INFLAMMATION OF THE EYE TREATMENT. 123 



outer membrane and in the sclerotic. The intolerance of light is 

 not so great, but the dog is heavy and dull, and, if not cured, is 

 unfit for any useful purpose. A calomel and jalap purge should be 

 given, as above ordered, and repeated twice a week ; a seton should 

 also be inserted in the back of the neck, and moderate nourish- 

 ment given without flesh. No drops are here of the slightest 

 use, indeed they are very prejudicial. This is a disease seldom 

 found in dogs less than two years old. 



ALL KINDS OF DOGS are very liable to cataract, which is an 

 opacity of the crystalline lens occupying the centre of the ball of 

 the eye. It may easily be known by the white pupil with 

 transparent cornea, and may be distinguished from the white 

 cloudiness or film of the cornea by the clear and defined lines 

 which surround the white. In fact the lens lies behind the 

 circular hole in the iris called the pupil, and therefore, as this 

 is not implicated in the alteration of structure, the opening is 

 as perfect as ever, but is white, instead of appearing black or 

 nearly so. It is often the result of accident, as a blow or thorn, 

 but also arises from hereditary tendency, as in horses and man. 

 In neither case can anything be done, for though by an operation 

 the opacity might be removed, as in the cataract of the human 

 eye, yet as the dog would not consent to wear glasses, the sight 

 would be indistinct, and no adequate advantage would be gained. 

 The inflammation attendant upon a puncture or blow is often 

 very severe, and requires the strongest remedies to counteract it, 

 especially if the iris is injured. Sometimes a small portion of 

 this beautiful structure escapes through the wound, but it is better 



