44 KENNEL DISEASES. 
and his lips and tongue are usually dry, or if not so, they are coated with a 
thick slime. 
The breathing in this stage is generally more distressing than in the first, and 
it is scarcely possible even for a novice to mistake that the lungs are crippled. 
It is not merely rapid, as after a hard run, but is labored and noisy, and very 
evidently requires much effort. Moreover, this difficulty is attended with such 
significant signs as blowing out of the cheeks and dilation of the nostrils. 
Another evidence that the lungs are affected is noted in the lips and tongue 
and lining membrane of the mouth, all of which, in very severe cases, instead of 
being red in color become more or less dingy or purplish. 
In severe cases the strength fails each day; the expression grows more 
anxious and pitiful; the eyes sink deeper; and the flesh seemingly melts away, 
until at last, when the crisis is reached, the poor dog is scarcely a shadow of his 
former self. 
But as a rule, along about the fifth or sixth day from the appearance of the 
first symptom, if the patient is to recover there comes a change for the better, 
although at first it is scarcely perceptible, and the earliest indication of it is gen- 
erally a lessening of the fever. The third stage is now entered, and convalescence 
begun. The breathing is a little less distressing, and improves almost hourly. 
There is a marked improvement in the pulse. The cough is less frequent, and 
decidedly easier. The mouth and tongue, if previously dry, become moist; while 
if coated with thick slime, that deposit is being replaced by the natural secretion. 
A good nap is also a most favorable sign. When this has been taken, the patient 
is generally ready to try a little broth or a bit of raw beef; and from now on the 
gain is steady and quite rapid. 
In cases which progress unfavorably and to a fatal termination, the end usu- 
ally comes about the fourth or fifth day, although it may be earlier, and it may 
be delayed several days. In such the most threatening sign appears in the res- 
piration, which is gasping, and clearly suggests that suffocation is imminent. 
Another very unfavorable symptom is the deepening of the purplish hue of the 
lips and tongue ; and still another is a rapid and great loss of strength. 
When death comes, it is often quite suddenly; but in some cases the lamp 
burns low and slowly dies out, the unfortunate having for many hours exhibited 
signs that the end was inevitable. Those are inability to sit upright; a peculiar 
sickening odor to the breath; breathing in short gasps ; and coldness of the ears 
and extremities. 
Convulsions sometimes set in during attacks of pneumonia, and may be ac- 
cepted as evidence of great danger. Delirium can also be detected in a small 
proportion of cases, but scarcely except by an experienced eye, for it is of a low 
type. This may be classed with convulsions as a very unfavorable sign. 
The presence of pneumonia in severe form ought never be mistaken, for the 
existing signs all point to the lungs as the seat of the trouble; and while some 
