Part 5

CAUSE.—Exposure to cold followed by neglect, and lack of nourishing food; bruise or fracture of the frontal bones of the head; injury of the blood-vessels inside the bones, or an ulcerated tooth. May also be caused by tumor, or foreign substance or liquids in the nasal cavities. Sometimes dried pus in the nostrils, resulting from a cold, will cause nasal gleet.

SYMPTOMS.—A white or yellowish discharge from one or both of the nostrils, the quantity varying with the severity of the attack and the length of time the disease has been established. If, when tapping over the nose below the eye, a dull sound is produced, it is safe to conclude that the cavities are filled with pus; to make certain, compare the sick animal with a healthy one; in some cases you will notice that even the bones of the nose below the eye are slightly elevated. The lining of the nose may be of a red or yellow color but not ulcerated in spots, as in Glanders. The animal may continue in good spirits and work well for a time but as the case develops he becomes lean in flesh and what is termed hide-bound. Always examine the teeth. In a case of long standing, the discharge has a fetid smell, differing in this respect also from Glanders.

TREATMENT.—If not due to fractured bones of the head or ulcerated teeth, the animal will, in most cases, recover with proper medical treatment. When due to injury to the bones of the head, tumors, ulcerated teeth or dried pus in the nasal cavities, it is best to remove the diseased portion with the aid of bone chisel or tephine and treat the wound antiseptically. In the mild forms of nasal-gleet or chronic catarrh, administer the following: Ferri Sulphate, Potassi Iodide, Nux Vomica, each four ounces. Mix well and make into thirty-two capsules. Give one capsule three times daily and feed food that is nourishing and easily digested.

NAVEL STRING INFECTION.

(_Umbilical Pyemia_)

CAUSE AND NATURE.—While the unborn foal (foetus) is in the womb of its mother, it is surrounded by enveloping membranes which constitute the afterbirth on delivery. These membranes are attached to the wall of the womb and are connected to the foetus by means of the navel-string (umbilical cord) which is provided with two arteries and a vein for the nourishment of the young creature and for the removal of its waste products.

It also has a narrow canal (the urachus) which serves to remove the urine of the foetus; in fact the subsequently formed bladder takes its origin from a dilation of the urachus. Under normal conditions when the foal is born, respiration takes place, the umbilical arteries and veins become quickly blocked up, urine is discharged through the urethra (which communicates with the penis or vagina, as the case may be), the foal enjoys a separate existence and the wound caused by the division of the umbilical cord leaves a scar which is known as the navel.

It is usually supposed that the germ of navel-string infection gains admittance into the body through the exposed surface before the wound is closed. However, I am of the opinion that the mother is the bearer of the infection in a great many cases for in the uterine secretions of mares whose foals fell with navel-string infection, the same characteristic germs were found as were present in the joints of the affected foals. The infectious material is, by the act of covering, conveyed from mare to mare, so that the mucous membranes of the womb becomes the habitat of the specific germ. By inoculation of these germs into the blood stream of foals an illness is produced which in the smallest particular cannot be distinguished from that arising in naturally affected foals. It is a strange fact that when the infected germs are transmitted by the mother, their presence does not produce any disturbance in her.

This is a very common malady in most places. I have known several instances on particular farms where they were unable to raise either foals or calves, but if the mother were removed to another farm immediately after or before foaling, the foal or calf lived and was reared without difficulty, and although constitutional debility plays an important part, the presence of specific germs constituting an infected area is, I believe, the most important factor in producing this disease.

According to my observation, about seventy-five per cent of the cases die within the first three weeks after birth. This high rate of mortality would be considerably diminished if proper treatment was adopted.

