RABIES. 159 



noted for his docility will, when suffering from this disease, 

 become very irritable and prone to bite. A rabid dog, how- 

 ever, will not go far out of his way to inflict a bite ; neither 

 does he inflict several bites in succession, but snaps at any 

 object that may happen to be in his way, and passes on. 

 One peculiarity of the disease is that the affected animal 

 shows a great antipathy to animals of his own species. 

 He travels with a peculiar long swinging trot, the tail 

 hanging down, and often with the tongue hanging out of 

 the mouth. Generally an excessive secretion of saliva 

 takes place and flows from the mouth, and the head is 

 carried lower than usual, except at the moment of excite- 

 ment. Deglutition, which at first is not very difficult, 

 gradually becomes more and more so, as the disease pro- 

 gresses, until finally any effort to swallow results in a severe 

 convulsive fit, or spasm of the muscles of deglutition. The 

 periods of excitement are followed by corresponding periods 

 of depression ; the former as the disease advances becoming 

 less marked and of shorter duration, wdiile each of 'the latter 

 occurs in a form better marked, and is of longer duration 

 than the one preceding it. Finally, paralysis partial or 

 complete occurs, and is quickly followed by death. 



Treatment. — After the disease has become manifest its 

 invariable termination is death, hence the affected animal, 

 instead of being treated, should be destroyed at once. In 

 the case of a valuable animal or a member of the human 

 family being bitten by a rabid animal, the wound should as 

 soon as possible be thoroughly cleansed and freely cauter- 

 ized ; caustic in a liquid form being preferable, as if used 

 in a solid form some portion of the wound is likely to 

 escape the action of the caustic. In addition to which, as 

 a precautionary measure, inoculation as practised by M. 

 Pasteur (the French scientist) may be performed. It being 

 claimed that by inoculation (after infliction of the bite) the 



