Alfred Joseph Sewell

“ There is no doubt that dogs who continue with a good appetite through distemper do much better, and have a better chance of recovering, no matter how severe the attack may be, than those bad feeders who refuse food and have to be drenched. A little food taken voluntarily does much more good than a lot forced upon the dog; therefore I advise tempting the patient with a variety of diet, so as to get him to eat something himself—of course, given in small quantities, particularly when the case is bad. I always commence with soup and milk alternately, mixed with bread, biscuits, or rice ”

“ If any good is to be done it must be by dieting; and whatever food is given should be dry. Raw, or nearly raw, meat is the best food, for nearly all fat dogs put on this diet lose weight considerably, and at the same time improve in health by becoming brighter and livelier, and more ready to take exercise; but the meat must be given sparingly, say for a small dog like a pomeranian, one ounce and a half twice a day; and for a dog the size of a fox terrier, three ounces twice a day. The worst of this food is, it never seems to satisfy; in fact, a dog fed on raw meat always seems hungry. ”

“ In the dog, when the stones are small they, as a rule, do not seem to do any harm or cause inconvenience until one or more escape from the bladder, pass into the urinary passage or urethra, and become lodged in the canal just behind the bone in the penis where the passage is smallest. If the stone is quite round—which, fortunately, is not always the case—it acts like a cork in a bottle, and the dog is unable to pass any water. He stands or stoops like a bitch, and keeps straining; but nothing comes away, except, perhaps, a single drop occasionally of blood-stained urine. ”

“ Taking food voluntarily not only does the dog more good, but it is less worrying to the patient, for when one has to feed with the spoon or bottle it is necessary to give nourishment very frequently, whereas when it is taken voluntarily, more, as a rule, is taken at a time, and therefore it is not necessary to offer food so often. A good meat tea is made with equal parts of veal, beef, and mutton—say half a pound of each cut up very small, then slowly stewed for three hours in a pint of water. ”

“ There is no doubt a pig-jaw is a much more serious malformation than one that is underhung, as it is absolutely impossible for [297] a dog with a mouth like this to bite or seize his prey firmly and hold it. This is a very common deformity with collies and greyhounds, and very ugly it looks—the former are not required to bite, but at the same time the condition, when very marked, should disqualify a dog on the show bench, for there is no doubt that it is hereditary. Another condition of the teeth, and one which judges often put a terrier back for, is canker. ”

“ In all cases of fracture, it is most important that the dog be kept absolutely quiet for the first three weeks; if the dog must go out for certain purposes, then he should be carried to a garden and back again. If this is not attended to, the broken bone will not unite, and as a consequence there is what is called a false joint formed—that is, a soft union between the two broken ends of the bone—and as a result the dog is never able to bear weight on the limb, and it is never straight. ”

“ In cases of a dog wearing the claws away through defective action, as a rule, treatment is of little use; but if the dog is made to exercise on grass land, the nails will grow to an ordinary extent, and the dog walk much better, but the relief is only maintained whilst he is not allowed to run on hard roads. When the defective action of the limbs causing undue wearing of the nails is due to partial general paralysis—as the sequel of distemper, for instance—then it is only temporary, and will pass off as the patient improves in health and strength. ”

“ Even when cow’s milk is given pure, nearly three times the quantity in bulk ought to be given than if bitch’s milk is used, and it is thus seen at a glance how a puppy’s stomach, which is naturally small, is over-distended. A dog’s digestive organs are arranged to receive food in a concentrated form—as, for instance, dogs in nature eat only meat, and until they get this food they have nothing else but the dam’s milk, which is also a concentrated food. ”

“ In bad cases the dog swells out of all recognition. He is unable to move, or does so with great difficulty; and when the head is affected, the eyes are closed, the ears perhaps an inch thick, and breathing is difficult. The swelling is soft, pits on pressure, and at the same time a crackling noise is made.
When affecting the lungs, the breathing is heavy and laboured, and on auscultating the chest a distinct loud, crackling noise is heard. The heart is generally affected, its action, as a rule, being very weak; and there is a chronic, husky cough. ”