SYMPTOMS.—The attack usually comes on during the second or third week after birth and almost always before the closure of the navel opening, which, in affected animals, will be found to be in a wet and suppurating condition. Occasionally foals two or three months old which have the urachus closed and are in an apparently healthy condition contract this disease in a form of painful swelling of the joints. The first symptoms are generally dullness; more or less fever; lameness which is often attributed to rheumatism or to injury caused by the mare treading on foal; the disinclination to move or even to stand. Upon examination the patient will be found to have a soft, gelatinous swelling of one or more of the joints of which the hock, elbow, fetlock, stifle and hip usually manifest the enlargement most clearly.

These swellings are hot and painful to the touch; they tend to suppurate and frequently cause intense lameness. In very rare cases open urachus may exist without any joint inflammation. In this disease, inflammation of the joints and open urachus are almost always co-existent.

Animals that recover from a bad attack are seldom worth the trouble of rearing, because as a rule their constitution becomes permanently impaired and one or more of their joints becomes stiffened by the attack.

TREATMENT.—In the treatment of this disease, we have to attend to constitutional disturbances, inflamed joints, open urachus and complications such as constipation and diarrhoea. The comfort of our little patient must be studied under all circumstances. If the weather be at all cold it should be covered by a warm sheet. Should the foal have any difficulty in rising from the recumbent position, an attendant should assist it to rise and see that it is regularly fed. It is only in extreme cases that the animal refuses to suck its dam. During warm weather, and especially if the ground is dry, such a patient is always better off for a little sunshine, but on no account must it be left out during extreme heat, as in this state it is very liable to sunstroke. The best food for the mare is grass, which during the day, she can generally have. The inflamed joints of the foal should be rubbed lightly with the following, after being thoroughly mixed: Red Iodide of Mercury, two drams; Vaseline, two ounces, every forty-eight hours, which, when applied to the skin, appears to have a well-marked antiseptic action on the underlying tissues. An inflamed joint should on no account be bathed with warm water, fomented or poulticed because the application of moist heat would be the best possible means for promoting the development of the infective germs which are the cause of the local and general disturbance. The open navel-string should not be ligatured because that operation is generally followed by an increased inflammation of the part, and by an aggravation of the other symptoms apparently on account of this outlet for deleterious products becoming blocked up. If the navel-string has been ligatured and is in an inflamed state, the ligature should be removed without delay. If the foal is constipated give two or three ounces of Castor Oil; also, administer the following: Zinc Sulphocarbolates, one-half dram; Hyposulphite of Soda, four ounces. Mix and make into thirty-two powders. Give one powder well back on the tongue every four hours.

As a supplement to the food, we may give brown sugar or treacle, both of which are easily digested and are very nourishing. Four or five eggs daily will also aid in keeping up the strength.

NAVEL RUPTURE.

(_Umbilical Hernia_)

CAUSE.—Hereditary predisposition is well marked in this complaint. It may exist at birth, but so-called congenital rupture may very probably be the result of the pulling which the navel-string underwent at the time of foaling. However, umbilical hernia usually occurs during the first two or three months after birth; that is to say, while the opening at the navel is becoming obliterated and the tissues at that place are becoming consolidated. They can, however, appear later and may result from more or less violent strains sustained when the foals are jumping or playing. At other times these strains are induced by intestinal irritation accompanied by diarrhoea or constipation with straining. But, however the strain may take place, the abdominal muscles contract and push the intestines towards the wall of the belly. Then if they find an opening or even a weak spot, like the ring of the navel while it is undergoing the process of becoming blocked up, they select it and a rupture is produced.

SYMPTOMS.—This rupture, the situation of which clearly shows its character, may vary in size from that of a hen’s egg to that of an ostrich’s egg. If pressed upon with the hand, especially if the animal is placed on its back, the rupture will disappear, to return, however, when the pressure is removed. If it be composed of intestines it will be soft and elastic when the bowels are empty, but when they are full of semi-solid food they will be doughy. In any event, the tumor will feel elastic when composed of intestines, but when formed of its connecting membranes, will naturally not vary in consistence. If intestines be present, movements and abdominal rumblings may be detected in it. This rupture rarely gives rise to serious consequences because its contents are composed of large intestines and omentum, either of which is, in this position, not liable to become strangulated. It may, however, become engorged and inflamed from injury. Its existence naturally depreciates the value of an animal suffering from it.

