AUSTRALIAN VETERINARY HISTORY RECORD SEPTEMBER 2009 – NUMBER 55 The Australian Veterinary History Record is published by the Australian Veterinary History Group in the months of March, July and November. Please take the opportunity to visit the AVHS web page www.vetsci.usyd.au/avhs also the Australian Veterinary History Record when you log onto http://ses.library.usyd.edu.au/handle/2123/222 Editor: Dr NE Tweddle, 23 The Governors Drive, Mount Macedon, Vic, 3441 Email: [email protected] ; Tel. (03) 5426 2045. OFFICE BEARERS OF THE HISTORY GROUP President: Dr AJ Turner Secretary/Treasurer: Dr JH Auty Post Office, Hazeldene, Vic. 3658 Phone 03 5780 1426 Librarian: Dr AT Hart Committee Members: Dr Paul Canfield Dr Helen Fairnie Dr Keith Hughes Dr Patricia McWhirter Dr Dick Roe The Australian Veterinary History Group is a Special Interest Group of the AVA [AVHG]. All who are interested in any aspect of veterinary history may join. Annual subscription is $30. Please direct enquiries and correspondence to the President, Dr Andrew Turner, 25 Garton Street, Princes Hill, Victoria 3054, Australia. Tel 61 3 9380 1652. Email [email protected] . All comments and opinions expressed in the Australian Veterinary History Record are those of the individual writers and not of the Editor, nor do they represent any official policy of the Australian Veterinary History Group or its Committee. CONTENTS Page Minutes of the 18th Annual Meeting 1 Annual Reports 3 Treasurers Report 3 Honorary Editors Report 4 Honorary Librarian Report 5 Report of AVH SIG Committee Meeting, 4 September 2009 6 Historical Articles 10 Clover Infertility; NR Adams and KP Croker. 10 Lupinosis In Western Australia; Jeremy Allen. 13 The Elusive Plegin – Traps for Beginner Historians; 18 Tom Hart. Lessons From History In Veterinary Education; 21 Malcolm McLennan. A Brief History of the Northern Territory Veterinary 26 Laboratories; Lorna Melville and Peter Hooper. Eradication of Pleuropneumonia, Brucellosis and 33 Tuberculosis from Territory Cattle and Buffalo; Brian Radunz. AUSTRALIAN VETERINARY HISTORY SOC1ETY MINUTES OF THE 18th ANNUAL MEETING DARWIN, 18 MAY 2009 APOLOGIES: RP Knight, J Hil1s, AT Hart, IM Parsonson and NE Tweddle PRESENT: AJ Turner, P Macwhirter, JH Whittem, J Apsley-Davis, JT Faragher, A Jackson and B Radunz. In attendance: M Lawrie, President. MlNUTES of the 17th Annual General Meeting were accepted as an accurate record. PRESIDENT REPORT: Dr Turner spoke briefly to his reports that had been published in the AVHS Record No. 54. 1 HONORARY SECRETARY & TREASURER REPORT Dr Auty spoke briefly of the difficulties arising from centralising all financial activities in Sydney. He is in discussion concerning some double debiting of PAC capitation costs. Funds remaining amount to $3600 and wiIl take another four years to run down. Annual Subscription should remain at $30 for 2010. REPORTS OF THE HONORARY EDITOR AND THE HONORARY LIBRARIAN: Reports were tabled and will be published in the next Edition of the Record. ELECTION: There were no nominations for Offices of the Society or resignations of Officers of the Society. All Office Bearers were declared re- elected. GENERAL BUSINESS: Dr Jackson reported on the Historical Collection housed in 20 boxes at St Leonards. It is proposed to make a photographic record of the Collection. Dr Turner indicated his attendance in Sydney would enable a viewing of the Collection. During discussion on the need for ensuring relevant obituaries to appear in the AVJ and the Editor having difficulty in obtaining them, Dr Faragher offered to carry out the task of organizing obituaries on behalf of the Editor. Dr Lawrie reported on problems associated with the election of the President that arise from the changes made to the Constitution in 2008. The Board will be addressing the need for further changes to the Constitution. The President indicated that 2011 was the 250th Anniversary of the establishment of the first Veterinary School at Lyons and perhaps this could provide the opportunity to develop and publish a general history of the profession in Australia. It was agreed that this initiative would be pursued by the AVHS out-of-session; the President AVHS to follow up. NEXT MEETING: Brisbane Convention & Exhibition Centre, Queensland, 23 - 28 May 2010 2 ANNUAL REPORTS PRESIDENT The report incorporated into the Annual Report of the Association and a March Addendum were published in the Record Number 54. TREASURERS REPORT Annual Financial Return for the period ending 31 December 2008. Statement of Financial Performance (formerly called Profit and Loss) 2008 $ INCOME Membership Subscriptions 1,160 Sponsorship 0 Sales of goods and services 0 Conferences 0 Publications 41 Interest 128 Other 0 Non Operating disposal of investments 0 TOTAL INCOME 1,330 EXPENDITURE Service Expenses 0 Sponsorship 0 Conferences and Education 300 Communications and Publications 0 Occupancy 0 Administration Expenses 0 Interest 0 Other 1,766 TOTAL EXPENDITURE 2,066 SURPLUS/ (DEFICIT) CURRENT YEAR (736) Accumulated funs brought forward 4,538 Accumulated Funds 