244 DISEASES OF THE HOBSE. 



the mouth is refreshing. Excellent success frequently may be obtained 

 by clothing the upper part of the head, the neck, and greater part of 

 the body in woolen blankets kept saturated with very warm water. 

 This treatment should be continued for six or eight hours at a time. 

 It often relaxes the cramped muscles and gives them rest and the ani- 

 mal almost entire freedom from pain ; but it should be used every day 

 until the acute spasms have permanently subsided in order to be of 

 any lasting benefit. 



Eecently subcutaneous injections of brain emulsion have been rec- 

 ommended. It is thought that the tetanus toxin will attach itself to 

 the brain cells so injected and thus free the system of this poison. 

 When it is due to a wound, the wound should be thoroughly cleaned 

 and disinfected with carbolic acid. If from a wound which has 

 healed, an excision of the cicatrix may be beneficial. In all cases it 

 is not uncommon to have a partial recovery followed by relapse when 

 the animal becomes excited from any cause. 



RABIES, HYDROPHOBIA, OR MADNESS. 



This disease does not arise spontaneously among horses, but is the 

 result of a bite from a rabid animal — generally a dog or cat. The 

 development of the disease follows the bite in from three weeks to 

 three months — very rarely in two weeks. (See also p. 559.) 



Symptoms. — The first manifestation of the development of this dis- 

 ease may be an increased excitability and viciousness; very slight 

 noises or the approach of a person incites the animal to kick, strike, 

 or bite at any near object. Very often the horse will bite his own 

 limbs or sides, lacerating the flesh and tearing the skin. The eyes 

 appear staring, bloodshot ; the ears are on the alert to catch all 

 sounds; the head is held erect. In some cases the animal will con- 

 tinually rub and bite the locality of the wound inflicted by the rabid" 

 animal. This symptom may precede all others. Generally the 

 bowels become constipated and the animal makes frequent attempts 

 at urination, which is painful, and the urine very dark colored. The 

 furious symptoms appear in paroxysms; at other times the animal 

 may eat and drink, although swallowing appears to become painful 

 toward the latter stage of the disease, and may cause renewed parox- 

 ysms. The muscles of the limbs or back may be subject to intermittent 

 spasms, or spasmodic tremors ; finally, the hind limbs become para- 

 lyzed, breathing very difficult, and convulsions supervene, followed 

 by death. The pulse and respirations are increased in frequency 

 from the outset of the attack. Rabies may possibly be mistaken for 

 tetanus. In the latter disease we find tonic spasms of the muscles of 

 the jaws, or stiffness of the neck or back very early in the attack, and 

 evidence of viciousness is absent. 



