228 CONTAGIOUS DISEASES. 



furniture ; being fidgety, lying down, then jumping up again in 

 an excited, unnatural manner ; it has a tendency to rove about, 

 and if possible to escape from its room or kennel, and wander 

 about the country. At first, the dog's power of recognising people 

 about it does not seem lost ; indeed there are moments when the 

 usual faculties of the dog, its affection and liveliness, seem 

 greater than usual. Along with these symptoms there is a desire 

 to lick anything cold, to rest the nose on a cold object, and to 

 pick up stones, bits of wood, straw, &c. At this stage the ten- 

 dency to bite is not observed, but as the disease advances the 

 movements of the animal become unsteady; the eyes follow 

 objects in a peculiar staring manner; sometimes the dog will 

 stare at some imaginary object, then rush forward, and bite at 

 anything that may chance to be in his way, or even at the air, 

 as if he were catching flies ; cushions, straw, and other objects 

 by which dogs are ordinarily surrounded, are tossed about ; the 

 animal scratches the ground, snuffles as if on the scent ; the 

 appetite is lost, but the thirst is considerable, and the act of 

 drinlcing is performed without much difficidty during the early 

 stages of the disease. At a later stage, however, swallowing — 

 deglutition — is performed with difficulty, or is not performed at 

 all, owing to the spasmodic constriction of the throat ; but even 

 then the animal has no dread of water, does not shrink at the 

 sight of fluids, but, on the contrary, will plunge its muzzle 

 deeply into it, and endeavour to drink with great avidity. The 

 coat is staring, the skin tight on the ribs, and the belly tucked up. 

 The dog occasionally vomits, the ejected matter being tinged with 

 blood ; there is a brownish coating on the tongue ; the nose and 

 mouth are foul and offensive, and there is generally a flow of 

 saliva from the mouth. A symptom is mentioned in connection 

 with the disease in the human being, which is of doubtful pre- 

 sence in the lower animals, namely, the formation during the 

 early period of the disease of lysscs or eruption on each side of 

 the tongue. If any eruption does occur, its presence is seldom 

 detected. 



The mad dog, or indeed a rabid animal of any kind, brought 

 into the presence of one of tlie canine species, exhibits great 

 excitement, exasperation, and fury, with a desire to attack and 

 destroy what seems the object of its hatred. " The horse assaults 

 it with its teeth and hoofs ; the bull, cow, and ram with their 

 liorns ; even the timid sheep, when rabid, becomes the assailant." 



