[Illustration: THE SOUTHERN HOUND. ]

THE DOG, BY WILLIAM YOUATT. 

WITH ILLUSTRATIONS

[Illustration: HEAD OF BLOODHOUND]

EDITED, WITH ADDITIONS, BY E. J. LEWIS, M. D. 

Member of the Academy of Natural Science of Philadelphia; of thePhiladelphia Medical Society; of the Parisian Medical Society, &c. &c. 

1852. 

Entered, according to the Act of Congress, in the year 1846, by

LEA AND BLANCHARD, in the clerk's office of the District Court of the United States for theEastern District of Pennsylvania. 

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LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS. 

THE SOUTHERN HOUNDHEAD OF BLOODHOUNDANCIENT SCULPTURE OF GREYHOUNDSTHE THIBET DOGTHE DINGO, OR NEW HOLLAND DOGTHE HARE INDIAN DOGTHE DANISH, OR DALMATIAN DOGTHE GREYHOUNDTHE GRECIAN GREYHOUNDBLENHEIMS AND COCKERSTHE WATER SPANIELTHE POODLETHE ALPINE SPANIEL, OR BERNARDINE DOGTHE NEWFOUNDLAND DOGTHE ESQUIMAUX DOGTHE ENGLISH SHEEP DOGTHE SCOTCH SHEEP DOGTHE BEAGLETHE HARRIERTHE FOX HOUNDPLAN OF GOODWOOD KENNELTHE SETTERTHE POINTERTHE BULL-DOGTHE MASTIFFTHE SCOTCH TERRIERSKELETON OF THE DOGDOG'S HEAD CONFINED FOR AN OPERATIONDOG'S EYE PREPARED FOR AN OPERATIONTEETH OF THE DOG AT SEVEN DIFFERENT AGES

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PREFACE OF THE EDITOR. 

The Editor, having been called upon by the American publishers of thepresent volume to see it through the press, and add such matter as hedeemed likely to increase its value to the sportsman and the lover ofdogs in this country, the more readily consented to undertake the task, as he had previously, during the intervals of leisure left byprofessional avocations, paid much attention to the diseases, breeding, rearing, and peculiarities of the canine race, with a view to thepreparation of a volume on the subject. 

His design, however, being in a great measure superseded by the enlargedand valuable treatise of Mr. Youatt, whose name is a full guarantee asto the value of whatever he may give to the world, he found that notmuch remained to be added. Such points, however, as he thought might beimproved, and such matter as appeared necessary to adapt the volume moreespecially to the wants of this country, he has introduced in the courseof its pages. These additions, amounting to about sixty pages, will befound between brackets, with the initial of the Editor appended. Hetrusts they will not detract from the interest of the volume, while hehopes that its usefulness may be thereby somewhat increased. 

With this explanation of his connexion with the work, he leaves it inthe hope that it may prove of value to the sportsman from its immediaterelation to his stirring pursuits; to the general reader, from the largeamount of curious information collected in its pages, which is almostinaccessible in any other form; and to the medical student, from thelight it sheds on the pathology and diseases of the dog, by which hewill be surprised to learn how many ills that animal shares in commonwith the human race. 

The editor will be satisfied with his agency in the publication of thisvolume, if it should be productive of a more extended love for thisbrave, devoted, and sagacious animal, and be the means of improving hislot of faithful servitude. It is with these views that the editor hasoccasionally turned from more immediate engagements to investigate hischaracter, and seek the means of ameliorating his condition. 

PHILADELPHIA, October, 1846. 

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TABLE OF CONTENTS. 

Chapter

I. The Early History and Zoological Classification of the Dog

II. The Varieties of the Dog. --First Division

III. The Varieties of the Dog. --Second Division

IV. The Varieties of the Dog. --Third Division

V. The Good Qualities of the Dog; the Sense of Smell; Intelligence; Moral Qualities; Dog-carts; Cropping; Tailing; Breaking-in; Dog-pits; Dog-stealing

VI. Description of the Skeleton. Diseases of the Nervous System: Fits; Turnside; Epilepsy; Chorea; Rheumatism and Palsy

VII. Rabies

VIII. The Eye and its Diseases

IX. The Ear and its Diseases

X. Anatomy of the Nose and Mouth; and Diseases of the Nose and other parts of the Face. The Sense of Smell; the Tongue; the Lips; the Teeth; the Larynx; Bronchocele; Phlegmonous Tumour

XI. Anatomy and Diseases of the Chest: the Diaphragm; the Pericardium; the Heart; Pleurisy; Pneumonia; Spasmodic Cough

XII. Anatomy of the Gullet, Stomach, and Intestines: Tetanus; Enteritis; Peritonitis; Colic; Calculus in the Intestines; Intussusception; Diarrhoea; Dysentery; Costiveness; Dropsy; the Liver; Jaundice; the Spleen and Pancreas; Inflammation of the Kidney; Calculus; Inflammation of the Bladder; Rupture of the Bladder; Worms; Fistula in the Anus

XIII. Bleeding; Torsion; Castration; Parturition; and some Diseases Connected with the Organs of Generation

XIV. The Distemper

XV. Small-pox; Mange; Warts; Cancer; Fungus Hæmotodes; Sore Feet

XVI. Fractures

XVII. Medicines used in the Treatment of the Diseases of the Dog

Appendix. New Laws of Coursing

Index. 

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THE DOG. 

CHAPTER I. 

THE EARLY HISTORY AND ZOOLOGICAL CLASSIFICATION OF THE DOG. 

The Dog, next to the human being, ranks highest in the scale ofintelligence, and was evidently designed to be the companion and thefriend of man. We exact the services of other animals, and, the taskbeing performed, we dismiss them to their accustomed food and rest; butseveral of the varieties of the dog follow us to our home; they areconnected with many of our pleasures and wants, and guard our sleepinghours. 

The first animal of the domestication of which we have any account, wasthe sheep. "Abel was a keeper of sheep. " [1] It is difficult to believethat any long time would pass before the dog--who now, in every countryof the world, is the companion of the shepherd, and the director orguardian of the sheep--would be enlisted in the service of man. 

From the earliest known history he was the protector of the habitationof the human being. At the feet of the 'lares', those household deitieswho were supposed to protect the abodes of men, the figure of a barkingdog was often placed. In every age, and almost in every part of theglobe, he has played a principal part in the labours, the dangers, andthe pleasures of the chase. 

In process of time, man began to surround himself with many servantsfrom among the lower animals, but among them all he had only onefriend--the dog; one animal only whose service was voluntary, and whowas susceptible of disinterested affection and gratitude. In everycountry, and in every time, there has existed between man and the dog aconnection different from that which is observed between him and anyother animal. The ox and the sheep submit to our control, but theiraffections are principally, if not solely, confined to themselves. Theysubmit to us, but they can rarely be said to love, or even to recogniseus, except as connected with the supply of their wants. 

The horse will share some of our pleasures. He enjoys the chase as muchas does his rider; and, when contending for victory on the course, hefeels the full influence of emulation. Remembering the pleasure he hasexperienced with his master, or the daily supply of food from the handof the groom, he often exhibits evident tokens of recognition; but thatis founded on a selfish principle--he neighs that he may be fed, and hisaffections are easily transferred. 

The dog is the only animal that is capable of disinterested affection. He is the only one that regards the human being as his companion, andfollows him as his friend; the only one that seems to possess a naturaldesire to be useful to him, or from a spontaneous impulse attacheshimself to man. We take the bridle from the mouth of the horse, and turnhim free into the pasture, and he testifies his joy in his partiallyrecovered liberty. We exact from the dog the service that is required ofhim, and he still follows us. He solicits to be continued as ourcompanion and our friend. Many an expressive action tells us how much heis pleased and thankful. He shares in our abundance, and he is contentwith the scantiest and most humble fare. He loves us while living, andhas been known to pine away on the grave of his master. 

[It is stated that the favourite lap-dog of Mary, Queen of Scots, thataccompanied her to the scaffold, continued to caress the body after thehead was cut off, and refused to relinquish his post till forciblywithdrawn, and afterwards died with grief in the course of a day ortwo. 

The following account is also an authentic instance of the inconsolablegrief displayed by a small cur-dog at the death of his master:--A poortailor in the parish of St. Olave, having died, was attended to thegrave by his dog, who had expressed every token of sorrow from theinstant of his master's death, and seemed unwilling to quit the corpseeven for a moment. After the funeral had dispersed, the faithful animaltook his station upon the grave, and was with great difficulty driven bythe sexton from the church ground; on the following day he was againobserved lying on the grave of his master, and was a second timeexpelled from the premises. Notwithstanding the harsh treatment receivedon several succeeding days by the hands of the sexton, this littlecreature would persist in occupying this position, and overcame everydifficulty to gain access to the spot where all he held most dear wasdeposited. The minister of the parish, learning the circumstances of thecase, ordered the dog to be carried to his house, where he was confinedand fed for several days, in hopes of weaning him by kind treatment toforget his sorrow occasioned by the loss of his master. But all hisbenevolent efforts were of no utility, as the dog availed himself of thefirst opportunity to escape, and immediately repaired to his chosen spotover the grave. 

This worthy clergyman now allowed him to follow the bent of his owninclinations; and, as a recompense for true friendship and unfeignedsorrow, had a house built for him over this hallowed spot, and dailysupplied him with food and water for the space of two years, duringwhich time he never wandered from his post, but, as a faithful guardian, kept his lonely watch day and night, till death at last put an end tohis sufferings, and laid him by the side of his long-expectedmaster. --L. ]

As an animal of draught the dog is highly useful in some countries. Whatwould become of the inhabitants of the northern regions, if the dog werenot harnessed to the sledge, and the Laplander, and the Greenlander, andthe Kamtschatkan drawn, and not unfrequently at the rate of nearly ahundred miles a day, over the snowy wastes? In Newfoundland, the timber, one of the most important articles of commerce, is drawn to thewater-side by the docile but ill-used dog; and we need only to cross theBritish Channel in order to see how useful, and, generally speaking, howhappy a beast of draught the dog can be. 

[Large mongrel dogs are very extensively used on the Continent inpulling small vehicles adapted to various purposes. In fact, most of thecarts and wagons that enter Paris, or are employed in the city, have oneof these animals attached to them by a short strap hanging from theaxle-tree. This arrangement answers the double purpose of keeping offall intruders in the temporary absence of the master, and, by pushinghimself forward in his collar, materially assists the horse inpropelling a heavy load up-hill, or of carrying one speedily over aplain surface. It is quite astonishing to see how well broken to thiswork these dogs are, and at the same time to witness with what vigourand perseverance they labour in pushing before them, in that way, enormous weights. --L. ]

Though, in our country, and to its great disgrace, this employment ofthe dog has been accompanied by such wanton and shameful cruelty, thatthe Legislature--somewhat hastily confounding the abuse of a thing withits legitimate purpose--forbade the appearance of the dog-cart in themetropolitan districts, and were inclined to extend this prohibitionthrough the whole kingdom, it is much to be desired that a kindlier andbetter feeling may gradually prevail, and that this animal, humanelytreated, may return to the discharge of the services of which nature hasrendered him capable, and which prove the greatest source of happinessto him while discharging them to the best of his power. 

In another and very important particular, --as the preserver of humanlife, --the history of the dog will be most interesting. The writer ofthis work has seen a Newfoundland dog who, on five distinct occasions, preserved the life of a human being; and it is said of the noblequadruped whose remains constitute one of the most interesting specimensin the museum of Berne, that forty persons were rescued by him fromimpending destruction. 

When this friend and servant of man dies, he does not or may not ceaseto be useful; for in many countries, and to a far greater extent than isgenerally imagined, his skin is useful for gloves, or leggings, or mats, or hammercloths; and, while even the Romans occasionally fattened himfor the table, and esteemed his flesh a dainty, many thousands of peoplein Asia, Africa, and America, now breed him expressly for food. 

If the publication of the present work should throw some additionallight on the good qualities of this noble animal; if it should enable usto derive more advantage from the services that he can render--to trainhim more expeditiously and fully for the discharge of those services--toprotect him from the abuses to which he is exposed, and to mitigate orremove some of the diseases which his connection with man has entailedupon him; if any of these purposes be accomplished, we shall deriveconsiderable "useful knowledge" as well as pleasure from the perusal ofthe present volume. 

Some controversy has arisen with regard to the origin of the dog. Professor Thomas Bell, to whom we are indebted for a truly valuablehistory of the British quadrupeds, traces him to the wolf. He says, andit is perfectly true, that the osteology of the wolf does not differmaterially from that of the dog more than that of the different kinds ofdogs differs; that the cranium is similar, and they agree in nearly allthe other essential points; that the dog and wolf will readily breedwith each other, and that their progeny, thus obtained, will againmingle with the dog. [The relative length of the intestines is a strongdistinctive mark both as to the habits and species of animals; those ofa purely carnivorous nature are much shorter than others who resortentirely to an herbaceous diet, or combine the two modes of sustenanceaccording to circumstances. The dog and wolf have the intestines of thesame length. (See Sir Everard Home on Comparative Anatomy. )--L. ] Thereis one circumstance, however, which seems to mark a decided differencebetween the two animals; the eye of the dog of every country and specieshas a circular pupil, but the position or form of the pupil is obliquein the wolf. Professor Bell gives an ingenious but not admissible reasonfor this. He attributes the forward direction of the eyes in the dog tothe constant habit, "for many successive generations, of looking towardstheir master, and obeying his voice:" but no habit of this kind could bypossibility produce any such effect. It should also be remembered that, in every part of the globe in which the wolf is found this form of thepupil, and a peculiar setting on of the curve of the tail, and asingularity in the voice, cannot fail of being observed; to which may beadded, that the dog exists in every latitude and in every climate, whilethe habitation of the wolf is confined to certain parts of the globe. 

There is also a marked difference in the temper and habits of the two. The dog is, generally speaking, easily manageable, but nothing will, inthe majority of cases, render the wolf moderately tractable. There are, however, exceptions to this. The author remembers a bitch wolf at theZoological Gardens that would always come to the front bars of her dento be caressed as soon as any one that she knew approached. She hadpuppies while there, and she brought her little ones in her mouth to benoticed by the spectators; so eager, indeed, was she that they shouldshare with her in the notice of her friends, that she killed them all insuccession against the bars of her den as she brought them forciblyforward to be fondled. 

M. F. Cuvier gives an account of a young wolf who followed his mastereverywhere, and showed a degree of affection and submission scarcelyinferior to the domesticated dog. His master being unavoidably absent, he was sent to the menagerie, where he pined for his loss, and wouldscarcely take any food for a considerable time. At length, however, heattached himself to his keepers, and appeared to have forgotten hisformer associate. At the expiration of eighteen months his masterreturned, and, the moment his voice was heard, the wolf recognised him, and lavished on his old friend the most affectionate caresses. A secondseparation followed, which lasted three years, and again thelong-remembered voice was recognised, and replied to with impatientcries; after which, rushing on his master, he licked his face with everymark of joy, menacing his keepers, towards whom he had just before beenexhibiting fondness. A third separation occurred, and he became gloomyand melancholy. He suffered the caresses of none but his keepers, andtowards them he often manifested the original ferocity of his species. 

These stories, however, go only a little way to prove that the dog andthe wolf have one common origin. [There are some naturalists that evengo so far as to state that the different varieties of dogs are sprungfrom, or compounded of, various animals, as the hyaena, jackal, wolf, and fox. The philosophic John Hunter commenced a series of experimentsupon this interesting subject, and was forced to acknowledge that "thedog may be the wolf tamed, and the jackal may probably be the dogreturned to his wild state. "

The ancient Cynegetical writers were not only acquainted with the crossbetween the wolf and dog, but also boasted the possession of breeds ofanimals, supposed to have been derived from a connection with the lionand tiger. The Hyrcanian dog, although savage and powerful beast, wasrendered much more formidable in battle, or in conflict with otheranimals, by his fabled cross with the tiger. In corroboration of thissingular, but not less fabulous belief, Pliny states that theinhabitants of India take pleasure in having dog bitches lined by thewild tigers, and to facilitate this union, they are in the habit oftieing them when in heat out in the woods, so that the male tigers mayvisit them. (See L. 8, c. Xl. )

There is, however, but little doubt that the wolf and dog are varietiesof the same family, as they can he bred together, and their offspringcontinuing the cross thus formed, will produce a race quite distinctfrom the original. French writers do not hesitate at all upon thispoint, but even assert that it is very difficult to take a she-wolf withmale dogs during the period of oestrum, parceque la veulent saillir etcovrir comme une chienne. 

Baudrillart, in the "dictionaire des chasses, " further remarks that themongrels produced by this connection are very viciously disposed andinclined to bite. 

The period of utero-gestation, and the particular mode of copulation inthe wolf, is the same as that of the canine family, which twocircumstances are certainly very strong presumptive evidences of thesimilarity of the species. The dogs used by our northern Indiansresemble very much, in their general appearance, the wolves of thatregion, and do not seem very far removed from that race of animals, notwithstanding they have been in a state of captivity, ordomestication, beyond the traditionary chronicles of this rude people. 

Another strong circumstance in favour of the common origin of these twoquadrupeds, is the existence in our own country of the Canis Latrans, orprairie wolf, who whines and barks in a manner so similar to the smallervarieties of dogs, that it is almost impossible to distinguish his notesfrom those of the terrier. 

Major Long remarks that "this animal which does not seem to be known tonaturalists, unless it should prove to be the Mexicanus, is mostprobably the original of the domestic dog, so common in the villages ofthe Indians of this region, some of the varieties of which still remainmuch of the habit and manners of this species. " (Vol. I, page 174. )

If further proof be necessary to establish the identity of the dog andwolf, the circumstances related by Captain Parry in his first voyage ofdiscovery, ought to be sufficient to convince every mind that the wolf, even in its wild state, will seek to form an alliance or connection withone of our domestic dogs. 

 "About this time it had been remarked that a white setter dog, belonging to Mr. Beverly, had left the Griper for several nights past at the same time, and had regularly returned after some hours absence. As the daylight increased we had frequent opportunities of seeing him in company with a she-wolf, with whom he kept up an almost daily intercourse for several weeks, till at length he returned no more to the ships; having either lost his way by rambling to too great a distance, or what is more likely, perhaps, been destroyed by the male wolves. Some time after a large dog of mine, which was also getting into the habit of occasionally remaining absent for some time, returned on board a good deal lacerated and covered with blood, having, no doubt, maintained a severe encounter with a male wolf, whom we traced to a considerable distance by the tracks on the snow. An old dog, of the Newfoundland breed, that we had on board the Hecla, was also in the habit of remaining out with the wolves for a day or two together, and we frequently watched them keeping company on the most friendly terms. " (Page 136, 1st voyage. )

[In volume 1st, page 111, of the Menageries, it is stated that Mr. Wombwell exhibited in October, 1828, two animals from a cross betweenthe wolf and the domestic dog, which had been bred in that country. Theywere confined in the same den with a female setter, and were likelyagain to multiply the species. Mr. Daniel remarks that Mr. Brook, famousfor his menagerie, turned a wolf to a Pomeranian bitch at heat; thecongress was immediate, and, as usual between the dog and bitch, tenpuppies were the produce. These animals strongly resembled their sireboth in appearance and disposition, and one of them being let loose at adeer, instantly caught at the animal's throat and killed it. (SeeDaniel's Rural Sports, vol. I, page 14. )--L. ]

It may appear singular that in both the Old Testament and the New thedog was spoken of almost with abhorrence. He ranked among the uncleanbeasts. The traffic in him and the price of him were considered as anabomination, and were forbidden to be offered in the sanctuary in thedischarge of any vow. [2]

One grand object in the institution of the Jewish ritual was to preservethe Israelites from the idolatry which at that time prevailed amongevery other people. Dogs were held in considerable veneration by theEgyptians, from whose tyranny the Israelites had just escaped. Figuresof them appeared on the friezes of most of the temples, [3] and theywere regarded as emblems of the Divine Being. Herodotus, speaking of thesanctity in which some animals were held by the Egyptians, says that thepeople of every family in which a dog died, shaved themselves--theirexpression of mourning--and he adds, that "this was a custom existing inhis own time. " [4]

The cause of this attachment to and veneration for the dog is, however, explained in a far more probable and pleasing way than many of thefables of ancient mythology. The prosperity of Lower Egypt, and almostthe very subsistence of its inhabitants, depended on the annualoverflowing of the Nile; and they looked for it with the utmost anxiety. Its approach was announced by the appearance of a certain star--SIRIUS. As soon as that star was seen above the horizon, they hastened to removetheir flocks to the higher ground, and abandoned the lower pastures tothe fertilizing influence of the stream. They hailed it as their guardand protector; and, associating with its apparent watchfulness thewell-known fidelity of the dog, they called it the "dog-star, " and theyworshipped it. It was in far later periods and in other countries thatthe appearance of the dog-star was regarded as the signal ofinsufferable heat or prevalent disease. 

