Rabies in Cattle

Both furious and dumb rabies are met within cattle, the former being the more common. A sharp distinction cannot always be drawn between the two, however, as the furious type usually merges into the dumb owing to the paralysis that always appears before death. The typical cases of dumb rabies are those in which the paralysis occurs at the beginning of the attack and remains until the death of the animal. The disease first manifests itself by loss of appetite, stopping of the secretion of milk, great restlessness, anxiety, manifestations of fear, and changes in a deposition. This preliminary stage is followed in a day or two by a stage of excitation or madness, which is indicated by increasing restlessness, loud bellowing with a peculiar change in sound of the voice, violent butting with the head and pawing the ground, and an insane tendency to attack others animals, although the desire to bite is not so marked in cattle as in dogs. About the fourth day the animal usually becomes quieter, and the walk is stiff, unsteady, and swaying, Showing that the final paralysis is coming on. Loss of flesh is very rapid, and even during the short course of the disease the animal becomes extremely emaciated. The temperature is never elevated but usually remains normal or even subnormal. Finally, there is complete paralysis of the hindquarters, the animal is unable to rise and, except for irregular convulsive movements, lies in a comatose contion, and dies usually in 4 to 6 days after the appearance of the first symptoms.