If costiveness exists a dose of Glauber salts for the larger animals, and of jalap for the small, may be useful. Or pilocarpine or eserine may be given hypodermically. Following this, mild saline diuretics will serve at once to eliminate offensive products of the disease and lower the general temperature.
The most important resorts however, are the local applications of dilute acids, astringents and antiseptics to the pharyngeal mucosa, mouth and nostrils. In severe cases benefit may be derived from inhalation of water vapor, but this is rendered far more effective by the addition of vinegar, carbolic acid, creolin, camphor, tar, or sulphurous acid. The last may be obtained by the frequent burning of a carefully graduated quantity of sulphur in the stall, the others by mixing them with hot water, saturating cloths hung in the stall, or sprinkling them on sand laid on the floor.
Chlorate of potash or borax may be dissolved in the drinking water, care being taken not to exceed the physiological dose. Mercuric chloride (1:2000) may be used to wash the lips and nostrils, but cannot be safely injected into mouth or nose. Powdered alum or tannic acid may be used by insufflation.
As a mouth wash and general medicament a saturated solution of chlorate of potash in tincture of muriate of iron, diluted by adding thirty drops to the ounce of water, may be given every hour or two. Or a solution of chlorine water diluted so as to be non-irritating, may be substituted with somewhat less effect. Even a weak solution of hydrochloric acid may be employed.
Borax may be used in a solution of 2 per cent., or carbolic acid in one of 1 per cent., or bisulphite of soda in the proportion of ½ oz. to the pint, or salicylate of soda ½ oz. to the pint of water. The same agents may be made into electuaries with honey or molasses and smeared every hour or two on the tongue or cheek. In such cases the addition of powdered liquorice, and, if the suffering is acute, of extract of belladonna will serve an excellent purpose.
The danger of infection of the stomach and bowels may be met by combining with the above or administering separately salol in doses of 2 to 3 drachms or naphthol in doses of 4 to 5 drachms to the larger animals. For sheep or swine one-fourth of these doses may be given, and for a shepherd’s dog one-sixteenth to a twentieth.
As alternate antiseptics may be named, boric acid, permanganate of potash and salicylate of bismuth. These from their comparative absence of taste are especially useful in carnivora.
Counter-irritants to the throat are useful. For the horse, sheep, dog and cat, use equal parts of strong aqua ammonia and olive oil. For the solipeds a cantharides blister. For cattle or swine equal parts of strong aqua ammonia and oil of turpentine with a few drops of croton oil, or grains of tartar emetic.
Finally during convalescence a course of iron and bitters may be useful, especially in debilitated subjects.