One of the Egyptian deities--Anubis--is described as having the form andbody of a man, but with a dog's head. These were types of sagacity andfidelity. 

 ["Who knows not that infatuate Egypt finds Gods to adore in brutes of basest kinds? This at the crocodile's resentment quakes, While that adores the ibis, gorged with snakes! And where the radiant beam of morning rings On shattered Memnon's still harmonious strings; And Thebes to ruin all her gates resigns, Of huge baboon the golden image shines! To _mongrel curs_ infatuate cities bow, And cats and fishes share the frequent vow!"

 Juvenal, 'Sat. Xv'. --Badham's Trans. --L. ]

In Ethiopia, not only was great veneration paid to the dog, but theinhabitants used to elect a dog as their king. He was kept in greatstate, and surrounded by a numerous train of officers and guards. Whenhe fawned upon them, he was supposed to be pleased with theirproceedings: when he growled, he disapproved of the manner in whichtheir government was conducted. These indications of his will wereimplicitly obeyed, or rather, perhaps, dictated. 

[Among the many strange and wonderful things mentioned by Pliny as beingdiscovered in Africa, is a people called Ptoembati or Ptremphanae, whoseprincipal city is Aruspi, where they elect a dog for their king and obeyhim most religiously, being governed entirely by the different motionsof his body, which they interpret according to certain signs. (SeePliny, lib. Vi, c. Xxx. )--L. ]

Even a thousand years after this period the dog was highly esteemed inEgypt for its sagacity and other excellent qualities; for, whenPythagoras, after his return from Egypt, founded a new sect in Greece, and at Croton, in southern Italy, he taught, with the Egyptianphilosophers, that, at the death of the body, the soul entered into thatof different animals. He used, after the decease of any of his favouritedisciples, to cause a dog to be held to the mouth of the dying man, inorder to receive his departing spirit; saying, that there was no animalthat could perpetuate his virtues better than that quadruped. 

It was in order to present the Israelites from errors and follies likethese, and to prevent the possibility of this species of idolatry beingestablished, that the dog was afterward regarded with utter abhorrenceamong the Jews. [5] This feeling prevailed during the continuance of theIsraelites in Palestine. Even in the New Testament the Apostle warnsthose to whom he wrote to "beware of dogs and evil-workers;" [6] and itis said in The Revelations that "without are dogs and sorcerers, " &c. [7] Dogs were, however, employed even by the Jews. Job says, "Now theythat are younger than I have me in derision, whose fathers I would havedisdained to have set with the dogs of my flock. " [8] Dogs were employedeither to guide the sheep or to protect them from wild beasts; and someprowled about the streets at night, contending with each other for theoffal that was thrown away. 

To a certain degree this dislike of the dog continues to the presentday; for, with few exceptions, the dog is seldom the chosen companion ofthe Jew, or even the inmate of his house. Nor was it originally confinedto Palestine. Wherever a knowledge of the Jewish religion spread, or anyof its traditions were believed, there arose an abhorrence of the dog. The Mohammedans have always regarded him as an unclean animal, thatshould never be cherished in any human habitation--belonging to noparticular owner, but protecting the street [9] and the district ratherthan the house of a master. 

The Hindoos regard him likewise as unclean, and submit to variouspurifications if they accidentally come in contact with him, believingthat every dog was animated by a wicked and malignant spirit, condemnedto do penance in that form for crimes committed in a previous state ofexistence. If by chance a dog passed between a teacher and his pupilduring the period of instruction, it was supposed that the best lessonwould be completely poisoned, and it was deemed prudent to suspend thetuition for at least a day and a night. Even in Egypt, dogs are now asmuch avoided as they were venerated. In every Mohammedan and Hindoocountry, the most scurrilous epithet bestowed on a European or aChristian is--"a dog!" [10]

This accounts for the singular fact that in the whole of the Jewishhistory there is not a single allusion to hunting with dogs. Mention ismade of nets and snares, but the dog seems to have been never used inthe pursuit of game. 

In the early periods of the history of other countries this seems tohave been the case even where the dog was esteemed and valued, and hadbecome the companion, the friend, and the defender of man and his home. So late as the second century of the Christian era, the fair hunting ofthe present day needed the eloquent defence of Arrian, who says that"there is as much difference between a fair trial of speed in a goodrun, and ensnaring a poor animal without an effort, as between thesecret piratical assaults of robbers at sea, and the victorious navalengagements of the Athenians at Artemisium and at Salamis. " [11] Thefirst hint of the employment of the dog in the pursuit of other animalsis given by Oppian in his Cynegeticus, who attributes it to Pollux, about 200 years after the promulgation of the Levitical law. 

Of the precise species of dog that prevailed or was cultivated in Greeceat this early period, little can with certainty be affirmed. Onebeautiful piece of sculpture has been preserved, and is now in thepossession of Lord Feversham at Duncombe Hall. It is said to representthe favourite dog of Alcibiades, and to have been the production ofMyson, one of the most skillful artists of ancient times. It differs butlittle from the Newfoundland dog of the present day. He is representedas sitting on his haunches, and earnestly looking at his master. Any onewould vouch for the sagacity and fidelity of that animal. 

The British Museum contains a group of greyhound puppies of more recentdate, from the ruins of the villa of Antoninus, near Rome. One isfondling the other; and the attitude of both, and the characteristicpuppy-clumsiness of their limbs, which indicate, nevertheless, thebeautiful proportions that will soon be developed, are an admirablespecimen of ancient art. 

[Illustration of ancient sculpture of greyhounds]

The Greeks, in the earlier periods of their history, depended too muchon their nets; and it was not until later times that they pursued theirprey with dogs, and then not with dogs that ran by sight, or succeededby their swiftness of foot, but by beagles very little superior to thoseof modern days [12]. Of the stronger and more ferocious dogs there is, however, occasional mention. The bull-dog of modern date does not excelthe one (possibly of nearly the same race) that was presented toAlexander the Great, and that boldly seized a ferocious lion, or anotherthat would not quit his hold, although one leg and then another was cutoff. 

It would be difficult and foreign to the object of this work fully totrace the early history of the dog. Both in Greece and in Rome he washighly estimated. Alexander built a city in honour of a dog; and theEmperor Hadrian decreed the most solemn rites of sepulture to another onaccount of his sagacity and fidelity. 

The translator of Arrian imagines that the use of the 'pugnaces'(fighting) and the 'sagaces' (intelligent)--the more ferocious dogs, andthose who artfully circumvented and caught their prey--was known in theearlier periods of Greek and Roman history, but that the 'celeres', thedogs of speed, the greyhounds of every kind, were peculiar to theBritish islands, or to the western and northern continents of Europe, the interior and the produce of which were in those days unknown to theGreeks and Romans. By most authors who have inquired into the origin ofthese varieties of the dog, the 'sagaces' have been generally assignedto Greece--the 'pugnaces' to Asia--and the 'celeres' to the Celticnations. 

[The vertragi, 'canes celeres', or dogs that hunted by sight alone, werenot known to the ancients previous to the time of the younger Xenophon, who then describes them as novelties just introduced into Greece:

 "But the swift-footed Celtic hounds are called in the Celtic tongue [Greek: ouéztragoi]; not deriving their name from any particular nation, like the Cretan, Carian, or Spartan dogs, but, as some of the Cretans are named [Greek: diaponoi] from working hard, [Greek: itamai] from their keenness, and mongrels from their being compounded of both, so these Celts are named from their swiftness. In figure, the most high-bred are a prodigy of beauty; their eyes, their hair, their colour, and bodily shape throughout. Such brilliancy of gloss is there about the spottiness of the parti-coloured, and in those of uniform colour, such glistening over the sameness of tint, as to afford a most delightful spectacle to an amateur of coursing. "

It is probable these dogs were carried, about this time, into thesouthern parts of Europe by the various tribes of Celts who over-ran thecontinent, and also occupied Ireland, Britain, and the other westernislands, and ultimately took possession of Gaul. --L. ]

Of the aboriginal country of the latter there can be little doubt; butthe accounts that are given of the English mastiff at the invasion ofBritain by the Romans, and the early history of the English hound, whichwas once peculiar to this country, and at the present day degenerates inevery other, would go far to prove that these breeds also are indigenousto our island. 

Oppian thus describes the hunting dog as he finds him inBritain:

 "There is, besides, an excellent kind of scenting dogs, though small, yet worthy of estimation. They are fed by the fierce nation of painted Britons, who call them 'agasoei'. In size they resemble worthless greedy house-dogs that gape under tables. They are crooked, lean, coarse-haired, and heavy-eyed, but armed with powerful claws and deadly teeth. The 'agasoeus' is of good nose and most excellent in following scent [13]. "

Among the savage dogs of ancient times were the Hyrcanian, said, onaccount of their extreme ferocity, to have been crossed with the tiger[14], --the Locrian, chiefly employed in hunting the boar, --thePannonian, used in war as well as in the chase, and by whom the firstcharge on the enemy was always made, --and the Molossian, of Epirus, likewise trained to war as well as to the honours of the amphitheatreand the dangers of the chase. This last breed had one redeemingquality--an inviolable attachment to their owners. This attachment wasreciprocal; for it is said that the Molossi used to weep over theirfaithful quadruped companions slain in war. 

[Of all the dogs of the ancients, those bred on the continent of Epiruswere the most esteemed, and more particularly those from a southerndistrict called Molossia, from which they received their name. 

These animals are described as being of enormous size, great courage andpowerful make, and were considered worthy not only to encounter thewolf, bear, and boar, but often overcame the panther, tiger, and lion, both in the chase and amphitheatre. They also, being trained to war, proved themselves most useful auxiliaries to this martial people. 

The learned translator of Arrian states that

 "the fabled origin of this breed is consistent with its high repute; for, on the authority of Nicander, we are told by Julius Pollux, that the Epirote was descended from the brazen dog which Vulcan wrought for Jupiter, and animated with all the functions of canine life. "

These were not the only dogs fashioned by the skilful hands of theOlympic artist, as we find Alcinous, king of the Phaeacians, possessinggolden dogs also wrought at the celestial forge. 

Pliny states that a dog of enormous magnitude was sent as a present bythe king of Albania to Alexander the Great when on his march to India;and "that this monarch being delighted at the sight of so huge and faira dog, let loose unto him first bears, then wild boars, and lastlyfallow deer, all of which animals he took no notice of, but remainedperfectly unconcerned. This great warrior being a man of high spirit andwonderful courage, was greatly displeased at the apparent cowardice andwant of energy in so powerful an animal, and ordered him to be slain. This news was speedily carried to the king of Albania, who thereuponsent unto him a second dog, stating that he should not make trial of hiscourage with such insignificant animals, but rather with a lion orelephant, and if he destroyed this one also, he need not expect toobtain any other of this breed, as these two were all he possessed. 

 Tanta: suis petiere ultra fera semina sylvis, Dat Venus accessus, et blando foedere jungit. Tunc et mansuetis tuto ferus erat adulter In stabulis, ultroque gravis succedere tigrim Ausa canis, majore tulit de sanguine foetum. 

 'Gratii Falisci Cyneget. , ' liv. 1. V. 160. 

Alexander being much surprised, made immediate preparations for a trial, and soon saw the lion prostrate, with his back broken, and his body tornin pieces by the noble dog. Then he ordered an elephant to be produced;and in no fight did he take more pleasure than in this. For the dog, with his long, rough, shaggy hair, that covered his whole body, rushedwith open mouth, barking terribly, and thundering, as it were, upon theelephant. Soon after he leaps and flies upon him, advancing andretreating, now on one side, now on the other, maintaining an ingeniouscombat; at one time assailing him with all vigour, at another shunninghim. So actively did he continue this artificial warfare, causing thehuge beast to turn around so frequently on every side to avoid hisattacks, that he ultimately came down with a crash that "made the earthtremble with his fall". Book viii. Chap. 40. 

The Molossian dogs were at a later period much esteemed by the Romans aswatch dogs, not only of their dwellings, but also to guard their flocksagainst the incursions of wild animals. Horace, in the following lines, passes a just tribute to the worth of this animal, when referring to hiswatchfulness, and the ardour with which he pursues those wild animals, even 'per altas nives, ' that threaten the flocks entrusted to his care. 

 "Quid immerentes, hospites vexas canis, Ignarus adversum lupos? Quin huc inanes, si potes, vertis minas, Et me remorsurum petis? Nam, qualis aut Molossus, aut fulvus Lacon, Amica vis pastoribus, Agam per altas aure sublatâ nives, Quaecunpue praecedet fera. "

 'Epode' vi. --L. ]

Ælian relates that one of them, and his owner, so much distinguishedthemselves at the battle of Marathon, that the effigy of the dog wasplaced on the same tablet with that of his master. 

Soon after Britain was discovered, the 'pugnaces' of Epirus were pittedagainst those of our island, and, according to the testimony of Gratius, completely beaten. A variety of this class, but as large and asferocious, was employed to guard the sheep and cattle, or to watch atthe door of the house, or to follow the owner on any excursion ofbusiness or of pleasure. Gratius says of these dogs, that they have nopretensions to the deceitful commendation of form; but, at the time ofneed, when courage is required of them, most excellent mastiffs are notto be preferred to them. 

The account of the British 'pugnaces' of former times, and also of the'sagaces' and 'celeres', will be best given when treating of theirpresent state and comparative value. In describing the different breedsof dogs, some anecdotes will be related of their sagacity and fidelity;a few previous remarks, however, may be admissible. 

A young man lost his life by falling from one of the precipices of theHelvellyn mountains. Three months afterwards his remains were discoveredat the bottom of a ravine, and his faithful dog, almost a skeleton, still guarding them. Sir Walter Scott beautifully describes the scene:

 Dark-green was the spot, 'mid the brown mountain heather, Where the pilgrim of nature lay stretched in decay; Like the corpse of an outcast, abandoned to weather, Till the mountain winds wasted the tenantless clay; Nor yet quite deserted, though lonely extended, For, faithful in death, his mute favourite attended, The much loved remains of her master defended, And chased the hill-fox and the raven away. How long didst thou think that his silence was slumber? When the wind waved his garments, how oft didst thou start? How many long days and long weeks didst thou number Ere he faded before thee, the friend of thy heart?

Burchell, in his Travels in Africa, places the connexion between man andthe dog, and the good qualities of this animal, in an interesting pointof view. A pack of dogs of various descriptions formed a necessary partof his caravan, occasionally to provide him with food, but oftener todefend him from wild beasts or robbers. 

 "While almost every other quadruped fears man as his most formidable enemy, " says this interesting traveller, "there is one who regards him as his companion, and follows him as his friend. We must not mistake the nature of the case. It is not because we train him to our use, and have made choice of him in preference to other animals, but because this particular species of animal feels a natural desire to be useful to man, and, from spontaneous impulse, attaches himself to him. Were it not so, we should see in various countries an equal familiarity with other quadrupeds, according to their habits, and the taste or caprices of different nations; but, everywhere, it is the dog only that takes delight in associating with us, and in sharing our abode. It is he who knows us personally, watches over us, and warns us of danger. It is impossible for the naturalist not to feel a conviction that this friendship between creatures so different from each other must be the result of the laws of nature; nor can the humane and feeling mind avoid the belief that kindness to those animals, from which he derives continued and essential assistance, is part of the moral duty of man. 

 "Often in the silence of the night, when all my people have been fast asleep around the fire, have I stood to contemplate these faithful animals watching by their side, and have learned to esteem them for their social inclination towards mankind. When, wandering over pathless deserts, oppressed with vexation and distress at the conduct of my own men, I have turned to these as my only friends, and felt how much inferior to them was man when actuated only by selfish views. "

Of the stanchness and incorruptible fidelity of the dog, and hisdisregard of personal inconvenience and want, when employed in ourservice, it is impossible to entertain a doubt. We have sometimesthought that the attachment of the dog to its master was increased, or, at least, the exhibition of it, by the penury of the owner. At allevents one fact is plain enough, that, while poverty drives away from usmany a companion of our happier hours, it was never known to diminishthe love of our quadruped friend. 

The early history of the dog has been described, and the abomination inwhich he was held by the Israelites. At no great distance of time, however, we find him, almost in the neighbourhood of Palestine, in oneof the islands of the Ionian Sea, the companion and the friend ofprinces, and deserving their regard. The reader will forgive a somewhatabbreviated account of the last meeting of Ulysses and his dog. 

Twenty years had passed since Argus, the favourite dog of Ulysses, hadbeen parted from his master. The monarch at length wended his wayhomewards, and, disguised as a beggar, for his life would have beensacrificed had he been known, stood at the entrance of his palace-door. There he met with an old dependant, who had formerly served him withfidelity and who was yet faithful to his memory; but age and hardshipand care, and the disguise which he now wore, had so altered thewanderer that the good Eumaeus had not the most distant suspicion withwhom he was conversing; but:

 Near to the gates, conferring as they drew, Argus the dog his ancient master knew, And, not unconscious of the voice and tread Lifts to the sound his ears, and rears his head. He knew the lord, he knew, and strove to meet; In vain he strove to crawl and kiss his feet; Yet, all he could, his tail, his ears, his eyes Salute his master, and confess his joys. [15]

[Lord Byron, who had much experience and acquaintance with the caninefamily, was rather sceptical as regards the memory of this animal, having been, on one occasion, entirely forgotten by a favourite dog fromwhom he was separated some considerable time, and in fact was mostsavagely assailed by him, when on his return he attempted to caress himas he was wont to do in former times. 

This unkind reception at Newstead Abbey, on the part of his pamperedpet, may have given rise to the poet's feelings as embodied in thefollowing misanthropic lines:--

 "And now I'm in the world alone, Upon the wide, wide sea: But why should I for others groan, When none will sigh for me? Perchance my dog will whine in vain, Till fed by stranger hands; But long ere I come back again, He'd tear me where he stands. "--L. ]

In Daniel's Rural Sports, the account of a nobleman and his dog isgiven. The nobleman had been absent two years on foreign service. On hisreturn this faithful creature was the first to recognise him, as he camethrough the court-yard, and he flew to welcome his old master andfriend. He sprung upon him; his agitation and his joy knew not anybounds; and at length, in the fulness of his transport, he fell at hismaster's feet and expired. 

[An interesting circumstance, strongly exhibiting canine fidelity andattachment in a large mastiff, came under the Editor's own eye duringhis childhood, and which, from its striking character, deserves to berecorded on the page of history as another testimony to the high moralworth of these useful animals. 

A gentleman of Baltimore, with his family, lived during a portion of theyear a short distance in the country, and was in the habit of returningto the city late in the fall to pass the winter. On his estate there wasa fine young mastiff, who though extremely cross to strangers, exhibitedat all times a great degree of tenderness and affection for the youngerbranches of the family;--more particularly for the younger son, his mostconstant companion, and who would often steal secretly away to share hisdaily meal with this affectionate participator in his childish sports:or, when fatigued with romping together, would retire to the well-keptkennel, and recruit his limbs in a refreshing sleep, while recliningupon the body of the faithful dog. If the little truant should now bemissed by those having him in charge, the most natural question to askwas, "Where is Rolla?" knowing full well that wherever this honest brutewas, there might his young master be found also. On such occasions, however, this trusty guardian would refuse all solicitations to abandonhis post, and express great dissatisfaction at any attempt to arouse orcarry off his young charge, whom he continued to watch over till heawoke, refreshed from his slumber and eager again to resume theirfrolics. 

The period of returning to the city at last arrived, and the dogexhibited marked signs of uneasiness, while the bustling preparationsfor this end were going on, as if conscious of the separation that wasabout to take place between his young master and himself, as also theother children, who had been his constant companions for so many joyfulmonths. 

Everything being completed, the childish group bid an affectionate adieuto the downcast Rolla, whom they left standing on the hill-top, watchingthe carriage as it disappeared in the wood. A few days after theirdeparture, and when this poor animal was forgotten in the new scenesaround them, a communication was received from the overseer of the farm, in which he stated that the favourite dog appeared much grieved sincethe family had left for the city, and was fearful that he might die ifhe continued in the same condition. Little attention, however, was givento these remarks, all imagining that the dog's melancholy was only theresult of temporary distress, owing to his secluded life, so differentfrom that which he had led when surrounded by the various members of alarge family. Little did any one suppose that this poor neglected brutewas suffering the acutest pangs of mental distress, even sufficient toproduce death. 

