into it every other day about half a drachm of tincture calendula, and
apply boracic ointment on lint and bandage. Wounds in cases of caries
require keeping very clean with some disinfectant, as a saturated
solution of boracic acid, or a solution of Pearson’s fluid; Condy’s fluid
is also useful.
=Cataract=:
_Symptoms_: The formation of an opaque spot in the lens or pupil of
the eye. In young dogs, when it occurs, which is not frequent, the
whole pupil seems to be involved at once, but in old dogs it generally
commences as a small speck, and gradually increases. The cornea or front
of the eye generally remains clear. Of course there is loss of vision
of the affected eye to a more or less extent, according to the size and
density of the cataract.
_Treatment_: The following drops improve the sight when the cataract does
not affect the whole pupil:—
_Recipe_:
Sol. Sulphate of Atropine, 10 drops.
Sulphate Zinc, ¼ grain.
Distilled Water to 1 ounce.
Operation, except for improving the appearance of the eye, is useless in
the dog, as wearing of spectacles is impracticable.
=Catarrh of the Nose=:
_Symptoms_: Generally follows a chill from exposure to cold or from
careless washing; shivering and sneezing, thin mucous discharge from
nose, which is not sticky as in distemper; water discharge from eyes; a
husky cough. The dog is dull for a few days, and perhaps off his food,
but as a rule there is no rise of temperature as in distemper, and the
teeth do not become discoloured as in the latter disease.
_Treatment_: Keep quiet in a dry, warm room for a few days, and give the
following mixture:—
_Recipe_:
Tr. Aconite, 24 drops.
Spirits of Nitre, 2 drachms.
Concentrated Solution of Acetate of Ammonia, 1 drachm.
Water to 3 ounces.
_Doses_: From half a teaspoonful to a tablespoonful[1] three times a day.
Give sloppy food for two or three days, and then the ordinary diet and
cod-liver oil.
=Catheter, How to Pass=:
The passage (called the urethra) to the bladder is very small in the dog
in consequence of there being a bone in the penis. It is also very long.
The best kind of catheters are made of gutta-percha, and for small dogs
the size called 0 is large enough. For dogs the size of terriers No.
1 size is required; for collies, etc., No. 2 size; and for larger dogs
No. 3. These numbers refer to the diameter. As to length, they must, of
course, vary also according to size of the dog—10 inches, 12 inches, 18
inches, and 2 feet respectively. Before being passed, the catheter must
be well smeared over with vaseline, and the wire left in. The dog should
be placed on his left side, with the right hind leg well drawn forward;
the penis should be exposed for some inches, and held by means of a
soft cloth; the catheter may then be gently passed. After going a short
distance, that is to where the penis bends round, it will stop going
in, or, at any rate, at this point it will be found a little more force
is required to pass the instrument. When this part is reached, the wire
should be drawn out for one or two inches, according to the size of the
dog, then it will be found the catheter will pass on easily again; and
when the bladder is reached, if it is full of water, it will commence
to drip or dribble away—it never runs away fast, as the orifice in the
catheter is small. Let the catheter remain in so long as urine continues
to flow, and then gently withdraw it.
A catheter should never be passed more than twice a day. The instrument,
when not in use, should, without the wire, be kept in a basin of
saturated solution of boracic acid. The wire should be thoroughly cleaned
and vaselined, and be put into the catheter just before being used.
=Cerebral Congestion=:
_Symptoms_: Often seen in distemper. The dog may be dull and heavy, or he
may be very excited; eyes very congested; temperature high, 104 to 105°
F.; constant working of the temporal muscles. Dogs in this condition are
often ravenous for food, and diarrhœa may be present. If relief is not
given, convulsions usually follow.
_Treatment_: Keep dog absolutely quiet in a darkened room. If bowels
constipated, give purgative medicine, also give from three grains to one
scruple of bromide of strontia[1] in water three or four times a day.
Apply ice in a waterproof sponge bag or sheep’s bladder to forehead for
fifteen minutes or so at a time several times a day.
_Diet_: Liquid food should only be given, as milk with Benger’s food,
egg and milk—the yolk of the egg should not be given if there is
much diarrhœa; some mutton broth or Brand’s essence may be allowed
occasionally. In severe cases a blister or seton at the back of the neck
should be applied.
=Chalky Stones=:
_Symptoms_: Affects principally the knees, hocks, and stifle joints
occasionally of old dogs—the result of the deposit of urates.
