70 Veterinary Obstetrics 



during copulation, to susceptible mares. These observations are 

 entirely in harmony with.those of Reeks, who records an instance 

 where an apparently sound stallion transmitted the disease to 

 susceptible mares almost uniformly over a period of two years. 

 This observation is a not uncommon experience. 



It is notable also that, when the disease attacks a pregnant mare 

 it generally causes abortion or, if attacking her just prior to 

 parturition, the living foal is likely to succumb with,in a few days 

 after birth. Reeks, recording an outbreak under his charge, re- 

 lates that four pregnant mares, or mares which had just foaled, 

 contracted the disease. Two of the pregnant mares aborted, and 

 the foals of the other two died suddenly shortly after birth. In 

 our experience, in an extensive horse breeding district, the dis- 

 ease quite uniformly leads to abortion in pregnant mares. 



Although highly contagious, the affection is of short duration, 

 usually runs a favorable course, in from four to six days, and 

 leaves the animal but little altered, except in those used for 

 breeding. The eyes also may become permanently weakened 

 and invite later attacks of disease. In some unfavorable cases 

 the pulse becomes weak and there is a general depression, which 

 is liable to be followed by sudden death owing, it appears, to heart 

 failure, in which case there are usually found large thrombi in 

 the cardiac cavities. 



No specific treatment has been discovered. In our experience 

 the greatest benefit is to be derived from the administration of 

 diffusible stimulants, like nitrous ether or carbonate of ammonia, 

 along with quinine. Purgatives are to be avoided, aloes being 

 especially dangerous. The bland oils might be used in some 

 cases as aperients, or very small doses of eserine, arecoline or 

 other alkaloid hypodermic cathartic, taking care to make the 

 dose sufficiently small to induce no harmful degree of excite- 

 ment and barely sufficient to induce gentle purgation. There is 

 naturally much divergence of opinion among veterinarians in 

 reference to the treatment of this affection, but in its general 

 handling we are not specially interested. 



From an obstetric standpoint, we are chiefly concerned in the 

 question of the spread of the malady from the breeding pen and 

 its tendency to induce sterility and abortion. . 



When the disease appears in a breeding area it should be han- 

 dled with the greatest rigor as to quarantine, and breeding quar- 



