare spots are covered with a scaly coating,
due to excessive production of epidermic cells.
According to Gerlach, such crusts are thicker where the skin is
black, and often exhibit a greyish-white, fibrous, starchy appearance.
On unpigmented portions of the skin, which are usually thinner, the
crust is less dense, and is slightly yellowish. Gerlach failed to
reinoculate the bare patches of skin left after a primary eruption of
ringworm. Where the hair had again grown an eruption could again
be produced, though it was usually of a feeble character.
In a second form of the disease, the spots may be of very small
dimensions. The hair falls away, but there is no exudative
inflammation, and no formation of crusts. In this second form the
animals simply show characteristic circular bare spots about the
head, neck, or shoulders.
Causation. The disease is due to the growth of germs on the skin
of animals which are in a receptive condition. The parasite thereafter
develops in the hairs, the hair follicles and the epidermis, causing
lesions which vary according to the species.
At the present time three groups of ringworm are recognised as
occurring on animals, Trichophytic, Microsporous, and Favus.
Clinically the trichophytons are divided into the T. ectothrix, which
lives outside the hair, and both outside and inside the hair follicles;
T. endothrix, which penetrates the thickness of the hair itself,
rendering it brittle and easily destroyed; and T. endo-ectothrix,
which both surrounds and invades the hair.
The study of artificial growths of these fungi will probably afford
valuable information on the above points. In the ox the particular
parasite is invariably the Trichophyton mentagrophytes, whatever
may be the characteristics of the clinical lesion.
In France ringworm is particularly common in Auvergne and
Normandy, where hygienic precautions are neglected, but cases may
also be found throughout the country.
After affecting cows throughout the winter, the disease often
disappears in the spring. Throughout the winter cows are kept in
dark and often filthy sheds, where the parasite propagates rapidly,
whilst in spring they are sent to grass, where the conditions are
inimical to contagion.
Diagnosis. The diagnosis of ringworm seldom presents any
difficulty. The appearance of the lesions (Fig. 266), their particular
tendency to spread and contagious character, facilitate the diagnosis.
They entirely differ from those of eczema or mange, and should any
doubt exist, the slightest microscopic examination is sufficient to
dissipate it. In ringworm in the ox the base of the hairs is covered
with enormous numbers of spore chains, which do not extend into
the depths.
To detect the parasites it is best to shave off a thin fragment of skin
from the periphery of the patch, place it on a slide with a drop or two
of 30 per cent. caustic potash solution, and heat it for a few seconds
almost to boiling point. By applying a cover glass with firm pressure
the epidermal cells are spread out and the parasites can be seen,
especially around the roots of the hairs. Sometimes they form little
dirty-yellow masses, consisting almost exclusively of spores.
When ringworm has attacked the entire surface of the body, it is
much more difficult to distinguish from sebaceous eczema, and a
microscopic examination or experimental inoculation may become
necessary. Inoculation with ringworm material always succeeds with
calves.
Prognosis. Ringworm is not dangerous in itself. In time it may
disappear spontaneously, but when it extends over the whole body it
may be dangerous. Owing to their bare condition the animals easily
catch cold, while the epidermic proliferation is very great, and makes
great demands on the animal’s bodily powers. Under such
circumstances it is better to slaughter early.
Spontaneous recovery from small lesions may occur in two or
three months.
Treatment. The patients should be isolated, and any brushes,
combs, etc., with which they have been in contact must be
disinfected.

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