TREATMENT.—In the majority of cases, they will disappear of their own accord in two or three months. In case the rupture shows no signs of diminishing in size it is well to apply a bandage around the abdomen.

OPEN JOINT.

CAUSE.—Injuries such as a kick from a sharp shoe, wire cuts, punctures from snags, or from probing a wound near a joint. Open joint is one of the most serious accidents that may happen to a horse, for the sufferer is apt to die from the ensuing constitutional disturbance, and even if he recovers the joint will, in all probability, be permanently stiff.

SYMPTOMS.—If the joint is opened or severely injured the wound will have an ordinary appearance except that there may be a flow of joint oil from the injured oil sack. However, the discharge gradually becomes more unhealthy until finally it is mixed with pus and blood and assumes a fetid odor. After two or three days the joint swells and becomes very painful and a high fever sets in. In unfavorable cases the animal dies from exhaustion very shortly, or at best recovers with a permanently stiff joint.

TREATMENT.—Never probe a wound near a joint. If the injury is small and noticed immediately, apply Red Iodide of Mercury, two drams; Vaseline, two ounces. Mix and rub in well over the wound. This will set up sufficient inflammation to close the opening and kill any infection that may be present, as it possesses powerful antiseptic properties. If the wound is large, wash with Bichloride of Mercury, one part to one thousand parts distilled water. The wound should be washed twice a day with this solution. Then dust the wound with Tannic Acid, one ounce; Iodoform, one ounce; Boracic Acid, one ounce; Calomel, one dram. Mix and place in sifter top can and apply this after washing each time. Then bandage the wound by first placing clean absorbent cotton over the wound. Do not attempt to syringe a solution into an opening or some of the solution may gain entrance into the joint. Keep the animal as quiet as possible and feed laxative food.

PALESADE WORM.

(_Strongulus Armatus_)

This parasite thrives on marshy ground and is commonly found in the United States and Canada. The body of the worm is gray in color, more or less stiff and straight and thicker in the front than in the hind part; it varies in length, the male measuring from three-fourths of an inch to one inch and the female from one to two inches. It may occur in an adult or an immature state. In the former it implants itself on the mucous membrane of the large intestines by means of its armed mouth, while in the latter it lives in cysts underneath the mucous membrane of the intestines and is sometimes found in the brain, testicles and liver. The immature worms which do not issue directly from the cysts get into the arteries and are carried by the force of the blood to all parts of the body.

SYMPTOMS.—Same as in Red Worm with the exception of colicky pains caused by the worms blocking the arteries which carry blood to the intestines, thus interfering with the process of digestion. Where the worms enter the arteries of the limbs it results in lameness. It is a good plan to examine animals once or twice a year to insure them against this pest.

TREATMENT.—Same as for Red Worm.

PLEURISY.

CAUSE.—Exposure to sudden changes of temperature, confinement in ill-ventilated, damp stables, wounds penetrating the chest, fractured ribs, heart diseases. It also occurs in conjunction with Bronchitis, Influenza, etc.

SYMPTOMS.—Generally only one side of the lungs is affected and that being the right, although it may affect both sides at the same time. First you will notice the animal distressed, uneasy, shivering, the affected side is painful to pressure of the hand. The breathing is short and quick, and the flanks heave—which shows that the animal tries to breathe as much as possible, by the action of the muscles of the abdomen and not by the movement of the ribs. The nostrils are dilated. There is usually a short, dry, painful cough present, which is repressed by the animal as much as possible, so as not to shake the inflamed parts. Often when expelling air from the lungs the horse gives a painful grunt especially when made to move. The pulse is generally hard and faster than usual. The temperature in early stages may rise from 104° to 106° F. If the ear is applied to the affected side a dry crackling or friction sound can be heard; a groove along the lower portion of the ribs will extend back to the flank. Within two or three days the pulse will be softer and weaker, temperature will fall to 101° or 102° F. and there will be fluids form and the painful short breathing will disappear. The liquids may now undergo absorption if properly treated, and the case terminate favorably in a week or ten days.

