“Measure twice, cut once,” goes the old saying. The truth of that advice is visible everywhere, especially today, when one astonishing discovery follows another and the outcomes are hard to predict.
When penicillin was found to fight infections and could be produced in large quantities, people began using it to treat domestic animals.
They first tried it on calves suffering from pneumonia. After penicillin injections, the calves’ pneumonia improved, but they still died of exhaustion. They were still being fed as usual. The problem was that the bacteria in their stomachs and intestines helped digest their food. Penicillin destroyed those beneficial organisms, so the calves starved despite eating their regular rations.
It later became clear that penicillin did not have such a devastating effect on adult cows. Consequently, people began treating adult cows with the antibiotic.
