DISEASES OF THE EYE, ETC. 345 



of inflammation of the mucous membrane, accompanied by swelling 

 of the eyelids and an early opacity of the cornea. The flow of tears 

 is mixed with pus, sometimes streaked with blood, and the skin of the 

 face is kept moist and soiled. The eyes are kept continually closed. 

 The implication of the cornea in the disease frequently blinds the 

 animal for a time, and occasionally suppurative keratitis, ulcers of 

 the cornea, or staphyloma supervene. The attack is marked from the 

 onset by fever, partial loss of appetite, partial loss of milk, suspended 

 rumination, and separation from the herd. 



Treatment- — The animal should be housed in a cool, dark stable, 

 supplied with plenty of fresh water to drink and soft succulent food. 

 Administer 1 pound of Epsom salts — if a very large animal, use Im- 

 pounds—dissolved in 2 or 3 pints of water. For an eyewash take 

 boracic acid, 1 dram, and pour 4 ounces of boiling water over it. Use 

 this wash as often as convenient, applying it directly to the eye. In 

 the majority of cases improvement becomes manifest in a few days, 

 and the eye will become clear and free from inflammation in ten days 

 or two weeks. Where the disease develops ulceration of the cornea, 

 or well-marked deep-seated keratitis, the treatment recommended for 

 those conditions should be adopted. 



Prevention. — Whenever this affection appears in a herd all the 

 unaffected animals should be moved to another locality — that is, to 

 fields which possess a different character of soil and feed. The water 

 should also be changed, especially if they have been obtaining their 

 drinking water from a stagnant pond. 



KERATITIS (CORNEITIS). 



This is an inflammation of the cornea proper, although the sclerotica 

 at the corneal border becomes involved to some extent. It may be 

 divided into diffuse and suppurative. 



Causes. — The cornea constitutes the most prominent portion of the 

 eyeball, hence it is subject to a variety of injuries— scratches, pricks, 

 contusions, lacerations, etc. Inflammation of the cornea may also be 

 due to the extension of catarrhal conjunctivitis or intraocular dis- 

 ease, and it may occasionally occur without any perceptible cause. 



Symptoms. — Diffuse keratitis is characterized by an exudation into 

 and an opacity of the cornea. The swelling of the anterior part of 

 the eyeball may be of an irregular form, in points- "resembling small 

 bladders, or it may commence at the periphery of the cornea by an 

 abrupt thickening, which gradually diminishes as it approaches the 

 center. If the whole cornea is affected it has a uniform gray or gray- 

 ish white appearance. The flow of tears is not so marked as in con- 

 junctivitis, nor is the suffering so acute, though both conditions often 

 exist together. Both eyes usually become affected, unless it is due to 

 an external injury. 



In favorable cases the exudate within the cornea begins to disappear 



