How to bandage the hind leg for fractures and injuries to the stifle, &c.
A—Sticking-plaister Bandage
B—Linen Roller Bandage
Treatment: The patella is easily returned to its place, but as often as not it slips out again. The best way of reducing this dislocation is to straighten the leg and draw the foot towards the elbow of the same side, and then with the fingers of the other hand push the patella into its place; afterwards, to keep it there, bind the joint with several layers of Mead’s plaister as depicted in the illustration. The plaister should be continued for some distance above the joint.
Distemper:
The first symptom of distemper is a rise of temperature—if a dog is dull and off his food, take the temperature. It is best to take it in the rectum, where the normal is 101 degs. to 101½ degs. F.; if taken under the arm or inside of the thigh it is 1 deg. lower. If the thermometer registers 2 or 3 degs. of temperature above normal, you may be sure there is something wrong, and the dog should be isolated at once; and by doing this the infection may often be prevented spreading. If the disease is distemper, other symptoms will soon develop, as a husky cough, loss of appetite and condition, and occasionally vomiting. The eyes are weak and sensitive to light, and there is often a little gummy discharge which collects along the edges of the lids; the breath is offensive, and the teeth become furred. Diarrhœa may, or may not, occur. If the illness is only some passing ailment, the temperature will soon be normal, and the dog assume his usual condition. But the temperature, even in distemper, after two or three days, may go down to normal; but do not be deceived by this, and think the dog is all right, but look out for some of the other symptoms mentioned, and if the dog is in for that disease they are sure to appear, and the fever will return again in a couple of days or so.
People often think a dog cannot have distemper unless there is a discharge from the nose; this is a mistake, but it certainly does occur in most cases, though it does not appear as a rule until the dog has been ill for some time. If the lungs become affected, the breathing is short and quick, not panting with the mouth open; the chest is tender on pressure. At first there is no cough, but after two or three days there is a suppressed painful cough, with retching. The pulse is often much accelerated, the beats varying from 110 to 140 per minute. In some cases the pulse is very slow, and may only be 48 to the minute; of course, this refers to a big dog. A pulse of this kind is worse than a fast one with pneumonia. When it is between 60 and 70 in a small dog, it is also serious with lung complications. The heart’s action in dogs is very frequently intermittent even in health. The eyes during distemper are often a source of anxiety, and in those dogs with prominent orbits, as spaniels, pugs, etc., there is always an inclination for ulcers to form, which are extremely painful.
The worst complications of all in distempers are those affecting the nervous system; the brain and its membranes may become inflamed, and fits follow, or the spinal cord and its membranes attacked, and paralysis or chorea, or perhaps both, occur. These complications of the nervous system may often be prevented by not letting the dog out too soon after distemper. The temperature should be regularly taken, and the patient not allowed to go out of doors or be excited in any way until the temperature has been normal at least ten days. Sometimes suddenly changing the diet from liquid to solid food will induce fits.
Occasionally in distemper a crop of pustules appears on the inside of the legs and over the stomach—in fact, in some cases all over the body. This is rather a good sign than otherwise, for they seem to relieve the system of the distemper poison.
To treat distemper successfully, good nursing and dry, warm, comfortable quarters for the patient are the two essential things. For outdoor dogs, a loose box in a stable makes a capital place, and in cold weather the temperature should be kept as near 55 deg. F. as possible. Dogs who are in the habit of living indoors should be put in a well-ventilated room, and the temperature kept up between 60 and 65 deg. F. It is a good plan to cover the floor with sawdust, which should be changed at least once a day, and oftener when necessary. The dog should not be let out of the box or warm room for anything. Very often at first there are difficulties with very clean dogs, but it can generally be overcome with perseverance. Sometimes a little soiled straw from a kennel thrown down in the room is useful. Some dogs may be taught to use a tray or box filled with sawdust or mould. Directly a dog shows signs of distemper he should be sewn up in a flannel coat to keep the chest warm.