_Treatment_: From a quarter to two grains of iodide of potassium three
times a day, or from five[1] grains to two scruples of the boro-citrate
of magnesia in water thrice daily. This medicine may be given with the
food. Vichy water to drink instead of plain water.
=Choking=:
_Symptoms_: Dogs frequently choke themselves when eating bones,
especially chop or cutlet bones; also occasionally with a large piece of
meat which may become impacted in the gullet. But this is not so serious,
as it can easily be pushed down into the stomach if it cannot be pulled
upwards. When an offending bone or other matter becomes lodged in the
back of the throat the dog coughs and retches violently, and may even die
from asphyxia. But as a rule the bone does not stop there, but passes
down until the gullet passes over the heart, where it is rather smaller,
and then the bone is stopped, which causes the dog great distress. He
keeps gulping as if trying to swallow, and occasionally retches. In a
day or two the distress passes off and the patient seems fairly well and
often ready to eat, but if any solid food is taken directly it reaches
the part where the obstruction is it is brought up, and this continues to
happen so long as the obstruction remains, but the dog as a rule is able
to swallow liquids as milk, egg and milk, beef teas, etc.
Dogs, especially puppies, often swallow needles and pins, which generally
become embedded in the back of the tongue, but sometimes they reach the
gullet and pass through, causing a bad abscess to form in the throat just
behind the angle of the jaw.
_Treatment_: When the bone or meat or other matter becomes lodged in the
back of the throat, it is generally easily removed with the finger.
Failing this, forceps must be used; but the symptoms are often very
distressing, and prompt relief is necessary. When the bone has passed
far down in the gullet and become fixed just over the heart, relief is
much more difficult. Sometimes if the dog can be induced to take a few
pieces of meat it will force it on. If this fails, forceps must be tried,
and if the bone cannot be removed with them, then one must try to push
it downwards into the stomach with a probang. Too much force must not
be used or the gullet may be ruptured, which is fatal. If it cannot be
removed, the dog must be fed on liquid food, and in time the points of
the bone may become dissolved, and then it will be easier to push it down
with a probang.
In removing needles from the back of the tongue or fauces, which is best
done with forceps, care must be taken not to break them. The tongue
should be drawn well forward out of the mouth by taking hold of it with a
cloth so as to bring into view the back of the tongue and fauces.
=Chorea, St. Vitus’s Dance=:
_Symptoms_: Irregular contraction of the muscles. Almost any part of the
body may be affected, and even the tongue, the dog poking it out of the
mouth constantly. But the disease more often affects the limbs, perhaps
one fore leg and one hind leg, or the muscles of the shoulder and neck;
occasionally the muscles of the abdomen, the dog always appearing to be
suffering from hiccough. The temporal muscle is a common seat of chorea,
and in such cases the dog is constantly snapping his teeth together. It
is almost invariably the result of distemper.
_Treatment_: In bad cases the disease is incurable, though often with
time—in the course of months—the twitching becomes less, but never
entirely disappears. There is no specific for chorea; what appears to do
one case good seems to do harm in another. Small doses of arsenic with
bromide is sometimes a useful remedy, as the following mixture:—
_Recipe_:
Bromide of Strontia, 1 drachm.
Fowler’s Solution of Arsenic, 48 minims.
Water to 3 ounces.
_Dose_: From half a teaspoonful to a tablespoonful[1] three times a day
after food.
In other cases Easton’s syrup answers better.
_Dose_: From three or four drops to half a drachm,[1] in a little water,
three times a day after food. Later, especially if there is much wasting,
cod-liver oil should be given.
=Coins, etc., Swallowing of=:
_Symptoms_: The dog has a big swallow, and it is astonishing what can
pass down his throat into the stomach. I have known small dogs as fox
terriers to swallow coins the size of a penny, and smaller dogs still to
swallow brooches, ear-rings, and finger-rings, and also keys, without
even seeing any bad results to the dog, though the owner has been much
alarmed as to what was going to happen; but corks are dangerous, as they
block up the intestines, and so are big round stones, but small stones
dogs swallow with impunity. Dogs, even small ones like pups, swallow
occasionally meat skewers, but even such things as these do not always
prove fatal. I recently had under my care a small puppy who swallowed a
hat-pin ten and a half inches long, the head passed into the stomach all
right, but the puppy was too small to take the whole length of pin, and
the point, piercing some of the vital parts of the throat, killed him.
