FACIAL ECZEMA

Poverty Bay Herald, Volume LXVI, Issue 19882, 8 March 1939, Page 4

FACIAL ECZEMA

WORK IN WAIROA COUNTY

EXPEL’IM ENT AL PADDOCKS

PROBABILITY OF DISEASE

(Special to the Herald.) WAIROA, this day

“With conditions as they are at present and no apparent break in. the fine weather, the chances are that when rain is experienced facial eczema will be on us again this was the opinion expressed by Mr. G. F. Hudson, stock inspector for the Department of Agriculture stationed in Wairoa, when interviewed to-day by the Wairoa representative of the Herald.

Mr. Hudson said that the department was doing everything that could be done in connection with the facial eczema menace, and, in conjunction with two officers of the Grassland Research Station at Palmerston North, the department had picked on certain areas in the Wairoa County which had proved in the past to be subject to the disease. The paddocks chosen for experimental purposes should prove, if rain comes, ideal for carrying facial eczema.

The reason for selecting these paddocks. added Mr. Hudson, was that as soon as the first rain fell, samples of grass would be taken every three hours from 5 o’clock in the morning until 11 o’clock at night. By that means the department hoped to discover what apparent changes take place in the grass.

“We hope to find out the agent which is responsible for the facial eczema disease,” stated Mr. Hudson. With the co-operation of Messrs. Swifts (N.Z.) Limited the department had set aside a paddock at the freezing works which would be kept grazed down hard until rain came, and then as soon as rain appeared just a few sheep would be put on the paddock, with the express purpose of getting some facial eczema cases.

“The Department of Agriculture asks the farmers to co-operate by letting them know at the earliest opportunity if they have an outbreak of facial eczema,” concluded Mr. Hudson, who added that the reason for the department requesting to be informed at the early stages of the outbreak was- so that certain samples of blood could be obtained.

RESEARCH IN GISBORNE

DISEASE NOT SHOWING

Two officers from the Department of Scientific and Industrial Research are at present in Gisborne conducting research into facial eczema among stock.

Although the Gisborne district suffered severely from the disease last season and also four years ago, there has been no sign of the trouble so far this season. There is also no outbreak in any other part of the North Island, and, in fact, the season has favoured the outbreak of the disease so little that even attempts to create it by arranging artificial conditions have failed.

The two officers at present in Gisborne on research work are Messrs. F. B. Fears and P. D. Sills, Wellington, who have arranged to stay a few days in order to make inquiries regarding conditions in the district and to carry out work of a specialised nature.