THE SOG. 



boisterously unruly. He does not sMver, and eats like an Arctic 

 wolf. The dog'a master is rejoiced, and in the height of his 

 satisfaction he speaks scornfully of the disease that lately 

 afflicted his pet. " Pshaw ! this is distemper, is it, that people 

 make such fuss about ? Why, it is nothing at all ; if anything, 

 just a salutary ailment that clears the system and sets the dog 

 up with a new stock of health." Softly, good sir. Does your 

 dog, that grew so wofully thin over that " salutary " aOment, 

 grow fat ? It is not sufficient that the diminution ceases ; 

 does he increase in bulk visibly and day by day ? Look under 

 the upper eyehd; is it clear and healthy, or thickly marked 

 with minute red veins P Uniless these two questions can be 

 answered satisfactorily, do not say your dog is well ; and if 

 within a week,oreven withia a month, he should grow suddenly 

 and dreadfully iU, and, after exhibiting a complication of per- 

 plexing symptoms, die, do not attribute the death to fits, to some 

 physical injury, or to the malicious and poisonous designs of 

 your servant or neighbour. The simple truth is, the supposed 

 poisoning was nothing but the second stage of distemper. 



As before stated, the eyes sometimes suffer very much during 

 this disorder. The pupils seem to fade and blanch, the lids are 

 nearly closed, and the dog seems blind. Possibly it is. Its 

 lungs may be affected. On appljring the ear to the animal's 

 chest a harsh wheezing may be detected, denoting something 

 very wrong in the interior. The poor creature is constantly 

 shivering and has a wearying cough. A viscid matter impedes 

 the passage of breath through the nostrils, and the paws are 

 ever busy tapping and rasping at the unfortunate nose, some- 

 times coaxingly and sometimes irritably, as though the poor 

 wretch felt aggrieved that this, his leading organ, should serve 

 him so. Besides these there are many other dreadful symp- 

 toms, a description of which would look so far from pretty in 

 print that I must leave them for the dog-owner to discover. 



Six weeks is the average continuance of the attack, though 

 tne owner of the animal will know before that time if it will 

 live or die. The following are bad signs. Steady dwindling 

 of bulk, while at the same time the patient has a ravenous 

 appetite. A very harsh and very inodorous coat, the latter 

 leaving a taint on the hand that is passed over it. The tongue 

 furred, almost lead-coloured, and red and dry at its tip and 

 edges. All these things are ominous. So is a prevalence of 

 vermin in the dog's fur, especially if fleas or other parasites 

 appear very suddenly and swarm in • great number. The 