“ It is very important to examine the bitch’s skin from time to time, so as to check any cutaneous disorder early; for if the bitch has any skin disease when the puppies are born, they are sure to contract it, and nothing thwarts their growth more than an irritable skin, for it prevents rest, when plenty of sleep is so essential for a puppy’s welfare; so if there are symptoms of mange, have her at once dressed all over with some mild preparation like sulphur ointment made with vaseline, which should be repeated two or three times in the course of a week, and after a few days washed off. ”

“ The dog’s disposition entirely changes, the cheerful one becomes morose and sullen, the quiet one is restless, and the good-tempered dog quarrelsome, and there is an inclination to hide in dark corners, though when called by his owner he comes forward and is very affectionate, licking the hand and even the person’s face if allowed. ”

“ In-growing eyelashes must be plucked out with forceps from time to time. Very often as the puppy grows older and stronger, the lashes assume a normal position, and cease to be a trouble, but if they continue to turn in after the dog is twelve months old, a similar operation as for inverted eyelids is recommended, but in these latter cases it is not necessary to divide the muscle, but only the skin. Squinting may be cured by operation, but it is not recommended, as the defect does no harm, and with Japanese spaniels, who often squint, it rather adds to their quaintness. ”

“ Dogs are often suffocated in hot weather whilst travelling, through being shut up in a too small or badly-ventilated box. As a rule, such cases are not found out until the dog arrives at his destination, when the box is opened, and he is found lying dead at the bottom of it. Sometimes the dog is not quite dead, though unconscious. The breathing is very slow and shallow; the pulse imperceptible. The body is cold, and the tongue a dark blue colour. ”

“ In some instances the puppy presents itself at the mouth of the womb with the top of the head foremost, the nose being pressed down against the chest; if it is at all large, birth is very difficult in this position. In such cases, one should try and elevate the nose with the point of the finger; when the bitch is not a large one this is often possible, but when she is, it is necessary to employ a crotchet or crook—as mentioned before, a button-hook with a long handle does very well—and, if possible, it should be fixed in the mouth and the nose drawn up ”

“ When a dog is fed on bread and gravy or meat, the teeth will show little or no signs of wear when he is two or three years old, while the incisor teeth of another dog of the same age will commence to become blunted if biscuits form the staple food. The teeth become still more worn if a large number of bones are given as a part of the diet. And again, dogs who are always playing with and carrying stones often [295] wear the incisor teeth right down to the gums, and the tusks become worn in the course of a few years. ”

“ As to diet for patients, see article on Invalid Food; when they will not take food voluntarily, a small quantity, varying according to size of dog, must be given often, about every two hours or oftener, day and night. It is useless to feed a dog well for sixteen hours, and to leave him to chance for eight. It is often during the night, when the system is at its lowest, that a little good nourishing food, with some stimulant, is most wanted; and it is this attention that saves the patient in many cases. ”

“ People often think a dog cannot have distemper unless there is a discharge from the nose; this is a mistake, but it certainly does occur in most cases, though it does not appear as a rule until the dog has been ill for some time. If the lungs become affected, the breathing is short and quick, not panting with the mouth open; the chest is tender on pressure. At first there is no cough, but after two or three days there is a suppressed painful cough, with retching. The pulse is often much accelerated, the beats varying from 110 to 140 per minute. ”

“ When occurring in young puppies, worm medicine should always be given; and to allay the pain and stop the convulsions, small doses of bromide of potassium be given—from two [1] to five grains in a little milk three or four times a day. Ice may also be applied to the head in a sheep’s bladder. When the convulsions have quite stopped, small doses of cod-liver oil do good. When meningitis follows distemper, if the attack is a bad one, there is little hope of recovery, and as a result the proper course to pursue is to have the dog mercifully put out of his misery. ”