Two weeks had now elapsed since the separation from Rolla, when anothermessage came from the overseer, stating that the dog would surely diewith grief, if not removed to the city, as he had refused all sustenancefor several days, and did nothing but wander about from place to place, formerly frequented by the children, howling and moaning in the mostpiteous manner. 

Orders were now given, much to the children's delight, for theconveyance of the favourite to the city; but, alas! this arrangementcame too late, as the poor creature sank from exhaustion, while in thewagon on his way to join those beloved companions whose short absencehad broken his heart and grieved him even unto death. --L. ]

We will not further pursue this part of our subject at present. We shallhave other opportunities of speaking of the disinterested and devotedaffection which this noble animal is capable of displaying when heoccupies his proper situation, and discharges those offices for whichnature designed him. It may, however, be added that this power oftracing back the dog to the very earliest periods of history, and thefact that he then seemed to be as sagacious, as faithful, and asvaluable as at the present day, strongly favour the opinion that hedescended from no inferior and comparatively worthless animal, --that hewas not the progeny of the wolf, the jackal, or the fox, but he wasoriginally created, somewhat as we now find him, the associate and thefriend of man. 

If, within the first thousand years after the Deluge, we observe thatdivine honours were paid to him, we can scarcely be brought to believehis wolfish genealogy. The must savage animals are capable of affectionfor those to whom they have been accustomed, and by whom they have beenwell treated, and therefore we give full credit to several accounts ofthis sort related of the wolf, the lion, and even the cat and thereptile: but in no other animal--in no other, even in the genus'Canis'--do we find the qualities of the domestic dog, or the slightestapproach to them. 

 "To his master he flies with alacrity, " says the eloquent Buffon, "and submissively lays at his feet all his courage, strength, and talent. A glance of the eye is sufficient; for he understands the smallest indications of his will. He has all the ardour of friendship, and fidelity and constancy in his affections, which man can have. Neither interest nor desire of revenge can corrupt him, and he has no fear but that of displeasing. He is all zeal and obedience. He speedily forgets ill-usage, or only recollects it to make returning attachment the stronger. He licks the hand which causes him pain, and subdues his anger by submission. The training of the dog seems to have been the first art invented by man, and the fruit of that art was the conquest and peaceable possession of the earth. "

 "Man, " says Burns, "is the God of the dog; he knows no other; and see how he worships him. With what reverence he crouches at his feet--with what reverence he looks up to him--with what delight he fawns upon him, and with what cheerful alacrity he obeys him!"

If any of the lower animals bear about them the impress of the Divinehand, it is found in the dog: many others are plainly and decidedly moreor less connected with the welfare of the human being; but thisconnexion and its effects are limited to a few points, or often to onealone. The dog, different, yet the same, in every region, seems to beformed expressly to administer to our comforts and to our pleasure. Hedisplays a versatility, and yet a perfect unity of power and character, which mark him as our destined servant, and, still more, as ourcompanion and friend. Other animals may be brought to a certain degreeof familiarity, and may display much affection and gratitude. There wasscarcely an animal in the menagerie of the Zoological Society that didnot acknowledge the superintendent as his friend; but it was only acasual intercourse, and might be dissolved by a word or look. At thehour of feeding, the brute principle reigned supreme, and the companionof other hours would be sacrificed if he dared to interfere; but theconnexion between man and the dog, no lapse of time, no change ofcircumstances, no infliction of evil can dissolve. We must, therefore, look far beyond the wolf for the prototype of the dog. 

Cuvier eloquently states that the dog exhibits the most complete and themost useful conquest that man has made. Each individual is entirelydevoted to his master, adopts his manners, distinguishes and defends hisproperty, and remains attached to him even unto death; and all thisspringing not from mere necessity, or from constrain, but simply fromgratitude and true friendship. The swiftness, the strength, and thehighly developed power of smelling of the dog, have made him a powerfulally of man against the other animals; and, perhaps, these qualities inthe dog were necessary to the establishment of society. It is the onlyanimal that has followed the human being all over the earth. 

There is occasionally a friendship existing between dogs resembling thatwhich is found in the human being. The author pledges himself as to theaccuracy of the following little anecdote. Two dogs, the property of agentleman at Shrewsbury, had been companions for many years, until oneof them died of old age. The survivor immediately began to manifest anextraordinary degree of restless anxiety, searching for his oldassociate in all his former haunts, and refusing every kind of food. Hegradually wasted away, and, at the expiration of the tenth day, he died, the victim of an attachment that would have done honour to man. 

The Dog, belongs to the division of animals termed VERTEBRATED, (see'The Horse', 2d edition, page 106), because it has a cranium or skull, and a spine or range of VERTEBRAE proceeding from it. It ranks under the'class' MAMMALIA, because it has teats, by which the female suckles heryoung; the 'tribe' UNGUICULATA, because its extremities are armed withnails; the 'order' DIGITIGRADES, because it walks principally on itstoes. The 'genus' CANIS has two tubercular teeth behind the largecarnivorous tooth in upper jaw; and the 'sub-genus familiaris', the DOG, has the pupils of the eye circular, while those of the wolf are oblique, and those of the fox upright and long. 

There has been some dispute whether the various species of dogs are ofdifferent origin, or sprung from one common source. When we consider thechange that climate and breeding effect in the same species of dog, andcontrast the rough Irish or Highland greyhound with the smoother one ofthe southern parts of Britain, or the more delicate one of Greece, orthe diminutive but beautifully formed one of Italy, or the hairless oneof Africa or Brazil--or the small Blenheim spaniel with the magnificentNewfoundland; if also we observe many of them varied by accident, andthat accidental variety diligently cultivated into a new species, altogether different in form or use, we shall find no difficulty inbelieving that they might be derived from one common origin. 

One of the most striking proofs of the influence of climate on the formand character of this animal, occurs in the bull-dog. When transportedto India he becomes, in a few years, greatly altered in form, loses allhis former courage and ferocity, and becomes a perfect coward. 

It is probable that all dogs sprang from one common source, but climate, food, and cross-breeding caused variations of form, which suggestedparticular uses; and these being either designedly or accidentallyperpetuated, the various breeds of dogs thus arose, and they have becomenumerous in proportion to the progress of civilization. Among the ruder, or savage tribes, they possess but one form; but the ingenuity of manhas devised many inventions to increase his comforts: he has varied andmultiplied the characters and kinds of domestic animals for the samepurpose, and hence the various breeds of horses, and cattle, and dogs. 

The parent stock it is now impossible to trace; but the wild dog, wherever found on the continent of Asia, or Northern Europe, has nearlythe same character, and bears no inconsiderable resemblance to theBritish fox-dog, while many of those from the Southern Ocean canscarcely be distinguished from the English lurcher. There is, however, no more difficulty in this respect with regard to the dog, than anyother of our domesticated animals. Climate, or chance, produced a changein certain individuals, and the sagacity of man, or, perhaps, merechance, founded on these accidental varieties numerous breeds possessedof certain distinct characteristic properties. The degeneracy of thedog, also, in different countries, cannot for a moment be disputed. 

The most natural arrangement of all the varieties of the dog isaccording to the development of the frontal sinus and the cerebralcavity, or, in other words, the power of scent, and the degree ofintelligence. This classification originated with M. F. Cuvier, and hasbeen adopted by most naturalists. He reckoned three divisions of the dog:

I. Those having the head more or less elongated, and the parietal bones of the skull widest at the base, and gradually approaching towards each other as they ascend, the condyls of the lower jaw being on the same line with the upper molar teeth. The _Greyhound_ and all its varieties belong to this class. 

II. The head moderately elongated, and the parietals diverging from each other for a certain space as they rise upon the side of the head, enlarging the cerebral cavity and the frontal sinus. To this class belong our most valuable dogs, --the _Spaniel_, _Setter_, _Pointer_, _Hound_, and the _Sheep-dog_. 

III. The muzzle more or less shortened, the frontal sinus enlarged, and the cranium elevated, and diminished in capacity. To this class belong some of the _Terriers_, and a great many dogs that might very well be spared. 

This division of the different species of the dog is adopted here asbeing the most simple, intelligible, and satisfactory. 

[Footnote 1: Gen. Iv. 2. ]

[Footnote 2: Deut. Xxiii. 18. ]

[Footnote 3: In some of Belzoni's beautiful sketches of the frieze-workof the old Egyptian temples, the dog appears, with his long ears andbroad muzzle, not unlike the old Talbot hound. ]

[Footnote 4: Herodotus, lib. Ii. C. 66. ]

[Footnote 5: No dog was suffered to come within the precincts of theTemple at Jerusalem. [Greek: Ex_o kunes] was a prevalent expressionamong the Jews. Byrant's 'Mythology', vol. Ii. P. 42. ]

[Footnote 6: Phil. Iii. 2. ]

[Footnote 7: Rev. Xxii. 15. ]

[Footnote 8: Job xxx. 1. See also Isaiah lvi, 10, 11. ]

[Footnote 9: Psalm lix. 6. ]

[Footnote 10: Carpenter's 'Scripture Natural History', p. 109. It is aremarkable fact that from this faithful animal, the companion of man, and the guardian of his person and property, should originate as manyterms of reproach as "dog, " "cur, " "hound, " "puppy, " "dog-cheap, " "adog's trick, " "dog sick, " "dog-weary, " "to lead the life of a dog, " "touse like a dog. " All this probably originated in the East, where the dogwas held in abhorrence as the common scavenger of the streets. ]

[Footnote 11: Arrian's 'Cynegeticus', cap 26. ]

[Footnote 12: ''New Sporting Magazine, vol. Xiv. P. 97. ]

[Footnote 13: Oppian's 'Cynegeticus', lib. I. V. 468-480. ]

[Footnote 14:

 ["At contrà faciles, magnique Lycaones armis. Sed non Hyrcanæ satis est vehementia genti. "]]

[Footnote 15: Pope's 'Odyssey', xvii. ]

 * * * * *

CHAPTER II. 

THE VARIETIES OF THE DOG. 

FIRST DIVISION. 

 The head more or less elongated, the parietal bones widest at the base and gradually approaching to each other as they ascend, and the condyls of the lover jaw being on the same line with the upper molar teeth. 

To this division belong the greater number of the

WILD DOGS. 

The wild dog, as existing in considerable numbers or communities, seemsto be nearly extirpated in the southern parts of Europe; but there areseveral cases on record, of dogs having assumed native independence. Ablack greyhound bitch, belonging to a gentleman in Scarisbrick, inLancashire, though she had apparently been well broken in, and alwayswell used, ran away from the habitation of her master, and betookherself to the woods. She killed a great number of hares and made freewith the sheep, and became an intolerable nuisance to the neighbourhood. She was occasionally seen, and the depredations that were committed werebrought home to her. Many were the attempts made to entrap or destroyher, but in vain: for more than six months she eluded the vigilance ofher pursuers. At length she was observed to creep into a hole in an oldbarn. She was caught as she came out, and the barn being searched threewhelps were found, which, very foolishly, were destroyed. 

The bitch evinced the utmost ferocity, and, although well secured, attempted to seize every one who approached her. She was, however, dragged home and treated with kindness. By degrees her ferocity abated. In the course of two months, she became perfectly reconciled to heroriginal abode, and, a twelve-month afterwards (1822), she ransuccessfully several courses. There was still a degree of wildness inher appearance; but, although at perfect liberty, she seemed to bealtogether reconciled to a domestic life. 

In 1784 a dog was left by a smuggling vessel on the coast ofNorthumberland. He soon began to worry the sheep for his subsistence, and did so much mischief that he caused very considerable alarm. He wasfrequently pursued by hounds and greyhounds; but when the dogs came uphe lay upon his back as if supplicating for mercy, and in that positionthey would never hurt him. He therefore lay quietly until the huntersapproached, when he made off without being followed by the hounds untilthey were again excited to the pursuit. He one day led them 30 miles inthis way. It was more than three months before he was caught and wasthen shot [1]. 

A dog with every character of the wild one has occasionally been seen insome of the forests of Germany, and among the Pyrenean mountains; but hehas rarely been found gregarious there. In the country on the easternside of the Gulf of Venice wild dogs are more frequent. They increase inthe Austrian and Turkish dominions, and are found on almost every partof the coast of the Black Sea, but even there they rarely gather inflocks: they do not howl in concert, as the wolf; nor are they theprecursors of other and larger beasts, like the jackal. Most of thesedogs have the muzzle and head elongated, the ears erect, triangular, andsmall, the body and neck large and muscular, and the tail short, butwith a brush of crisped hair. In many parts of Arabia the wild dog--or'dakhun'--is occasionally found. In Persia, they are most decidedlycongregated together, and still more so in almost every part of India[2]. 

Mr. Hodgson has favoured the Zoological Society with an account of

THE WILD DOG OF NEPAL, the 'búánsú', and, finding it more or less prevailing through the wholeof Northern India, and even southward of the coast of Coromandel, hethought that he had discovered the primitive race of the dog. This is apoint that can never be decided. 

 "These dogs hunt their prey by night, as well as by day, in packs of from six to ten individuals, maintaining the chase more by the scent than by the eye, and generally succeeding by dint of strength and perseverance. While hunting, they bark like the hound, yet the bark is peculiar, and equally unlike that of the cultivated breeds of dogs, and the cries of the jackal and the fox. "

Bishop Heber gives the following account of them. 

 "They are larger and stronger than a fox, which in the circumstances of form and fur they much resemble. They hunt, however, in packs, give tongue like dogs, and possess an exquisite scent. They make of course tremendous havoc among the game in these hills; but that mischief they are said amply to repay by destroying wild beasts, and even tigers. " [3]

Wild dogs are susceptible of certain social combinations. In Egypt, Constantinople, and throughout the whole of the East, there are in everyvillage troops of wandering dogs who belong to no particular person. Each troop has its own quarter of the place; and if any wander into aquarter which does not belong to him, its inhabitants unite together andchase him out. At the Cape of Good Hope there are many dogshalf-starved. On going from home the natives induce two or more of theseanimals to accompany them, warn them of the approach of any ferociousanimal, and if any of the jackals approach the walls during the night, they utter the most piercing cries, and at this signal every dog salliesout, and, uniting together, put the jackals to speedy flight. [4]

The wild Nepal dogs caught when at an adult age make no approach towardsdomestification; but a young one, which Mr. Hodgson obtained when it wasnot more than a month old, became sensible to caresses, and manifestedas much intelligence as any sporting dog of the same age. [5]

Captain T. Williamson gives an interesting account of the ferociouscharacter of some of these wild dogs. 

 "They have considerable resemblance to the jackal in form. They are remarkably savage, and frequently will approach none but their 'doonahs' or keepers, not allowing their own masters to come near them. Some of them are very fleet; but they are not to be depended upon in coursing; for they are apt suddenly to give up the chase when it is a severe one, and, indeed, they will too often prefer a sheep or a goat to a hare. In hog-hunting they are more valuable. It seems to suit their temper, and they appear to enjoy the snapping and the snarling, incident to that species of sports. "

He says that many persons affect to treat the idea of degeneration inquadrupeds with ridicule; but all who have been any considerable timeresident in India must be satisfied that dogs of European breed become, after every successive generation, more and more similar to the pariah, or indigenous dog of that country. The hounds are the most rapid intheir decline, and, except in the form of their ears, they are very muchlike many of the village curs. Greyhounds and pointers also rapidlydecline, although with occasional exceptions. Spaniels and terriersdeteriorate less, and spaniels of eight or nine generations, and withouta cross from Europe, are not only as good as, but far more beautifulthan, their ancestors. The climate is too severe for mastiffs, and theydo not possess sufficient stamina; but, crossed by the East Indiangreyhound, they are invaluable in hunting the hog [6]. 

Colonel Sykes, at one of the meetings of the Zoological Society, produced a specimen of

THE WILD DOG OF DAKHUN

or Deccan, a part of India far to the south of Nepâl, and gave thefollowing description of this supposed primitive dog:

 "Its head is compressed and elongated, but its muzzle not very sharp. The eyes are oblique, the pupils round, and the 'irides' light-brown. The expression of the countenance is that of a coarse ill-natured Persian greyhound, without any resemblance to the jackal, the fox, or the wolf. The ears are long, erect, and somewhat rounded at the top. The limbs remarkably large and strong in relation to the bulk of the animal. The size is intermediate between the wolf and the jackal. The neck long, the body elongated, and the entire dog of a red-brown colour. None of the domesticated dogs of Dakhun are common in Europe, but those of Dakhun and Nepâl are very similar in all their characters. There is also a dog in Dakhun with hair so short as to make him appear naked. It is called the 'polugar' dog. "

THE WILD DOG OF THE MAHRATTAS

possesses a similar conformation; and the fact is, that the East Indianwild dog is essentially the same in every part of that immense extent ofcountry. There is no more reason, however, for concluding that it wasthe primitive dog, than for conferring on the Indian cattle the samehonour among the ruminants. The truth of the matter is that we have noguide what was the original breed in any country. The lapse of 4000years would effect strange alterations in the breeds. The common nameof this dog, in the track lying between South Bahar and the Mahrattafrontier towards Maghore, is

DHOLE, the 'Chryseus Scylex' of Hamilton Smith. 

Captain Williamson, in his Oriental Field Sports, gives the followingaccount of the Dholes:

 "They are to be found chiefly, or only, in the country from Midnapore to Chamu, and even there are not often to be met with. They are of the size of a small greyhound. Their countenance is enlivened by unusually brilliant eyes. Their body, which is slender and deep-chested, is thinly covered by a coat of hair of a reddish-brown or bay colour. The tail is dark towards its extremity. The limbs are light, compact, and strong, and equally calculated for speed and power. They resemble many of the common pariah dogs in form, but the singularity of their colour and marks at once demonstrates an evident distinction. 

 "These dogs are said to be perfectly harmless if unmolested. They do not willingly approach persons; but, if they chance to meet any in their course, they do not show any particular anxiety to escape. They view the human race rather objects of curiosity, than either of apprehension or enmity. The natives who reside near the Ranochitty and Katcunsandy passes, in which vicinity the 'dholes' may frequently be seen, describe them as confining their attacks entirely to wild animals, and assert that they will not prey on sheep, goats, &c. ; but others, in the country extending southward from Jelinah and Mechungunge, maintain that cattle are frequently lost by their depredations. I am inclined to believe that the 'dhole' is not particularly ceremonious, but will, when opportunity offers, and a meal is wanting, obtain it at the expense of the neighbouring village. 

 "The peasants likewise state that the 'dhole' is eager in proportion to the size and powers of the animal he hunts, preferring the elk to every other kind of deer, and particularly seeking the royal tiger. It is probable that the 'dhole' is the principal check on the multiplication of the tiger; and, although incapable individually, or perhaps in small numbers, to effect the destruction of so large and ferocious an animal, may, from their custom of hunting in packs, easily overcome any smaller beast found in the wilds of India. 

 "They run mute, except that they sometimes utter a whimpering kind of note, similar to that sometimes expressed by dogs when approaching their prey. This may be expressive of their own gratification, or anxiety, or may serve as a guide to other 'dholes' to join in the chase. The speed of the 'dhole' is so strongly marked in his form as to render it probable no animal in the catalogue of game could escape him for any distance. Many of the 'dholes' are destroyed in these contests; for the tiger, the elk, and the boar, and even many of the smaller classes of game are capable of making a most obstinate defence. Hence the breed of the 'dholes' is much circumscribed. "

THE THIBET DOG. 

Mr. Bennett, in his scientific and amusing description of the ZoologicalGardens, gave the best account we have of this noble dog, and ourportrait is a most faithful likeness of him. He is bred in thetable-land of the Himalaya mountains bordering on Thibet. The Bhoteas, by whom many of them are carefully reared, come down to the lowcountries at certain seasons of the year to sell their borax and musk. The women remain at home, and they and the flocks are most sedulouslyguarded by these dogs. They are the defenders of almost everyconsiderable mansion in Thibet. In an account of an embassy to the courtof the Teshoo Llama in Thibet, the author says, that he had to pass by arow of wooden cages containing a number of large dogs, fierce, strong, and noisy. They were natives of Thibet, and, whether savage by nature orsoured by confinement, they were so impetuously furious that it wasunsafe even to approach their dens. Every writer who describes thesedogs, speaks of their noble size, and their ferocity, and antipathy tostrangers. 

It is said, however, that the Thibet dog rapidly degenerates whenremoved from its native country, and certainly the specimens which havereached the Zoological Gardens exhibited nothing of ferocity. The onethat was in that menagerie had a noble and commanding appearance; but henever attempted to do any injury. 

