Tuberculosis Outbreak in Spokane Cattle
Public health officials begin clinical research on infected dairy stock at Washington Agricultural College.
Pullman, Aug. 28.—A number of milch cows are being brought from Spokane to the veterinary hospital at the Washington Agricultural College for treatment for tuberculosis. The cows were discovered by Dr. S. B. Nelson, professor of veterinary science, and the state veterinary surgeon, who rounded up the animals in Spokane. None of the animals are owned by a dairy, but are held by private individuals. Dr. Nelson has been treating them in Spokane under quarantine, but has decided to bring them to the hospital to allow students in the veterinary department to study the disease. Physicians contend that much of the tuberculosis among humans results from consuming milk from infected cows, leading the state veterinary department to watch for and promptly condemn any afflicted animals.
“As physicians contend that much of the tuberculosis among human beings is the result of using milk from cows suffering with this disease, great interest is being taken by the state veterinary department in watching for cows suffering with the disease.”
This early 20th-century response to zoonotic disease underscores the long history of public health oversight in Washington's agricultural sector. It highlights how the integration of scientific research and livestock management at the university level (now WSU) became the foundation for state food safety standards.
From readers
No comments yet. If you know something about this story — a correction, a family memory, a source — it belongs here.