188 
AMERICANS AGRICULTURIST. 
INFJXENZA IN HORSES, 
At the present season of the year espe¬ 
cially, this is a subject of no little importance 
to all owning or having the care of horses— 
a pretty large class of persons certainly. In¬ 
fluenza in a mild or severe form, is about as 
common among horses as “ colds ” among 
men, and the dictates of human kindness, 
as well as those of self-interest, should lead 
to more care in preserving the health of our 
domestic animals, and in restoring those al¬ 
ready diseased. As colds are most prevalent 
among those persons possessing the least 
constitutional or acquired vigor, and those 
exposed to damps and chills after close con¬ 
finement in warm rooms, are most liable to 
take “ cold,” so also horses jaded down by 
over work, or weakened by confinement in 
close warm stables and high feeding, are most 
subject to influenza. Those performing 
moderate work, and kept in stables just com¬ 
fortable, without over feeding, generally es¬ 
cape this disease unless weakened by some 
antecedent disease. 
Influenza, which is often called epidemic 
catarrh, generally exhibits itself in soreness 
of the throat, running from the nose, oozing 
of water from the eyes, sometimes a swel¬ 
ling underneath the jaws, coughing, snorting, 
weakness or general debility, quickening of 
the pulses, &c. It is difficult for the inex¬ 
perienced to distinguish influenza from ca¬ 
tarrh. The disease appears to be mainly 
caused by exposure to extremes of heat and 
cold, as well as to sudden changes of temper¬ 
ature, at a time when the animal lacks physi¬ 
cal vigor to resist their effects upon the sys¬ 
tem. 
Influenza is sometimes endemic (that is, 
confined to particular localities, and due to 
local causes), and sometimes epidemic (that 
is, not confined to any particular place or 
season). It is also considered contagious, 
though this opinion may in part result from 
the fact that the disease extends to all or 
nearly all of the animals subjected to simi¬ 
lar treatment and exposure. We have known 
the larger number of a steed of horses affect¬ 
ed while others in the same stables, having 
a more vigorous constitution, and subjected 
to less bad management have entirely escaped. 
TREATiWENT. 
The remarks already made respecting the 
causes of horse-influenza indicate some of 
the preventative means to be employed. In 
regard to the treatment of animals already 
diseased, we can not, perhaps, do better 
than to quotq from the New-England Farm¬ 
er, the recent remarks of Dr. Dadd, Veteri¬ 
nary Surgeon, in reply to a question pro¬ 
posed to him. He says : The disease as¬ 
sumes a variety of forms, hence no special 
treatment can be adopted ; variations in the 
symptoms indicate the same as regards treat¬ 
ment ; and what might be good medicine at 
one stage, would be injurious at another. 
Some general idea of treatment, however, 
may be gleaned from the following : 
The disease is very prostrating, and as it 
progresses, the heart, lungs and brain be¬ 
come congested and embarrassed. The blood 
accumulates carbon; the heart fails to pro¬ 
pel, and the lungs to vitalize the same. This 
state demands stimulants of a character that 
shall excite vital action, and tend to effect 
chemical changes in the blood; the most 
valuable agent in this view is carbonate of 
ammonia. In veterinary practice this agent 
is considered as one of the most valuable 
diffusible stimulants, it acts first on the nerves 
of the stomach, and through them excites 
the whole nervous system ; it may be given 
in doses of from one to three drachms, either 
in the form of bolus or drench. Its stimu¬ 
lating influence, over the heart and nervous 
system, may be increased by the addition of 
one or more drachms of good Jamaica gin¬ 
ger. This treatment may be continued until 
congestion subsides, which may be known 
by the fulness of pulse and heat of the ex¬ 
ternal surface of the body, and by other 
symptoms which usually attend fever in its 
inflammatory stage. 
The exciting, or stimulating plan of treat¬ 
ment, must never be entirely abandoned; to 
husband the powers of the system, and thus 
guard against subsequent prostration, must 
be our chief object; although the case 
may require a sedative to-day, (in the form 
of camphor and white hellebore,) to-morrow 
the symptoms may again indicate excitants, 
and thus the treatment must necessarily 
vary. 
Excitants, or counter-excitants, are also, 
at times, needed externally ; if the patient 
has a deep-seated cough, strong liniment, 
composed of oil, hartshorn and turpentine, 
(and sometimes camphor,) must be applied. 
