ABC GUIDE TO CANINE AILMENTS. 



599 



Catarrh. Sometimes called coryza or a com- 

 mon cold. 



Causes. It is usually the result of neglect in 

 some form or another. The kennel probably is 

 leaky, or the dog has been left out to shiver in 

 the rain, or has been sent into the water towards 

 nightfall and allowed to go to kennel in his wet 

 coat. Exposure to cold and wet when the dog 

 is tired, and the system consequently weak, will 

 be very apt to produce it. 



Catarrh is very common among puppies, and 

 dogs that are much confined to the house, and 

 get but little exercise, are more liable to colds 

 than rough out-of-door dogs. 



Xo\v this catarrh may seem a very simple 

 matter to many, and no doubt it is, and it speedily 

 yields to judicious treatment; but the results of 

 a neglected cold are sometimes disastrous in the 

 extreme, and one never knows where a cold may 

 end. 



Symptoms. In severe cases the dog or puppy 

 exhibits unwonted lassitude, is more dull and 

 sleepy than usual, has slight shiverings, and may- 

 be loss of appetite or a capricious appetite. This 

 is followed by running at the nose and a slight 

 discharge from the eyes, and if the conjunctiva is 

 examined it will be found either redder or darker 

 than usual, showing that it is injected. Sneezing 

 is a frequent symptom, but unless the catarrh ex- 

 tends downwards there will not be any cough. 

 The discharge from the nostrils will indicate the 

 extent of the disorder, and the dryness of the nose 

 and heat of the mouth the amount of fever. 



Treatment. By the tyro a common cold is often 

 called distemper, and " cured " by a specific. A 

 simple cold is easily got rid of, but there is no 

 reason why it should be utterly neglected, espe- 

 cially in valuable dogs, for this reason, that it 

 is apt to recur, and will each time evince a greater 

 downward, tendency. 



Give the animal a dose of castor-oil when he is 

 first observed to be ailing, and let him have a 

 dry, warm bed at night, and from two drachms 

 to an ounce (according to the animal's size) of 

 mindererus spirit. Let him have plenty of water 

 to drink, in which you may dissolve a teaspoon- 

 ful of chlorate of potash and also a little nitre, 

 or you can give a dose or two of nitre made into 

 a bolus with soap and sulphur. 



Give the following simple medicine thrice 

 daily : Syrup of squills, 5 drops to 30; paregoric, 

 10 drops to 60; syrup of poppies, half a drachm 

 to 4 drachms. Mix. 



Choking. If the bone or piece of wood is visi- 

 ble, it should be removed with forceps, or, if too 

 far down, a probe may be used to force it into 

 the stomach. Only a vet. can do this. 



Chorea or St. Vitus' Dance. A somewhat rare 

 complaint in dogs. 



Symptoms. A whole or part of the body is 

 affected, as the neck or leg or one side. It is a 

 form of irregular palsy, and depends on impover- 

 ished blood and nerves. Sometimes spasmodic 

 twitchings of the face, or whole head may shake. 



It is often a sequel to distemper, and may con- 

 tinue long after the dog is well. 



Treatment. Improvement of health. Nutri- 

 tious diet, milk in abundance, flour food, Spratts' 

 invalid biscuits. Plenty of milk and eggs if 

 possible. 



Colic. This is a most distressing complaint, 

 far from uncommon among the canine race, and 

 not unattended with danger. It is a non-inflam- 

 matory disease, usually termed "the gripes," or 

 " tormina," due to an irregular and spasmodic 

 action of the bowels. 



Symptoms. Great pain in the region of the 

 abdomen, restlessness and distress. The pain 

 comes on every now and again, causing the dog 

 to jump up howling, and presently, when the pain 

 in some measure subsides, to seek out another 

 position and lie down again. During the attacks 

 the breathing is quickened and the pulse accele- 

 rated, and the animal's countenance gives proof 

 of the agony he is enduring. 



The pain of colic is relieved by pressure or 

 friction; in inflammation pressure cannot be 

 borne. The pulse, too, is not of the inflammatory 

 character. The suddenness of the attack is like- 

 wise a good clue. 



Treatment. The first indication of the treat- 

 ment of colic is to get rid of the cause. If the 

 dog is otherwise apparently in good health, give 

 the following : Of castor-oil three parts, syrup 

 of buckthorn two parts, and syrup of poppies one 

 part, followed immediately by an anodyne 

 draught, such as : Spirits of aether, 10 to 60 drops ; 

 spirits of chloroform, 5 to 20 drops ; solution of 

 muriate of morphia, 3 to 20 drops ; camphor water 

 a sufficiency. Mix. 



In less urgent cases of colic, a simple dose of 

 castor-oil will be found to answer quite as well, 

 and the oil is to be followed by a dose of brandy 

 in hot water. 



If there be much drum-like swelling of the 

 abdomen, hard rubbing will do good, with a 

 draught proportioned to size of dog and contain- 

 ing 10 to 60 grains of bicarbonate of soda, 2 to 

 10 drops of oil of cloves, and 5 to 10 of laudanum 

 in camphor water. 



Constipation, more commonly called costive- 

 ness, is a very common complaint. It often 

 occurs in the progress of other diseases, but is 

 just as often a separate ailment. 



Perhaps no complaint to which our canine 

 friends are liable is less understood by the non- 

 pfofessional dog doctor and by dog owners them- 

 selves. Often caused by weakness in the coats of 

 the intestine. The exhibition of -purgatives can 

 only have a temporary effect in relieving the 

 symptoms, and is certain to be followed by re- 

 action, and consequently by further debility. 

 Want of exercise and bath common cause. 



Youatt was never more correct in his life than 

 when he said : " Many dogs have a dry con- 

 stipated habit, often greatly increased by the 

 bones on which they are fed. This favours the 

 disposition to mange, etc. It produces indiges- 