As a rule, a dog does not show much discomfort after swallowing things
like coins, bones, small stones, etc., when they once have reached
the stomach, though with young puppies the latter often cause severe
colic; but large round stones and corks often cause serious mischief by
blocking up the bowels, inducing inflammation, which, if not relieved by
operation, soon causes death. Skewers and long hat-pins when swallowed
seldom pass beyond the stomach, where they often remain for some
considerable time, but sooner or later the point generally pierces the
stomach, and peritonitis follows, which quickly terminates fatally; but
sometimes the sharp point passes direct from the stomach through the
walls of the abdomen and skin, and it may be seen sticking out and can be
removed. The dog seems none the worse after a few days, as the wound soon
heals.
It is often difficult by manipulation to detect things that have been
swallowed, for as a rule, as before mentioned, they remain in the stomach
for a considerable time before passing into the intestines. I have
known coins to remain there for five or six months before being passed;
however, with the Röntgen rays coins, keys, jewellery, stones, etc., can
always be detected.
_Treatment_: Unless the foreign body swallowed is doing the dog visible
harm, it is best left alone. Feed on solid food as suet puddings, rice,
bread, meat and such like foods, so as to distend the bowels as much
as possible and to cause big motions, and the foreign body, in all
probability, will pass out safely; _do not give purgative medicines_,
which only cause contraction of the bowels and do harm, but if there is
pain give from two[1] to ten drops of laudanum in a little water, three
or four times a day, or oftener.
When the substance swallowed causes real obstruction in the bowel, the
laudanum may be given a trial for two or three days, but as a rule an
operation becomes necessary, which consists in opening the abdomen,
finding where obstruction is, and opening the bowel and removing the
offending matter. It is an operation requiring aseptic precaution and
some care, and the sewing up the incision made into the bowel wants
carefully doing or a stricture may result.
=Cold in the Head=:
_See_ CATARRH.
=Colic=:
_Symptoms_: Generally affects puppies from eating rubbish, but may also
affect adult dogs, especially after receiving strong medicine as worm
medicine. Restlessness, crying and whining, or even howling when pain
very severe; abdomen tucked up and muscles feel hard and rigid. The
attack may be accompanied by severe vomiting and diarrhœa.
_Treatment_: Give immediately, if there is no diarrhœa, a dose castor
oil, which should be followed by an enema if it does not operate in
about an hour. The enema may consist of half[1] to two teaspoonfuls of
glycerine, mixed with one[1] to eight tablespoonfuls of warm water. Also,
give following mixture:—
_Recipe_:
Chloric Ether, 1½ drachms.
Laudanum, 1½ drachms.
Water to 3 ounces.
_Doses_: From half a teaspoonful to a tablespoonful[1] every two, three,
or four hours until pain relieved.
=Collapse=:
_Symptoms_: The dog lies in a semi-unconscious condition; the body feels
cold; the membranes are pallid, eyes glassy; the breathing slow and
heavy; pulse weak. This condition may arise from shock, and is often
seen in dogs after being run over. It may also occur as the result of
hæmorrhage.
_Treatment_: Allow the dog to lie perfectly quiet on his _right_ side.
Give stimulants, as brandy, with from one[1] to ten drops of tincture nux
vomica if given by the mouth, but only half if injected under skin. If
this cannot be done, give an enema of milk and brandy, or strong black
coffee. If body very cold, put hot-water bottles round it.
=Coma=:
_Symptoms_: Entire loss of consciousness, heavy breathing, pupils
dilated, etc. This condition may result from injuries to head; sometimes
follows a severe attack of epilepsy, apoplexy, and it is the last stage
previous to death of many illnesses.
_Treatment_: This entirely depends on the cause. If as the result of
epilepsy, the patient is best left quite alone for many hours; if
the body becomes cold, hot-water bottle may be placed under it and
also to the back. After some time, if there are no signs of return to
consciousness, the body and limbs may be well hand-rubbed, and brandy
injected subcutaneously. If the result of injuries to head, should the
skull be fractured an operation may be necessary; but if there is simply
concussion of the brain, you must give the animal time—the condition may
last three or four days, and yet the dog may recover. Besides quietness,
there is not much to do. Should the dog be very restless, apply an
ice-bag to head; and to maintain strength give about every four hours
an enema of peptonised milk, from one tablespoonful to a cupful,[1] or
one or two meat suppositories. When coma is the result of the last stage
of illness, there is little to be done. The inhalation of oxygen may be
tried; brandy or strychnine, ⅟₃₀₀th to ⅟₁₀₀th of a grain[1] may be
injected under the skin, and an enema of strong black coffee given.
=Condylomata=:
_See_ WARTS.