The colour of the Thibet dog is of a deep black, slightly clouded on thesides, his feet alone and a spot over each eye being of a full tawny orbright brown hue. He has the broad short truncated muzzle of themastiff, and the lips are still more deeply pendulous. There is also asingular general looseness of the skin on every part of him. 

THE PARIAH. 

There are several varieties of this dog. There is a wild breed verynumerous in the jungles and in some of the lower ranges of the Himalayamountains. They usually hunt in packs, and it is not often that theirprey escapes them. They generally are very thin, and of a reddish-browncolour, with sharp-pointed ears, deep chest, and tucked-up flanks. Manypersons hunt with these dogs singly, and they are very useful. Theybring the hog to bay, or indicate the course that he has taken, ordistract his attention when the sportsman is at hand. 

There is also in every inhabited part of the country the poor desolatepariah, --unowned by any one, --daring to enter into no house, butwandering about, and picking up a living in any way that he can. He is, however, of a superior race to the wild dog, and belongs to the secondclass of the dog, although mentioned here in order that we mayaltogether quit the dog of India. They are neglected by the Hindoos; butthe Mohammedans of India, and other strangers, consider it an act ofcharity to throw out occasionally a morsel of food to them. They aremost of them mongrels; but the benevolent Bishop Heber does them no morethan justice when he says that he

 "was forcibly struck at finding the same dog-like and amiable qualities in these neglected animals as in their more fortunate brethren in Europe. "

Colonel Sykes says of these outcasts that among the pariahs isfrequently found the turnspit-dog. There is also a small petted varietyof the pariah, usually of a white colour, and with long silky hair. Thisanimal is taught to carry flambeaux and lanterns. 

According to Captain Williamson, in some of the ditches of the Carnaticforts, alligators are purposely kept, and all the pariah dogs found inthe forts are thrown into the ditches as provision for these monsters. Some persons who have kept tigers in cages have adopted the same meansof supply for their royal captives, putting the poor pariah through anaperture made for the purpose in the cage; and they justify themselvesby asserting that they thus get rid of a troublesome breed of curs, mostof which are unappropriated, and which being numerous are verytroublesome to passengers, often wantonly biting them, and raising ayelling noise at night, that sets all attempts to rest at defiance. 

It did not always happen that the tiger killed the pariah put into hiscage. 

 "I knew an instance, " says Captain Williamson, "of one that was destined for the tiger's daily meal, standing on the defensive in a manner that completely astonished both the tiger and the spectator. He crept into a corner, and whenever the tiger approached seized him by the lip or the neck, making him roar most piteously. The tiger, however, impelled by hunger, --for all supply of food was purposely withheld, --would renew the attack. The result was ever the same. At length the tiger began to treat the dog with more deference, and not only allowed him to partake of the mess of rice and milk furnished daily for his subsistence, but even refrained from any attempt lo disturb him. The two animals at length became reconciled to each other, and a strong attachment was formed between them. The dog was then allowed ingress and egress through the aperture; and, considering the cage as his own, he left it and returned to it just as he thought proper. When the tiger died he moaned the loss of his companion for a considerable period. "

A wild variety exists in Sumatra. It is described by Cuvier as

 "possessing the countenance of a fox, the eyes oblique, the ears rounded and hairy, the muzzle of a foxy-brown colour, the tail bushy and pendulous, very lively, running with the head lifted high, and the ears straight. "

This animal can scarcely be rendered tractable, and even when he isapparently tamed can rarely be depended upon. 

As we proceed through the Indian Archipelago, towards Australasia, weskirt the coast of Java. Every Javanese of rank has large packs of dogswith which he hunts the muntjak, the deer of that country. The dogs areled in strings by the attendants until they scent the prey: they arethen unloosed, while the sportsmen follow, but not at the speed whichwould distinguish the British sportsman. The animal is generally foundat bay. The male muntjak usually exhibits considerable courage, andprobably several of the dogs have been wounded by his tusks. As soon asthey come up every gun is discharged, and the animal almost immediatelydrops. At other times the mounted sportsmen attack them with a spear orsword. Generally, the muntjak does not go off like the stag in anydirect track, but takes a circular course, and soon returns to the spotwhence it was started. It perhaps makes several of these circles, and atlength entangles itself in a thicket, where it is secured. 

These dogs are the indigenous breed of the island, the body lank, theears erect, ferocious in their disposition, and with very littleattachment to their masters. Such is the account given of them by Dr. Horsfield. 

THE DINGO, AUSTRALASIAN, OR NEW HOLLAND DOG. 

The newly discovered southern continent was, and some of it stillcontinues to be, overrun by the native wild dogs. Dampier describesthem, at the close of the last century, as

 "beasts like the hungry wolves, lean like so many skeletons, and being nothing but skin and bone. "

It was not until the publication of Governor Phillip's voyage to BotanyBay, that any accurate description or figure of this dog could beobtained. He approaches in appearance to the largest kind of shepherd'sdog. The head is elongated, the forehead flat, and the ears short anderect, or with a slight direction forwards. The body is thickly coveredwith hair of two kinds--the one woolly and gray, the other silky and ofa deep yellow or fawn colour. The limbs are muscular, and, were it notfor the suspicious yet ferocious glare of the eye, he might pass for ahandsome dog. The Australasian dog, according to M. Desmarest, resemblesin form and in the proportion of his limbs the common shepherd's dog. Heis very active and courageous, covered in some parts with thick hairwoolly and gray, in other parts becoming of a yellowish-red colour, andunder the belly having a whitish hue. When he is running, the head islifted more than usual in dogs, and the tail is carried horizontally. Heseldom barks. Mr. Bennett observes that

 "dogs in a state of nature never bark. They simply whine, howl, or growl. The explosive noise of the bark is only found among those that are domesticated. "

Sonini speaks of the shepherds' dogs in the wilds of Egypt as not havingthis faculty; and Columbus found the dogs which he had previouslycarried to America, almost to have lost their propensity to bark. 

He does, however, occasionally bark, and has the same kind of snarlingvoice which the larger dogs generally have. The Australasian dogs thathave been brought to Europe have usually been of a savage anduntractable disposition. 

There are several of the Australasian dogs in the gardens of theZoological Society of London. One of them has been an inmate of thatestablishment nine years, others more than five years; but not anindividual has acquired the bark of the other dogs by which they aresurrounded. When a stranger makes his appearance, or when the hour offeeding arrives, the howl of the Australasian is the first sound that isheard, and it is louder than all the rest. 

If some of them have thrown off a portion of their native ferocity, others retain it undiminished. A bitch and two of her whelps, nearlyhalf grown--a male and female--had inhabited the same cage from the timethat the young ones were born. Some cause of quarrel occurred on acertain night, and the two bitches fell upon the dog and perfectlydestroyed him. There was not a limb left whole. A stronger instance ofthe innate ferocity of this breed could scarcely be given. Even in theirnative country all attempts perfectly to domesticate them have failed;for they never lose an opportunity to devour the poultry or attack thesheep. Every domesticated dog coming within their reach was immediatelydestroyed. One that was brought to England broke his chain--scoured thesurrounding country--and, before dawn, had destroyed several sheep; andanother attacked, and would have destroyed, an ass, if he had not beenprevented. 

Mr. Oxley, Surveyor-General of New South Wales, however, gives aninteresting account of the mutual attachment between two of the nativeand wild New Holland dingos. 

 "About a week ago we killed a native dog, and threw his body on a small bush. On returning past the same spot to-day, we found the body removed three or four yards from the bush, and the female in a dying-state lying close beside it: she had apparently been there from the day the dog was killed. Being now so weakened and emaciated as to be unable to move on our approach, it was deemed a mercy to despatch her. "

When Van Diemen Land began to be colonized by Europeans, the lossessustained by the settlers by the ravages of the wild dogs were almostincredible. The districts infested by these animals were principallythose appropriated to sheep, and there was scarcely a flock that did notsuffer. It was in vain to double the number of shepherds, to watch bynight and by day, or to have fires at every quarter of the fold; forthese animals would accomplish their object by stratagem or by force. One colony lost no fewer than 1200 sheep and lambs in three months;another colony lost 700. 

The ravagers were either the native wild dogs of the island, or thosethat had escaped from their owners. They seemed to have apportioned thecountry into different districts, each troop having its allotted range. At length the evil became so great that a general meeting of thecolonists was convened. The concluding sentences of the speech ofLieutenant Hill forcibly express the extent of the evil. 

 "The country is free from bush-rangers: we are no longer surrounded and threatened by the natives. We have only one enemy left in the field; but that enemy strikes at the very root of our welfare, and through him the stream of our prosperity is tainted at its very source. "

The colonists were then few, but they cordially united in the endeavourto extirpate this formidable enemy; and, although the wild dog is stillfound in the interior of the island, he is comparatively seldom seen, and his ravages have nearly ceased. 

THE CANIS AUSTRALIS--KARÁRAHÉ, NEW ZEALAND DOG. 

A tradition exists in New Zealand of this dog having been given to thenatives two or three centuries ago by a number of divinities who madetheir descent on these shores, probably Juan Fernandez and hiscompanions. The sagacious animal has, however, dwindled down to thelowest rank of his family, but ill usage has not altogether destroyedhis worth. In New Zealand he is the safeguard of every village. Shouldthe slightest alarm exist, he is the first to ascertain the cause of it, and many families have saved themselves by flight, or have taken arms inself-defence against the incursions of predatory bands. The NewZealanders are therefore kind in their treatment of the dog, except thatthey occasionally destroy him for his hide. 

The name formerly given to the New Zealand dog was 'pero', which insome measure substantiates the supposition of Juan Fernandez havingvisited the country--'perro', in the Spanish language, being thename of a dog. 

We will now turn to the northern parts of America. The races of wilddogs are there considerably limited, both in number and the districtswhich they occupy. 

In the elevated sandy country north of the source of the Missouri, inhabited by the "Stone" and the "Black Foot" Indians, is a doubtfulspecies of dogs--wolves they used to be called--who hunt in large packsand are exceedingly swift; whose bark is similar to that of the domesticdog, but who burrow in the ground, and eagerly run to their holes, whenthe gun of the hunter is heard. 

[Our author evidently, in the above remarks, confounds the Louisianamarmot, Arctomys Ludovicianus or Prairie dog, with the Canis Latrans ofSay, as he certainly would not make us believe that such harmlessanimals as the marmot should associate themselves in packs to hunt thedeer or other quadrupeds; neither would he tell us that so different ananimal as the Canis Latrans could burrow in the ground and retreat totheir holes when surprised by the hunter. The Louisiana Marmot, improperly called Prairie dog, is about sixteen inches long, and livesin extended villages or excavations surmounted by mounds. Thesecommunities often comprise several thousand inhabitants, whose sole foodconsists in the scanty herbage surrounding the settlement, as theyseldom extend their excursions beyond a half-mile from their burrows forfear of the wolves, and many other enemies. 

The Canis Latrans, on the other hand, is quite a large and savageanimal, and frequently unites in bands to run down deer or buffalocalves, but as for living under ground in burrows, it is quite out ofreason to suppose such a thing possible with this quadruped, whosecretes himself in the depths of the forest, and appears on the openplain only when in pursuit of game. --L. ] The habit of selecting large, open, sandy plains, and burrowing there, extends to the greater part ofthe American wild dogs. 

[We have been credibly informed by several gentlemen, familiar with thecountry of Mexico, that there is a diminutive species of dog runningwild, and burrowing in the ground as rabbits, in the neighbourhood ofSanta Fe and Chihuahua. A gentleman who has seen these animals, statesthat there is no doubt as to their identity, having met with them in astate of domestication, when they exhibited all the actions and mannersof a French lap dog, such as come from Cuba or other West India Islands. 

They are of every variety of hue, and resort to their burrows wheneverdisturbed in their natural haunts. What they subsist on it is difficultto say, as they are too harmless and insignificant to attack any otheranimal beyond a mouse or a snail. They are represented as being verydifficult to tame, but when domesticated show no disposition to returnto their former mode of life. The lady of the Mexican Minister, when inthis city, had one of these dogs as a boudoir pet; it was lively andbarked quite fiercely. We have not been able to ascertain whether theybark in their natural state. The breed of dog cultivated in China forfood alone, are fed entirely upon rice meal and other farinaceousarticles, having no relish whatever for flesh or other strongaliment. --L. ]

In some parts of North America whole troops of horses are guarded andkept together by dogs. If any of the troop attempt to steal away, thedog will immediately fly after the horse, head him, and bring him backto his companions. 

[To show the necessity of having dogs for this purpose, as well as toguard the flocks of sheep, we need only mention that it is no uncommonthing for a Mexican to own several thousand horses, besides an immensenumber of cattle. 

Mr. Kendall, in his Santa Fé expedition, states that the proprietress ofone hacienda, a widow, and comparatively poor when the wonderful wealthof her ancestors is considered, now owns fifty thousand horses andmules, beside herds of cattle and sheep, and that the pasture groundextended for fifty miles on either side of the road. 

One of the former owners of this immense estate, a short time previousto the revolution, sent as a present to a Spanish colonel, just arrivedwith his regiment of dragoons, a thousand white horses, nearly all ofthe same age, and every one raised on this prolific hacienda. --L. ]

The wild dogs abound in many parts of South America. In some of theforests on the banks of the Oronoko they multiply to an annoying degree. The Cayotte of Mexico, described by some as a wolf, and bearing noslight resemblance to that animal, belongs to the South American wilddogs, as do also the Aguara dogs of every kind. These wanderers of thewoods are, however, diminished in numbers in every part of thatcontinent, and are replaced by other kinds, many of which have beenimported from Europe and domesticated. 

[There is no country in the world more cursed with worthless curs thanthat of Mexico and the other southern republics; the cities and villagesactually swarm with these animals, and produce no little vexation totravellers, who speak of their eternal yelping and barking in the mostindignant terms. 

Mr. Kendall, on entering San Antonio, says, "From every house some half dozen Mexican curs would jump forth and greet us with a chorus of yelps and barks, and before we had fairly entered the town the canine hue and cry was general. Those who have for the first time entered a Mexican town or city must have been struck with the unusual number of dogs, and annoyed by their incessant barking; but the stranger soon learns that they spend all their courage in barks--they seldom bite. "--L. ]

Many of the Indian tribes have succeeded in reclaiming the dog of thewoods, and have made him a useful although not a perfectly attachedservant. 

The dogs of the Falkland Islands, and the Indian North American dogsgenerally, are brown or gray-coloured varieties of the wild dog; but asthey are nearly exterminated, will occupy little space. It has alreadybeen stated that in Egypt and in Nubia we have the first records of thedog. Many superstitious notions were connected with him, and divinehonours were paid to him. Those times are passed away, and he isregarded with aversion by the Moslem of the present day. He is anoutcast. He obtains a scanty living by the offal which he gathers in thetowns, or he is become a perfect wild dog, and scours the country forhis prey. His modern name is the 'deab'. He is of considerable size, with a round muzzle, large head, small erect ears, and long and hairytail, spotted with black, white, and yellow, and having a fierce wolfishaspect. These dogs are not, however, numerous; but the mischief whichthey do is often great, whether in pairs they burrow in the earth, orassociate with others and hunt in troops. [7]

In Nubia is a smaller dog of the same kind, which never burrows. Itlives on small animals and birds, and rarely enters any of the towns. Asimilar dog, according to Colonel Hamilton Smith, inhabits theneighbourhood of the Cape, and particularly the Karroo or Wilderness. Itis smaller than either of the others, and lives among bushes or underprominent rocks. Others, although not identified with the jackal, yetassociating with him, inhabit the Uplands of Gambia and Senegal. 

On the Gold Coast, the dog is used and prized as an article of food. Heis fattened and driven to market as the European drives his sheep andhogs. The dog is even more valued than the sheep for human subsistence, and is deemed the greatest luxury that can be placed even on the royaltable. 

In Loango, or Lower Guinea, is a town from which the African wild dogsderive their name--the 'dingo'. They hunt in large packs. Theyfearlessly attack even the elephant, and generally destroy him. In theneighbourhood of the Cape, the country is nearly cleared of wild beasts;but in Cape Town there are a great number of lean and miserable dogs, who howl about the streets at night, quitting their dens andlurking-places, in quest of offal. No great while ago, the wolves andhyaenas used to descend and dispute the spoil with the dogs, while thetown resounded with their hideous howlings all the night long. 

This will be a proper place to refer to the numerous accounts that aregiven both in ancient and modern times of the immolation of dogs, and oftheir being used for food. They were sacrificed at certain periods bythe Greeks and Romans to almost all their deities, and particularly toMars, Pluto, and Pan, to Minerva, Proserpine, and Lucina, and also tothe moon, because the dog by his barking disturbed all charms andspells, and frightened away all spectres and apparitions. The Greeksimmolated many dogs in honour of Hecate, because by their baying thephantoms of the lower world were disturbed. A great number of dogs werealso destroyed in Samothrace in honour of the same goddess. Dogs wereperiodically sacrificed in February, and also in April and in May; alsoto the goddess Rubigo, who presided over the corn, and the Bona Dea, whose mysterious rites were performed on Mount Aventine. The dogCerberus was supposed to be watching at the feet of Pluto, and a dog anda youth were periodically sacrificed to that deity. The night when theCapitol had nearly been destroyed was annually celebrated by the cruelscourging of a dog in the principal public places, even to the death ofthe animal. 

[As on a certain occasion, the dogs who had the Capitol in custody, didnot bark and give warning when the Gauls attempted to scale the wails, there is a custom annually observed at Rome, to transfix certain dogs toforks, and thus crucified, hang them on an elder tree as examples ofjustice. (Book 29, chap. IV. Pliny. )-L. ]

Many of the Greek and Roman epicures were strangely fond of the flesh ofthe dog, and those who ought to have known much better encouraged theuse of this food. Galen speaks of it in the strongest terms of praise. Hippocrates says that the meat of old dogs is of a warm and dry quality, giving strength to the eater. Ananias, the poet, speaks of dog's fleshserved up with that of the hare and fox. Virgil recommends that thefatted dog should be served up with whey or butter; and Dioscorides, thephysician, says that they should be fed on the whey that remains afterthe making of cheese. 

[Independent of the many useful and interesting qualities thatnecessarily endeared this animal to the ancients, he had yet strongerclaims upon them, in the prophylactic properties of different portionsof his body. Pliny, Hippocrates, Aristotle and others, speak of variouspreparations made of his flesh, for the cure of many distempers. Thefirst-mentioned writer observes, that the ashes of burnt dogs, made intoa liniment, with oil, will make an excellent application to theeye-brows, to turn them black. We doubt not that an analogous compound, if proved to be really efficacious, might he introduced to the notice ofthe belles of our own time, or meet with extensive sale for dyeing thepagoties and mustachios of the modern dandy. This quaint philosopheralso recommends the same substance as a healing salve, for malignantwounds, and the internal use of the same article as a preventive or cureof hydrophobia and other distempers. (Book 28, chap, XI. And X. )--L. ]

Before Christianity was established among the Danes, on every ninth yearat the winter solstice, a monstrous sacrifice of 99 dogs was effected. In Sweden the sacrifice was still worse. On each of 9 successive days, 99 dogs were destroyed. This sacrifice of the dog, however, gave way toone as numerous and as horrible. On every 9th year, 99 human victimswere immolated, and the sons of the reigning tyrant among the rest, inorder that the life of the monarch might be prolonged. [8]

On the other hand, the dog was frequently the executioner; and, from anearly period, whether in the course of war or the mock administration ofjustice, thousands of poor wretches were torn to pieces by animalstrained to that horrible purpose. 

Many of the Indians of North America, and almost of the present day, arefond of the flesh of the dog. 

Captain Carver, in his Travels in North America in 1766, 1767, and 1768, describes the admission of an Indian into one of the horrible societiesof that country. 

 "The dishes being brought near to me, " says he, "I perceived that they consisted of dog's flesh, and I was informed that at all their grand feasts they never made use of any other food. The new candidate provides fat dogs for the festival, if they can be procured at any price. They ate the flesh; but the head and the tongue were left sticking on a pole with the front towards the east. When any noxious disease appeared among them, a dog was killed, the intestines were wound between two poles, and every man was compelled to pass between them. "

The Nandowepia Indians also eat dog's flesh as an article of luxury, andnot from any want or scarcity of other animal food; for they have thebear, buffalo, elk, deer, beaver, and racoon. 

Professor Keating, in his interesting work on the expedition to Peter'sRiver, states that he and a party of American officers were regaled in alarge pavilion on buffalo meat, and 'tepsia', a vegetable boiled inbuffalo grease, and the flesh of three dogs kept for the occasion, andwithout any salt. They partook of the flesh of the dogs with a mixtureof curiosity and reluctance, and found it to be remarkably fat, sweet, and palatable, divested of any strong taste, and resembling the finestWelsh mutton, but of a darker colour. So strongly rooted, however, arethe prejudices of education, that few of them could be induced to eatmuch of it. 

