TAIL WORM IN THE COW.

New Zealand Mail, 27 August 1902, Page 51 (Supplement)

TAIL WORM IN THE COW.

A letter from a correspondent reminds London “Field” of an old legend, which had presumably been forgotten long ago. Tho question which was asked was simply, “Is there such a thing known as worm in the tail of a cow?” The usual answer, which might have been expected, would have been a simple negative; but an event which occurred more than half a century ago in a measure emphasised the question, and at the. same time- afforded matter for a satisfactory answer. It happened that a young bull oil a farm was suffering from rheumatism, and in attendance on the said hull was a young practitioner, who had only recently acquired from the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons the diploma which authorised him to pactise the art and science of veterinary medicine and surgery. The young bull was lying down, apparently unable, or at any rate disinclined, to rise. The veterinay surgeon was applying the usual and appropriate remedies, alkaline medicines and counter-irritants to the animal’s spine. At there were a number of lookers on, and among them the cowman. who was, with his companions, discussing the situation ana expressing his own views as to rlie nature of the disease. Passing from the theoretical to the practical, lie proceeded to give a demonstration, beginning by taking the animal’s tail in his hand and exhibiting to his friends the end portion of that appendage, which is furnished with a terminal tuft of hair, as everyone knows. Proceeding a little upward from the tuft of hair, the practical man, of long experience, went on to show that there was a soft place a few inches in length between the kind of knob or hard lump from which the tuft of hair seems to spring, and tho hones of the tail, which could be felt quite distinctly, beginning at the point where the soft portion terminated. Then followed the explanation. “All this soft part,” remarked the cowman, “is the consequence of the presence of a worm, which has eaten away all the bones up to the part where they can be felt again, -and lie will go on gnawing away until he takes all the strength out of the animal’s back, and that bull will never get up until the soft part is slit open and properly dressed.”

To the audience the demonstration was perfectly convincing. There was the animal lying down, and there was, palpably enough, the soft place in the tail.. There was the man of long, practical experience giving what was, from his point of view aat any rate, a perfectly reasonable explanation. If all fliis had taken place in the presence of an old practitioner instead of a young one, the probabilities are that, the explanation would have been left in the hands of the practical man, who would have had it all his own way. The veterinary surgeon, having most probably other matters to attend to. would not have felt inclined to waste his time, as he would have considered it, in criticising such a nonsensical story about a worm in the fail. even if he had listened to it. The young practitioner, however, feeling more inclined to be upon his defence, met the challenge by another, which turned out in the end to be very effective. Turning to the cowman, he remarked, “You have a large herd of dairy cows under your charge, and here is an oppotunity for you to apply your experience, if it is worth any. thing at all, in a very remunerative way. Go at once and examine the tails of all those cows, or as many as you think fit, and for every one which you find without that soft place in the tail I-shall give you a sovereign.” It is not known whether or not the man took advantage of the offer, hut he never came to claim the sovereigns, and tlie bull, as a matter of fact, did get up without having the tail cut open and dressed. It has been already stated that the idea that the loss of power of motion from paralysis, or rheumatism, or other cause, was duo to disease in the tail was an old superstition even half a century ag• . and it was one perfectly well known to

veterinary surgeons of that time, Youatt, in his well-known work on cattle, published by the Society for the Diffusion of Useful Knowledge in 1834, coin, ments on the notion under tho head of palsy, observing that the hind limbs ai ! e . chiefly attacked by a feebleness which increases to stiffness, and at length total loss ,of motion.

In many parts of the kingdom, lie says, this complaint, is traced to a most ridiculous cause. The original evil is said to be in the tail, and all maladies of this kind, involving the partial or total loss of motion of the hind limbs of the animal, are classed under the name of tail-ill or tail-slip. Mr-Dick, the principal of the Edinburgh Veterinary College at that time, also remarks on this superstition. He says that the farmer, and the cowman believe that the mischief passes along the cow’s tail to the back, and that it is on account of something wrong in the tail that the cow loses tlie use of her legs, and then someone sets to work to cut the cow’s tail off, while others, less cruel, if more scientific, make an incision into the under surface, and allow the wound to bleed freely, and then fill it up with a mixture of tar and salt, and we know not what. It appears that farmers occasionally, i n early times, went a step further than even the ’abovenamed idiotic treatment. They looked upon the matter as the result of witchcraft, and had recourse to charms, such as binding a small piece of the rowan tree on the extremity of the cow’s tail, and making a black eat- pass round about the animal until tlie cat’s remonstrances satisfied them that the devil, which had previously resided in the body or tail ot the cow, had now taken up its position iu the body of the cat. Professor Dick also explains the anatomical conditions of the tail of the cow. “The tail,” he says, “is lengthened out to the extent. of about 3ft, and is formed like a common whip. . Towards the extremity the bones terminate gradually, becoming smaller as they proceed downwards. At this part is said to ho found a soft space, the tail slip. Beyond this again ‘a firm swelling or cartilaginous portion ns evident, covered with hair, to brush off the flies within its reach. Now, why have we the long column of bones, the termination with a soft space of a few inches, this thickened cartilaginous part at tho very extremity, and that extremity covered with hair, but with a view to form a whip to drive off, and with the greatest possible effect, the insects which wound and torment the animal. Here the column of the hones form the shaft or handle of tlie whip, the soft part in connection with the handle, with the thickened extremity, may be easily recognised to represent the thong, and the hairs to form the lash ot point, so that we have a whip ; to dru ;o awa y the flies, and so complete a one that the coachman may borrow a lesson from its construction.” > somewhat fanciful, de- , sciiption of Professor Dick, should suf--1 7 C ® , to . ma^ e Pie mystery clear enough t . ** ie * eas t educated or even the utterly i ignorant-; but, unfortunately, these are the people that are the least likely to ; get the information.