COMMON AILMENTS
The terrier owner is a "lucky devil," for his dogs do not, as a rule,
spend a great deal of time in the hospital. All members of the terrier
family, from the giant of the race, the Airedale, way down to little
Scottie, owe a big debt to nature for having blessed them with
remarkably robust constitutions. They do not catch cold from every
draft; they throw off the various contagious diseases; even when really
sick, they make wonderfully rapid recoveries.
All dog flesh, however, is heir to certain diseases, and even the most
healthy and strong are not exceptions to this rule. Many of the books
on doggy subjects are so deep and technical that the poor novice who
has waded through their sonorous and involved phrases is really more at
sea about how to treat his sick dog than before he took them from the
shelf. Other books on dogs, especially the popular ones, are so brief
in their descriptions that no amount of study of them can teach much.
It is my object to steer between these two extremes and to tell
something of the common ailments, so all may understand their causes,
symptoms, and treatments.
Two good rules for the amateur veterinarian to learn at the very outset
are: In case of any doubt, or if the case is at all serious, time,
money, and maybe the dog's life will be saved by calling at once upon a
registered D.V.S.; and nine times out of ten a dog's ailments are the
same, with the same symptoms and results, as among humans. A dog,
therefore, can receive the same treatment as people, for the same
medicines act upon him as upon yourself. In the case of the terriers,
the dose is one-fourth of that for an adult human. To use more
commonsense than medicine is another good rule to use, for nursing and
a little attention to diet often effect a cure without any drugs at
all.
Remembering that the same treatment that you would give yourself cures
your dogs makes it unnecessary to go into such ailments as cuts, burns,
colds, stomach disorders, and poisons. There are, however, some
distinctively canine ailments. For convenience let us take these up
alphabetically.
_Canker of the ear_ is not by any means so common in terriers as in the
long-eared breeds, but it sometimes affects dogs who go a great deal in
the water, though it may be caused by any foreign substance getting
into the ear. There are two forms--the external and the internal. The
external shows itself by sores on the ear flaps, which are most painful
and cause the dog to scratch and paw at his ear. The sores ought to be
cleaned thoroughly with hot water and dressed with zinc ointment daily.
In bad cases the head may be bandaged to prevent aggravation of the
ulcers by scratching.
The internal form is harder to cure. Its symptoms are hot, inflamed
ears, pain, pawing, and rubbing the head against the floor or walls.
The interior of the ear should be douched out with warm water and
boracic acid or witch hazel, and then syringed with a solution of one
part of spirits of wine and twenty parts of water. Afterwards the ear
should be carefully dried out with cotton on the end of a pencil--care
must be taken not to injure the interior of the ear--and finally dusted
with boracic acid.
_Chorea_, or, as it is sometimes called, St. Vitus's Dance, is
generally a legacy of distemper. It is a peculiar nervous twitching,
generally affecting the forelegs and shoulders. It is almost incurable,
but good food, exercise, and a tonic may work wonders.
_Cramps_ in the hindquarters may sometimes attack a dog who goes a
great deal into the water and they are not unknown as a result of cold
and damp kennels or great exposure to cold. The symptoms are a more or
less complete paralysis of the hindlegs, accompanied by great pain. The
dog should be given a hot bath and the affected parts, after a careful
drying, should be rubbed well with chloroform liniment.
_Diarrhoea_, which may be caused by food or worms, can usually be
stopped by a mild purge of half castor oil and half syrup of buckthorn,
which may be followed by a dose of prepared chalk. Boiled rice is an
excellent food for dogs suffering from disordered bowels.
_Distemper_ is the bane of the dog owner's existence. It is a highly
contagious disease generally attacking puppies, and is comparable to
scarlet fever in that one attack successfully gone through usually
means immunity. It was formerly thought that distemper could arise
spontaneously from improper feeding or unsanitary kenneling, but the
germ of the disease has been isolated, and while poor food and dirty
kennels increase the chances of the disease by lowering the dog's
resistance, they are not in themselves causes.
