690 THE AMEEICAN BOOK OF THE DOG. 



in the sheep's brain. Let this be eaten by a dog, and 

 in his intestines it will become a tape-worm. 



If one dog in a kennel has a tape- worm he may infect all 

 his mates, arid he may even keep continually infecting him- 

 self in this way: The eggs from him are deposited about, 

 and he takes them up on the hairs of his coat. If he is 

 unfortunate enough to have lice which are quite common 

 among dogs these eggs are swallowed by them. Within 

 the bodies of the lice the eggs meet with conditions which 

 favor the rupture of their envelopes, and the embryos escape 

 and another transformation takes place. In biting the 

 parts irritated by them the lice are often swallowed by the 

 dog, and thus the germ enters and is developed into a 

 perfect tape-worm in the intestinal canal which it left as 

 an egg but a few weeks previous. The same infested lice 

 being shaken from his coat into the drinking-water, or the 

 food, may be introduced into other dogs kenneled with him, 

 and they in turn may become infested. 



A generously fed dog, which seems strong, active, and 

 healthy and yet keeps thin, might well be suspected of hav- 

 ing a tape-worm, especially if he has a ravenous appetite. 

 Whether he has worms or not ought to be easy to determine. 

 When the owner is in doubt, he should give him worm -medi- 

 cine to settle the question. The form which he is most 

 likely to harbor is of a delicate character, much of it being 

 threadlike. It is from ten to twenty inches in length. The 

 largest tape- worm found in the dog may reach ten feet in 

 length, and the germ from which it is propagated is de- 

 rived from the sheep. Another form is furnished by the 

 hare and rabbit; this worm is from two to three feet in 

 length. 



A safe agent, and one quite effectual in the treatment of 

 tape- worm, is the areca-nut; and a table-spoonful at least 

 should be given a dog of ordinary size. He should fast 

 one day before taking it. On the night of that day he 

 should be given a dose of castor-oil, to clear out the intes- 

 tinal canal and leave the worm free to be acted upon by 

 the medicine, which should be administered the following 



