JOHNE'S DISEASE

Poverty Bay Herald, Volume LXIII, Issue 19131, 28 September 1936, Page 14

JOHNE'S DISEASE

STRICT PRECAUTIONS NO GISBORNE CASES FEAR OP HERD LOSSES The slaughter of 107) Jerseys in a Taranaki herd last week, is causing some concern there lest the disease .should spread. Strict precautions are being taken by the Department of Agriculture throughout the whole of the North Island, and veterinary officers are on the look-out for suspected cases, which are tested immediately they ale reported. No cases have been reported in Gisborne, although one suspect was examined and the necessary tests made. There was no reaction to the tests, however, and the cow was declared free from the

Johne's disease is an affliction of the bowels for which no remedy is known. and tin- only method of dealing with it is the destruction of the animal, which would die in any case, and in extreme eases the slaughter of the. whole herd. The latter course was found necessary in the Taranaki case, where the . farm itself will be isolated from dairy cattle for several years.

The growth of the disease is insidious in its nature, and like cancer in humans it. usually has a good hold on the beast before the symptoms indicate its presence. A beast contracting Johne's disease gradually goes off in condition, and then scours very badly, the excrctia being full of gas bubbles. The bowel becomes hard and scaly. ■ The disease, which is described as a chronic bacterial enteritis of cattle, was discovered in Europe in 1881. and since then has been reported from most European countries, and also from North America. It is new to New Zealand. Precautions taken by the Department of Agriculture to prevent the spread of the disease include examination and treatment of suspected herds. When an officer of the department has reasonable grounds for suspecting the existence of the disease, he may require the owner to muster the cattle for inspection. This is one of the steps provided for in a recent Gazette notice announcing regulations governing the position. The regulations give the department authority to condemn and destroy any of the diseased animals. The regulations also prohibit the shipment of any cattle from the North Island to the .-South except by permit and at a time specified in the permit.