The patients become thin, and lose their appetite and spirits. Palpation of the abdomen, especially of the right flank, is slightly painful, and the pulse is accelerated.
The diarrhœa may spontaneously diminish if the animal’s constitution prove sufficiently strong; but if it follows its course, the little patient becomes weaker, eats less, the evacuations increase and are accompanied by tenesmus. In seven to eight days, in rare cases in four to five, the animal dies from toxi-intoxication of intestinal origin, or from infection resulting from intestinal germs, particularly the bacterium Coli communis, obtaining entrance into the circulation. On the other hand, the diarrhœa may continue for weeks.
The diagnosis is easy, and there should be no difficulty in distinguishing this disease from dysentery and from umbilical phlebitis, which are also accompanied by diarrhœa.
The prognosis is grave, unless treatment is early undertaken. In the latter case there is a good chance of recovery.
Lesions. The macroscopic lesions are not of much interest, being confined to congestion of the intestinal mucous membrane, superficial desquamation of the epithelium, small vascular erosions, and general wasting.
The mesenteric lymphatic glands are swollen and œdematous.
After death from general infection, it is not uncommon to find pleural, peritoneal, and pericardial exudation or even endocarditis.
Even in cases where no post-mortem change has had time to occur cultures from the blood yield varieties of the bacterium Coli communis.
Treatment. The meals should be given at fixed hours, and regulated both as regards quantity and quality. These precautions alone suffice to prevent the appearance of diarrhœic enteritis.
Curative treatment has every chance of succeeding when undertaken at the outset. Delafond and Trasbot recommend mild purgatives, which act more rapidly than intestinal antiseptics. These comprise borotartrate of potash in doses of 4 to 5 drachms, sodium sulphate in doses of 2½ to 4 drachms, sulphate of magnesia, etc. By evacuating the bowel and removing a large number of the germs which have multiplied there, they arrest intoxication and prevent infection. Nevertheless, they should not be administered for long, and after one or two doses should be followed by antiseptics like benzo-naphthol, in doses of 15 to 30 grains, salicylic acid in doses of 5 to 10 grains, or salicylate of soda 45 to 60 grains. Mucilaginous and sweetened drinks containing lactic acid in doses of 45 to 75 grains per day may be given between the meals, or at intervals if the calf is sucking.