biological warfare against horses and mules

[petrick]

g'day

Going thru the regimantal diaries of mounted troops i found that around 1917 horses had to be shot on contracting a desease called glanders. All through the year this comes upp. Untill there came a serum and horses and troopers were inocculated.During World War I glanders was believed to have been spread deliberately by agents of the Central Powers to infect large numbers of Russian horses and mules on the Eastern Front. This had an effect on troop and supply convoys as well as on artillery movement which were dependent on horses and mules. Human cases in Russia increased with the infections during and after WWI. So any truth in it?? And iff so did they also spread it on the western front?

Coo-ee

patrick

[Robert Dunlop]

Don't know if there is any truth in it but one of the History Channel documentaries mentioned German agents in New York were infecting animals that were shipped to the Western Front. They also planted delayed action pipe-bombs in the holds of cargo ships as well.

Robert

[southafricawargraves]

Glanders is an infectious disease that is caused by the bacterium Burkholderia mallei. Glanders is primarily a disease affecting horses, but it also affects donkeys and mules and can be naturally contracted by goats, dogs, and cats. Human infection, although not seen in the North America since 1945, has occurred rarely and sporadically among laboratory workers and those in direct and prolonged contact with infected, domestic animals.

The symptoms of glanders depend upon the route of infection with the organism. The types of infection include localized, pus-forming cutaneous infections, pulmonary infections, bloodstream infections, and chronic suppurative infections of the skin. Generalized symptoms of glanders include fever, muscle aches, chest pain, muscle tightness, and headache. Additional symptoms have included excessive tearing of the eyes, light sensitivity, and diarrhea.

Localized infections: If there is a cut or scratch in the skin, a localized infection with ulceration will develop within 1 to 5 days at the site where the bacteria entered the body. Swollen lymph nodes may also be apparent. Infections involving the mucous membranes in the eyes, nose, and respiratory tract will cause increased mucus production from the affected sites.

Pulmonary infections: In pulmonary infections, pneumonia, pulmonary abscesses, and pleural effusion can occur. Chest X-rays will show localized infection in the lobes of the lungs.

Bloodstream infections: Glanders bloodstream infections are usually fatal within 7 to 10 days.

Chronic infections: The chronic form of glanders involves multiple abscesses within the muscles of the arms and legs or in the spleen or liver.

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Being a collector of Canadian Army Veterinary Corps medals and militaria the only reference I ever read about an enemy agent doing anything to an animal was a report of barb wire being found in a shipment of oats to a Mobile Veterinary Hospital in 1917. The case was unique and never reported again by that MVH.