Unlike human ailments, many veterinary ones are not generally familiar.
Those that feature most prominently in the list that follows are
blackhead.A disease of the liver and caecum in turkeys, caused by a proto-
zoan parasite carried by earthworms.
black-leg.Clostridial myositis, a quickly fatal, soil-borne bacterial infection
of ruminants (mainly cattle) characterised by swellings and often severe
lameness. Traditional ‘black-leg land’ tends to be periodically flooded
or poor-quality moors.
botts.Inflammation of the digestive tract in horses resulting from infection
by larvae of the botfly.
farcy.A contagious bacterial disease of horses and donkeys characterised by
nasal mucus (‘horse’ cold) and swellings under the jaw which develop
discharging abscesses.
fluke (otherwise ‘rot’). A sometimes fatal infestation of ruminants with
parasitic flatworms, following ingestion of the snails that act as inter-
mediate host.
foul (otherwise ‘scald’). Interdigital necrobacillosis, severe lameness in
cattle caused by swelling of bacterial origin in the cleft of the hoof.
gapes.Infestation of young birds by nematode worms in the bronchial
tubes and trachea, causing frequent gasping.
laminitis.Acutely painful inflammation of the vascular tissues of horses’
hooves.
mastitis (formerly ‘garget’). Acute inflammation of the mammary gland,
usually the result of bacterial infection; widely known as ‘felon’ in
eastern Ulster, as ‘start’ in Leinster and Munster, and as ‘blast’ in east
Leinster (Doherty, 45).
pip.A fatal disease of young birds, reputedly the result of a worm in the
windpipe, characterised by thick mucus in the mouth and throat.
red-water fever (otherwise ‘red disease’, ‘blood murrain’ or ‘red murrain’).
A disease of cattle and sheep caused by a tick-borne protozoan parasite
which attacks the red blood corpuscles, turning the urine red or black-
ish. Particularly occurs in moorland areas and especially prevalent in
Ireland, where records of ‘the murrain’, marked with a dagger (†) in the
list that follows, normally refer to this.
sheep scab (properly, psoroptic mange). A serious contagious disease
caused by a species of mite, the bites of which raise itching scabs that
drop off with the wool.
Appendix Veterinary Remedies 349