THE HORSE—THE DIGESTIVE SYSTEM. vis) 
Symptoms.—In the chronic form the symptoms are dullness; listless- 
ness; fever; pulse hard, frequent, irregular both in number and character, 
occasionally slow, sometimes fuller than usual; breathing almost wholly in: 
the abdomen; mucous membrane joining the eyelid to the ball tinged 
with yellow; appetite bad; coat staring; mouth foul; tongue furred and: 
dirty; dung hard, lumpy, light-colored, sometimes white or clayey, offen- 
sive and coated with mucus; pain in right shoulder, with lameness in right 
leg; sometimes dropsy or diarrhea; itchy skin; mucous membrane in gen- 
eral yellowish; breathing usually little affected, though fits of blowing: 
occur, with hollow cough; glands about the throat sometimes enlarged ;, 
rapid decline of condition; occasionally dropsy of the belly; congestion. 
may be present, gradually continuing, with no marked change in general. 
health of the horse, until the liver bursts and causes death; inflammation: 
may set in and cause swelling in the region of the liver, with quick, hard,. 
and small pulse. 
In acu¢e inflammation the horse perhaps coughs occasionally; hangs. 
the head; drooping eyes; loathing of food; internal pain, not severe; 
passages of dung small and dark; urine scanty; mouth hot; fever; later, 
mucous membrane of the eyes, nose, lips and mouth yellowish; urine 
yellow; pulse strong, quick and bounding; perhaps the horse staggers. 
TREATMENT.—Give aconite for high fever; hot skin; thirst; furred. 
tongue; restlessness; tenderness in the region of the liver, detected by the 
touch. In acute cases, give ten drops every one or two hours until the 
symptoms abate. If there be yellow coating of the tongue, yellowish 
membranes of the eyes, knotty and clayey dung, give mercurius, alone or 
in combination with podophyllin. Nux vomica is suitable for great ten- 
_derness in the region of the liver; thirst; costiveness; high-colored urine. 
This may be given in alternation with mercurius. Ifthe disease progresses. 
and is attended with offensive, blackish diarrhaea, weak, small and irregular 
pulse, cold extremities and great weakness, give arsenicum; this remedy is. 
also efficacious when, in chronic inflammation of the liver, that organ has 
become enlarged, and the urine is scanty, and is adapted to dropsy of the 
belly, and to cases which arise from other disorders. The diet should in 
all cases be mild and not stimulating, such in general as is given for inflam- 
mation of the bowels. Tonics may be administered to sustain the strength, 
as, taraxacum, cinchona and colombo, during the above treatment. 
PERITONITIS. 
This is an inflammation of the lining of the abdomen and of the 
membrane which covers the outside of the bowels. From inflammation of 
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