The distemper germ is possessed of remarkable vitality and may be
transferred either directly from dog to dog or through the medium of
crates, bedding, clothing, and even the air. Shows are a source of
spreading the disease, though there is much less danger of this now
than formerly for the veterinary inspection and proper disinfecting
methods have improved conditions wonderfully. A bitch from an infected
kennel may give distemper to the inmates of the kennels she visits for
breeding purposes. Plenty of soap and water, disinfectant, and elbow
grease make a distemper prevention that is much better than any cure.
The discovery of the distemper germ has naturally resulted in the
making of an anti-toxin, by attenuating the virus till a weakened
form is obtained. Using this to inoculate a well dog, a mild form
of the disease attacks him, but this "vaccination" has not proved
unqualifiedly successful, especially when used by amateurs.
The commonest form of distemper is catarrhal, with symptoms much like
those of an ordinary cold, lack of appetite, fever, disordered bowels,
vomiting, staring coat, rapid loss of flesh, and discharges from the
nose and eyes. The distemper germ, however, may attack other organs
than the nose and eyes. The lungs and bronchial tubes and the stomach
and intestines are also seats of the trouble. These forms are harder to
diagnose and harder to cure. The presence of dysentery and sometimes of
jaundice are indications that the digestive tract is involved.
I know of no sure cure for distemper, and I never knew a dog owner
who did, though, to be sure, they all have their favorite remedies.
There are no end of patent specifics on the market, and some of these
are very good, but the best thing for a tyro to do is to call a
veterinarian. Leave the doctoring to him, at least till you have had
the experience gained by a couple of good cases of distemper in your
kennels. There will be plenty for you to do without bother about
prescribing.
The dog with distemper must be isolated, and you must take the
precautions that you would if there were smallpox in the neighborhood.
Wash with disinfectants, burn sulphur candles, scrupulously destroy all
bedding--use all the knowledge of antiseptic disinfecting that you
have.
As for the patient, you will find that nursing is just as important as
medicine--in fact, the more I have to do with the disease, the less
medicine I administer and the more care I give to nursing. Keep up the
dog's strength with almost any sick room food that he will eat. Raw
meat, eggs, gruels, soups, milk, all these are good, and the dog should
be fed often. The discharges from the nose and eyes should be wiped
away regularly.
If the nose becomes very badly stopped up, so that breathing is
difficult, the dog's head may be held over a pail of hot water in which
a little turpentine has been dropped and he made to inhale the fumes.
If the throat and bronchial tubes are affected, give a little cough
syrup--any one will do, but be careful not to give enough to upset the
stomach. See that the dog has plenty of water to drink and keep him out
of all drafts, though the room must be well ventilated.
_Fits_ seem to be a part of the life of most puppies. They are not
dangerous and usually pass off without bad effects. But fits are a
symptom, and the cause should be removed. They may be caused by worms,
stomach troubles, or heat. Keep the dog quiet and give him a dose of
castor oil and buckthorn.
_Insects_ of several kinds take pleasure in seeing to it that neither
the dog or his owner gets lazy. The commonest and the easiest to get
rid of are fleas, but they are dangerous as being the cause of
tapeworm, for the tapeworm of the dog spends part of his life (in the
larva form) in the fleas. There are any number of good flea soaps on
the market and a dozen good flea powders, so little need be said about
ridding the dog of these pests.
Lice are harder to get rid of, but the dog can be freed of them in the
same way as of fleas. Care should be taken to get rid of as many of the
lice eggs, little black specks that stick to the hair, as possible.
Ticks are the least common, but because of their habit of burrowing
into the skin cannot be washed out. The best way is to give the dog a
good rubbing in a dressing composed of olive and kerosene oils, equal
parts of each, followed by a bath.
_Kennel Lameness_, or rheumatism, affects a dog similarly to human
beings, there being a soreness of certain parts--usually the
foreshoulders or back--and pain, with even swelling of the joints. The
dog should be kept in a light, dry, well-ventilated place, his bowels
kept open, and the food given light, but nourishing. A little sodium
bicarbonate or sodium salicylate added to his drinking water will be
found to be beneficial, and hot baths and rubbings with liniments eases
the pain considerably.
