"A STAGGERER."

Dominion, Volume 4, Issue 1189, 26 July 1911, Page 10

"A STAGGERER."

TUBERCULAR .COWS. Details to hand from Masterton in retrard to \iie telegraphed summary in reference to tubercular caws make interesting reading. A well-known Upper Plain farniev, a*kod by a Wairarapa "Times Tciiorter if he believed in the inspection of dairy herds by a veterinarian, said lie liad just had a Government vet. to inspect his herd and also the cows ot a number of neighbours, and the result had been a staggerer. Some-of the cows were !found to be full of tuberculosis. One pot ■cow of his, which he looked upon us ioing healthy was, on examination, shown ;to be practically eaten up with the disicase. It v;as certainly an alarming state ■ot' affairs. lie was not in a position yet ■to give full details in connection _with itiie examinations made by the veterinary ;sur?eon, but when they were avnilable /they vrill sot people thinking. i Spoken to on the same subject, Mr. \A. B. Wood, agricultural chemist, was 'emphatic in his opinion that it was high (time- the Department took up tho ciuestion of tuberculosis in cows more thor-

ioushly, and compelled tile veterinary inspection of every cow'used for dairy purposes. A person who once saw a tnber'culous cow opened up would never eat jl>3of or drink milk again. The charges ifor an-examination by a veterinary sur■geon were very small and the advantages hvere many. From a. public health point 'of view'it'should be made absolutely eomipulsory on the part of dairy farmers to I have their cows examined once a year. ! Other countries were far ahead of New i Zealand in regard to registration and inspection of dairy herds—even slov; old lEngland coul.l give this Dominion a lead. iJIe had a good deal of experience in connection with cows suffering from tuber- , ctilosis, and ho could not sprak too strongly on the matter. One had to ' iTegister the birth of a child, -why should lit not be compulsory to .register a dairy -.cow, especially when infants often died as tho result of drinking milk from un'lealtby cows?