THE NORTHLAND FARMER

Northern Advocate, 16 July 1938, Page 5 (Supplement)

THE NORTHLAND FARMER

Edited By C. E. Cuming

How I'urin /tjiini.t.'s Kid. T!ic Various farm animals are each furnished with differently formed organs by which food is grasped, conducted into the mouth, and then mnstigated. By such provisions many animals of different kinds originally wore enabled fo live in the same pasture or feeding territories. Were all to feed in exactly the same way. sustenance would scon become exhausted. The cow has somewhat thick, immobile

lips and the upper one is cleft. The cleft lip enables the sheep to get its teeth right down on the surface to nibble the shortest, sweetest grass. The cow does not use her lips to any great extent in feeding as does the horse. She grasps bunches of grass with her tongue, draws them into her mouth, jerks them off and chews them slightly, for they are later to bo brought up and re-chewed. The cow has eight incisor teeth in the lower jaw only, whereas the horse lias six above and below. In the cow and sheep the upper row of incisors is ata-

sent, but instead there is a pad or cushion of gristle tissue against which the lower incisors hold the grass while it is being torn off. The incisors of the cow normally are somewhat loose, and they are directly forward or almost horizontally placed in the mouth. Were this not the case they would cut the dental pad above. Not aware that the cow’S incisors normally are loose, many an owner has, on examination, erroneously concluded that a diseased munition is present. The cow’s tongue is very rough, and so are the cheeks. On the contrary, the cheeks and,tongue of tlie horse are smooth. Studding the cow’s cheeks are long projections, or papillae, and the tongue and front parts of the hard palate are fitted with saw-like projections. These are parts of the equipment possessed by cows to make perfect mastication possible. Looking further into the cow’s mouth, it will be noted that the sc-ft palate does not hang down and prevent breathing from the mouth, as m the case of the horse. There is a cartilaginous ring around the snout of the pig. and the snout contains a special bone not present in other animals. These are the pre-visions for rooting to obtain food under the surface of the ground. It is also interesting to watch how animals chew. Tlie dog quickly cuts meat to pieces and gulps it down. The horse chews slowly - and very thoroughly in scissors-like fashion, and largely by lateral action. The cow masticates by longitudinal transverse and vertical motions. These points will serve for a start in the close examination of animals, and if the young farmer would look for the things mentioned he would soon become interested in the multitude of other matters to bo learned by study, keen observation and comparison.

Rickets in Stock,

Rickets is a disease affecting principally young stc-ck, such as foals and yearlings, but it also affects other animals; in fact, probably all animals possessed of bones. In foals and calves the shafts of the mctacarpals—the long bone between the knee and fetlock—are the first to give way, the curvatures being from within outwards; thus the knees are thrown outwards, and the tees drawn inwards, pfgeon-toed. When the bones of the posterior, or hind extremities, are affected, the toes are turned outwards and the hock inwards ,the animal being then what is termed cow-hocked. The joints and extremities of the bones sometimes become enlarged, hot, and painful, causing extreme lameness. This disease appeal’s to be caused by a deficiency in the food of salts of lime, or of want of power of assimilating such salts on account of the absence in the food of other constituents which are necessary to healthy digestion. Carnivorous animals are liable to rickets if fed on meat without bones, and so are pigs if their feed consists almost entirely of potatoes, which are poor in salts of lime. The disease is less frequently seen in young stock running on soils rich in lime, such as those of chalk

and limestone, than on soils poor in lime, like those of gravel, sandstone, granite, etc. The first symptom to be generally noticed is decrease m power of movement from one place to another and fatigue from comparatively slight exertion. There is gradual swelling of the joints, chiefly of the hock, knee and fetlocks. The animal may knuckle over in front and behind, or his hind fetlocks may descend down to the ground. In bad cases the difficulty cl moving about gradually increases until the animal is unable to walk or even stand, and dies from starvation and exhaustion. In rickets the bones become so abnormally brittle that they are apt to break with little or no unusual provocation. If the foal or calf is net already weaned it might be necessary to put it to a healthy foster mother which has plenty of milk, to-which about a pint of lime-water is added daily. Sulphate of iron is also very useful in this trouble, about 10 grains cl which might be given to a young foal twice a day. It one wants to get the best results, and the foal is old enough to

lake a little food in addition to its mother’s milk, it is as well to give mare and foal a couple or so feeds daily of good, nourishing food, containing the best of chaff, crushed oats, together with a little bran if they will take it. Mix about a cupful cf pure raw linseed oil daily in the feed, a little in each feed, but discontinue t. lessen the quantity if the droppings become too soft.

Indigestion in the Horse. A correspondent has inquired in regard to chronic indigestion in his horses. There are several causes which bring about this complaint, but those usually met with are improper food, an improper system of feeding and watering, imperfect chewing of the food by the animal, owing, perhaps to bad teeth, or to the habit of bolting his food. The general symptoms are; The appetite is generally capricious and depraved. There is often acidity of the stomach, which is shown by the animal grinding bis teeth, or the liking for licking whitewashed walls, etc., and the mouth has a sour smell. Crib biting and wind sucking are also symptoms. Sometimes there is v.a cough, known as a stomach cough. The coat is out of order, being hidebound. lacking its natural gloss, and often filled with dandruff. The dung has a foul smell, and is composed of imperfectly-digested material, the hay and corn being passed in a more or less unaltered condition. In the stable the horse is inclined to be costive, but a little exercise excites purging. There might also be mild colicy pains soon after being fed. The animal has a tucked-up look generally, or the abdomen might seem swollen, as if distended with gas. In treating this complaint the first thing to do is to avoid the causes, such as by paying strict attention to the quality and quantity of the food given. See to the mouth, and if necessary have the teeth regulated by careful rasping, and perhaps cutting away the sharp points, etc. It is an excellent idea to mix about two ounces -of bicarbonate of soda daily in the feed, and half a cup of best raw linseed oil. and this mixed with the daily feed will be found very satisfactory. Rock salt should always be to the horses.

Tuberculosis-Free Stock. Stock disease is the gravest problem facing the farmers of the Dominion today and no stone should be left unturned to bring about a system of prevention on a national scale. One disease that could be reduced considerably by some national scheme is tuberculosis. Excellent work in this direction has been done in Great Britain, and it is high time that New Zealand had some similar scheme in mind. Dairy conferences have urged the adoption of a national system time and time again, but little has been done apart from the introduction of a voluntary system whereby farmers can make application to the Department of Agriculture for their cattle to be tested. Any stock found to be infected must be destroyed, but the department pays compensation at the rate of half the ruling value of the animals condemned. This only ' applies to stock over one year and under 10 years of age. It is reported that Southland dairy farmers have shown greatly increased interest in tuberculosis tests of their herds. At the annual conference of the South Island Dairy Association a resolution urging the institution of a national campaign was carried unanimously. The mover of the motion rightly said that the farmer who culled was at a loss to know where to get replacements that could be guaranteed free from tuberculosis. New Zealand’s competitors were talcing cognisance of the problem, and in doing so were placing themselves in a position of advantage. It was impossible to say what the incidence of the disease was in New Zealand, but it probably represented a bigger problem than mastitis. It is at least pleasing to know that some effort is now being made to combat mastitis on a national scale and that at the present time data is being collected by officers of the New Zealand Herd Testing Co-operation.