352 
FRANK FORESTER’S FIELD SPORTS. 
obstructing mass as could not be overcome: it is prudent to 
place before the dog some broth, milk, &c., to assist purgation. 
Let me warn sportsmen who are putting their dogs through a 
course of j physic , for hunting or coursing purposes, to be aware, 
that it is not the inordinate strength of the dose which does 
good; on the contrary, violent physic often defeats its own pur¬ 
pose : it is a mild and repeated emptying of the bowels which 
unloads the system at large, and at once strengthens the solids 
and purifies the fluids.” 
This, I believe, is all that need be said, in this place, with re¬ 
gard to general medical treatment, except in cases of speci¬ 
fic disease, where the aid of a medical assistant of some kind 
would of course be called in ; and directions for the treatment 
of which cannot be contained within the compass of such a 
work as this. In consequence, however, of the great prevalence 
of two or three maladies, as canine distemper, worms, mange, 
and the like, with some common injuries arising from local 
accidents, I shall here add a few short recipes for the treatment 
of these troublesome maladies, which will be, I think, sufficient 
to guide the sportsman in any ordinary cases. 
Occasional bleeding is of great benefit to dogs. It is most 
readily performed by holding the head of the animal up, 
passing a ligature round the lower part of the neck, which will 
cause the jugular vein to swell at about one inch from the wind¬ 
pipe, and then puncturing the vein with a common thumb lan 
cet. The only care necessary is to avoid inserting the lancet 
so deeply as to sever the vein. If the hair is thick and long, it 
may be requisite to clip, or even shave the spot, before effecting 
the orifice. No pin or ligature is necessary to close the wound. 
In case of fits, or any sudden emergency, a clip in the ear, if no 
lancet is at hand, will answer the end. 
The quantity of blood to be drawn from a dog will vary ac¬ 
cording to the size of the animal, from one or two oz. in a very 
small dog, to six, seven, or eight in a very large one, propor¬ 
tion ably to the nature of disease, and the violence of the symp¬ 
toms. 