The feast being over, great care was taken to replace the bones in theirproper places in the dish, after which they were carefully washed andburied, as a token of respect to the animals generally, and becausethere was the belief among them that at some future time they wouldreturn again to life. Well-fattened puppies are frequently sold; and aninvitation to a feast of dog's meat is the greatest distinction that canbe offered to a stranger by any of the Indian nations east of the RockyMountains. 

[Notwithstanding the Indians occasionally eat their dogs either throughnecessity or when they wish to pay a marked tribute of respect to theirgods, or prepare a feast of friendship with strangers, they value themvery highly, and do not by any means consider their flesh superior tothat of the buffaloes or other animals of the chase. Mr. Catlin remarks, that "the dog, amongst all Indian tribes, is more esteemed and morevalued than amongst any part of the civilized world: the Indian, who hasmore time to devote to his company, and whose untutored mind more nearlyassimilates to that of his faithful domestic, keeps him closer companyand draws him nearer his heart: they hunt together and are equal sharersin the chase--their bed is one; and on the rocks and on their coats ofarms they carve his image as the symbol of fidelity. " (Vol. I. , p. 230. )

On visiting the Sioux, they prepared for this gentleman as a token ofregard a dog feast, previous to partaking of which they addressed him ina manner that plainly exhibits the veneration in which they held thesefaithful animals, at the same time forcibly demonstrating the peculiarcircumstances under which they alone are willing to destroy them:

"My father, I hope you will have pity upon us; we are very poor. Weoffer you to-day not the best we have got; for we have a plenty of goodbuffalo hump and marrow; but we give you our hearts in this feast, wehave killed our faithful dogs to feed you, and the Great Spirit willseal our friendship. I have no more to say. " (Vol. I. , p. 229. )--L. ]

As a counterpart to much of this, the ancient Hyrcanians may bementioned, who lived near the Caspian Sea, and who deemed it one of thestrongest expressions of respect to leave the corpse of their deceasedfriends to be torn and devoured by dogs. Every man was provided with acertain number of these animals, as a living tomb for himself at somefuture period, and these dogs were remarkable for their fierceness. 

[Not only the Hyrcanians but most of the people dwelling on or near theCaspian sea, preserved this race or a similarly formidable one, moreparticularly to devour their dead; it being considered more propitiatoryto the Gods, and more flattering to the spirits of the deceased, to makethis disposition of the corpse, than consigning it to the gloomy graveor funeral pile. 

This custom is noticed by Theodoret as being pursued by the inhabitantsof those parts, and was not abolished till after their adherence toChristianity. --L. ]

DOMESTICATED DOGS OF THE FIRST DIVISION

Some of the readers of this work may possibly recollect three beautifuldogs of this species in the gardens of the Zoological Society of London, which afforded a perfect illustration of the elongated head of the dogsbelonging to Cuvier's first section. Mr. Bennett, the Secretary of theSociety, gave an interesting account of them in 1835, derived from theobservation of Sir John Franklin and Dr. Richardson. 

The elongation and sharpness of the muzzle, and the small capacity ofthe skull, first attract attention. The dog was doubtless fitted for itssituation, where its duty is to hunt by sight after the moose orrein-deer, but would have been comparatively worthless if he was to beguided by the scent. Its erect ears, widened at the base and pointed atthe top, gave it an appearance of vivacity and spirit. Its depth ofchest, and tucked-up flank, and muscular quarters, marked it as a dog ofspeed, while its light frame, and the length of the toes, and widenessof web between them, seem to depict the kind of surface over which itwas to bound. It is not designed to seize and to hold any animal ofconsiderable bulk; it bounds over the snow without sinking, if theslightest crust is formed upon it, and eagerly overtakes and keeps atbay the moose or the rein-deer until the hunters arrive. This animalfurnishes a beautiful illustration of adaptation for a particularpurpose. 

The hair of these dogs is white, with patches of grayish-black andbrown. They are known only in the neighbourhood of the Mackenzie Riverand of the Great Bear Lake in North America They appear to begood-tempered and easily manageable, and soon become familiar even withstrangers. They are most valuable to the Indians, who live almostentirely on the produce of the chase. In their native country they neverbark, but utter a whine and howl resembling that of the Esquimaux dog;yet one of the three, who was born a few days after its parents arrivedat the gardens, while it whined and howled occasionally with itsparents, at other times uttered the perfect bark of its companions ofvarious breeds around it. 

[It is the general belief among the Indians and others who are familiarwith this dog, that his origin is connected, in some way, with theArctic Fox, Canis Lagopus, as he so much resembles this animal in hisgeneral appearance and habits. 

This fox when taken is easily tamed, a few days of captivity being oftensufficient to render him quite docile, and ample opportunities have thusbeen afforded for studying his peculiarities. 

Although the cross between the wolf and dog may be consideredestablished beyond controversy, the testimony is not so very conclusiveas regards the fox. The most authentic instances on record are perhapsthose mentioned by Mr. Daniel, who states that Mr. Tattersall had aterrier bitch, who bred by a fox, and the produce again had whelps bydogs, also that the woodman of Mongewell manor had a bitch, theoffspring of a tame dog-fox, by a shepherd's cur, and she again hadpuppies by a dog; he does not state, however, that he knew these factspersonally; but concludes from these two instances, that the fox speciesmay be fairly added to the other supposed original stocks of dogs. (Daniel's Rural Sports, vol. 1. P. 15. )

Mr. Collinson also states, that it is certain that the Siberian dog notonly copulates with the wolf, but with the fox also. Notwithstandingthis assertion, he is not able to cite a single instance, but on theother hand is forced to acknowledge, that he never met with any personwho had seen the coupling of these two animals. The peasants of thatcountry have a small dog, which, from their foxy appearance, they termfox-dogs. Our Indian dogs, also, resemble somewhat the wolves and foxes, the original inhabitants of this continent, while the canine familythroughout the east is strongly marked with the jackal, the wildaborigines of that portion of the world. 

These dogs, when fighting, do not shake their antagonists, like theperfectly domesticated dog; their teeth are extremely sharp, and whensnarling, the skin is drawn from the mouth; their bite is more severe, and they show but little disposition to attack the wolves, althoughquite eager in the pursuit of all other game. The Indians had no dogsprevious to the coming of the whites, but depended in a great measure, when hunting, upon the presence of the wolves, who, by their howlings, indicated the position of the herds of buffalo or deer, knowing fullwell that after the general carnage, they would come in for a full shareof the garbage of these animals. 

Harlan, in his Fauna Americana, says, "we have very little doubt that the various species of domestic dogs are mere varieties of prolific hybrids, produced by the union of the wolf with the fox or jackal. A prolific hybrid of this kind once produced, the progeny would more readily unite with the congeners of either parent, and with each other, and in this manner give rise to the innumerable varieties which at the present day are found scattered over the face of the earth. " (Page 77. )

It is somewhat strange, that no naturalist has, as yet, succeeded incausing a union between the fox and dog, if the thing be possible. Weourselves are cognizant of an instance, where every effort was made toproduce an offspring from such a connexion, but to no purpose, althoughthe terrier bitch was thrice in heat while confined with the fox, andlived on the most amicable terms with him. We agree with Doct. Godman, that if a litter has ever been generated by these two animals, they werehybrids, as nothing to the contrary of an authentic character has beenbrought forward, whereas it is well known that the fox always exhibits agreat antipathy and instinctive repugnance to such an union. It is alsoreasonable to suppose that if prolific hybrids had at any time beenproduced, the breed, from its singular character, would have beenpropagated by the fortunate possessor, either from curiosity or utility. The intestines of the fox are shorter than those of the dog or wolf--L. ]

THE ALBANIAN DOG

can be traced to a very remote period of history. Some of the oldauthors speak of it as the dog which in the times of ancient mythologyDiana presented to Procris. Pliny describes in enthusiastic terms thecombat of one of them with a lion, and afterwards with an elephant. Adog very much resembling the ancient stories is yet found in Albania, and most of the districts of Greece. He is almost as large as a mastiff, with long and silky hair, the legs being shorter and stronger than thoseof the greyhound. He is gentle and tractable with those whom he knows, and when there is no point of duty at stake; but no bribe can seduce himfrom his post when any trust is committed to him. 

[This dog, it is very probable, was highly impregnated with molossianblood, and like that animal, was trained both for war and the chase. Itis rather doubtful, whether the dogs presented to Alexander the Great bythe king of Albania, were those of his own country or some that he hadobtained from other parts. We are inclined to believe that they wereimported dogs, for Pliny distinctly states, that these two were all thatthe generous monarch possessed, and if destroyed could not be replaced. From this circumstance it is natural to suppose that, if these dogs hadbeen native Albanians, the king would have been able to supply anyreasonable quantity of them, and, therefore, not necessitated to sendthis message to Alexander. On the other hand, if these dogs had been ofthe pure molossian type, such as were raised in Epirus, it is probablethat their huge dimensions would not have surprised this monarch somuch, as it is reasonable to believe that Alexander would certainly haveseen, if not heard, of dogs so remarkable, belonging to a kingdom inimmediate contiguity with his own. We are, therefore, forced to look tosome other source, from whence came these proud dogs, who alone deignedto contend with the lion and elephant, and must yield to Strabo, whostates that these animals were of the Indian breed. --L. 15. ]

THE GREAT DANISH DOG, CALLED ALSO THE DALMATIAN OR SPOTTED DOG. 

The difference between these two breeds consists principally in thesize, the Dalmatian being much smaller than the Danish. The body isgenerally white, marked with numerous small round black or reddish-brownspots. The Dalmatian is said to be used in his native country for thechase, to be easily broken, and stanch to his work. He has never beenthus employed in England, but is chiefly distinguished by his fondnessfor horses, and as being the frequent attendant on the carriages of thewealthy. To that its office seems to be confined; for it rarely developssufficient sense or sagacity to be useful in any of the ordinary officesof the dog. 

[This dog is, perhaps, the tallest of the canine species in existence;the smaller Dane, or "le braque de Bengal, " of the French writers, isperhaps a cross of this animal with the pointer or hound, or theoriginal dog degenerated by removal from his native soil. Although thesedogs generally display little or no intelligence, and are, in fact, denounced by many writers as being incapable of acquiring sufficientknowledge to make them in any way serviceable for hunting, still we areled to believe that these latent qualities might be developed in thisbreed as well as any other of his particular physical construction. 

We had a little Dane in our possession, whom we instructed, with littletrouble, in a variety of tricks; although at first surly and stupid, hesoon exhibited great aptness and pleasure in repeating the variouslessons which we taught him. If he had been younger we might have givenhim an opportunity of displaying himself in the field, as we areconfident, from his tractable disposition, that he might have beentutored, with perseverance, even sufficiently well to stand upon game. The dogs of Epirus were supposed to have been spotted like theDalmatian, if not of the same breed. These dogs may also be the "spottedhounds" given by Pan to Diana. 

Let the little Dane's intellectual abilities be what they may, longhabit and association have so intimately connected him with the stableand its occupants that he seems no longer fit for any other purpose thanthat of following in the wake of the carriages of the wealthy. This hedoes with peculiar fondness and singular ingenuity; for, althoughconstantly by the side or at the heels of the horses, or under thetongue of the vehicle, his sure retreat when attacked by other dogs, whoseem to have an antipathy for these pampered and fancy attendants on theaffluent, he seldom or never is trod upon, or otherwise injured. 

The little Dane is often a good ratter; and a gentleman of this cityinforms me that his dogs not only exhibit an attachment to horses ingeneral, but that one of them has a particular partiality for an oldcarriage-horse, with whom he has been intimately associated for manyyears, and always greets his return to the stable with everydemonstration of delight, by jumping up and kissing him, &c. --L. ]

THE FRENCH MATIN. 

('Canis laniarius'). There is considerable difficulty in describing thisvariety. The French consider it as the progenitor of all the breeds ofdogs that resemble and yet cannot be perfectly classed with thegreyhound. It should rather be considered as a species in which areincluded a variety of dogs, --the Albanian, the Danish, the Irishgreyhound, and almost the pure British greyhound. The head is elongatedand the forehead flat, the ears pendulous towards the tips, and thecolour of a yellowish fawn. This is the usual sheep-dog in France, inwhich country he is also employed as a house-dog. He discharges his dutymost faithfully; and, notwithstanding his flat forehead, shows himselfto possess a very high degree of intelligence. 

[The French matin we have seen of every variety of colour, being mostlypatched with brown, yellow, grey, black, or white. He is employed bothin France and Germany in hunting the boar and wolf; which savage animalshe fearlessly attacks with courage equal to any dog they possess. --L. ]

THE GREYHOUND. 

We find no mention of this dog in the early Grecian records. The'pugnaces' and the 'sagaces' are mentioned; but the 'celeres'--theswift-footed--are not spoken of as a peculiar breed. The Celtic nations, the inhabitants of the northern continent of Europe and the WesternIslands, were then scarcely known, and the swift-footed dogs werepeculiar to those tribes. They were not, however, introduced into themore southern parts of Europe until after the dissolution of the Romancommonwealth. 

The dog is, however, mentioned by Ovid; and his description of coursingthe hare is so accurate that we cannot refrain from inserting it. Weselect a translation of it from Golding. 

 "I gat me to the knap Of this same hill, and there behelde of this strange course the hap, In which the beaste seemes one while caught, and ere a man would thinke Doth quickly give the grewnd [9] the slip, and from his biting shrinke; And, like a wilie fox, he runs not forth directly out, Nor makes a winlas over all the champion fields about, But, doubling and indenting, still avoydes his enemie's lips, An turning short, as swift about as spinning-wheele he wips, To disappoint the snatch. The grewnd, pursuing at an inch, Doth cote [10] him, never loosing. Continually he snatches In vaine, but nothing in his mouth, save only hair, he catches. "

There is another sketch by the same poet:

 "As when th' impatient greyhound, slipped from far, Bounds o'er the glade to course the fearful hare, She in her speed does all her safety lay, And he with double speed pursues the prey; O'erruns her at the sitting turn, but licks His chaps in vain, yet blows upon the flix; She seeks the shelter, which the neighbouring covert gives, And, gaining it, she doubts if yet she lives. " [11]

The English, Scotch, and Irish greyhounds were all of Celtic derivation, And their cultivation and character correspond with the civilization ofthe different Celtic tribes. The dogs that were exported from Britain toRome were probably of this kind. Mr. Blaine gives an account of theprogress of these dogs, which seems to be evidently founded on truth. 

 "Scotland, a northern locality, has long been celebrated for its greyhounds, which are known to be large and wiry-coated. They are probably types of the early Celtic greyhounds, which, yielding to the influences of a colder climate than that they came from, became coated with a thick and wiry hair. In Ireland, as being milder in its climate, the frame expanded in bulk, and the coat, although not altogether, was yet less crisped and wiry. In both localities, there being at that time boars, wolves, and even bears, powerful dogs were required. In England these wild beasts were more early exterminated, and consequently the same kind of dog was not retained, but, on the contrary, was by culture made finer in coat, and of greater beauty in form. "

[The canis leporarius, or greyhound of the present day, is quite aninferior animal in point of size, when compared with his forefathers, who alone were occupied in the chase of the boar, wolf, bear, deer, andother animals both powerful and savage. 

As these wild animals gradually disappeared under the hand ofcivilization, these hardy dogs were less wanted; and thus, by slowdegrees, have degenerated into the less powerful, but more beautiful andsymmetrical proportions that we now see. This change, however, hasbetter adapted him for speed, and the coursing of such quadrupeds asdepend upon nimbleness and activity of motion, to secure their escape. 

Owing, in some measure, to the climate, but more particularly to theinactive life that they lead in this country, so much at variance withthat of England, we can lay claim to but few dogs that would beconsidered above mediocrity among British sportsmen. We have seenseveral of these dogs which, living in a state of idle luxury, havedegenerated considerably even in the third generation; and we cannot nowrecall but one dog, in the possession of a young lady in Philadelphia, that would at all come up to the English standard of perfection; andthis one is a descendant from a fine imported stock in the secondgeneration. The ancient Greeks were much devoted to coursing, butprevious to the time of Arrian, their hounds were not a sufficientmatch, in point of speed, for the hare, and it was seldom that theirsports were attended with success in the actual capture of this fleetanimal by the dogs alone. If taken at all, it was generally by runningthem down in a long chase, or driving them into nets, toils, and othersimilar contrivances, as forcibly described in the following lines ofthe ancient poet, when extolling the pleasures of a country life. 

 "Aut trudit acres hinc et hinc multâ cane Apros in obstante plagas, Aut amite levi rara leiidit retia, Turdis edacibus dolos; Pavidumve leporem, et advenam laqueo gruem, Jucunda captat præmia. "

 (Horace, 'Epode ii. ', v. 31. )

Even after the introduction of the Celtic hound, who, as before stated, was far inferior as regards speed to the present race, it was no easymatter to take the hare, it being necessary to carry several couples ofdogs into the field, and let them slip at certain intervals in thechase, so that the fresh dogs might, in this way, overtake the littleanimal, already frightened and fatigued by previous exertion. 

In reference to this mode of coursing, the younger Xenophon particularlyenjoins that to prevent confusion in the field, naturally arising fromthe hunters letting their dogs loose at improper intervals, fromeagerness to see them run, "that a steward should be appointed over the sport, should match the dogs, and give orders to the field:--if the hare start on this side, you and you are to slip, and nobody else; but if on that side, you and you: and let strict attention be paid to the orders given. " (Arrian, chap. Xx. )

Alciphron, in his familiar epistles descriptive of the domestic mannersof the Greeks, gives a lively description of a course not very differentfrom those of the present day, as will be seen in the following extract:

 "In trying whether the young dogs were fit for the chase, I started a hare from a little bush; my sons loosed the dogs from the slips. They frightened her confoundedly, and were very near taking the game. The hare, in her flight, climbed a steep place, and found a retreat in some burrow. One of the more spirited of the dogs, pressing close upon her, gasping, and expecting to take her in his gripe, went down with her into the hole. In endeavouring to pull out the hare, he broke one of his fore-legs. I lifted up my good dog, with his lame leg, and found the hare half devoured: thus, when I hoped to get something, I encountered a serious loss. " (Letter ix. )

We will close our remarks upon this subject by introducing a fewdescriptive lines, selected from one of the very rare English authorswho have attempted a versification of this exciting sport. 

 "Yet if for silvan sport thy bosom glow, Let thy fleet greyhound urge his flying foe. With what delight the rapid course I view! How does my eye the circling race pursue! He snaps deceitful air with empty jaws; The suttle hare darts swift beneath his paws; She flys, he stretches, now with nimble bound Eager he presses on, but overshoots his ground: Then tears with goary mouth the screaming prey. "

 ('Gay's Poems', vol i. --'Rural Sports', v. 290), --L. ]

Mr. Richardson, in his History of the Greyhound, gives a differentderivation of the name of this dog. He says that the 'greyhound' was ofGrecian origin--'cannis Græcus', --that 'Græcus' was not unfrequentlywritten 'Græius', and thence was derived the term 'greyhound'. Thisderivation, however, is somewhat too far-fetched. 

Mention occurs of the greyhound in a very early period of the Britishhistory. He was an inmate of the Anglo-Saxon kennels in the time ofElfric, king of Mercia. There are paintings of him that can besatisfactorily traced to the ninth century. In the time of Canute he wasreckoned first in degree of rank among the canine species, and no oneunder the degree of a gentleman, 'liberalis', or more properly, perhapsa 'freeholder', was allowed by the forest laws to keep them. Even hecould not keep them within two miles of a royal forest, unless two ofthe toes were cut off and for every mile that an uncut dog was foundwithin this distance a fine of a shilling was levied on the owner. Thenobleman was rarely seen abroad without his hawk upon his fist, and hisgreyhound at his side. 

Henry II was passionately fond of them. John spared no expense toprocure good horses and swift hounds, and appears frequently to havereceived greyhounds in lieu of money on the issue or removal of grants. For the renewal of a grant in the year 1203 he received five hundredmarks, ten horses, and ten leashes of greyhounds, and for another, in1210, one swift running horse and six greyhounds. 

