Psychoses, qa-i 



exclusively or principally by abnormal symptoms of psychic 

 liie (Psyche). ^ "^ 



There is no doubt that most organic diseases of the brain, produce seeondarv 

 psychotic symptoms, if it so happens that the cerebral cortex is involved in sympaSy 

 with the psychic processes, yet these diseases cannot be reckoned as psyJhoses L an 

 exact sense, because on the one hand their nature depends on the o r g^^^^^^^^ 

 referred to, and because on the other hand the psychotic syinptoms onlyTrm a part 

 ance I?7he"'las? n ent' "''f' '"' ''' bodily (somatic) symptoms remai^ n aC 

 ^rr;,.o ^^ il i mentioned eases were considered as true psychoses then most 

 diseases of the bram must rank as psychoses. 



Some veterinary authors have endeavored to prove by 

 certain symptoms that true psychoses can occur in animals. 

 -But the question remained unanswered how many of the visible 

 actions of otherwise healthy animals depend on psychic pro- 

 cesses or on the contrary on reflexes, automatisms and fatigue, 

 which ot course have nothing to do with the psychic functions. 

 J^ mally a new analysis of the observed symptoms was under- 

 taken. Dexler has shown that only the occurrence of organic 

 diseases of the brain can be considered as proved, and that 

 these diseases may be connected with more or less pronounced 

 psychotic symptoms, which, however, may not be mistaken for 

 independent psychoses. The study of the symptoms arising in 

 given cases must be approached circumspectly with proper con- 

 sideration of the direction advanced by Dexler and of the ele- 

 ments of comparative psychology and general psvchopathology, 

 and one must hold strictly to the accepted definitions of psychia- 

 try if one wishes to avoid confusion in the matter. It is fur- 

 ther necessary to keep in mind that the nervous system of ani- 

 mals IS not exposed to nearly so many injurious influences as 

 IS that of man m whom the various means of enjoyment, also 

 certain infectious diseases (especially syphilis), affect the ner- 

 vous system frequently and for prolonged periods on account 

 ot the comparatively long life. The reaction of civilization 

 upon the psyche becomes manifest in man in an increasingly 

 greater degree and no natural selection opposes the extension 

 of morbid tendencies by heredity, as is usually the case in ani- 

 mals when certain transmissible anomalies make their appear- 

 ance. For these reasons true psychoses can be expected in ani- 

 mals_ only very rarely if they occur at all, and their diagnosis 

 requires above all the elimination of organic brain diseases by 

 means of careful clinical and, especially, histological examina- 

 tions. 



The psychotic disturbances which hitherto have been observed in animals have 

 been taken to correspond with the following psychoses of man. 



To Traumatic Early Psychosis (a traumatic dementia) the cases described by 

 Fierqum (1838; cited by Cadiot) as "accidental dementia" are said to belong 

 f a young cat after a fall into a well suffered all through its life from weak 

 mental faculties. A talkative parrot crept into a hiding place during the long con- 

 tinued thunder of cannons, and when later he was taken out of his hiding place he 

 had lost his" vocabulary," and during his whole life afterwards could only make an 

 attempt to imitate the noise of the cannon. In the first case there was probably a 

 Vol. 2-51 



