Acute Catarrhal Enteritis in Solipeds. 229 



flatus, diarrhcEa, critical or bloody, anxiety, debility, prostration, collapse. 

 Prognosis. Treatment : In mild cases, careful diet, and laxatives with anti- 

 ferments, in severe cases, laxatives, anodynes, antiseptics, demulcents, 

 stimulants of peristalsis, enemata, counter-irritants, fomentations, com- 

 presses, mustard, in profuse diarrhoea antiseptics, anodynes, demulcents, 

 calomel and chalk, bismuth, astringents, boiled flour or starch, gums. 

 Dieting diiring convalescence. 



Definition. Inflammation of the intestinal mucosa. 



Causes. Irritants of all kinds taken in with food, or as medi- 

 cine or otherwise and acting on the mucosa. Debilitating con- 

 ditions (chronic disease, starvation, over-work, close indoor life) 

 which lower the tone of the system at large, and local debilitating 

 conditions like coarse, dry, fibrous, innutritious food, conges- 

 tions, parasitisms, impaired innervation and troubles of the circu- 

 lation are strongly predisposing. Drinking iced water may 

 operate by lowering the tone of the intestines but seems to 

 habitually act rather by inducing reaction and congestion. Chills 

 of the surface, especially when perspiring and fatigued, act in the 

 same way. The relaxation and atony attending on long con- 

 tinued hot weather, predisposes to enteritis, but is doubtless even 

 more injurious by the abundance of ferments which it propagates 

 in food and water. 



Over-feeding and sfimulating.aliments thrown on an alimentary 

 canal in such an atonic condition become especially hurtful. The 

 injury, however, comes most commonly from food that contains 

 an excess of cryptogams or bacterial ferments or from water 

 similarly charged. Newly harvested fodders in which the mi- 

 crobes are still in a state of vigorous life, when added to the 

 poi.sonous principles in certain immature seeds (legumiuosse, 

 gramineae, etc. ) ; fodders that have undergone fermentative 

 changes (rotten potatoes, turnips, musty hay or oats) ; fodders 

 that are leafy and harbor an excess of microbes (alfalfa, sainfoin, 

 cowpea, clover) are especially dangerous at times. If musty or 

 otherwise altered they often contain besides, dangerous toxins. 



In taking into account the fungi and microbes in spoiled foods, 

 we need not give exclusive attention to the particular .species of 

 microbe present. An extended observation shows that the same 

 ferments may be present in the dry, well cured, wholesome 

 fodder, and in the musty or spoiled specimen, the main difference 

 being in the excess found in the latter ca.se as compared with the 



