220 i MISCELLANEOUS 



applied once or twice daily, on the bare spots, well rubbed in with the hand. 



To Increase Bone in Puppy. — Give puppy some large veal bones, or soft 

 beef bones to gnaw on and twice a day a small dose Parish's Chemical 

 Food after eating. The chemical food consists of phosphate of lime, also 

 phosphate of iron. 



Severe Nervousness. — Dog may seem scared out of his life, run and 

 hide if it hears a footfall, may only be induced to eat by putting its food 

 under its very nose, &c. Dog may in time improve, especially by very 

 kind treatment. A course of tonic medicine, like chemical food, would 

 also materially assist, as this medicine contains phosphates. The food can 

 be obtained at any good drug store. 



Dogs Eating Own Filth. — Some dogs have this disgusting habit, just 

 why is hard to say. The only tangible reason would seem to be a depraved 

 appetite, caused by worms, the cause of so many troubles in dogs. The 

 cure is, to watch dog and when she has a passage cover the feces with 

 powdered cayenne pepper, aside from scolding or punishing dog when 

 caught in the act. After dog has had a good taste of the pepper it will be 

 very liable to quit the habit. 



Milk Trouble. — Several cases have come under notice recently of milk 

 trouble affecting bitches. The commonest cause of this is, of course, loss 

 of puppies. We might go further and qualify the term loss by saying^that 

 very often it is caused by the senseless removal of puppies, as, for instance, 

 when a mongrel litter arrives, which it is desired to get rid of as soon as 

 possible. To take all the puppies away from the mother not only con- 

 stitutes gross cruelty, but sheer folly as well, for it is most likely that 

 the bitch in that case will develop milk trouble in the shape of tumors or 

 abscesses, and she will never be the same animal again after mischief of 

 this kind has once been brought on. 



Supposing, however, that a milk abscess should form, the proper 

 treatment to adopt is to use hot fomentations continuously. If the matter 

 is taken in hand early enough, it will, of course, be possible to draw the 

 milk away, and this will avoid the possibility of any abscess forming. 

 Should, however, the latter unfortunately occur, it is certainly advisable 

 that qualified advice should be taken and a veterinary surgeon should be 

 asked to deal with it, lest it should ultimately involve recourse to an opera- 

 tion. Hot fomentations or poultices, in any case, should be applied until 

 the arrival of the veterinarian, as no possible harm can be done by this 

 means. 



Canker of the Mouth. — There is trouble to which the term canker is 

 applied, and that is with regard to the mouth and teeth. Dogs which 

 are kept indoors and are pampered with dainty food of various kinds and 

 do not get a sufficient amount of exercise are very liable to dyspepsia, which 

 is almost invariably accompanied by an unhealthy state of the teeth and 

 mouth. If these be not attended to, inflammation of the gums is set up, 

 and at the same time the teeth are apt to decay, and altogether a very un- 

 comfortable state of things is produced. Prevention is, of course, better 

 than cure in all cases of this kind, and the way to prevent it is to stop 

 giving dainty tit-bits and to feed the dog on plain, wholesome food, taking 

 care also that the animal has an increased amount of exercise, together 

 with a little corrective medicine, such as a compound rhubarb pill now and 

 again, or an occasional mild dose of Epsom salt. 



It is also a good plan to use a mouth wash composed of myrrh and 

 borax, a bottle of which can be obtained from any good pharmaceutical 

 chemist. This needs to be diluted with water, and should be sponged on 

 the inflamed gums. Needless to say, if the teeth show any signs of decay, 

 they should at once be extracted by a competent veterinary surgeon, be- 

 cause if one tooth goes wrong, it is quite likely to start decay in a number 

 of the others. The lotion recommended above ought to be used twice or 

 three times a day, and the alterative medicine should be given every two 

 or three days, according to circumstances. 



Flatulency. — Is not very common in adult dogs, but oftener met with 

 in puppies. It Is unmistakable evidence of indigestion. For immediate re- 



