Symptoms.—In the acute form there is fever, great depression, loss of appetite, and the animal does not chew the cud. The animal lies down or stands with arched back. The most characteristic symptom is the color of the urine; this ranges from pink to black. Death takes place in from three to four days, generally preceded by a fall of temperature, or the fever may drop and the animal recover very slowly. In the chronic or mild type, there is fever, loss of appetite, the animal does not chew the cud and may become very thin; but usually the urine is not discolored. In this type of the disease the animals usually recover.
You should be careful not to mistake Texas Fever for Anthrax or Black Leg. In Texas Fever the ticks are always found on the hide, and calves do not have it while all animals have Anthrax. The membranes are pale in Texas Fever, but very red in Anthrax. In Black Leg the animals are from six months to two years old, older or younger they do not have it; and of course there are the characteristic swellings.
Treatment.—Prevention is usually more satisfactory than treatment after the disease has started. However as the disease is not transmitted to the other animals or to man, there is no reason for not trying to save the animal. Give A.A., twenty drops four times a day for two days, then alternate H.H., with the A.A. Remove all ticks and place in a tick free enclosure and give nourishing diet.
Prevention.—For small numbers of animals in infested districts.
Pick or brush the ticks from the animals three times per week particularly from belly, legs, tail and udder from June 1st to November 1st.
Or smear the legs and sides of the cattle twice a week with Beaumont crude petroleum, or a mixture of 1 gallon each of cottonseed and kerosene oil (coal oil) containing 1 pound of sulphur, these may be either brushed or sprayed on from June 1st to November 1st.
For large numbers of animals write to the Bureau of Animal Industry, U. S. Department of Agriculture, Washington, D. C., and ask for Farmers Bulletin No. 152.
To remove ticks from an infested pasture.
1. Remove all animals on September 1st and allow no animals on the pasture until April 1st, or cultivate the pasture for a year, or burn it over in spring and fall, and allow no animals with ticks on it.