Diseases of the Digestive Organs. 157 



often as may be requisite to moderate suffering and keep 

 the bowels inactive, accompanjing this by hot fomentations 

 and counter-irritants. 



In case of improvement feed linseed or oatmeal gruels; 

 boiled linseed, or very sloppy bran mashes only, and in 

 BuiaU amount, for several days. If the bowels continue 

 confined give four or five ozs. olive-oil, or three or four ozs. 

 Glauber salts once or twice a day. 



But prevention is especially to be sought in such a rap- 

 idly fatal disease. Regularity and sufficient frequency of 

 feeding, in moderate quantities at a time and of good 

 quahty, and a gradual instead of a sudden change of diet, 

 are important. When new hay or grain, or heating agents 

 like maize or wheat are fed, one feed daily should be 

 replaced by a sloppy bran mash, or one or two ounces 

 of common or Glauber salts added. Avoid fuU draughts 

 of cold or iced water when sweating and exhausted, and of 

 any water after a meal of grain. 



ACUTE MUCO-ENTEKITIS. 



All the domestic animals are subject to this form of in- 

 flammation, chiefly of the mucous membrane of the bow- 

 els. The causes are mainly the same as those of hsemor- 

 rhagic enteritis acting on a less susceptible subject, or 

 with lessened force. These may be named exposure, sud- 

 den extreme changes of weather, coarse, dry, fibrous, 

 musty or otherwise irritant indigestible food, abrupt 

 changes of diet, impure, stagnant or putrid water, too 

 much water after feeding, or iced water when fatigued and 

 perspiring, drastic or oft-repeated purgatives, suppressed 

 perspiration, sand in the food, parasites and the various 

 mechanical obstructions (calculi, impactions, invagina- 

 tions, hernia). Cattle, sheep and swine especially sufi'er 

 during the vicissitudes and extremes of spring, summer 

 and autumn, and the latter from want of water to di'ink 

 and wallow in. Among dogs the young sufi'er most and 

 those kept on animal food, or that bathe in rivers when 

 14 