The Isle of Dogs, now devoted to purposes of commerce, received its namefrom its having been, at this period, the receptacle of the greyhoundsand spaniels of this monarch. It was selected on account of itscontiguity to Waltham and the other royal forests where coursing was afrequent amusement. For the same purpose he often took up his abode atGreenwich. [12]

Blount's Ancient Tenures abound with instances of the high repute inwhich this dog has ever been held in Great Britain. The holders of landin the manor of Setene in Kent were compelled, as the condition of theirtenure to Edward I and II, to lend their greyhounds, when this king wentinto Gascony, "so long as a pair of shoes of 4d price would last. "Edward III was partial to greyhounds; for when he was engaged in warwith France he took with him sixty couples of them, besides other largehunting dogs. 

Charles I was as fond of the greyhound as his son Charles II was of thespaniel. Sir Philip Warwick thus writes of that unfortunate monarch;

 "Methinks, because it shows his dislike of a common court vice, it is not unworthy the relating of him, that one evening, his dog scratching at his door, he commanded me to let in Gipsy; whereupon I took, the boldness to say, Sir, I perceive you love a greyhound better than you do a spaniel. Yes, says he, for they equally love their masters, and yet do not flatter them so much. "

On most of the old tombs in the sculpture of which the dog isintroduced, the greyhound is represented lying at the feet of hismaster; and an old Welsh proverb says that a gentleman may be known byhis hawk, his horse, and his greyhound. 

The following poetical record of the fidelity, prowess, and ill-fate ofGêlert, the favourite greyhound of Llewellyn Prince of Wales, andson-in-law to King John, will he read with interest:

 The spearman heard the bugle sound And cheerly smiled the morn, And many a brach and many a hound Obeyed Llewellyn's horn. 

 And still as blew a lowder blast, And gave a louder cheer, "Come, Gêlert! why art thou the last Llewellyn's horn to hear?"

 "Oh, where does faithful Gêlert roam? The flower of all his race! So true, so brave; a lamb at home, A lion in the chase?"

 'Twas only at Lewellyn's board The faithful Gêlert fed, He watched, he served, he cheered his lord, And sentinel'd his bed. 

 In sooth he was a peerless hound, The gift of royal John; But now no Gêlert could be found, And all the chase rode on. 

 And now as over rocks and dells The gallant chidings rise, All Snowdon's craggy chaos yells With many mingled cries. 

 That day llewellyn little loved The chase of hart or hare; And scan and small the booty proved, For Gêlert was not there. 

 Unpleased Llewellyn homeward hied, When near the portal seat His truant Gêlert he espied, Bounding his lord to greet. 

 But when he gained the castle-door, Aghast the chieftan stood; The hound was smeared with gouts of gore-- His lips and fangs ran blood. 

 Llewellyn gazed with wild surprise: Unused such looks to meet, His favourite check'd his joyful guise And crouched and licked his feet. 

 Onward in haste Llewellyn pass'd, And on went Gélert too; And still where'er his eyes he cast, Fresh blood-gouts shocked his view. 

 O'erturned his infant's bed he found, The blood-stained covert rent; And all around the walls and ground, With recent blood besprent. 

 He called his child--no voice replied-- He searched with terror wild: Blood! blood! he found on every side, But nowhere found the child. 

 'Hellhound! by thee my child's devoured!' The frantic father cried; And to the hilt his vengeful sword He plunged in Gélert's side. 

 His suppliant, as to earth he fell, No pity could impart; But still his Gélert's dying yell Passed heavy o'er his heart. 

 Aroused by Gélert's dying yell, Some slumberer wakened nigh: What words the parent's joy can tell To hear his infant cry!

 Concealed beneath a mangled heap His hurried search had missed, All glowing from his rosy sleep, His cherub boy he kissed. 

 Nor scratch had he, nor harm, nor dread, But the same couch beneath, Lay a great wolf, all torn and dead, Tremendous still in death. 

 Ah, what was then Llewellyn's pain! For now the truth was clear: The gallant hound the wolf had slain, To save Llewellyn's heir. 

 Vain, vain was all Llewellyn's wo: "Best of thy kind, adieu! The frantic deed which laid thee low, This heart shall ever rue. "

 And now a gallant tomb they raise, With costly sculpture decked; And marbles, storied with his praise, Poor Gélert's bones protect. 

 Here never could the spearman pass, Or forester, unmoved; Here oft the tear-besprinkled grass Llewellyn's sorrow proved. 

 And here he hung his horn and spear; And oft, as evening fell, In fancy's piercing sounds would hear Poor Gêlert's dying yell!

It will be evident, however, from the story of the noble hound whosehistory is just related, that the greyhounds of the time were verydifferent from those which are used at the present day. There are noGêlerts now to combat successfully with the wolf, if these ferociousanimals were yet to be met with in our forests. The greyhound of thisearly period must have resembled the Irish wolf-dog of the present day, a larger, stronger, fiercer dog than we are accustomed to see. 

The owner of Gêlert lived in the time of John, in the early part of thethirteenth century; but, at the latter part of the fifteenth century, the following singular description is given of the greyhound of thatperiod. It is extracted from a very curious work entitled "The Treatiseperteynynge to Hawkynge, Huntynge, &c. , emprynted at Westmestre, byWynkyn de Werde, 1496. "

 A greyhounde should be headed lyke a snake, And neckyd lyke a drake, Fotyd lyke a cat Tayled lyke a ratte, Syded like a teme And chyned like a bream. The fyrste yere he must lerne to fede, The seconde yere to feld him lede. The thyrde yere he is felow lyke. The fourth yere there is non syke. The fifth yere he is good ynough. The syxth yere he shall hold the plough, The seventh yere he will avaylle Grete bytches for assayle. But when he is come to the ninth yere Have him then to the tannere; For the best hounde that ever bytch had At the ninth yere is full bad. 

As to the destiny of the poor animal in his ninth year, we differ fromthe author; but it cannot be denied that few dogs retain their speedbeyond the eighth or ninth year. 

There can scarcely be a better description of the greyhound of thepresent day; but it would not do for the antagonist of the wolf. Thebreed had probably begun to degenerate, and that process would seem tohave slowly progressed. Towards the close of the last century, LordOrford, a nobleman enthusiastically devoted to coursing, imagined, andrightly, that the greyhound of his day was deficient in courage andperseverance. He bethought himself how this could best be rectified, andhe adopted a plan which brought upon him much ridicule at the time, butultimately redounded to his credit. He selected a bull-dog, one of thesmooth rat-tailed species, and he crossed one of his greyhound bitcheswith him. He kept the female whelps and crossed them with some of hisfleetest dogs, and the consequence was, that, after the sixth or seventhgeneration, there was not a vestige left of the form of the bulldog; buthis courage and his indomitable perseverance remained, and, having oncestarted after his game, he did not relinquish chase until he fellexhausted or perhaps died. This cross is now almost universally adopted. It is one of the secrets in the breeding of the greyhound. 

Of the stanchness of the well-bred greyhound, the following is asatisfactory example. A hare was started before a brace of greyhounds, and ran by them for several miles. When they were found, both the dogsand the hare lay dead within a few yards of each other. A labouring manhad seen them turn her several times; but it did not appear that eitherof them had caught her, for there was no wound upon her. 

A favourite bitch of this breed was Czarina, bred by Lord Orford, andpurchased at his decease by Colonel Thornton: she won every match forwhich she started, and they were no fewer than forty-seven. Lord Orfordhad matched her for a stake of considerable magnitude; but, before theappointed day arrived, he became seriously ill and was confined to hischamber. On the morning of the course he eluded the watchfulness of hisattendant, saddled his favourite piebald pony, and, at the moment ofstarting, appeared on the course. No one had power to restrain him, andall entreaties were in vain. He peremptorily insisted on the dogs beingstarted, and he would ride after them. His favourite bitch displayed hersuperiority at every stroke; she won the stakes: but at the moment ofhighest exultation he fell from his pony, and, pitching on his head, almost immediately expired. With all his eccentricities, he was a kind, benevolent, and honourable man. 

In the thirteenth year of her age, and in defiance of the strange versesjust now quoted, Czarina began to breed, and two of her progeny, Claretand young Czarina, challenged the whole kingdom and won their matches. Major, and Snowball, without a white spot about him, inherited all theexcellence of their dam. The former was rather the fleeter of the two, but the stanchness of Snowball nothing could exceed. A Scotch greyhound, who had beaten every opponent in his own country, was at this timebrought to England, and challenged every dog in the kingdom. Thechallenge was accepted by Snowball, who beat him in a two-mile course. Snowball won the Mailton cup on four successive years, was never beaten, and some of his blood is now to be traced in almost every good dog inevery part of the kingdom, at least in all those that are accustomed tohunt in an open country. The last match run by Snowball was against Mr. Plumber's celebrated greyhound Speed; and, so severely contested was it, that Speed died soon afterwards. A son of the old dog, called YoungSnowball, who almost equalled his father, was sold for one hundredguineas. 

The speed of the greyhound has been said to be equal to that of thefleetest horse. A singular circumstance, which occurred at Doncaster, proved that it was not much inferior. A mare cantering over theDoncaster course, her competitor having been withdrawn, was joined by agreyhound bitch when she had proceeded about a mile. She seemeddetermined to race with the mare, which the jockey humoured, andgradually increased his pace, until at the distance they put themselvesat their full speed. The mare beat her antagonist only by a head. Therace-horse is, perhaps, generally superior to the greyhound on levelground, but the greyhound would have the advantage in a hilly country. 

Lord Rivers succeeded to Major Topham and Colonel Thornton, the ownersof Major and Snowball, as the leading man on the course. His kennels atStrathfieldsaye were the pride of the neighbouring country. At first hebore away almost every prize, but breeding too much in and in, and forspeed more than for stoutness, the reputation of his kennel considerablydeclined before his death. 

In 1797 a brace of greyhounds coursed a hare over the edge of achalk-pit at Offham, in Sussex. The hare and both the dogs were founddead at the bottom of the pit. 

On another occasion a hare was chased by a brace of greyhounds: she waskilled at the distance of seven miles from the place at which theystarted. Both of the dogs were so exhausted, that every possibleassistance being given, they were with difficulty recovered. 

The English greyhound hunts by sight alone; not because he is altogetherdevoid of scent, but because he has been taught to depend upon hisspeed, and that degree of speed which is utterly incompatible with thesearching out of the scent. It is like a pack of hounds, running breasthigh, with the game in view. They are then running by sight, and not byscent, almost doubling their usual pace, and sometimes, from anunexpected turning of the fox or hare, thrown out for a little while. The hound soon recovers the track by his exquisite sense of smell. TheEnglish greyhound is never taught to scent his game, but, on thecontrary, is called off the moment he has lost sight of the hare, there-starting of which is left to the spaniel. 

The English greyhound is distinguished by its peculiarly long andattenuated head and face, terminating in a singular sharpness of thenose, and length of the muzzle or month. There are two results fromthis: the length of the mouth gives a longer grasp and secures the prey, but, as the nasal cavities and the cavity of the skull areproportionately diminished, there is not so much room for the expansionof the membrane of the nose, there is less power of scent, and lessspace for the development of the brain. 

There is little want of extraordinary acute hearing, and the ears of thegreyhound are small compared with his bulk. Markham recommends the earsto be close, sharp, and drooping, neither protruding by their bulk, nortiring by their weight. 

The power of the eye is but of little consequence, for the game israrely distant from the dog, and therefore, easily seen. 

The neck is an important portion of the frame. It should be long, inorder to correspond with the length of the legs, and thus enable the dogto seize and lift the game, as he rapidly pursues his course, withoutthrowing any undue or dangerous weight on the fore extremities. In theact of seizing the hare the short-necked dog may lose the centre ofgravity and fall. 

The chest is a very important part of the greyhound, as well as of everyother animal of speed. It must be capacious: this capacity must beobtained by depth rather than by width, in order that the shoulders maynot be thrown so far apart as to impede progression. 

The form and situation of the shoulders are of material consequence; foron them depends the extent of the action which the animal is capable ofexerting. The shoulders should be broad and deep, and obliquely placed. They are so in the horse, and the action of the dog depends entirely onthis conformation. 

The fore legs should be set on square at the shoulder: bulging out atthe elbow not only gives a clumsy appearance, but makes the dog slow. The legs should have plenty of bone, and be straight, and well set onthe feet, and the toes neither turned out nor in. The fore arm, or thatportion of the leg which is between the elbow and the knee, should belong, straight and muscular. These are circumstances that cannot bedispensed with. The length of the fore arm, and the low placing of thepastern, are of essential importance. 

With regard to the form of the back and sides of the greyhound, Mr. Thacker says, with much truth, that

 "It is the strength of the back which is brought into requisition, in particular, in running over hilly ground. Here may be said to rest the distinction between long and short backs, supposing both to be good and strong. The more lengthy the back, and proportionately strong, the more the greyhound is calculated to beat the shorter-backed dog on the flat; but on hilly ground one with a shorter back will have the advantage. " [13]

The ribs should also be well arched. We would perhaps avoid him withsides too decidedly outswelling, but still more would we avoid thedirect flat-sided dog. 

Without really good haunches and muscular thighs, it has been wellremarked that the odds are against any dog, be his other points whateverthey may. It is by the propulsatory efforts of the muscles of the loinsand thighs that the race is won. The thighs should be large, andmuscularly indented; the hocks broad, and, like the knee, low placed. These are very important points; for, as Mr. Blaine has properlyremarked, "on the extent of the angles formed between these severalportions of the hinder limbs, depends the extent of the space passedover at each bound. "

The colour of the greyhound varies exceedingly. Some are perfectly blackand glossy. In strength and endurance, the brindled dog, or the brown orfawn-coloured one, is the best. The white greyhound, although abeautiful animal and swift, is not, perhaps, quite so much to bedepended on. 

The greyhound is said to be deficient in attachment to his master and ingeneral intelligence. There is some truth in the imputation; but, infact, the greyhound has, far less than even the hound, the opportunityof forming individual attachments, and no other exercise of the mind isrequired of him than to follow the game which starts up before him, andto catch it if he can. If, however, he is closely watched he will befound to have all the intellect that his situation requires. [14]

As to the individual attachment which the greyhound may form, he has notalways or often the opportunity to acquire or to exhibit it. The keeperexercises over him a tyrannical power, and the owner seldom notices himin the manner which excites affection, or scarcely recognition; but, asa plea for the seeming want of fondness, which, compared with otherbreeds, he exhibits, it will be sufficient to quote the testimony of theyounger Xenophon, who had made the greyhound his companion and hisfriend. 

 "I have myself bred up, " says he, "a swift, hard-working, courageous, sound-footed dog. He is most gentle and kindly affectioned, and never before had I any such a dog for myself, or my friend, or my fellow-sportsman. When he is not actually engaged in coursing, he is never away from me. On his return he runs before me, often looking back to see whether I had turned out of the road, and as soon as he again catches sight of me, showing symptoms of joy, and once more trotting away before me. If a short time only has passed since he has seen me or my friend, he jumps up repeatedly by way of salutation, and barks with joy as a greeting to us. He has also many different tones of speech, and such as I never heard from any other dog. Now really I do not think that I ought to be ashamed to chronicle the name of this dog, or to let posterity know that Xenophon the Athenian had a greyhound, called Hormé, possessed of the greatest speed, and intelligence, and fidelity, and excellent in every point. "

[The Greek sportsmen held their dogs in peculiar estimation; they werenot only their attendants in the field, but their constant companions intheir houses, were fed from their tables, and even shared their beds. Itis with some degree of pleasure that the patrons of this noble animalwill witness, in the following remarks, the tender solicitude with whichthis people watched over their dogs. 

 "There is nothing like a soft and warm bed for greyhounds, but it is best for them to sleep with men, as they become thereby affectionately attached, pleased with the contact of the human body, and as fond of their bed-fellow as of their feeder. If any ailing affect the dog the man will perceive it, and will relieve him in the night, when thirsty, or urged by any call of nature. He will also know how the dog has rested. For if he has passed a sleepless night, or groaned frequently in his sleep, or thrown up any of his food, it will not be safe to take him out coursing. All these things the dog's bed-fellow will be acquainted with. " (Arrian, chap. Ix. Trans. )

It was also not an unusual circumstance for the most polished Greeks, when sending notes of invitation to their friends, requesting theirpresence in celebration of some festive occasion, to extend the samecivilities to their favourite dogs, by desiring them to be broughtalong, as will be seen by the following paragraph selected from a letterof this kind addressed by one friend to another. 

 "I am about to celebrate the birth-day of my son, and I invite you, my Pithacion, to the feast. But come not alone; bring with you your wife, children, and your brother. If you will bring also your bitch, who is a good guard, and by the loudness of her voice drives away the enemies of your flocks, she will not, I warrant, disdain to be partaker of our feast, &c. " (Letter xviii. , Alciphron's Epistles. )--L. ]

The greyhound has within the last fifty years assumed a somewhatdifferent character from that which he once possessed. He isdistinguished by a beautiful symmetry of form, of which he once couldnot boast, and he has even superior speed to that which he formerlyexhibited. He is no longer used to struggle with the deer, but hecontends with his fellow over a shorter and speedier course. 

The rules for breeding and breaking-in of greyhounds are very simple. The utmost attention should be paid to the qualities of the parents; forit is as certain in these dogs as in the horse that all depends upon thebreeding. The bitch should be healthy and of good size; the dogmuscular, stanch, and speedy, and somewhat larger than the bitch. Bothshould have arrived at their full vigour, and with none of their powersbeginning to fail. Those as much as possible should be selected whosepeculiar appearance bids fair to increase the good qualities anddiminish the bad ones on either side. The best blood and the best formshould be diligently sought. Breeding from young dogs on either sideshould, generally speaking, be avoided. With regard to older dogs, whether male or female, there may be less care. Many greyhounds, bothmale and female, eight, nine, and ten years of age, have been theprogenitors of dogs possessing every stanch and good quality. 

On no consideration, however, should the bitch be put to the dog beforeshe is two years old. Little can be done to regulate the period ofoestrum; but the most valuable breed will be almost invariably thatwhich is produced during the spring, because at that time there willoften be opportunity for that systematic exercise on which the growthand powers of the dog so materially depend. A litter of puppies in thebeginning or even the middle of winter will often be scarcely worth thetrouble or expense of rearing. 

The age of the greyhound is now taken from the first day in the year;but the conditions of entry are fixed at different periods. It seems, however, to be agreed that no dog or bitch can qualify for a puppy cupafter two years of ago. 

One principle to be ever kept in mind is a warm and comfortablesituation, and a plentiful supply of nourishment for the mother and forthe puppies from the moment of their birth. The dog that is stinted inhis early growth will never do its owner credit. The bitch should beabundantly supplied with milk, and the young ones with milk and bread, and oatmeal, and small portions of flesh as soon as they are disposed toeat it; great care, however, being taken that they are not over-gorged. Regular and proper feeding, with occasional exercise, will constitutethe best preparation for the actual training. If a foster-mother berequired for the puppies, it should, if possible, be a greyhound; for itis not at all impossible that the bad qualities of the nurse may to agreater or less degree be communicated to the whelps. Bringing up byhand is far preferable to the introduction of any foster-mother. A glassor Indian-rubber bottle may be used for a little while, if not until theweaning. Milk at first, and afterwards milk and sop alternately, may beused. 

There is a difference of opinion whether the whelp should be kept in thekennel and subjected to its regular discipline, or placed at walk insome farm-house. In consequence of the liberty he will enjoy at thelatter, his growth will probably be more rapid; but, running with thefarmers' dogs, and probably coursing many hares, he will acquire, to acertain degree, a habit of wildness. It is useless to deny this; but, onthe other hand, nothing will contribute so much to the development ofevery power as a state of almost unlimited freedom when the dogs areyoung. The wildness that will be exhibited can soon be afterwardsrestrained so far as is necessary, and the dog who has been permitted toexert his powers when young will manifest his superiority in moreadvanced age, and in nothing more than his dexterity at the turn. 

When the training actually commences, it should be preceded by a coupleof doses of physic, with an interval of five or six days, and, probably, a moderate bleeding between them; for, if the dog begins to workoverloaded with flesh and fat, he will suffer so severely from it thatpossibly he will never afterwards prove a game dog. In the course of histraining he should be allowed every advantage and experience everyencouragement. His courses should be twice or thrice a-week, accordingto their severity, and as often as it can be effected be should berewarded with some mark of kindness. 

In the 'Sportsman' for April, 1840, is an interesting account of thechase of the hare. It is said that, in general, a good greyhound willreach a hare if she runs straight. He pursues her eagerly, and themoment he is about to strike at her she turns short, and the dog, unableto stop himself, is thrown from ten to twenty yards from her. Thesejerking turns soon begin to tell upon a dog, and an old well-practisedhare will seldom fail to make her escape. When, however, pursued by acouple of dogs, the hare has a more difficult game to play, as itfrequently happens that when she is turned by the leading dog she hasgreat difficulty in avoiding the stroke of the second. 