3,802 I confirm that the information provided on all pages of this Annual Return is in accordance with our books and records. J H Auty Honorary Treasurer 23/4/2009 3 Statement of Financial Position (formerly called Balance Sheet) 2008 $ Current Assets Interactivity account with AVA National 3,802 Receivables 0 Total Current Assets 3,802 Non-Current Assets 0 Total Expenditure 0 Total Property and Equipment 0 Total Non-current Assets 0 TOTAL ASSETS 3,802 Current Liabilities 0 Total Liabilities 0 NET ASSETS 3,802 ACCUMULATED FUNDS Retained surplus brought forward 4,538 Transfer funds to branch 0 Current year surplus/ (loss) (736) TOTAL ACCUMULATED FUNDS 3,802 HONORARY EDITOR, AUSTRALIAN VETERINARY HISTORY RECORD Three numbers of the AVH Record were produced and distributed during the year as planned. The contribution of Ian Parsonson as Honorary Editor of the AVH Record for many years must be acknowledged. The assistance and support of Andrew Turner during the transition of editors was instrumental in maintaining the production schedule. 4 There are papers for upcoming numbers but the support of all presenters in Darwin in providing copies of their papers so the aspects of the history of the profession reported is recorded in the AVH Record. Delays have been experienced in posting of Australian Veterinary History Record on the Sydney eScholarship Repository of the University of Sydney Library, but this has been corrected and is again up to date. With another Pan Pacific conference planned for 2010, papers relating to the profession in New Zealand and Pacific countries as well as Australia are invited. Neil E Tweddle Honorary Editor, AVHR. HONORARY LIBRARIAN, MAX HENRY MEMORIAL LIBRARY The open shelves which housed the old rare books in the collection have been replaced by shelves with lockable glass doors. The new shelves were purchased from IKEA for $512. The space available at the library is rapidly filling and it is now necessary to modify the criteria for acquisitions. The library now only has space for books written by Australian veterinarians about veterinary or related topics or books of historical significance. It is desirable that books written by veterinarians are signed by them if possible. Two examples of suitable books donated to the library are The Australian Horse Book by David de Fredrick and Veteran and Veterinarian by Jim Whittem. Both are written by Australian veterinarians, were reviewed in the AVJ, and contain accounts of the author’s experience in the veterinary profession. Although David de Fredrick’s book is principally a comprehensive exposition of horse management and diseases, it is based on his lifetime experience in equine practice. In Whittem’s book the experience is in teaching, research and scientific administration within the veterinary profession as well as his WW2 service. These books will provide a snapshot of veterinary life in the second half of the 20th century, covering a wide spectrum, in years to come. Tom Hart MHML Hon Librarian 5 AVH SIG Committee Meeting, 4 September 2009 The AVH SIG Committee met in the Gilruth and Max Henry Memorial Libraries, University of Melbourne Veterinary School on 4 September to consider several initiatives that had arisen at and since the AGM. Ms Tammie Goates, Gilruth and Max Henry Librarian, provided for perusal recent additions to the Max Henry Memorial Library and memorabilia from Margaret Keats recently donated to the Library by her family. History of the Australian Veterinary Profession Project: At the Darwin AGM, the President Mark Lawrie suggested it might be timely to have a history of the veterinary profession in Australia, with the 250th anniversary of the establishment of the first veterinary school at Lyon, France in 2011. The Committee agreed a definitive history of the veterinary profession should be written, but doubted an adequate manuscript could be completed by 2011. A short history of the profession, written in 1983 for the World Veterinary Congress in Perth by Dr John Auty, could be updated to 2010. It was agreed that a history written by an established/eminent historian or at least overseeing the writing was preferable than a multi-author approach. Material would be sourced from the AVHS and other people. Indicative costs to produce a comprehensive history may be in the order of $100,000 per year for 3 years plus additional costs associated with getting photographic material ready for the publication. It was agreed that the purpose of writing the history of the profession was to promote the profession to the public and the profession as vital, active and forward thinking. There is public interest in the profession and this interest needs to be fostered in having an inviting public presentation. The AVHS Committee recommends to the AVA Board of Directors that: 1. If desirable for the international promotion of the Australian veterinary profession associated with the Lyon Veterinary School celebrations, a small edition of a veterinary history could be produced by extending the history that was written in 1983 to the present time.