84 THE ARMY HORSE. 



impossible. This inability to open the jaws has given to the 

 disease the name of lockjaw. 



Contraction of the great posterior muscles of the eye causes 

 a retraction of this organ within the orbit, and a protrusion of 

 the haw upon the eyeball. 



The animal is very stiff, holds his head in an extended j^osi- 

 tion as if suffering from a sore throat ; the tail is elevated and 

 the ears drawn closer together ; the nostrils are much dilated ; 

 the legs stand apart ; the eyes indicate excitement and anxiety, 

 the mucous membranes are reddened ; some muscular groups, 

 principally the muscles of the cheeks and of the back of the 

 neck, are hard and distinctly outlined, as if carved; the mus- 

 cles of the jaws, neck and shoulders, back, lumbar region, croup 

 and tail are as hard as wood. 



The tail and ears are elastic; when they are moved they 

 immediately return to their former position. 



There is profuse sweating when the animal is disturbed or 

 when he is in a spasm ; respiration is accelerated and laborious. 

 When the j^atient is approached for an examination, his excite- 

 ment increases instantly; the lower jaw^ is pressed hard against 

 the upper, and can not be separated from it, even by the most 

 violent efforts of the examiner; on parting the lips a fetid 

 liquid runs out of the mouth, which is more or less filled with 

 particles of food ; if the head is lifted the Avhole haw^ obscures 

 the greater part of the eyeball. 



Backing is extremely difficult or even impossible; turning is 

 also very laborious; the trunk, neck, and shoulders can not be 

 flexed, the extremities are as stiff as stilts. 



The course of tetanus is variable, according to the individual. 

 It commonly develops rapidly, and death takes place in two or 

 three days. In some cases death occurs more slowly within 

 four to eight days on an average. In others, again, where the 

 spasm is moderate and of little extent, the disease may continue 

 for several weeks. 



Recovery before the third week is rare; about this time the 

 spasm begins to decline, the appetite returns, respiration be- 

 comes calmer, and the movements more free ; very often recov- 

 ery takes place only at the end of five or six weeks ; there may 

 be a continuance of the stiffness of movement and tension of the 

 muscles of the back, for a long period of time. 



Treatment. — A systematic course of food and the freedom of 

 the patient from all kinds of excitement are the two essentials 



