152 THE VETERINARY SCIENCE. 



lh« rffccipts at the back of this book, in ano around the eye. K.ecp 

 on with this tfeatment unti. the animal is relieved. In cases where 

 the eyelids are much swollen it is well to bleed ; this is done by 

 takinj^- a sharp pen knife and raisinjj the vein below the eye by 

 pressing" your fing-ers on it, then cut it and allow it to bleed until 

 It slops of its own accord, which takes about half an hour. 



MOON BLINDNESS (PERIODIC OPHTHALMIA). 



This is inflammation of the inner structures of the eye. 



Causes. — Extreme heat and cold, poorly ventilated stables or 

 'Jji'k stables ; all these have a tendency to bring this disease on. 

 1 1 also comes on hereditary, that is, where the dam or sire has 

 had this disease. It is very apt to follow up in his or her colts. 



Symptoms. — They are generally well marked, and together 

 with the history of the case, you will have little difficulty in telling 

 if it is this trouble that is affecting the «ye. The animal may be 

 put in the stable apparently all right at night, and in the morning 

 you notice the eyes to be running water, seems very weak, and 

 the eye partially closed. It generally affects one eye at a time, 

 although it may affect both eyes at once. It is also noticed to 

 change from one eye to the other. The disease gradually gets 

 worse for two or three days, the eye gets weaker and assumes a 

 yellowish or reddish appearance. The animal can see but very 

 little out of the eye. In two or three days more the eye will return 

 back to almost its natural state, but may look a little bluer than 

 usual. It will appear all right again, but after the course of from 

 three to six months it will show again with the same symptoms. 

 This time it may be in the opposite eye, or in the same one. 

 It will keep coming on in spells like this from time to time, 

 each time leaving the eye a little more blurred, until in time it will 

 completely blind the animal. In some cases the animal will go 

 blind in a year from repeated attacks, while in others it takes as 

 long as three years. The first time the disease attacks the eye 

 you may think it a simple case of inflammation of the eye, but 

 after it comes back a few times you may make up your mind it is 

 a case of periodic ophthalmia. 



Treatment. — The treatment generally terminates very unsatis- 

 factorily in the end, as the animal goes blind, and when once you 

 have made up your mind it is this disease it is best to part with 

 the animal, but you can help to keep back the disease, when every 

 time the eye is noticed to be sore, to bathe them well with new 



