437 
ON TIIE TREATMENT OF SOME OF THE DISEASES 
OF CATTLE. 
By Mr. Hales, of Oswestry. 
Red Water is rather prevalent in the spring and summer, 
and more particularly upon moory or marshy land ; and cattle 
brought from sound land and pastured in the marshes are parti¬ 
cularly subject to red water, whilst those reared in the marshes 
are by no means so susceptible of the disease. There are two 
species of red water, the one very acute, in which great quanti¬ 
ties of bloody urine are passed, accompanied by fever and strong 
disposition to costiveness : in these cases, it is not unusual for the 
beast to die in two or three days, and sometimes sooner, as the 
cow doctors say, from all the blood running out of it. The other 
kind is not attended with constitutional symptoms: the beast 
makes bad water, but feeds as usual, and appears in other re¬ 
spects well. This form of the disease will generally wear itself 
out, even without any remedy; but it does, however, occasion¬ 
ally, after continuing some time, take on the acute character, and 
the animal will die, if not properly attended to. The cow-leeches 
here seem to have no opinion as to w 7 hat state the kidnies are in 
when red w r ater exists; but from what observations I have been 
able to make, and the few post-mortem examinations that have 
come in my way, I am of opinion that the disease consists in a sub¬ 
acute inflammation of the kidnies, together w ith such disorder of 
the digestive apparatus as tends to the production of obstinate cos¬ 
tiveness ; and I believe that when a beast dies from this complaint, it 
is more in consequence of the obstructed state of the third stomach 
and the bowels, than from the affection of the kidnies or the 
water. So obstinate a symptom is the costiveness, that it is con¬ 
sidered, if you can keep the beast from binding, there is little 
danger. The common treatment here is, never to bleed, but give 
salts as a purgative; and generally there is a recipe for turning the 
water, consisting of a compound of astringents and diuretics. 
The practice, however, that I adopt when consulted about these 
cases, is, to direct the beast to be bled, and that freely, if in good 
condition, and give salts with aloes to operate upon the bowels, 
and repeat the purgative, so as to keep them freely open, if possible. 
It is astonishing the quantity of purging medicine cattle will take 
in some cases of red water before their bowels get well opened. 
I have now before me notes of a case in which five oz. of Bar- 
badoes aloes, a pound and a half of Epsom salts, a drachm and a 
half of croton, and two oz. of gamboge were given to a cow with red 
w ater, in four days, before the bowels could be got to act: we were, 
vol. iv. 3 o 
