HINTS ON SCAB IN SHEEP.

Wellington Independent, Volume XVIII, Issue 1876, 2 June 1863, Page 3

HINTS ON SCAB IN SHEEP.

(From ihe New Zealander.J The tollowing on the symptoms and treatment of this disease have been forwarded to ua by a gentleman eminently qualified to offer advice upon the subject: — " Scab (Youatt says) is caused by minute insects that imbed themselves in the skin of sheep, and after remaining there IS d»iya come forth with their progeny, which in like manner, imbed themselves, and thus rapidly increase the spread of the disease . " The first indication that a shaep has become infected is, when one or more white spots, about the size of a half-crown, appear on its wool, such baing caused by the anirnal'a frequently nipping the wool immediately over the diseased spot. " Ticks and and other vermin often cause sheep to pluck their wool, and sometimes the wool will have a ragged appearance, caused by fever, flyblow?, &c, but an experienced eye will at once detect the indication of scab. "On opening the wool where scab exists beneath, one or more particles will be seen on the body ; but the most certain way of proving the existence of it is by gently rubbing the skin of the ! sheep, where the pubtulesor sores appear, between the forefinger and thumb, when, if the animal has been infected more than a short time, it will immediately champ its tongue, and in bad cases will endeavour to bite the hand of the operator. The wool In a few days falls off or is plucked from the diseased spots. The disease often makes .its first appearance on the shoulder. " Scab U so contagious that by touching the wool of a clean slvjey with the diseased part of a scabby ono the disease will be imparted, the small insects clinging to the wool of the former instantly. " Scab spreads most rapidly in warm hazy weather. 11 The most effectual cure for scab is a decoction of tobacco and sulphur in the following proportions ; — 11 Good tobacco, 30 lbs. ; flour of sulphur, 30 lbs. ; and water 100 gallons. " The tobacco ought to be well boiled, so as to extract all the juice, and the sulphur added when the process of dipping is going on, the whole befng kept well stirred up. " The liquid ought to be as hot as possible,*(so at least, without danger of scalding rhe animal,) and the whole sheep, exoept the head, should be immersed and kept in the liquid for about a. minute care being taken not to allow the animal to swallow auy of the poisonous mixture. " The sheep should be quite cool before immersion : bad effects often follow the dipping of overheated sheep, because the pores of the skin being open the body absorbs a quantity of the narcotic preparation, " About ten days after the first dip, the sheep should invariably have a second. I have heard of a flock having been cured with one dip, but I Jcnow several cases that have failed, and the one dip bad to be repeated every three months. "The quantity of liquid required, is about two quarts for each sheep immediately after shearing and rather more than four quarts for each when in full wool. The quantity, of course, depends on the weight *of wool, and the means adopted for scouring all that drips off the sheep after dipping. " When the disease is cured, the irritation ceases, The old scab will, in most cases, peel off by being rubbed, leaving a clean smooth, skin underneath ; but when the blood of the sheep is impure an old dead scab will sometimes remain for months.