Frequently large quantities of fluid accumulate in the chest cavity that cannot be absorbed, the breathing becomes more difficult, short and quick, pulse becomes weak and rapid and the animal dies from exhaustion.

TREATMENT.—Place the animal in a comfortable, roomy stall; blanket if the weather is chilly, permit fresh air, but no drafts, as this is very important. Apply a paste made from Mustard and cold water over the chest cavity. Internally, administer Ammonium Iodide, Chlorate of Potash, Nitrate of Potash, each four ounces. Make into thirty-two powders and give one powder every two or three hours in gelatin capsule and administer with capsule gun. The diet is a proper means of keeping up the animal and is very important. Coax the animal to eat grass or vegetables, hot bran mashes or steam rolled oats. If there is a cough present, give the same treatment as recommended for Acute and Chronic Coughs.

PIN WORM, THREAD OR MAW WORM.

(_Oxyuris Curvilis_)

This worm when full grown is about one and three-quarter inches in length; its tail is thin and whip-like and head thick and terminating in a curve somewhat resembling the crook of a stick. The presence of these parasites may be detected by a light-yellow substance (the eggs of the worms) which adheres to the skin below the anus. Pin Worms like Round Worms frequently come away with the feces.

TREATMENT.—Dissolve four tablespoonfuls Common Salt in one gallon of warm water and inject it into the rectum. When this has been expelled, follow with an injection per rectum of Turpentine, four ounces, to one-half gallon Linseed Oil. Elevate the horse’s hind quarters so as to retain the injection longer. This will expel the worms and their eggs that cling to the walls of the rectum. The worms sometimes make their way so far forward that it is impossible to reach them with an injection. In this case treat same as for Round worms.

Where there is irritation produced about the tail the horse continually rubs and it is well to apply Mercurial Ointment to both tail and the anus.

POLL EVIL.

Poll Evil is so-called because it occurs in the region of the poll. It is not a constitutional disease, but comes, no doubt, from well marked causes, as from inflammation set up and involving the bones and muscles in the region of the poll, and perhaps of the larger ligament. Owing to the low vitality of the parts and the action of the head in taking food, etc., the pus is apt to burrow deep into the muscle.

CAUSE.—Direct or indirect injury. A common cause is striking the head against a low doorway or an ill-fitting halter or bridle.

SYMPTOMS.—Swelling just back of the ears on one or both sides of the head. The animal stands with the nose out; slight heat in the parts, pain on pressure. In the first stages, it is merely inflammatory action. The second stage is suppuration, or there may be great swelling in some cases when there is but little pus formed.

In other cases there is profuse suppuration and the pus makes its way out and discharges to the surface and sinuses are formed, which extend in various directions. Any abscess in this region is called Poll Evil.

TREATMENT.—When the enlargement is first noticed in the region of the poll, I would advise the following: Red Iodide of Mercury, four drams; Lard, four ounces, rub in well over the enlargement and perhaps this will prevent sinuses from forming, but when the cases are long standing and so-called pipes are formed, I would advise removing all diseased material and treat as an ordinary wound.

PETECHIAL FEVER.

(_Purpura Haemorrhagica_)

CAUSE.—Constitutional weakness following some debilitating disease such as Distemper, Pink Eye, Catarrh and even following operations, when an animal becomes weak from want of exercise, in which case it generally appears during his recovery. It is not infectious and cannot be transmitted by inoculations.

