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suffering of animals during transit, on land and sea, and whilst
exposed in markets.
Although not primarily intended as public health measures
some of these Acts and Orders serve as useful corollaries.
The Diseases of Animals Acts are administered by the
Veterinary Officer who reports to the Public Health Committee,
acting as the Diseases of Animals Sub-Committee of the Council.
The following account of the work performed under these
enactments during 1937 must not be regarded as a report of the
proceedings under the Diseases of Animals Acts, but as comments
on aspects which have a bearing on public health or are of epidemiological
or general interest.
Anthrax Order of 1928. Owners of animals which have died
or are suffering from suspected anthrax are required to report the
facts. The information is then transmitted to the medical
officer of health in order that he may take any measures which
lie may consider necessary with respect to persons who have been
in contact with the animal.
Reports were received on two occasions that material from,
or in contact with, animals which had died from confirmed anthrax,
in the areas of other authorities, had been brought into the
borough. Visits were made in order to trace the material, and in
one case the vendors of cats' meat in the borough were warned
not to sell any such meat pending investigations. Following upon
this latter case a report was received that a cat, which had previously
received such meat, had died. It was not possible, or
expedient, to recover the body since it had been removed by the
cleansing department and had been deeply buried, under several
feet of refuse, at one of the Council's dust shoots.
Epizootic Abortion Order of 1922. Epizootic or contagious
abortion (Bang's disease) is not a notifiable disease, but this Order
aims at lessening the spread of the disease amongst cattle by
prohibiting the exposure of cows which have prematurely calved
within the preceding two months. It also prohibits the sale or
service of such animals without written notice of the fact being
previously given to the buyer or the owner of the bull used for
such service. There are great difficulties in administering this
Order and it would appear that its provisions are, in the main,
ignored.
The Order does not aim at protecting the public from the
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