It is highly interesting to witness the game of an old hare. She hasgenerally some brake or thicket in view, under the cover of which shemeans to escape from her pursuers. On moving from her seat she makesdirectly for the hiding-place, but, unable to reach it, has recourse toturning, and, 'wrenched' by one or the other of her pursuers, she seemsevery moment almost in the jaws of one of them, and yet in a mostdexterous manner she accomplishes her object. A greyhound, when heperceives a hare about to enter a thicket, is sure to strike at her ifwithin any reasonable distance. The hare shortens her stride as sheapproaches the thicket, and at the critical moment she makes so sudden, dexterous, and effectual a spring, that the dogs are flung to aconsiderable distance, and she has reached the cover and escaped. 

The isle of Cyprus has for many years been celebrated for its breed ofthe greyhound. On grand days, or when the governor is present, the sportis conducted in a curious manner. When the hare is ready to become theprey of its enemies, the governor rushes forwards, and, throwing beforethe greyhounds a stick which he carries, they all instantaneously stop. The hare now runs a little distance; but one of the swiftest greyhoundsis then let loose. He pursues the hare, and, having come up with it, carries it back, and, springing on the neck of the governor's horse, places it before him. The governor delivers it to one of his officers, who sends it to the park, where he maintains many prisoners of the samekind; for he will not destroy the animal that has contributed to hisamusement. [15]

The following, according to Mr. Blaine, an ardent courser in his youth, is the best mode of feeding greyhounds at regular work:

 "The dogs had a full flesh meal every afternoon or evening, as more nutriment is derived from night-feeding than by day, and when sleeping than when waking. In the morning they were let out, and either followed the keeper about the paddock, or the groom in his horse exercise, and then had a trifling meat of mixed food, as a quieting portion, until the evening full meal. Such was our practice on the days when no coursing was contemplated, and, with the exception of lowering the quantity and quality of the evening meal, the same plan was pursued throughout the year. On the day previous to coursing, if we intended anything like an exhibition of our dogs before company engaged to meet us on the marshes, we gave a plentiful meal early the previous day, some exercise also in the afternoon, and a light supper at night, of meal with either broth or milk, with a man on horseback going a gentle trot of six or seven miles an hour. " [16]

Mr. Thacker orders the greyhounds out on the fore part of every day;but, instead of being loose and at liberty, they would be much bettertwo and two; then, when he meets with a proper field to loose them in, to give them a good gallop. This will be a greater novelty than if theyhad been loose on the road, and they will gallop with more eagerness. Four days in a week will be enough for this exercise. On one day thereshould he a gallop of one or two miles, or even a course for each braceof dogs. 

The young dog has usually an older and more experienced one to startwith him. That which is of most importance is, that his leader should bea thoroughly stout and high-mettled dog. If he shrinks or shies at anyimpediment, however formidable, the young one will be sure to imitatehim, and to become an uncertain dog, if not a rank coward. Early inNovember is the time when these initiatory trials are to be made. It isof consequence that the young one should witness a death as soon aspossible. Some imagine that two old dogs should accompany the young oneat its first commencement. After the death of the leveret, the young dogmust be coaxed and fondled, but never suffered to taste the blood. 

In kennels in which the training is regularly conducted, the dog shouldbe brushed all over twice every day. Few things contribute so much tohealth as general cleanliness, and friction applied to the skin. Warmthis as necessary for greyhounds as for horses, and should not beforgotten in cold weather. Body-clothing is a custom of considerableantiquity, and should not be abandoned. The breeder of greyhounds forthe purpose of coursing must reckon upon incurring considerable expense;but, if he loves the sport, ho will be amply remunerated by the speedand stoutness of his dogs. 

A question has arisen whether, on the morning of the coursing, anystimulant should be given to the dog. The author of this work wouldunhesitatingly approve of this practice. He has had abundant experienceof the good effect of it; but the stimulus must be that which, while itproduces the desired effect, leaves no exhaustion behind. [17]

THE SCOTCH GREYHOUND

has the same sharpness of muzzle, length of head, lightness of ear, anddepth of chest, as the English dog; but the general frame is strongerand more muscular, the hind quarters more prominent, there is evidentincrease of size and roughness of coat, and there is also somediminution of speed. If it were not for these points, these dogs mightoccasionally be taken for each other. In coursing the hare, nonorth-country dog will stand against the lighter southern, although thesouthern would be unequal to the labour often required from theHighlander. 

The Scotch greyhound is said--perhaps wrongly--to be oftenest used bythose who look more to the quantity of game than to the fairness andopenness of the sport, and in some parts of the country this dog is notpermitted to be entered for a sweepstakes, because, instead of dependingon his speed alone, as does the English greyhound, he has recourse tooccasional artifices in order to intercept the hare. In sportinglanguage he runs sly, and, therefore, is sometimes excluded. 

THE HIGHLAND GREYHOUND, OR DEER-HOUND

is a larger, stronger, and fiercer dog, and may be readily distinguishedfrom the Lowland Scotch greyhound by its pendulous, and, generally, darker ears, and by the length of hair which almost covers his face. Many accounts have been given of the perfection of its scent, and it issaid to have followed a wounded deer during two successive days. He isusually two inches taller than the Scotch greyhound. The head is carriedparticularly high, and gives to the animal a noble appearance. His limbsare exceedingly muscular, his back beautifully arched. The tail is longand curved, but assumes the form of an almost straight line when he ismuch excited. The only fault which these dogs have is their occasionalill-temper, or even ferocity; but this does not extend to the owner andhis family. 

It appears singular that the English greyhound exhibits so little powerof scent; but this is simply because he has never been taught to use it, or has been cruelly corrected when he has attempted to exercise it. 

Holinshed relates the mischief that followed the stealing of one ofthese dogs:

 "Divers of the young Pictesh nobilitye repaired unto Craithlint, King of the Scots, for to hunt and make merie with him; but, when they should depart homewards, perceiving that the Scotish dogs did far excel theirs, both in fairnesse, swiftnesse, and hardinesse, and also in long standing up and holding out, they got diverse both dogs and bitches of the best kind for breed, to be given them by the Scotish Lords: and yet not so contented, they stole one belonging to the King from his keeper, being more esteemed of him than all the others which he had about him. The maister of the leash, being informed hereof pursued after them that had stolen the dog, thinking, indeed, to have taken him from them: but they not being to part with him fell at altercation, and at the end chanced to strike the maister of the leash through with their horse spears, so that he did die presently. Whereupon noise and crie being raised in the country by his servantes, divers of the Scots, as they were going home from hunting, returned, and falling upon the Picts to revenge the death of their fellow, there ensued a shrewed bickering betwixt them; so that of the Scots there died three score gentlemen, besides a great number of the commons, not one of them understanding what the matter meant. Of the Picts there were about 100 slaine. "

Mr. H. D. Richardson describes a cross between the greyhound and Britishbloodhound:

 "It is a tall muscular raw-boned dog, the ears far larger, and more pendulous, than those of the greyhound or deer-hound. The colour is generally black, or black and tan; his muzzle and the tips of the ears usually dark. He is exceedingly swift and fierce; can pull down a stag single-handed; runs chiefly by sight, but will also occasionally take up the scent. In point of scent, however, he is inferior to the true deer-hound. This dog cannot take a turn readily, but often fails at the double. " [18]

THE IRISH GREYHOUND. 

This dog differs from the Scotch, in having shorter and finer hair, of apale fawn colour, and pendent ears. It is, compared with the Scotch dog, gentle and harmless, perhaps indolent, until roused. It is a larger dogthan the Scottish dog, some of them being full four feet in length, andproportionately muscular. On this account, and also on account of theirdetermined spirit when roused, they were carefully preserved by someIrish gentlemen. They were formerly used in hunting the wolf when thatanimal infested the forests of Ireland. Mr. Bell says that the lastperson who kept the pure breed was Lord Altamont, who in 1780 "had eightof them. " [19]

THE GASEHOUND, the 'agasaeus' of former times, was probably allied to, or connectedwith, the Irish greyhound. It hunted entirely by sight, and, if its preywas lost for a time, it could recover it by a singular distinguishingfaculty. Should the deer rejoin the herd, the dog would unerringlyselect him again from all his companions:

 "Seest thou the gasehound how with glance severe From the close herd he marks the destined deer?" [20]

There is no dog possessed of this quality at present known in Europe;but the translator of Arrian thinks that it might be produced betweenthe Irish greyhound and the bloodhound. 

THE IRISH WOLF-DOG

This animal is nearly extinct, or only to be met with at the mansions ofone or two persons by whom he is kept more for show than use, the wildanimals which he seemed powerful enough to conquer having longdisappeared from the kingdom. The beauty of his appearance and theantiquity of his race are his only claims, as he disdains the chase ofstag, fox, or hare, although he is ever ready to protect the person andthe property of his master. His size is various, some having attainedthe height of four feet, and Dr. Goldsmith stales that he saw one aslarge as a yearling calf. He is shaped like a greyhound, but stouter;and the only dog which the writer from whom this account is taken eversaw approaching to his graceful figure, combining beauty with strength, is the large Spanish wolf-dog: concerning which he adds, that, showingone of these Spanish dogs to some friends, he leaped through a windowinto a cow-house, where a valuable calf was lying, and seizing theterrified animal, killed it in an instant; some sheep having in the sameway disappeared, he was given away. The same writer says that hisgrandfather had an Irish wolf-dog which saved his mother's life from awolf as she was paying a visit attended by this faithful follower. Herushed on his foe just when he was about to make his spring, and after afierce struggle laid him dead at his mistress's feet. His name was Bran. [21]

THE RUSSIAN GREYHOUND

is principally distinguished by its dark-brown or iron-grey colour--itsshort semi-erect ears--its thin lanky body--long but muscular legs--softthick hair, and the hair of its tail forming a spiral twist, or fan, (thence called the fan-tailed dog, ) and as he runs having a verypleasing appearance. He hunts by scent as well as by sight, and, therefore, small packs of this kind are sometimes kept, against whichthe wolf, or even the bear, would stand little chance. He is principallyused for the chase of the deer or the wolf, but occasionally follows thehare. The deer is the principal object of pursuit, and for this he isfar better adapted than to contend with the ferocious wolf. Hisprincipal faults are want of activity and dexterity. He is met with inmost parts of Russia, where his breed is carefully preserved by thenobility, with whom coursing is a favourite diversion. 

Some dogs of this breed were not long ago introduced into Ireland. 

THE GRECIAN GREYHOUND

The author is glad that he is enabled to present his readers with theportrait of one now in the menagerie of the Zoological Society ofLondon. It is the dog whose image is occasionally sculptured on thefriezes of some of the ancient Grecian temples, and was doubtless afaithful portrait of one of the dogs which Xenophon the Athenian valued, and was the companion of the heroes of Greece in her ancient glory. 

The principal difference between the Grecian and the English greyhoundis, that the former is not so large, the muzzle is not so pointed, andthe limbs are not so finely framed. 

THE TURKISH GREYHOUND

is a small-sized hairless dog, or with only a few hairs on his tail. Heis never used in the field, and bred only as a spoiled pet, yet notalways spoiled, for anecdotes are related of his inviolable attachmentto his owner. One of them belonged to a Turkish Pacha who was destroyedby the bowstring. He would not forsake the corpse, but laid himself downby the body of his murdered master, and presently expired. 

THE PERSIAN GREYHOUND

is a beautiful animal. He is more delicately framed than the Englishbreed; the ears are also more pendulous, and feathered almost as much asthose of a King Charles's spaniel. Notwithstanding, however, hisapparent slenderness and delicacy, he yields not in courage, andscarcely in strength, to the British dog. There are few kennels in whichhe is found in which he is not the master. 

In his native country, he is not only used for hunting the hare, but theantelope, the wild ass, and even the boar. The antelope is speedier thanthe greyhound: therefore the hawk is given to him as an ally. Theantelope is no sooner started than the hawk is cast off, who, flutteringbefore the head of the deer, and sometimes darting his talons into hishead, disconcerts him, and enables the greyhound speedily to overtakeand master him. The chase, however, in which the Persians chieflydelight, and for which these greyhounds are mostly valued, is that ofthe 'ghoo-khan', or wild ass. This animal inhabits the mountainousdistricts of Persia. He is swift, ferocious, and of great endurance, which, together with the nature of the ground, renders this sportexceedingly dangerous. The hunter scarcely gives the animal a fairchance, for relays of greyhounds are placed at various distances in thesurrounding country; so that, when those by which the animal is firststarted are tired, there are others to continue the chase. Such, however, is the speed and endurance of the ghoo-khan, that it is seldomfairly run down by the greyhounds, its death being usually achieved bythe rifle of some horseman. The Persians evince great skill and couragein this dangerous sport, galloping at full speed, rifle in hand, up anddown the most precipitous hills, and across ravines and mountainstreams, that might well daunt the boldest rider. [22]

The Persian greyhound, carried to Hindoostan, is not always to bedepended upon; but, it is said, is apt to console itself by hunting itsown master, or any one else, when the game proves too fleet or escapesinto the cover. 

THE ITALIAN GREYHOUND

possesses all the symmetry of the English or Persian one, on a smallscale. So far as beauty can recommend it, and, generally speaking, goodnature, it is deservedly a favourite in the drawingroom; but, like thelarge greyhound, it is inferior in intelligence. It has no strongindividual attachment, but changes it with singular facility. It is not, however, seen to advantage in its petted and degraded state, but hasoccasionally proved a not unsuccessful courser of the rabbit and thehare, and exhibited no small share of speed and perseverance. In acountry, however, the greater part of which is infested with wolves, itcannot be of much service, but exposed to unnecessary danger. It is bredalong the coasts of Italy, principally for the purpose of sale toforeigners. 

In order to acquire more perfect beauty of form, and more activity also, the English greyhound has received one cross from the Italian, and withdecided advantage. The speed and the beauty have been evidentlyincreased, and the courage and stoutness have not been diminished. 

It has been said that Frederick the Great of Prussia was very fond of asmall Italian greyhound, and used to carry it about with him under hiscloak. During the seven years' war, he was pursued by a party ofAustrian dragoons, and compelled to take shelter, with his favourite, under the dry arch of a bridge. Had the little animal, that wasnaturally ill-tempered and noisy, once barked, the monarch would havebeen taken prisoner, and the fate of the campaign and of Prussiadecided; but it lay perfectly still, and clung close to its master, asif conscious of their mutual danger. When it died, it was buried in thegardens of the palace at Berlin, and a suitable inscription placed overits grave. 

[Footnote 1: 'Annals of Sporting', vol. Vi. P. 99. ]

[Footnote 2: The superstition of the Arabians and Turks with regard todogs is somewhat singular: neither have they much affection for theseanimals, or suffer them to be in or near the camp, except to guard it inthe night. They have, however, some charity for the females that havewhelps. As for other dogs, they feed them well, and give them goodwords, but never touch them nor go near them, because dogs are regardedas unclean animals. They particularly drive them away in wet weather;for, if one drop of water from a dog should fall on their raiment, theirdevotion would be interrupted and useless. They who are fond of huntingmake their religion subservient to their pleasure, and say thatgreyhounds and setters are excepted from the general rule, because whennot running these dogs are tied up where nothing unclean can reach them, and they are never suffered to eat any thing unclean. Their opinion isthe same with regard to small dogs, which are kept with great care, andno one willingly injures a dog, or, if he should injure purposely, ordestroy one of them, the law would punish him. Chevalier Darvieux's'Travels in Arabia Deserta', 1718, p. 155. ]

[Footnote 3: 'Heber's Narrative', p. 500. ]

[Footnote 4: 'Histoire du Chien', par Elzear Blaze, p. 54. ]

[Footnote 5: 'Proceedings of the Zoological Society', Part I. 833. ]

[Footnote 6: Williamson's 'Oriental Field Sports']

[Footnote 7: Poiret, in his 'Travels in Barbary' asserts that

 "the dog loses in the East a great part of those good qualities that make him the friend of man. He is no longer a faithful domesticated animal, faithfully attached to his master, and ever ready to defend him even at the expense of his own life. He is cruel and blood-thirsty, his look is savage, and his appearance revolting; carrion, filth, anything is good enough for him if he can but appease his hunger. They seldom bite one another, but they unite against a stranger who approaches the Arab tents, and would tear him to pieces if he did not seek his safety in flight. " Vol. I. P. 353. 

Denon, when in the city of Alexandria, in Egypt, says, "I have no longer recognised the dog, that friend of man, the attached and faithful companion--the lively and honest courtier. He is here a gloomy egotist, and cut off from all human intercourse without being the less a slave. He does not know him whose house he protects, and devours his corpse without repugnance. " Travels in Lower Egypt, p. 32. ]

[Footnote 8: 'Histoire du Chien', p. 200. The Voyage of Dumontd'Urville, vol. Ii. P. 474. ]

[Footnote 9: Greyhound. ]

[Footnote 10: Overcast, or overrun. ]

[Footnote 11: Ovid, 'Metamorph. ', lib. I. V. 353. ]

[Footnote 12: A singular story is told of Richard II, and one of thesedogs. It is given in the language of Froissart. 

 "A grayhounde called Mithe, who always wayted upon the kynge, and would knowe no man els. For when so ever the kynge did ryde, he that kept the grayhounde dyd lette him lose, and he wolde streyght runne to the kynge and faune uppon hym, and leape with his fore fete uppon the kynge's shoulders. And, as the kynge and the Erle of Derby talked togyder in the courte, the grayhounde who was wonte to leape uppon the kynge, left the kynge and came to the Erle of Derby, Duke of Lancastre; and made to him the same friendly continuance and chere as he was wonte to do to the kynge. The duke, who knewe not the grayhounde, demanded of the kynge what the grayhounde wolde do? 'Cousin, ' qoud the kynge, 'it is a greate goode token to you, and an evyl signe to me. ' 'How knowe you that?' quod the duke. 'I knowe it well, ' quod the kynge. 'The grayhounde acknowledgeth you here this daye as Kynge of England, as ye shall be, and I shal be deposed; the grayhounde hath this knowledge naturally: therefore take hyme to you, he wyll followe you and forsake me. ' The duke understood well those words, and cheryshed the grayhounde, who would never after followe kynge Richarde, but followed the duke of Lancastre. "]

[Footnote 13: 'Thacker on Sporting'. ]

[Footnote 14: The writer of this work had a brace of greyhounds asarrant thieves as ever lived. They would now and then steal into thecooking-room belonging to the kennel, lift the lid from the boiler, and, if any portion of the joint or piece of meat projected above the water, suddenly seize it, and before there was time for them to feel much ofits heat, contrive to whirl it on the floor, and eat it at their leisureas it got cold. In order to prevent this, the top of the boiler wassecured by an iron rod passing under its handle of the boiler on eachside; but not many days passed ere they discovered that they could gnawthe cords asunder, and displace the rod, and fish out the meat asbefore. Small chains were then substituted for the cords, and the meatwas cooked in safety for nearly a week, when they found that, by rearingthemselves on their hind legs, and applying their united strengthtowards the top of the boiler they could lift it out of its bed and rollit along the floor, and so get at the broth, although the meat was outof their reach. The man who looked after them expressed himself heartilyglad when they were gone; for, he said, he was often afraid to go intothe kennel, and was sure they were devils, and not dogs. ]

[Footnote 15: Scott's 'Sportsman's Repository', p. 97. ]

[Footnote 16: Blaine's 'Encyclopedia of Sporting'. ]

[Footnote 17: For a set of laws for Coursing Matches. See Appendix. ]

[Footnote 18: 'Sportsman', vol. Xi. P. 314]

[Footnote 19: Bell's 'British Quadrupeds', p. 241. ]

[Footnote 20: Tickell's 'Miscellanies']

[Footnote 21: 'Sporting Mag. ' 1837, p. 156. ]

[Footnote 22: 'New Sports. Mag. ' xiii. 124. ]

 * * * * *

CHAPTER III. 

THE VARIETIES OF THE DOG. 

SECOND DIVISION. 

 The head moderately elongated, the parietals not approaching from their insertion, but rather diverging, so as to enlarge the cerebral cavities and the frontal sinuses; consequently giving to these dogs greater power of scent and intelligence. They constitute the most pleasing and valuable division of the Dog. 

The Spaniel is evidently the parent of the Newfoundland dog and thesetter; while the retriever, the poodle, the Bernardine, the Esquimaux, the Siberian, and the Greenland dogs, the shepherd and drover's dog, andevery variety distinguished for intelligence and fidelity, have more orless of his blood in them. 

