526 DISEASES OF THE HORSE. 



Symptoms. — There is a period of incubation, after an animal lias 

 been exposed, of from five to eight days, during which there is no 

 aj)i3reciable alteration in the health. This period is shorter in sum- 

 mer than in winter. At the end of this time small nodes develop at 

 the point of inoculation and the animal becomes feverish. The horse 

 is dull and dejected, loses its appetite, and has a rough dry coat wdth 

 the hairs on end. There is moderate thirst. The respirations are 

 somewhat quickened and the pulse becomes rapid and full. The 

 body temperature is elevated, frequently reaching 104° or 105° F. 

 wdthin thirty-six or forty-eight hours from the appearance of the 

 first symptoms. 



The visible mucous membranes, especiallj^ the conjunctivae, are of a 

 ])right rosy red. In the lymphatic, cold-blooded, and more common 

 horses these symptoms of fever are less marked; even wdth a com- 

 paratively high temperature the animal may retain its appetite and 

 even work comj^aratively w^ell, but these cases, if worked and over- 

 heated, are apt to develop serious complications. 



At the end of from three and a half to four days the eruption 

 breaks out, the fever abates, and the general symptoms improve. 

 The eruption in severe cases may be generalized ; it may be confined 

 to the softer skin of the nose and lips, the genital organs, and the 

 inside of the thighs, or it may be localized in the neighborhood of a 

 wound or in the irritated skin of a i^air of greasy heels. It consists 

 of a varying number of little nodes which, on a mucous membrane, 

 as in the nostrils or vagina, or on soft unpigmented skin, appear red 

 and feel at first like shot under the epidermis. These nodes soften 

 and show a yellowish spot in the center when they become pustules. 

 The ej^idermis is dissolved and the matter escajDes as a viscid fluid 

 at first citrine and later cloudy and purulent, which dries rapidly, 

 forming scabs; if these fall off or are removed they leave a little shal- 

 low concave ulcer which heals in the course of five or six days. In the 

 softer skin if pigmented the cicatrices arewdiite and frequently remain 

 so for about a year, when the pigment returns. The lips or genital 

 organs of a colored horse, if covered with a number of small white 

 spots about the size of a pea, will usually indicate that the animal has 

 been affected with the horsepox. 



At times the pustules may become confluent and produce large 

 superficial serpentine idcers on the membrane of the nostrils, around 

 the lips or ej^elids, or on the borders of Avounds and in greasy heels; 

 in this case the part becomes swollen, hot, jDainful, and is covered 

 Avith a profuse discharge of matter. In this form there is frequently 

 a secondary fever lasting for a day or two. 



In severe cases there may be a suppurative adenitis, or inflamma- 

 tion of the lymphatic glands Avhich are fed from the affected part. 

 If the eruption is around the nostrils and lips, the glands between 



