40 GENERAL THERAPEUTICS FOR VETERINARIANS 



tant and is accomplished by dieting and by the administration of 

 cathartics, intestinal styptics, disinfectants and anti-ferments. 

 The principal therapeutic methods are similar to those used in the 

 treatment of diseases of the stomach, namely: dietetic, medical 

 (cathartics, styptics), mechanical and operative, 



1. DIETETIC TREATMENT 



Fasting, or a diet of non-irritating, easily digested food, will 

 serve, more than anything else, to alleviate a catarrhal or inflamed 

 mucous membrane. Green fodder, bran, or linseed meal is best 

 for horses; raw meat, milk, eggs, and mucilaginous soups for dogs. 

 When catarrh is present in the intestines, the stomach is fre- 

 quently healthy and the appetite is very good. This must be 

 remembered so that overfeeding will be avoided. Taking a large 

 quantity of food at one meal is not to be permitted, 



2. CATHARTICS. LAXATIVES 



Synonyms: Purgatives, drastics, lenitives, eccoprotics, aperients, aperi- 

 tives, evacuants, peristaltics, osmetics. 



Classification. — For the purposes of general therapeutics it is 

 best to divide the cathartics into three groups according to the 

 intensity of their action: mild, medium and strong. Although 

 these different degrees of action may be obtained with the same 

 cathartic by simply varying the dose, and although the intensity 

 of action may vary with the species, yet for practical reasons and 

 because it affords a better conception of the large number of 

 cathartics, it is desirable to classify these drugs in the three fol- 

 lowing groups: 



(a) Drastics, very powerful cathartics, which operate on the 

 horse in doses of a few grams, decigrams and even centigrams. 

 This group includes arecoline, eserine, pilocarpine, tartar emetic, 

 calomel, podophyllum, croton oil, gamboge, jalap, colocynth and 

 barium chloride. 



(b) Purgatives, cathartics of medium strength, laxatives in 

 the restricted sense. In this group are included aloes and the saline 