=Conjunctivitis (Sore and Weak Eyes)=:
_Symptoms_: The conjunctival membrane lining the inside of the eyelids
is much congested, and of a dark red colour, there is a constant flow of
watery discharge; in bad cases there is a discharge of white pus which
causes the lids to adhere together. The hair falls off around the lids,
and the cornea, or front of the eye, may become cloudy and ulcerate.
_Treatment_: In simple cases an application of boracic lotion, made by
dissolving half a teaspoonful of boracic acid in half a pint of water,
which should be applied often, is generally sufficient to effect a cure.
In bad cases when the discharge is purulent, the following should be used:
_Recipe_:
Chinosol, 3 grains.
Water to 6 ounces.
Apply several times a day, letting a little run on the inside of the
lower lids. Iodoform dusted on the inside of the lower lid is also useful.
The edges of the eyelids should be kept smeared with vaseline to prevent
them from sticking together.
=Constipation=:
_Symptoms_: The motions are big, hard, and dry, and difficult to pass;
and instead of having an action at least once a day, the dog may only
have one every two or three days.
_Treatment_: A good deal can be done by diet. Spratt’s biscuits have a
tendency to keep the bowels open and regular; for small dogs the Pet-Dog
biscuits should be given, and for large dogs the big biscuits. They
should be broken up and soaked in some soup, and mixed with a little
meat and some green vegetable added; this makes a very good principal
meal. For a second or evening meal the biscuit may be given dry. For a
change of diet give meat, brown bread, and green vegetables in equal
parts moistened with soup. In obstinate cases some laxative may be
necessary. Milk of sulphur answers very well; from sufficient to cover
a threepenny-piece to half a teaspoonful[1] may be given daily for a
fortnight, or a teaspoonful[1] to two tablespoonfuls of Dinneford’s fluid
magnesia may be given every morning in a little milk. In some cases salad
oil answers best, from half a teaspoonful to a tablespoonful[1] mixed
daily with the food. In chronic cases a course of the following pills is
useful:—
_Recipe_:
Ext. Belladona, 1 to 6 grains.[1]
Powdered Rhubarb, 3 to 18 ”
Reduced Iron, 4 to 24 ”
Powdered Nux Vomica, 1 to 6 ”
Mix.
Divide into 12 pills—one to be given twice a day after food.
=Consumption=:
_Symptoms_: A rare disease in dogs. At first a dry cough, later becoming
looser with expectoration of phlegm; wasting, though appetite may at
first be fairly good; the patient gradually becoming very weak, and
occasionally having diarrhœa. There is always present one or more degrees
of fever, and the temperature is generally higher at night. If the phlegm
be examined with a microscope the tubercle bacilli will be found if it is
a case of consumption. In bad cases there is bleeding from the lungs, the
blood coming as a rule through both nostrils.
_Treatment_: Seldom curable, but the best chances of a recovery are
obtained by letting the dog live out of doors and giving cod-liver oil.
Feed liberally, giving plenty of meat, also fish, milk, raw eggs, and
cream.
The patient should be kept away from other dogs, and certainly should not
be allowed to sleep in a room where there are people.
=Convulsions in Puppies=:
_Symptoms_: Young puppies, generally as the result of worms or during
second dentition, often have convulsions. The immediate cause of the
attack is generally due to excitement, more particularly on a hot day.
The puppy, which may be apparently quite well, suddenly tumbles over on
its side, kicks violently with its legs, champs the jaws, and froths at
the mouth. In a minute it gets up, and looks about in a dazed manner;
then, if not restrained, gallops off barking, not knowing where it is
going. Sometimes one attack may follow another in quick succession until
it dies from exhaustion.
_Treatment_: The puppy should be held to prevent it knocking itself
about. (I may here remark that there is not the least danger from a bite
of a dog when suffering from fits of any kind.) As soon as the puppy can
swallow, a dose of the following mixture must be given:—
_Recipe_:
Bromide of Potassium, 1 drachm.
Hydrated Chloral, 1 drachm.
Water to 3 ounces.
_Dose_: From a teaspoonful to a tablespoonful[1] to be given every two,
three, or four hours, according to the severity of the symptoms. If the
puppy is unable to swallow, double the quantity should be injected into
the bowel, mixed with equal quantity of tepid water. In severe cases
a hot bath is beneficial; also ice may be applied to the head. Keep
the puppy in a dark room for some hours after the attack. To prevent a
recurrence of the convulsions, treat puppy for worms. Feed on a milk diet
for a few days.
=Corns=:
Horny elevations which form on the pads of the feet.
