DISTEMPER 
The term distemper, the literal meaning 
of which is a deranged condition of the 
animal economy, is particularly applied 
to animals of the brute creation to the dog 
when afflicted with that disease somewhat 
resembling typhus fever in the human race. 
As canine pathology has been given more 
attention in the past few years than for¬ 
merly, we have now become quite familiar 
with the nature of the disease and the 
remedies indicated; consequently, the loss 
by death is comparatively small when proper treatment and atten¬ 
tion are employed. In early days, those dogs that were fortunate 
enough to survive this disease did so merely through strength of 
constitution, and not from the assistance of any remedial agent, as 
utter ignorance of the subject then prevailed. The disease doubt¬ 
less then appeared in a much milder form than that with which our 
present highly bred animals are afflicted. 
Owing to more or less inbreeding that has been indulged in to 
intensify certain forms and characteristics in dogs of most all 
breeds, constitution has to some extent been sacrificed. Animals 
bred in this way are in consequence less able to resist or combat 
disease than those with less pretentious claims to family distinction. 
Causes. -Bad sanitary conditions, crowded or poorly drained 
kennels, exposure to dampness, insufficient or over feeding, im¬ 
proper diet, lack of fresh air and exercise, all conduce to the 
development of distemper. It is contagious, infectious, and will fre¬ 
quently appear spontaneously without any apparent cause in cer¬ 
tain localities, assuming an epidemic form. Age is no exemption 
from distemper, though it more frequently attacks young animals 
than adults. Very few dogs pass through life without having it 
at some period. Many people are of the belief that their dogs 
have contracted distemper while being exhibited at bench shows. 
This is doubtless the case in many instances, where the same 
benching is used at more than one show, for, if distemper develops 
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