Contagious Pneumonia in the Horse. 135 



refuse food, are a little sluggish in work, cough, have hyper- 

 thermia (104° to 106° F.), respirations 20 — 25, pulse 60, with 

 conjunctiva only moderately yellow, a slightly yellowish dis- 

 charge from the nose, and no observable lung consolidation. The 

 temperature descends to normal in three to five days, the symp- 

 toms generally abate, and the animal may be convalescent in eight 

 or ten days. 



In the more severe cases there may be seen a shivering fit, or it 

 may pass unobserved. Then the first morbid phenomenon is usu- 

 ally a rapid and extreme elevation of temperature which may 

 reach 104° or 106° F. in a few hours. With this there is great 

 impairment or complete loss of appetite, and a loss of life and 

 energy. In some cases the depression, stupor and muscular 

 weakness suggest influenza but this is not the rule. Still more 

 rare is infiltration of the eyelids and free watering of the eyes, yet 

 in the absence of this, drooping of the upper eyelids is not un- 

 common. The respiration may be accelerated and short, from 20 

 to 30 per minute, and the pulse, which is usually small and weak 

 in spite of the fever, may rise to 50 or 70 per minute. The 

 breathing may be trembling or distinctly interrupted in the course 

 of inhalation or exhalation, short and with no interval between 

 inspiration and expiration. Cough may or may not be a marked 

 feature, heard at long intervals only in some cases and frequent 

 and painful in others. It is liable to be dry and husky rather 

 than hard, loose or gurgling. The eye and to a less extent the 

 nasal and buccal mucosa tend to show a yellowish shade, and 

 this may even at an early stage show a distinct brownish 

 orange, or even a dark mahogany hue. Yet dropsy of the lids 

 or even epiphora are uncommon. A yellowish discharge from 

 the nose is an almost constant feature and this may dry up into a 

 yellow crust on the floor of the anterior nares and adjacent skin. 

 The percussion and auscultatory indications of lung consolidation 

 are rarely obtainable before the end of the second or third day 

 and when at all extensive can usually be detected on both sides. 

 Trasbot considers the double pneumonia as almost pathognomonic 

 of contagious pneumonia. When confined mainly to the lower 

 parts of the lungs and occurring in isolated areas, with lung tissue 

 still pervious to air in the intervals, it comes more nearly to being 

 so. Crepitation round the border of consolidated areas, is a more 



