When I saw him all consciousness of surrounding objects was gone. He was still running feebly, but barking might and main.
I dashed a basin of cold water in his face, and he dropped as if he had been shot. He lay motionless nearly a minute, and then began to struggle and to bark; another cup of water was dashed in his face, and he lay quite motionless during two minutes or more. In the mean time I had got a grain each of calomel and tartar emetic, which I put on his tongue, and washed it down with a little water. He began to recover, and again began to yelp, although much softer; but, in about a quarter of an hour, sickness commenced, and he ceased his noise. He vomited three or four times, and lay frightened and quiet. A physic-ball was given him in the evening, and on the following morning.
On the next day the young man put open the door, and sat himself down, and began to prepare the flute; the dog was out in a moment, and did not return during a couple of hours. On the following day he made his escape again, and so the matter went on; but before the expiration of the week, his master might play the flute if he pleased.
[Contents]/[Detailed Contents, p. 4]/[Index]
Diseases of the Nervous System: Turnside or Giddiness
This is a singular disease prevalent among cattle, but only occasionally seen in the dog. He becomes listless, dull, off his food, and scarcely recognises any surrounding object. He has no fit, but he wanders about the room fur several hours at a time, generally or almost invariably in the same direction, and with his head on one side. At first he carefully avoids the objects that are in his way; but by degrees his mental faculties become impaired; his sense of vision is confused or lost, and he blunders against everything: in fact, if uninterrupted, he would continue his strange perambulation incessantly, until he was fairly worn out and died in convulsions.
I used to consider the complaint to be uniformly fatal. I have resorted to every remedial measure that the case could suggest. I have bled, and physicked and setoned, and blistered, and used the moxa; but all without avail, for not in a single case did I save my patient.
No opportunity of