162 DISTEMPER 



DISTEMPER 



Distemper. — This disease trouble breeders more and causes more deaths 

 than anything else, except perhaps worm. It is the hardest subject I have 

 to handle in this book, and as too much information on this dreaded dis- 

 ease we cannct know, I have secured for this article about all I could get. 

 Read and study up this subject before distemper appears, so as to be then 

 prepared to attend to it when your dogs are so' unfortunate as to have it. 

 It is not a foregone conclusion that a dog must die, because he has dis- 

 temper; I have had many dogs get it and get well, and I now have dogs 

 in my kennel that got safely over it, and- these same dogs afterwards ex- 

 posed to it several- times and did not again have it. As to this, I believe 

 that it does not necessarily follow that a grown dog will have it the second 

 time, if exposed, any more than a man is in danger of getting smallpox 

 after having passed safely through it. Lately I had two cases of distemper 

 in my kennel, one being a boarder, a Cocker spaniel, and the other, one 

 of my own poodles, both young dogs of six months. Unfortunately both 

 cases proved fatal, but I checked it up here and not another one of the 

 fifty other dogs in the kennel had it at all, which was indeed lucky, as it 

 was impossible to prevent most of them from exposure at the first stages 

 of the disease when these two were taken down with it. What I did do, 

 however, was to immediately take steps to prevent, especially the young- 

 er dogs from getting it. This I did by at once isolating the ones that had 

 It, thoroughly disinfecting all kennels, destroying the bedding that had been 

 see how they ate, and condition of passages, and am glad to say that this 

 time I confined it to the two that died. 



It is a wise plan to have this remedy on hand, so that when distemper 

 used, and then putting every dOg that had been exposed on either Clayton's 

 few clays, watching every dog for any signs of distemper coming, also as to 

 Distemperine, which has been my standby for years. This I kept up for a 

 comes, you can go to work on the dog at once, and not make it worse by 

 having to wait till you can get the remedy. Since writing my first book 

 I have used the "Onion Remedy" of my friend, William Saxby, the Beagle 

 breeder of Ilion, N. Y. This, in addition to other treatment, and with good 

 results, as it can do no harm and will surely do good. It is called the 

 "Home Made Distemper Cure," and was published in all the dog papers: 



Slice a sound raw onion (the stronger the better) and put into a 

 stocking leg and with safety pins fasten around the dog's neck, with the 

 onions under the chin. This will cause the discharge to be watery; renew 

 often enough to keep it watery (say every other day) and with careful 

 nursing you will be surprised at your success. 



How to diet a clog during distemper is a question to which the answer 

 must vary according to the circumstances of the case. It goes without 

 say ng, however, that in all cases srd'd meat must be tabooed — anything 

 likely to raise the temperature being highly unsuitable. If the dog is 

 purged violently, milk, with a small percentage of l-'me water added, would 

 be good, as would also port wine beaten up with egg. As a general rule 

 tbe safest plan is to dispense with solids altogether, and feed on gruels, 

 broths, beef tea, etc., remembering that, as with a human invalid so with a 

 canine, it is equally of importance to p ovide only light, easily-digested 

 nourishment, since the stomach is affected with the rest of the body, and 

 what it could easily assimilate during health, it has no means of dealing 

 with during sickness. 



Dog biscuits and all farinaceous solids are to be avoided now. A little 



