416 INFLAMMATIONS. 



SKIN DISEASES. 



Almost all skin diseases depend on neglect in some form ; and 

 in the dog they arise either from improper management, as in the 

 case of " blotch," or " surfeit," or from the presence of parasites, 

 as in mange. These three names are all that are applied to skin 

 diseases in the dog, though there can be no doubt that they vary 

 greatly, and mange itself is subdivided by different writers so as 

 to comprehend several varieties. Fleas, ticks, &c., also irritate 

 the skin greatly, and all will therefore be included here, the 

 inflammation produced by them being entitled to be considered a 

 skin disease as much as mange itself. 



Blotch, or surfeit, shows itself in the shape of scabby lumps of 

 matted hair, on the back, sides, head, and quarters, as well as 

 occasionally on the inside of the thighs. They vary from the size 

 of a sixpence to that of half-a-crown, are irregularly round in 

 shape, and after about three or four days the scab and hair fall off, 

 leaving the skin bare, red, and slightl}^ inclined to discharge a 

 thin serum. The disease is not contagious, and evidently arises 

 from gross feeding joined very frequently with want of exercise, and 

 often brought out by a gallop after long confinement to the ken- 

 nel. The appropriate treatment is to remove the cause by giving 

 mild aperients (11), (1'3), or (14), with low diet and regular exer- 

 cise, by the aid of which, continued for some little time, there is 

 seldom any difiiculty in effecting a cure. 



