324 The Management and Diseases of the Dog. 
MALIGNANT DISTEMPER. 
in 1881 and 1882 I had occasion to investigate the 
causes and nature of a malignant outbreak of disease in 
various parts of England. I received many dogs, alive and 
dead, for examination and advice, the victims of this malady, 
which proved to be a severe form of distemper, associated 
with diphtheria and rash. The symptoms usually presented 
were as follows :— 
1st. General catarrhal fever, denoted by red and watery eyes, dry nose 
hot mouth, tongue furred and red at the edges, high-coloured urine passed 
in small quantities, frequent sneezing, a short husky cough and depression, 
impaired appetite, and unusual thirst. 
and. Purulent discharge from the eyes and nose, an elevated irregular 
‘line of red abraded mucous membrane immediately inside the top lip; 
posterior part of the mouth inflamed, troublesome cough, short breathing, 
irritable bowels, turbid urine, prostration greater, no appetite, intense thirst. 
3rd. Mucous membrane inside the lips broken, vesicular formation above 
the eyes, round the orbital arch ; throat livid, expectoration, laboured breathing, 
difficulty in swallowing, diarrhea. 
4th. Broken sores about the eyes, at the angles of the mouth, pustular 
eruption all over the abdomen, throat clogged with tenacious fluid, and the 
external region swollen and painful, thick sibilant breathing, hoarse croupy 
voice, hard rapid pulse, and general distress. 
5th. General aggravation of all the symptoms, head stretched out, tongue 
frequently protruded, fauces swollen and purple, reeling delirium, and 
suffocation, Emaciation rapid throughout. 
Post-mortem appearances——Tonsils and adjacent struc- 
tures swollen and nearly black, covered by an adherent 
membranous exudation, and, in some cases, deeply 
ulcerated ; mucous membrane lining the larynx and 
trachea intensely inflamed and coated with exudation, 
films or casts of lymph found in the bronchi; the lungs 
more or less congested, often intensely inflamed, and some- 
times adherent to the walls of the chest ; occasionally sup- 
puration in the lung tissue is present. Pericarditis is also 
‘met with. The liver, spleen, and kidneys present a variable 
appearance of congestion. 