_Skin diseases_ are among the common troubles of the dog owner, for
there are three varieties. The wire terriers seem to suffer a good deal
from eczema,--this is especially true of Scotties,--and their owner is
sure to know it before he has been in the game very long. It is a skin
disease, noncontagious, arising from the blood and showing itself in
red eruptions which burst, oozing their contents and forming scabs. The
hair comes off, and by scratching the dog aggravates the condition.
High feeding and too little exercise are the usual cause of the
trouble, and the root of the matter must be gotten at before a cure can
be effected. A good purge should be given and the dog put on a light,
simple diet. The sores should be washed clean and then treated with a
wash of four parts of sugar of lead and one part of zinc sulphate in
water. Fowler's Solution is also given sometimes, but this is a poison
and ought not to be administered save on a veterinarian's advice.
There are two forms of mange--sarcoptic and follicular, both highly
infectious, and the latter so hard to cure that many dog owners would
almost rather kill a dog than go through the siege with the constant
danger of inoculating other dogs. The sarcoptic form is more on the
surface and attacks dogs under the legs, which become red and inflamed,
little reddish pimples forming, which break and form dark red scabs.
The follicular mange usually starts on the back near the tail or over
the collar. The hair falls out, red scabs form and there is a peculiar
odor. It is difficult to tell just which form one is dealing with after
the case has gone far, but at the outset it is comparatively easy.
Both of these manges are caused by parasites which live in the skin.
The microscope reveals these, and this is the only way that one, at the
outset, can be sure he is dealing with mange and not eczema. The dog
should be thoroughly cleaned and then dressed with the following
ointment: creosote 1/2 oz.; oil of cade 1 oz.; zinc ointment and
lanoline each 3 ozs.; and sulphur 1/2 oz. This is not a pretty or a
nice mixture, but it has done the work more than once for me. The main
thing with mange is cleanliness and keeping everlastingly at it.
Skipping a day in the treatment will add a week to the cure. Sarcoptic
mange caught in time can be cured in two weeks. Follicular mange may
take three months, or even longer, to be cured completely.
_Worms_ are almost sure to be found in all dogs not regularly treated
for them, and they are the cause of a good deal of trouble. Puppies are
favorite victims for these internal parasites and youngsters who serve
as hosts for these undesirable visitors never do well. Worms come from
fleas, sheep and cattle stomachs and intestines, and sheep heads. Three
varieties are common--the round, thread, and the tape, the last the
most dangerous.
Puppies should be given a good vermifuge when weaned and the treatment
should be kept up all through the dog's life. Emaciation, vomiting,
bloating of the stomach, bad breath, and dragging the rectum along the
ground after stool are the usual evidences of worms, but the wise dog
owner does not wait for such signs. There are several good vermifuges
on the market, usually containing santonin, male fern, or acerca nut,
but naturally I do not feel that this is the place to mention them by
name. Almost any of them will do the work if the manufacturer's
directions are followed.
In conclusion, a word or two about giving medicines. The best way to
hold a terrier is to sit in a low chair and place him so that his body
is under you and his shoulders between your knees. To give a pill you
do not need help for so small a dog, but by putting your left hand over
his mouth and pressing you force him to open his mouth by forcing his
lips against his teeth. Lift up his head and put the pill as far back
as you can on his tongue and hold his mouth closed till he has
swallowed.
With liquids you will need an assistant to pour the medicine into the
natural funnel you make of the dog's mouth by pulling his lips on one
side out. In this you do not open the mouth but merely hold up the
head. The medicine should be poured slowly between the teeth and lips
and the mouth held closed till swallowed.
Let me again impress the importance of remembering the similarity of
canine and human ills. It is also well to bear in mind that careful
nursing is usually very much better than dosing, especially when the
dosing is done by one who is not perfectly sure just what he is doing
and why he is doing it.
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Transcriber's note:
Minor typographical errors have been corrected without note.
Irregularities and inconsistencies in the text have been retained
as printed.