Skip to main content

Story: Diseases of sheep, cattle and deer

Polioencephalomalacia in sheep

Image
Polioencephalomalacia in sheep

Polioencephalomalacia is a relatively rare disease, which is caused by thiamine deficiency associated with a diet high in sulfate. It results in the animal ‘star gazing’, as shown in here, or ‘dog sitting’ – becoming blind, circling aimlessly or having a dejected appearance. It is invariably fatal.

Using this item

Private collection

by Gary Clark

This item has been provided for private study purposes (such as school projects, family and local history research) and any published reproduction (print or electronic) may infringe copyright law. It is the responsibility of the user of any material to obtain clearance from the copyright holder.

All images & media in this story

How to cite this page

Gary Clark, Neville Grace and Ken Drew, Diseases of sheep, cattle and deer – Reproductive and nervous system diseases, Te Ara – the Encyclopedia of New Zealand, https://teara.govt.nz/en/photograph/17440/polioencephalomalacia-in-sheep (accessed 4 June 2026).

Story by Gary Clark, Neville Grace and Ken Drew, published 1 March 2009.