Often I annoint the parts with a thick paste, 
composed of mustard and vinegar. The 
membranes of the fauces —throat—are ex¬ 
cessively sore, then the same course has to 
be pursued, at the same time a mucilaginous 
drink, composed of flaxseed sweetened with 
honey, must be allowed. The nervous sys¬ 
tem must also be aroused by the application 
of the above liniment to the spinal column. 
At another stage of the malady, diaphore¬ 
sis must be excited by clothing the body with 
flannel, and drenching with a preparation 
known as solution of acetate of ammonia , to 
the amount of six or eight ounces per day, 
until the skin feels soft and warm. 
In case oedema —local dropsy—of the body 
or extremities sets in, the patient then re¬ 
quires diuretics; one or two ounces of sweet 
spirits of nitre may be given in linseed tea, 
until the kidneys respond, and the secretion 
of urine becomes augmented. The bowels 
are sometimes inactive, the fceces are clothed 
with mucus, and have a foetid odor. I then 
prescribe : 
Linseed oil. 
Lime-water. 
Dose—Eight ounces. 
Equal parts. 
Occasionally the animal becomes uneasy, 
paws with his fore feet, the pulse is some¬ 
what wiry, and beats at the rate of fifty, and 
over, per minute. I then give camphorated 
tincture of opium, one ounce, and repeat the 
dose if necessary. This state is one of great 
danger because it indicates active congestion 
of the bowels, which may result in mortifi¬ 
cation of the same. In order to ward offthe 
last stage, I depend chiefly on stimulants, 
sedatives and tonics. The best tonics are 
powdered gentian , golden-seal , quill-bark ; 
either of which may be advantageously given, 
as they possess very little if any astringency. 
Prescription for a tonic ball: 
Eitherof above tonics, pow’d.3 drachms. 
Ginger...1 drachm. 
Rub them together in a mortar, then add a 
tea-spoonful of molasses and a small piece 
of brown soap, and form a bolus. 
Among all the cases that have come un¬ 
der my care and observation, I have neither 
found it advisable nor necessary to practice 
the anti-phlogistic treatment, in so far as it 
relates to bleeding and purging ; and I can 
not conceive a case (so depressing as influ¬ 
enza is known to be) that would require any 
such heroic treatment ; the safety of our pa¬ 
tient depends on the judicious application of 
remedies such as are here named ; and, 
therefore, I would warn the farmers against 
the use ot fleam and cathartic in the treat¬ 
ment of the prevailing influenza. Yet, after 
all, the very best treatment may fail in re¬ 
storing a patient. We require aid in the 
form of pure air, suitable diet and good nurs¬ 
ing ; failing in the latter important adjuncts, 
our treatment avails but little. 
The reader will probably perceive that the 
above disease, like many others to which 
domestic animals are subject, requires pro¬ 
fessional skill, consequently the farmers 
should use their means and influence for the 
purpose of having a properly qualified veter¬ 
inary surgeon in their several localities. We 
are now in possession of the long needed 
facilities for imparting a thorough course of 
instruction to all who knock at the door of 
veterinary science. We have an incorpo¬ 
rated institution in this city, and are in pos¬ 
session of men and facilities to impart to the 
aspirant for veterinary honors as practical 
an education as can be obtained elsewhere. 
HOW (NOT) TO RAISE A CROP OF CORN. 
If every body’s fields were as prolific for 
corn raising as every body’s toes, w'hat 
would our profession be worth 1 W’e try to 
aid our readers in getting as large crops of 
corn as may be. Dr. Hall in his Journal of 
Health, is doing just the other thing. Hear 
him : Never let anything harder than your 
finger nail ever touch a corn ; paring it as 
certainly makes it take deeper root, as cut¬ 
ting a weed off at the surface. The worst 
kind of corns are controlable, as follows : 
Soak the feet in quite warm waterbefore go¬ 
ing to bed, then rub on the corn with your 
finger for several minutes, some common 
sweet oil. Do this every night, and every 
morning repeat this rubbing in of oil with 
the finger ; bind on the toe during the day, 
two or three thicknesses of buckskin, with a 
hole in the center to receive the corn ; in less 
than a week, in ordinary cases, if the corn 
does not fall out, you can pinch it out with 
the finger nail; and weeks, and sometimes 
months will pass away, before you will be 
reminded that you had a corn, when you can 
repeat the process. Corns, like consump¬ 
tion, are never cured, but may be indefinitely 
postponed. The oil and soaking softens and 
