THE WEEK

Press, Volume LXXXIII, Issue 25246, 26 July 1947, Page 5

THE WEEK

FOOTROT IN SHEEP

Further comment on the recent article on footrot by Mr J. W. McLean, of Lincoln College, is contained in another letter from Mi- C. Hilgendorf, of Sherwood, which reads:—lf Mr McLean had emphasised in the first place that the method of eradicating footrot he described was difficult and if he had even implied that “more effective means of treatment may be found in the future” there would have been little cause for criticism. I would however make four further comments: 1. Farmers would be glad to know that intensive work is being done in NewZealand towards finding these “more effective means of treatment.” 2. To say that mpre is known about footrot than, say, dopiness in ewes, or facial I eczema, will impress few. 3. Though ! the basis of the method of control adj vocated has been well known certainly for more than 10 years. Ashley Dene and other well-managed sheep farms still have trouble with footrot. 4. In an inexact science such as veterinary science is, to be dogmatic is asking for trouble.

Mr R. J Mulligan, Mayfield, writes: —“During the last few years top dressing has been carried out extensively, and with very wet seasons there has been an abundance of feed and farmers have not moved their sheep as often as is necessary to keep them tree of trouble. I think foot-rot is started in nearly every case when sheep are kept too long on a dirty pasture. “I have never had foot-rot on my place, although it is all around me. A neighbour of mine treats his footrot sheep in my shed. To do so they go through my yard, and my sheep sometimes go through the yard immediately afterwards, and yet tney have never been infected. Move your sheep every few days to a fresh pasture, and I don’t think you will have any trouble with foot-rot.”

An Ashburton farmer, under the name “Cure Your Own,” writes:—Mr McLean’s letter about footrot was good. This disease is not difficult to cure unless the farm is notorious for footrot. A large root-bath is required to hold a fair number, in preference to those narrow troughs where sheep often dash through on three legs, holding up the ps inful foot which gets no treatment. The method of selling all sheep because some have footrot is futile and often expensive, and then buying fresh sheep thinking to make a clean start. You are not. because the new sheep may have the germ in their feet as many sheep probably have if they have not been through a foot-bath these days. What about the saleyards, hotbeds of disease germs, and transport and railway sheep-wag-gons, too, are they ever disinfected? 1 received a truck of ewes once. Two lambed next day and both died of blood-poisoning.

MARLBOROUGH LUCERNE

It is estimated that about 45 tons of lucerne seed will be available from this year’s harvest in Marlborough, against 30 tons last year, though the season was not particularly favourable for production of seed. The Awatere, where most of the seed is produced, had a long dry spell followed by a southerly gale. Growth was slow, and some areas yielded only two cuts for the season. The Wairau Plain crops, where more lucerne is being grown, were mainly good, some of them very good. One man got 36 bags from eight acres, which gave an average of It bags of machine-dressed seed to the acre. The quality of the seed is reported to be good.