We determined to try the cautery to its full extent. We chained him up in the morning, and penetrated through the skin with the budding-iron. The spasms were dreadfully violent, and he was scarcely able to walk or to stand. This gradually subsided, and then he began to run round and round, and that increased to an extraordinary velocity: he would then lie for a while with every limb in action. The owner then yielded to all our wishes, and he was destroyed with prussic acid. No morbid appearance presented itself in the brain; but, on the inner plate of the right parietal bone, near the sagittal suture, were two projections, one-sixth of an inch in length, and armed with numerous minute spicula. There was no peculiar inflammation or vascularity of any other part of the brain.
We [once] cured a case quite accidentally, by throwing a pup into a cold stream of water, and making him swim ashore; we do not recommend the plan, although we should be willing to try it again with one of our own dogs. The animal should be forced to swim till nearly exhausted, and wrapped up in blankets on coming out of the water. The intense alarm created in the pup, together with the violent struggle and coldness of the water, all act as revulsives to the disease, which, if purely nervous, may be overcome by these powerful agents.
If the dog be weak, and the stomach deranged, the following tonic balls will answer a good purpose:
[Symbol: Rx]: Carbonate of Iron;
Ground Ginger, ââ, grs. X, made into two pills, one given morning and evening, or more frequently according to the age or size of the animal. — L.
[Contents]/[Detailed Contents, p. 4]/[Index]
Rheumatism and Palsy
I do not know any animal so subject to
rheumatism
as the dog, nor any one in which, if it is early and properly treated, it is so manageable.
We agree with our author, that the canine family are exceedingly liable to inflammation of the fibrous and muscular structures of the body, and there is no disease from which they suffer more, both in their youth and old age, than rheumatism. No particular species of dogs are more subject to its attacks than others, all being alike victims to its ravages. Mr. Blaine remarks, that the bowels always sympathize with other parts of the body suffering under this disease, and that inflammation will always be found existing in the abdominal viscera, if rheumatism be present, and the lower bowels will be attended with a painful torpor, which he designates as rheumatic colic. We ourselves noticed, that old setters particularly, when suffering from this disease, are frequently attacked with an acute diarrhoea, or suffer from obstinate constipation attended by griping pains, but did not know that this state of things was so uniform an accompaniment to the other affection. There are two varieties of rheumatism, the acute and chronic, both of which are attended with either general fever or local inflammation. The attacks usually come on rather suddenly, the joints swell, the pulse becomes full and tense, the parts tender, and the eyes blood-shot, the stomach deranged, and the bowels costive. Severe lancinating pain runs through the articulation, and along the course of the larger muscles, the tongue is coated, the muzzle hot and dry, and the poor animal howls with agony. The breathing becomes laboured, all food is rejected, and if you attempt to move the sufferer he sends forth piteous cries of distress. The causes of this serious affection are very numerous; among the most usual and active agents may be enumerated, exposure to atmospherical vicissitudes, remaining wet and idle after coming from the water, damp kennels, suppressed perspiration, metastasis of eruptive diseases, luxurious living, laziness and over-feeding. These and many other causes are all busy in the production of this disease. Duck dogs on the Chesapeake, we have noticed as often suffering from this affection, owing no doubt to the great exposure they are obliged to endure; but few of them arrive at old age without being martyrs to the chronic form. Chronic rheumatism, generally the result of the other form of disease, is most usually met with in old dogs: it is attended with little fever, although the local inflammation and swelling is sometimes considerable. The pain is often stationary in one shoulder or loin, at other times shifts about suddenly to other portions of the body. The muscles are tender and the joints stiff, the animal seems lame till he becomes healed, and limber when all appearance of the disease vanishes. In old cases the limbs become so much enlarged, and the joints so swollen, that the dog is rendered perfectly useless, and consequently increases his sufferings by idleness. This form of the disease is known as gout.
Treatment of acute rheumatism — bleeding largely is very important in this affection, and if followed up with two or three purges of aloes, gamboge, colocynth and calomel will arrest the progress of this disease.