“ Another example of a fistulous wound is found when a dog has swallowed something sharp, such as a pin, needle, bone, or a corn sheck, which may pierce that part of the gullet situated in the neck; as the result, a large abscess often forms, and until the foreign body has come away the wound, the result of the bursting or lancing of the abscess, will not heal. These cases are often very troublesome, as the foreign body causing the mischief may be buried very deeply in the tissues, and when small is difficult to find even with the assistance of the X-rays. ”

“ Keep the dog quiet, and prevent his drinking water. If he is very thirsty, give Vichy water and milk to drink in equal parts, or ice to lick. Give every four hours from three [1] to ten grains of carbonate of bismuth shaken dry on the tongue. If this does not stop the sickness, give the mixture as recommended for Specific Gastritis. In some cases the sickness is so acute that if every care is not taken the dog dies from exhaustion. In such instances the dog’s stomach should be given absolute rest, the dog not being allowed to drink even water, or have ice, say for six to twelve hours. ”

“ The patella is a small bone situated in front of the stifle joint, and is more liable to dislocation than any other part, especially in small dogs. With some dogs it is constantly slipping out of its place when running along, and then after a few steps it goes back again of its own accord. The bone almost always becomes displaced towards the inside of the leg, the dog in some cases being unable to put his foot to the ground; if he does attempt to put any weight on the leg, the stifle joint bends outwards. ”

“ When present in such very young puppies they generally cause enteritis and death. A puppy suffering badly from worms does not thrive and grow, he generally eats voraciously. The stomach is distended sometimes to a very great extent, causing difficulty in breathing, the muscles waste, the legs and neck becoming quite thin. The action of the bowels is irregular, but as a rule, there is diarrhœa to a more or less extent, and sometimes vomiting, when the worms have passed into the stomach, and, if the worms are not got rid of, rickets is often the result. ”

“ A small quantity does no harm; but when the ointment or lotion is applied over a large surface, and the dog licks a large quantity off, serious disturbances of the system often follow. Acute cases of this kind are not so fatal, as a rule, as chronic ones—that is, as in those cases of long-standing skin trouble when the zinc has been in daily use for some time, and the animal has been systematically licking it. ”

“ Toe-nails of dogs who do not have sufficient exercise turn over as they grow, and the point becomes embedded into the pad, causing swelling, suppuration, and great pain. The dew-claws of dogs who do not get the chance of digging often grow to a considerable extent, which weakens and makes them liable to break, which often happens, and the quick becomes exposed and bleeds, causing the dog to go lame as if he had a broken leg. ”

“ When a dog is under the influence of chloroform it is most important to watch the breathing, and if it becomes very slow, discontinue giving the chloroform immediately. If the breathing stops, remove the muzzle, draw the tongue out as far as it will come, and hold to the nose, on a piece of lint, a few drops of strong ammonia, and resort to artificial respiration. Dogs always struggle very much against taking chloroform, [6] therefore one should always be prepared with one or more assistants to hold the dog securely whilst it is being administered. ”

“ Symptoms: Some dogs are constantly worrying themselves, getting on people’s feet and legs, and working their body, which is, to say the least, most disagreeable. Very often any amount of chastising fails to stop the disagreeable habit, but if the dog is young, there are always hopes that he will improve with time, for, as a rule, when he is a year old the disagreeable habit ceases; but there are dogs who continue to misbehave themselves whenever an opportunity occurs the whole of their lives, and the only cure is to have them castrated, which is a certain cure. ”

“ After the womb has been cleansed by being sponged with a weak, tepid solution of permanganate of potash, it should, if possible, be returned by gentle pressure on the fundus of the uterus with a piece of whalebone, with the point covered with a sponge. The returning is assisted if the hind legs are raised—in fact, by the bitch being held upside down. Care must be taken not to use undue force, or the uterus may be ruptured. After the return, it is a good plan to inject a quantity of cold water into the vagina to act as an astringent. ”