COMPLICATIONS OF DISTEMPER. 603 



often forbid his movements. If the ear or stethoscope be applied to the chest, the characteristic 

 signs of pneumonia will be heard ; these are sounds of moist crepitations, &c. 



Bronchitis is probably the most common complication ; in fact, it is always present, except 

 in very mild cases. The cough becomes more severe, and often comes on in tearing paroxysms, 

 causing sickness and vomiting. The breathing is short and frequent, the mouth hot, and filled 

 with viscid saliva, while very often the bowels are constipated. 



Liver Disease. If the liver becomes involved, we shall very soon have the jaundiced eye and 

 the yellow skin. The jaundice may be caused by suppression from the distemper poison, or 

 interfering with the proper secretion of the bile, or it may be caused by obstruction ; and this 

 is the more common cause owing to catarrhal inflammation of the lining membrane of the gall- 

 duct, and consequent occlusion thereof from thickening and discharge. 



Diarrhoea. This is another very common complication. We have frequent purging, and, 

 may-be, sickness and vomiting. The stools are at times thin, slimy, and watery; more often, 

 however, they are about the consistency of gruel, and dark and very offensive. This diarrhoea, if 

 not kept in check, may go on to dysentery itself, the fceces being tinged with mucus, pus, and blood. 

 There will be also considerable tenesmus. The discharge of a quantity of pure blood is by no 

 means a rare, though always dangerous, symptom. Attacks of colic and tympanites may occa- 

 sionally be expected. 



Fits of a convulsive character are frequent concomitants of distemper. The animal sometimes 

 falls down howling in agony and pawing the ground, or he becomes insensible quite, and very 

 much convulsed. 



Epilepsy is sometimes seen in cases of distemper, owing, no doubt, to degeneration of the 

 nerve centres, owing to blood-poisoning. Epileptic fits are violent while they last, and one may 

 succeed another, until at last, getting feebler and feebler, the dog dies in one. 



There are many other complications seen in distemper ; for instance, inflammation of the 

 conjunctivas and ulceration of the cornea, various skin complications, eruptions on the thinnest 

 portions of the hide of the animal, and towards the end, when the dog is getting convalescent, 

 eczematous eruptions about the rump and tail, &c., &c. 



Erysipelas, or an inflammation resembling it, sometimes attacks the extremities. 



Again, we may have as sequelae both chorea and paralysis ; this latter, indeed, sometimes 

 coming on even as a complication, and a very dangerous one too. 



We have purposely avoided enlarging on these complications, as this would only tend to 

 confuse the general reader, who is apt to look upon complications as symptomatic of distemper. 

 Moreover, both complications and sequela; are more fully treated of in other portions of the 

 book. 



Treatment of Distemper. This consists firstly in doing all in our power to guide the specific 

 catarrhal fever to a safe termination ; and secondly, in watching for and combating complications. 



The older practitioners used to trust largely to the lancet, to strong purgatives, and to emetics. 

 Knowing, as we now do, the true pathology of the disorder, we are not likely to follow their 

 example. We have seen that distemper is really the effects of a specific poison, afloat 

 in the circulation and generating more poison, which Nature does her best to eliminate ; and we 

 have seen, too, that the naso-pharyngeal mucous membrane is the soil chosen by the 

 poison-seed of distemper whereon to grow and flourish. As, then, the symptoms of catarrh are 

 caused, not by irritation from without, but by irritation from within by a poisonous vis-a-tergo, it 

 is evident that our efforts must be directed to support Nature, and assist her to eliminate the 

 poison. 



