270 The Care of Animals 



be carefully given. The abdomen (belly) should be 

 thoroughly rubbed with a sort of kneading motion 

 and a mild stimulating liniment applied, though not 

 enough to blister. Gentle exercise, if the horse is not 

 too sick, is advisable. Give him salt to eat, and plenty 

 of water. A thin mash of scalded bran that he can 

 drink is excellent. Two ounces of essence of Jamaica 

 ginger may be given, or ginger tea made by putting 

 a heaping tablespoonful of pulverized ginger into a 

 pint of hot water, allowing it to cool, and then giving 

 it as a drench. These may be repeated every four 

 hours. Violent purgatives should not be resorted to. 

 Give nature time and a little assistance, and the beh>; 

 results will follow. 



CONCRETIONS, CALCULI, HAIR -BALLS, ETC. 



Hard masses of indigestible material are frequently 

 found in the stomachs and intestines of animals. In 

 some cases, these calculi are composed of salts of lime 

 and have the appearance of a stone. Sometimes they 

 are a mixture of salts of lime, hair, beards of barley 

 or similar material gathered into a hard mass, which 

 partially or completely close the bowel. 



The symptoms vary with the nature of the animal 

 and the location of the calculus, or mass ; but, in 

 general, they are those of any other stoppage of the 

 bowels. In most cases, the cause of the difficulty is 

 not recognized until after the death of the animal. 



In all cases of stoppage of the bowels, unless the 

 cause is definitely known, an examination should always 