_Treatment_: They may be removed by cutting, or destroyed. The best way
is by the application of a solution of chromic acid, one in four. It
should be applied sparingly to the part with a glass rod about twice a
week.
=Coughs=:
_Symptoms_: May arise from many causes; but a simple cough, the result of
some irritation of the larynx caused by cold, is of a common occurrence
during the winter and spring when the winds are cold.
_Treatment_: Give following mixture:—
_Recipe_:
Liquor Morphia, 2 drachms.
Syrup of Squills, 1 ounce.
Syrup of Lemon, 1 ounce.
Water to 3 ounces.
_Dose_: From half a teaspoonful to a dessertspoonful three or four times
a day.[1] When it is difficult to give a mixture, the following pills may
be tried:—
_Recipe_:
Hydrochlorate of Morphia, ¼ to 1 grain.[1]
Powdered Ipecacuanha, 1 to 6 grains.
Powdered Rhubarb, 2 to 12 grains.
Compound Squill Pill, 6 to 20 grains.
Mix and divide into twelve pills, one to be given night and morning. A
dose of aperient medicine should occasionally be given.
=Cuts.=
_Symptoms_: Division of structure, generally described as a solution of
continuity; there is generally more or less bleeding.
_Treatment_: Thoroughly cleanse the cut with a warm solution of boracic
acid, Condy’s fluid well diluted, or one per cent. solution of Pearson’s
disinfectant fluid. Stop bleeding by applying pressure with fingers, or
a pad of absorbent boracic wool, and bandage. When very severe, apply a
ligature to the vessel above the part.
After cleaning the wound and stopping the bleeding, the edges of the cut
should be brought together with a few stitches, about a sixth of an inch
apart; a pad of some disinfectant gauze applied, also a bandage. If no
swelling or discharge, the dressing need not be disturbed for about six
days, when the stitches can be removed. Afterwards re-bandage for another
day to protect the part from dog’s tongue.
=Cystitis=:
_See_ BLADDER, IRRITABLE.
=Cysts=:
_Symptoms_: A sac containing fluid or semi-fluid substances, or even hair
and other foreign substances. A form of cyst often seen in flap of the
ear.
_Treatment_: Cysts can only be removed by cutting. In the case of the
ear, it should be freely opened at the most depending part and a tube
inserted, or at any rate the wound should be kept open for a few days,
otherwise fluid will collect again. No other treatment required except
keeping the parts clean. The dog must not wear a collar.
=Dandruff (Scurf)=:
_Symptoms_: Dryness of the skin and hair, and the rising of branny
greyish-white scales from the former, and mixing with the coat.
_Treatment_: As a rule, a thorough wash once a week, using a tar soap
like Sherley’s shampoo, and putting a little borax in the rinsing water,
with daily brushing of the coat, will effect a cure in mild cases; but
in bad cases greasing the dog all over with some such preparation as the
following is necessary:—
_Recipe_:
Oil of tar, 1 drachm.
Almond Oil, ½ pint.
Mix.
To be thoroughly worked into the skin twice a week, and after a few days
washed off, using the soap mentioned. A course of arsenic is useful; give
from one[1] to eight drops in water twice a day for two or three weeks,
but it must be discontinued if it causes sickness or diarrhœa.
=Deafness=:
_Symptoms_: In many cases, especially in white dogs, as bull terriers, it
may be congenital. In ordinary cases it is often due to an accumulation
of hard wax, or from growths in the canal of the ear. In old dogs it may
be due to thickening of the drum of the ear.
_Treatment_: When congenital it is incurable. If result of growths in
the ear, these must be removed by operation. When caused by accumulation
of hard wax, a little warm almond oil should be poured into the ear, and
the next day the ear should be thoroughly syringed with five ounces of
tepid water in which has been dissolved a scruple of carbonate of soda.
When the deafness is due to a thickening of the drum of the ear, which is
often seen in old dogs, there is nothing to be done.
=Debility=:
_Symptoms_: May be due to constitutional causes, as is often seen in
highly-bred puppies, or it may result from severe illness, particularly
after distemper. The pulse is quick and weak, loss of appetite, and
disinclination for exercise, poor condition, and membranes pale.
_Treatment_: For puppies, Sherley’s chemical tablets answer well. When
result of illness, the following tonic may be given:—
_Recipe_:
Ammoniated Citrate of Iron, ½ drachm.
Tincture Nux Vomica, 40 minims.
Tincture Gentian, 3 drachms.
Water to 3 ounces.
From half a teaspoonful to a tablespoonful[1] three times a day one hour
before food.
=Deformities, Congenital=: