482 Treatment of Poisoning, 



Ranunculus. — Allthe varieties of Ranunculus are acrid and irri- 

 tating. The celery-leaved crowfoot, Banunculus sceleratus, lias a bad 

 reputation in this country, as poisonous to sheep and other stock, when 

 eaten by them. The eyes of the animals roll, the breathing becomes 

 laborious, they are giddy, turn round and round, and may drop suddenly 

 dead. At other times, loss of appetite, quick pulse, staring coat, and 

 the other symptoms of acute inflammation of the bowels follow its use. 

 In the latter class of cases a full purge of linseed and castor oil is 

 required ; in the former, an ounce of ether, in milk, will often dissipate 

 the nervous symptoms, and give time for an active purge to carry off the 

 offending substance. • 



Savin. — The oil and powder of savin are largely and sometimes 

 indiscreetly, used in domestic veterinary pharmacy. "WTien given in 

 excessive doses, they give rise to severe colic, loss of appetite, fever, and 

 constipation, followed by a bloody and exhausting diarrhea. The treat- 

 ment is to administer full doses of sweet or linseed oil, with one to three 

 ounces of laudanum, and support the strength by doses of an ounce of 

 ether in a pint of milk. 



St. John's Wort.— This common weed, the -5j/2?encwm^e>/or- 

 atum, is charged, and probably justly, with irritating and producing 

 sores on horses, cattle and sheep, especially such as have white feet and 

 noses — the skin of such being more tender and irritable. Dr. William 

 Darlington, the late eminent botanist of Pennsylvania, says: ''The 

 dew which collects on the plant seems to become acrid. I have seen 

 the backs of white cows covered with sores, wherever the bushy ends 

 of their tails had been api^lied, after draggling through the St. John's 

 ■wort." The noses of sheep are often found to be sore, from this cause. 

 The treatment is to wash the sores clean, and cover them with wood tar 

 or petroleum, which heals and counteracts the acridity of the plant. 



Stramonium. — The Jlmson or Jamestown weed is a common 

 plant in the Atlantic states, and, in fact, in all quarters of the world — 

 along roadsides, on dung heaps, etc. It is a narcotic and irritant 

 poison, although the herbivora can take considerable quantities of it 

 without serious results. Two pounds and a half of the seeds have been 

 known to kill a horse. The symptoms are giddiness, faintness and 

 delirium, followed by convulsions, palsy and stupor. The stomach and 

 intestines are inflamed, the bowels constipated or passing bloody feces, 

 and the colic is severe. The treatment is by fall doses of sweet or lin- 

 seed oil, containing two to four ounces of laudanum, injections, and 

 supporting the strength by ether or whisky. 



