502 DISEASES OF THE HORSE. 



ing and evening temperature as we have in pneumonia or other seri- 

 ous diseases of the lungs. At the termination of the specific course of 

 the disease, which is generally from six to ten days, the fever abates, 

 the swelling of the legs and under surface of belly diminishes, the ap- 

 petite returns, the strength is rapidly regained, the mucous mem- 

 branes lose their yellowish color, which they attain so rapidly at the 

 commencement of the disease, and the animal convalesces promptly 

 to its ordinary good condition and health, and rapidly regains the 

 large amount of weight which it lost in the early part of the disease, 

 a loss which frequently reaches 30, 50, or even 75 pounds each twenty- 

 four hours. For the first three days of the high temperature there is 

 a great tendency to constipation, which should be avoided if possible 

 by the use of the means recommended below, for, if it has been 

 marked, it may be followed by a troublesome diarrhea. 



Terminations. — The termination of simple influenza may be death 

 by extreme fever, with failure of the heart's action ; from excessive 

 coma, due generally to a rapid congestion of the brain ; to the poison- 

 ous effects of the debris of the disintegrated blood corpuscles and the 

 toxin of the disease; to an asphyxia, following congestion of the 

 lungs ; or the disease terminates by subsidence of the fever, return of 

 the appetite and nutritive functions of the organs, and rapid con- 

 valescence ; or, in an unfortunately large number of cases, the course 

 of the disease is complicated by local inflammatory troubles, whose 

 gravity is greater in influenza than it is when they occur as sporadic 

 diseases. 



C omplications. — The complications are congestions, followed by 

 inflammatory phenomena in the various organs of the body, but they 

 are most commonly located in the intestines, lungs, brain, or vascular 

 laminae of the feet. Atmospheric influence or other surrounding 

 influences of unknown quality seem to be an important factor in the 

 determination of the local lesions. At certain seasons of the year, 

 and in certain epizootics, we find 40 and 50 i3er cent or even a greater 

 percentage of the cases rendered more serious by complication of the 

 intestines ; at other seasons of the year, or in other epizootics, we find 

 the same percentage of cases complicated by inflammation of the 

 lungs, while at the same time a small percentage of them are com- 

 plicated by troubles of the other organs; inflammatory changes of 

 the brain, of the laminae, more rarely commence in epizootic form, 

 but are to be found in a certain small percentage of cases in all 

 epizootics. 



Exciting causes are important factors in complicating individual 

 cases of influenza, or in localizing special lesions either during enzo- 

 otics or epizootics. These exciting or determining causes act much as 

 they would in sporadic inflammatory diseases, but in this case we find 

 the animal much more susceptible and predisposed to be acted upon 



