DISEASES 83 



wound round the limb from bottom to top. The object of the starch or 

 gum solution is to give additional support, which it does when it gets stiff 

 and hardens. After the operation the dog should be put into a quiet place 

 — a large hamper or crate does very well — so that he can rest and not 

 move about; but it often happens that the next day the part of the limb 

 below the bandage is found to be swollen; if so the latter should be 

 loosened for a short time, but it must be tightened again when the swell- 

 ing subsides. 



The above treatment is of course only advised in the case of simple 

 fractures where an amateur may indulge his surgical skill. 



Fits. — Dalziel so fully and ably handles this subject that I give his 

 article entire, as it covers the whole ground. I have been governed by 

 his ideas in treating many cases and the success I had leads me to endorse 

 his treatment: 



"Fits are of common occurrence, especially in puppies — fortunately 

 those that are of a dangerous and fatal character are the most rare; they 

 often cause needless alarm, but the dog suffering from a fit of whatever 

 kind is not an object to be frightened at, but to be commiserated and 

 helped, and this requires freedom from a fear for which there is no just 

 reason. Fits are of many kinds, and may be classified as apoplectic fits, 

 distemper fits, fits from teething, fits from worms, and suckling fits, and 

 other causes of excitement are known to produce them, even high notes 

 of music, to which some dogs show a strong objection and are decidedly 

 harmful. 



Apoplectic Fits are caused by pressure on the brain from distended 

 blood-vessels or effusions of blood. The subjects of attack are generally 

 those dogs that are kept in idleness and over-fed, and the attack may be 

 the result of the animal over-loading the stomach with food difficult of 

 digestion. The symptoms are loud, labored breathing; the dog lies mo- 

 tionless on its side in a state of insensibility — there is no frothing at 

 the mouth or champing of the jaws, but the eyes are fixed and often blood- 

 shot. Such cases are usually fatal, and death is frequently instantan- 

 eous. Prompt bleeding is the most likely means of saving the patient; 

 and then, soon as sufficiently recovered, a strong purge should be given, 

 or clysters administered. Should these means prove successful, it will 

 be necessary to use extreme care to prevent a recurrence of the fit. The 

 dog's diet must be carefully regulated, sufficient healthful exercise al- 

 lowed, or compelled, if need be, and occasional doses of cooling medicine 

 given. Clayton's or Dent's Blood Cooling Pills will be just the thing to 

 give. Apoplexy in the dog is not often seen in practice. 



Distemper Fits are caused by congestion or inflammation of the brain, 

 and often prove fatal. 



Epileptic Fits are not dangerous, but of very common occurrence, 

 especially during the heated term, and generally happen when the dog is 

 at exercise — sometimes in the case of pointers they are seized when on 



