136 Agricultural Bacteriology. 



nature of the symptoms noted. In the rabbit the dumb 

 type is most usual ; in the dog it is very rare. The symp- 

 toms of rabies appear slowly. With the furious type of 

 the disease, the animal is usually more nervous than nor- 

 mal and more affectionate, or it may be dull and try to 

 avoid people. The nervousness increases until the ani- 

 mal is unable to rest. It may become delirious and snap 

 at the air. The itching of the tissue at the point of in- 

 oculation causes the dog to lick the wound or even to bite 

 itself. The nervousness may be so great that the dog 

 leaves home, and starts on a wandering trip which may 

 last for several days, usually returning home in an ex- 

 hausted condition. During this absence from home is the 

 time of greatest danger, for the dog then comes in con- 

 tact with other animals. The rabid dog does not go out 

 of its way to bite, as is frequently stated, but any object 

 or other animal that is in its way is very likely to be 

 snapped at. The animal that is most usually bitten is 

 another dog. In this way the disease is spread, as on 

 such a trip the mad dog may infect a large number of 

 dogs. 



The animal may die while away from home. More 

 often it reaches home in a pitiable condition, and often 

 the owner may be bitten in seeking to relieve the animal. 

 The greatest care should be exercised in handling any 

 dog suspected of rabies. As the disease progresses, cer- 

 tain parts of the body become paralyzed, the muscles of 

 the throat generally being the first to be affected. This 

 has led to another popular fallacy, namely that a rabid 

 animal has a great fear of water, often going into fits at 

 the sight of water. This fallacy has given to the disease 

 the name ''hydrophobia," meaning fear of water. The 

 .animal is unable to swallow, and in making an attempt 