SYMPTOMS.—There is a slight swelling of the limbs, most likely to be about the hocks. The swelling may disappear by exercising, but will soon return. The swellings present a very abrupt appearance, nearly the same as if a string were tied around the limbs and swell very quickly, and symptomatic of Purpura. Exudations take place in which, if on white limbs, you will see little red spots, from which a liquid is oozing. The swelling is very painful and the entire limb may be swollen. Small vesicles appear on the limbs and also in the mucous membranes, and it is well to look at the mucous membranes before giving your opinion, as you will, no doubt, detect these spots, which may extend into the lungs. These spots increase and may run into each other. The mucous membranes of the nose may become a mass of corrupt matter. The upper lip may hang pendulous, which is due to the want of nervous stimulus. If the nostrils are swollen very badly, there is difficulty in breathing and if the animal is not able to take food, the symptoms are considered very bad. The pulse varies much in some cases; although the swelling is very great, the pulse may not be more than forty or fifty per minute. The temperature is elevated one to three degrees above normal, there may be a cough and a brownish colored discharge from the nostrils. The mouth and eyes become affected and, together with the discharge from the nose, the horse is a loathsome looking object. In milder cases the appetite is retained, or the animal may take food one day and the next refuse it. The bowels are constipated as a general rule in the first stages of the disease and the urine may be of a dark color, may even contain blood. There may be a peculiar dropsical swelling of these petechial spots or it may show itself in connection with the eyes and there may be blood extravasation without outer symptoms. This disease may effect the bowels, liver, lungs, etc. The animal usually stands, perhaps from the difficulty in moving the limbs. It is necessary to watch the case closely, for flies will attack him and he will be filled with maggots. Sloughing may take place; the entire sheath or patches upon the body may slough off and there may be paralysis of the penis.

TREATMENT.—Place the animal in a clean, light, comfortable stall. If the weather is cold, blanket. The following medicine is recommended because of its particular effect on the blood in this disease: Chlorate of Potash, eight ounces; Iodide of Potash, eight ounces; Quinine Sulphate, eight ounces. Make into thirty-two capsules and give one capsule every six hours. Also administer one ounce capsules filled with Spirits of Turpentine three or four times a day. Moisten the capsules with Sweet Oil and give with capsule gun. Feed hot bran mashes containing two or three ounces of pure Flaxseed meal. Also, feed vegetables, green grass, if possible.

QUITTOR.

(_Fistula of the Foot_)

CAUSE.—Injuries. Horses working on rough stony roads are subject to punctures, pricks, bruises, corns, treads, etc., which end in pus formation which does not get a pendant opening and destroys the tissues with which it comes in contact. Finally it bursts, forms sinuses and pipes, as commonly called, at the top of the hoof.

SYMPTOMS.—Extreme lameness, heat, pain and swelling will show themselves about the top of the hoof. As a rule a Quittor develops slowly and is more or less painful during the first stages. After the sinus is formed and the pus discharges, the inflammation generally subsides. Its healing process is often delayed due to the diseased portion of the cartilages inside the horny hoof.

TREATMENT.—Apply Flaxseed or hot Bran poultices to relieve the inflammation and hasten the formation of sinuses or pipes. Then with an ordinary syringe inject the following: Silver Nitrate, ten grains; Water, one ounce. Inject fifteen to twenty drops twice daily. Keep the food clean and the animal as quiet as possible. It is very disagreeable, as stated before, and the healing is very slow, but this must be naturally expected, as we are unable to provide the sinuses with good drainage.

RED WORM.

(_Strongylus Tetracanthus_)

The Red Worm varies in length from one-third to three and one-quarter inches, and is sometimes white, though it usually appears to be red because of the blood it contains. This parasite is found in all parts of the world. Its favorite haunt is marshy land.

SYMPTOMS.—Paleness of all visible membranes, eyes watery and inflamed, swelling of the sheath, legs, and lower surface of the belly; fetid diarrhoea, dullness, debility, emaciation, rough coat, and the presence of worms in the feces. The worms when first passed are bright red in color but after being exposed to the air they turn dark and may easily escape the notice of the casual observer.