THE SPANIEL

is probably of Spanish origin, and thence his name. The ears are largeand pendent, the tail elevated, the fur of a different length indifferent parts of the body, but longest about the ears, under the neck, behind the thighs and on the tail, varying in colour, but most commonlywhite with brown or black patches. 

There are many varieties of the spaniel. The smallest of the 'land'spaniels is

THE COCKER. 

It is chiefly used in flushing woodcocks and pheasants in thickets andcopses into which the setter, and even the springer, can scarcely enter. 

 "But, if the shady woods my cares employ, In quest of feathered game my spaniels beat, Puzzling the entangled copse, and from the brake Push forth the whirring pheasant. "

The cocker is here very useful, although he is occasionally anexceedingly impatient animal. He is apt to whimper and babble as soon ashe comes upon the scent of game, and often raises the bird before thesportsman is within reach: but when he is sufficiently broken in not togive tongue until the game rises, he is exceedingly valuable. There canscarcely be a prettier object than this little creature, full ofactivity, and bustling in every direction, with his tail erect; and, themoment he scents the bird, expressing his delight by the quivering ofevery limb, and the low eager whimpering which the best breaking cannotalways subdue. 

Presently the bird springs, and then he shrieks out his ecstasy, startling even the sportsman with his sharp, shrill, and strangelyexpressive bark. 

The most serious objection to the use of the cocker is the difficulty ofteaching him to distinguish his game, and confine himself within bounds;for he will too often flush everything that comes within his reach. Itis often the practice to attach bells to his collar, that the sportsmanmay know where he is; but there is an inconvenience connected with this, that the noise of the bells will often disturb and spring the gamebefore the dog comes fairly upon it. 

Patience and perseverance, with a due mixture of kindness andcorrection, will, however, accomplish a great deal in the tuition of thewell-bred spaniel. He may at first hunt about after every bird thatpresents itself, or chase the interdicted game; but, if he isimmediately called in and rated, or perhaps corrected, but not tooseverely, he will learn his proper lesson, and will recognise the game, to which alone his attention must be directed. The grand secret inbreaking in these dogs is mildness, mingled with perseverance, thelessons being enforced, and practically illustrated by the example of anold and steady dog. 

These spaniels will sometimes vie with almost every other species of dogin intelligence, and will not yield to one of them in fidelity. Agentleman in Sussex had an old cocker, that was his constant companion, both in the house and the field. If the morning was rainy, the dog wasperfectly quiet; if it was fine, he became restless, and, at the usualtime for his master to go out, he would take him by the flap of hiscoat, and gently pull at it. If the door was opened, he ran immediatelyto the keeper's lodge, which was at a considerable distance from thehouse. This was a signal for the other dogs to be brought up, and thenhe trotted back to announce their approach. 

[This beautiful and interesting dog, so called from his peculiarsuitableness for woodcock shooting, is but little known among us exceptas a boudoir companion for our ladies. He is, nevertheless, extensivelyused in England by sportsmen for finding and flushing this bird, as alsothe pheasant; and no doubt, if introduced into our country, would proveequally, if not more serviceable, in putting up game concealed in thethickets and marshy hollows of our uncleared grounds. Having extremelyfine scenting powers, they are also employed in greyhound coursing, togive warning of the proximity of a hare, which they seldom fail toaccomplish. 

This active little animal hunts with great spirit, and soon becomesattached to the sport; in fact the only difficulty to be overcome inbreaking him, is the effort it requires to make him suppress his naturalardour and withhold his exclamations of delight till the bird isactually on the wing. The tutelage of the cocker intended for the fieldshould commence as early as possible, and is not, as many suppose, attended with great difficulty. His first lessons should be confined tothe art of bringing and carrying, which he soon, in common with all theother members of the spaniel tribe, learns. The next thing to beinculcated is implicit obedience to our wishes; then, at the age of fourmonths or so, he may be carried to the field, where his natural fondnessfor hunting will soon be developed by his chasing every bird within hisreach. When this impulse is fully exhibited, and the dog expressesgratification in the amusement, he should be then instructed to givechase, or not, at his master's pleasure. When this desirable end hasbeen accomplished, he may be introduced to the particular kinds of gamewhich it is proposed to hunt him on, and by slow degrees teach him toconfine his attentions to those varieties alone. It is absolutelynecessary that the dog be forced to hunt as near to the sportsman aspossible, otherwise the game will be flushed at such a distance that itwill be impossible to get at it. The cocker spaniel is much smaller thanthe springer; his ears are long, pendulous, and silky; his body roundand compact; his legs short and tufted; his coat variable; his noseblack; tail bushy and feathered, and, when hunting, is kept in constantmotion. 

Some are black and white, others liver colour and yellow; the lattervariety we have most usually seen in this country, and some of them havebeen represented to us as well-broken and serviceable dogs. --L. ]

THE KING CHARLES'S SPANIEL, so called from the fondness of Charles II for it--who usually had someof them following him, wherever he went--belongs likewise to thecockers. Its form and character are well preserved in one of thepaintings of the unfortunate parent of that monarch and his family. Theears deeply fringed and sweeping the ground, the rounder form of theforehead, the larger and moister eye, the longer and silken coat, andthe clearness of the tan, and white and black colour, sufficientlydistinguish this variety. His beauty and diminutive size have consignedhim to the drawing-room or parlour. 

Charles the First had a breed of spaniels, very small, with the hairblack and curly. The spaniel of the second Charles was of the black andtan breed. 

The King Charles's breed of the present day is materially altered forthe worse. The muzzle is almost as short, and the forehead as ugly andprominent, as the veriest bull-dog. The eye is increased to double itsformer size, and has an expression of stupidity with which the characterof the dog too accurately corresponds. Still there is the long ear, andthe silky coat, and the beautiful colour of the hair, and for these thedealers do not scruple to ask twenty, thirty, and even fifty guineas. 

[This breed of dog was cultivated with such jealous care by the lateDuke of Norfolk, that no solicitation or entreaty could induce thisnobleman to part with one of these favourites, except under certainpeculiar stipulations and injunctions, as detailed in the followinginterview of Mr. Blain with the late Duchess of York. "On one occasion, when we were accompanying Her Royal Highness to her menagerie, withalmost a kennel of canine favourites behind her, after drawing ourattention to a jet black pug pup she had just received from Germany, sheremarked that she was going to show me what she considered a present ofmuch greater rarity, which was a true King Charles's breed sent to herby the Duke of Norfolk. 'But, ' she observed, 'would you believe he couldbe so ungallant as to write word that he must have a positive promisenot from myself, but from the Duke of York, that I should not breed fromit in the direct line?'" Notwithstanding these selfish restrictions onthe part of this noble patron of the spaniel, this breed of dog hasbecome quite common in England, and not a few have found their way tothis country. --L. ]

THE SPRINGER

This dog is slower and steadier in its range than the cocker; but it isa much safer dog for the shooter, and can better stand a hard day'swork. The largest and best breed of springers is said to be in Sussex, and is much esteemed in the Wealds of that county. 

From a cross with the terrier a black and tan variety was procured, which was cultivated by the late Duke of Norfolk, and thence called theNorfolk Spaniel. It is larger than the common springer, and stancher, and stouter. It often forms a strong individual attachment, and isunhappy and pines away when separated from its master. It is moreill-tempered than the common springer, and, if not well broken in, isoften exceedingly obstinate. 

[Mr. Skinner informs us that this breed, in its greatest purity, may befound in the Carrollton family, as also in the possession of Mr. Keyworth of Washington city. --L. ]

THE BLACK AND TAN SPANIEL, the cross of the terrier being nearly or quite got rid of, is often abeautiful animal, and is much valued, although it is frequentlyconsidered a somewhat stupid animal. The cocker and the springer aresometimes used as finders in coursing. 

THE BLENHEIM SPANIEL, a breed cultivated by one of the Dukes of Marlborough, belongs to thisdivision. From its beauty, and occasional gaiety, it is oftener aninhabitant of the drawing-room than the field; but it occasionallybreaks out, and shows what nature designed it for. Some of thesecarpeted pets acquit themselves nobly in the covert. There they oughtoftener to be; for they have not much individuality of attachment torecommend them, and, like other spoiled animals, both quadruped andbiped, misbehave. The breed has degenerated of late, and is not alwaysto be had pure, even in the neighbourhood of Blenheim. This spaniel mayhe distinguished by the length and silkiness of the coat, the deepfringe about the ear, the arch and deep-feathering of the tail, the fulland moist eye, and the blackness of the palate. 

THE WATER-SPANIEL. 

Of this breed there are two varieties, a larger and smaller, both usefulaccording to the degree of range or the work required; the smaller, however, being ordinarily preferable. Whatever be his general size, strength and compactness of form are requisite. His head is long, hisface smooth, and his limbs, more developed than those of the springer, should be muscular, his carcase round, and his hair long and closelycurled. Good breaking is more necessary here than even with theland-spaniel, and, fortunately, it is more easily accomplished; for, thewater-spaniel, although a stouter, is a more docile animal than the landone. 

Docility and affection are stamped on his countenance, and he rivalsevery other breed in his attachment to his master. His work is double;first to find, when ordered so to do, and to back behind the sportsmanwhen the game will be more advantageously trodden up. In both he must betaught to be perfectly obedient to the voice, that he may be kept withinrange, and not unnecessarily disturb the birds. A more important part ofhis duty, however, is to find and bring the game that has dropped. Toteach him to find is easy enough, for a young water-spaniel will asreadily take to the water as a pointer puppy will stop; but to bring hisgame without tearing is a more difficult lesson, and the most difficultof all is to make him suspend the pursuit of the wounded game while thesportsman re-loads. 

The water-spaniel was originally from Spain; but the pure breed has beenlost, and the present dog is probably descended from the large water-dogand the English setter. 

The water and land spaniels differ materially from each other. Thewater-spaniel, although when at his work being all that his master candesire, is, when unemployed, comparatively a slow and inactive dog; butunder this sobriety of demeanor is concealed a strength and fidelity ofattachment to which the more lively land-spaniel cannot always lay justclaim. The writer of this work once saved a young water-spaniel from thepersecution of a crowd of people who had driven it into a passage, andwere pelting it with stones. The animal had the character of being, contrary to what his species usually are, exceedingly savage; and hesuffered himself to be taken up by me and carried from his foes with akind of sullenness; but when, being out of the reach of danger, he wasput down, he gazed on his deliverer, and then crouched at his feet. 

From that moment he attached himself to his new master with an intensityof affection scarcely conceivable--never expressed by any boisterouscaresses, but by endeavouring to be in some manner in contact with him;resting his head upon his foot; lying upon some portion of his apparel, his eye intently fixed upon him; endeavouring to understand everyexpression of his countenance. He would follow one gentleman, and oneonly, to the river-side, and behave gallantly and nobly there; but themoment he was dismissed he would scamper home, gaze upon his master, andlay himself down at his feet. In one of these excursions he was shot. Hecrawled home, reached his master's feet, and expired in the act oflicking his hand. 

Perhaps the author may be permitted to relate one story more of thewater-spaniel: he pledges himself for its perfect truth. The owner ofthe dog is telling this tale. 

 "I was once on the sea-coast, when a small, badly-formed, and leaky fishing-boat was cast on shore, on a fearful reef of rocks. Three men and a boy of ten years old constituted the crew. The men swam on shore, but they were so bruised against the rocks, that they could not render any assistance to the poor boy, and no person could be found to venture out in any way. I heard the noise and went to the spot with my dog. I spoke to him, and in he went, more like a seal than a dog, and after several fruitless attempts to mount the wreck he succeeded, and laid hold of the boy, who clung to the ropes, screaming in the most fearful way at being thus dragged into the water. The waves dashed frightfully on the rocks. In the anxiety and responsibility of the moment I thought that the dog had missed him, and I stripped off my clothes, resolved to render what assistance I could. I was just in the act of springing from the shore, having selected the moment when the receding waves gave me the best chance of rendering any assistance, when I saw old 'Bagsman, ' for that was the name of my dog, with the struggling boy in his mouth, and the head uppermost. I rushed to the place where he must land, and the waves bore the boy and the dog into my arms. 

 "Some time after that I was shooting wild-fowl. I and my dog had been working hard, and I left him behind me while I went to a neighbouring town to purchase gunpowder. A man, in a drunken frolic, had pushed off in a boat with a girl in it; the tide going out carried the boat quickly away, and the man becoming frightened, and unable to swim, jumped overboard. Bagsman, who was on the spot, hearing the splash, jumped in, swam out to the man, caught hold of him, and brought him twenty yards towards the shore, when the drunken fellow clasped the dog tight round the body, and they both went down together. The girl was saved by a boat going to her assistance. The body of the man was recovered about an hour afterwards, with that of the dog clasped tight in his arms, thus dragging him to the bottom. 'Poor Bagsman! thy worth deserves to be thus chronicled. '"

THE POODLE. 

The particular cross from which this dog descended is unknown, but thevariety produced has been carefully preserved. It is, probably, ofcontinental origin, and is known by its thick curly hair concealingalmost every part of the face, and giving it the appearance of a short, thick, unintelligent head. When, however, that hair is removed, there isstill the large head; but there is also the cerebral cavity morecapacious than in any other dog, and the frontal sinuses fullydeveloped, and exhibiting every indication of the intellectual class towhich it belongs. 

It was originally a water-dog, as its long and curly hair, and itspropensities in its domesticated state, prove; but, from its peculiarsagacity, it is capable of being trained to almost any useful purpose, and its strong individual attachment renders it more the companion ofman than a mere sporting dog: indeed, its qualities as a sporting dogare seldom recognised by its owner. 

These dogs have far more courage than the water-spaniel, all thesagacity of the Newfoundland, more general talent, if the expression maybe used, and more individual attachment than either of them, and withoutthe fawning of the one, or the submissiveness of the other. The poodleseems conscious of his worth, and there is often a quiet dignityaccompanying his demonstrations of friendship. 

This dog, however, possesses a very peculiar kind of intelligence. Itwill almost perform the common offices of a servant: it will ring thebell and open the door. Mr. Wilkie, of Ladythorn in Northumberland, hada poodle which he had instructed to go through all the apparent agoniesof dying. He would fall on one side, stretch himself out, and move hishind legs as if he were in great pain; he would next simulate theconvulsive throbs of departing life, and then stretch out his limbs andthus seem as if he had expired. In this situation he would remainmotionless, until he had his master's command to rise. 

The portrait of Sancho, a poodle, that was with difficulty forced fromthe grave of his master, after the battle of Salamanca, is familiar tomany of our readers. Enticed from his post he could not be, nor was heat length taken away until weakened by grief and starvation. He bydegrees attached himself to his new master, the Marquis of Worcester, but not with the natural ardour of a poodle. He was attentive to everycommand, and could perform many little domestic offices. Sometimes hewould exhibit considerable buoyancy of spirit; but there oftener seemedto be about him the recollection of older and closer friendship. 

Another poodle occupies an interesting place in the history of thePeninsular war. He too belonged to a French officer, who was killed atthe battle of Castella. The French were compelled to retreat before theycould bury their dead, and the soldiers wished to carry with them theirregimental favourite; but he would not be forced from the corpse of hismaster. Some soldiers afterwards traversing the field of battle, one ofthem discovered the cross of the Legion of Honour on the breast of thefallen officer, and stooped to take it away, when the dog flew savagelyat him, and would not quit his hold, until the bayonet of anothersoldier laid him lifeless. 

A veterinary surgeon, who, before any other animal than the horse wasacknowledged to be the legitimate object of medical care, did notdisdain to attend to the diseases of the dog, used to say that therewere two breeds which he never wished to see in his infirmary, namely, the poodle and the Norfolk spaniel; for, although not always difficultto manage, he could never attach them to him, but they annoyed him bytheir pitiful and imploring gaze during the day, and their mournfulhowling at night. 

Custom has determined that the natural coat of this animal shall betaken from him. It may be a relief to the poodle for a part of his coatto be stripped off in hot weather, and the curly hair which is left onhis chest, contrasted with his smooth and well-rounded loins andquarters, may make it look pretty enough; but it should he rememberedthat he was not designed by nature to be thus exposed to the cold ofwinter, and that there are no dogs so liable to rheumatism, and thatrheumatism degenerating into palsy, as the well-trimmed poodle. 

THE BARBET

is a small poodle, the production of some unknown and disadvantageouscross with the true poodle. It has all the sagacity of the poodle, andwill perform even more than his tricks. It is always in action; alwaysfidgety; generally incapable of much affection, but inheriting muchself-love and occasional ill temper; unmanageable by any one but itsowner; eaten up with red mange; and frequently a nuisance to its masterand a torment to every one else. 

We must not, however, do it injustice; it is very intelligent, and trulyattached to its owner. 

The barbet possesses more sagacity than most other dogs, but it issagacity of a particular kind, and frequently connected with variousamusing tricks. Mr. Jesse, in his Gleanings in Natural History, gives asingular illustration of this. A friend of his had a barbet that was notalways under proper command. In order to keep him in better order, hepurchased a small whip, with which he corrected him once or twice duringa walk. On his return the whip was put on a table in the hall, but onthe next morning it was missing. It was soon afterwards found concealedin an out-building, and again made use of in correcting the dog. Oncemore it would have been lost, but, on watching the dog, who wassuspected of having stolen it, he was seen to take it from the halltable in order to hide it once more. 

THE MALTESE DOG

can be traced back to an early period. Strabo says that

 "there is a town in Sicily called Melita, whence are exported many beautiful dogs called 'Canes Melitæi'. They were the peculiar favourites of the women; but now (A. D. 25) there is less account made of these animals, which are not bigger than common ferrets or weasels, yet they are not small in understanding nor unstable in their love. "

They are also found in Malta and in other islands of the Mediterranean, and they maintain the same character of being devotedly affectionate totheir owners, while, it is added, --and they are not loved the less forthat, --they are ill-tempered to strangers. 

THE LION DOG

is a diminutive likeness of the noble animal whose name it bears. Itshead, neck, shoulders, and fore-legs down to the very feet, are coveredwith long, wavy, silky hairs. On the other parts of the dog it is soshort as scarcely to be grasped, except that on the tail there is asmall bush of hair. The origin of this breed is not known; it is, perhaps, an intermediate one between the Maltese and the Turkish dog. 

THE TURKISH DOG, as it is improperly called, is a native of hot climates. The suppositionof Buffon is not an improbable one, that, being taken from sometemperate country to one considerable hotter, the European dog probablyacquired some cutaneous disease. This is no uncommon occurrence inGuinea, the East Indies, and South America. Some of these animalsafterwards found their way into Europe, and, from their singularity, care was taken to multiply the breed. Aldrovandus states that the firsttwo of them made their appearance in Europe in his time, but the breedwas not continued, on account, as it was supposed, of the climate beingtoo cold for them. 

The few that are occasionally seen in England bear about them every markof a degenerated race. They have no activity, and they show littleintelligence or affection. One singular circumstance appertains to allthat the author of this work has had the opportunity of seeing, --theirteeth become very early diseased, and drop from the gums. That eminentzoologist, Mr. Yarrell, examining, with the author of this work, onethat had died, certainly not more than five years old, found that it hadneither incisors nor canine teeth, and that the molars were reduced toone on each side, the large tubercular tooth being the only one that wasremaining. At the scientific meeting of the Zoological Society, the samegentleman stated, that he had examined the mouths of two individuals ofthe same variety, then alive at the gardens, in both of which the teethwere remarkably deficient. In neither of them were there any falsemolars, and the incisors in both were deficient in number. Before theage of four years the tongue is usually disgustingly hanging from themouths of these animals. 

THE ALPINE SPANIEL, OR BERNARDINE DOG, is a breed almost peculiar to the Alps, and to the district betweenSwitzerland and Savoy. The passes over these mountains are exceedinglydangerous from their steepness and narrowness. A precipice of manyhundred feet is often found on one side, and perpendicular rocks on theother, while the path is glazed with frozen snow or ice. In many placesthe path is overhung with huge masses of frozen snow, which occasionallyloosen and fall, when the dreadful storms peculiar to these regionssuddenly come on, and form an insurmountable barrier, or sweep away orbury the unfortunate traveller. Should he escape these dangers, the pathis now become trackless, and he wanders amid the dreary solitudes untilnight overtakes him; and then, when he pauses from fatigue oruncertainty with regard to the path he should pursue, his limbs arespeedily benumbed. Fatal slumbers, which he cannot shake off, steal uponhim, and he crouches under some ledge and sleeps, to wake no more. Thesnow drifts on. It is almost continually falling, and he is soonconcealed from all human help. 

On the top of Mount St. Bernard, and near one of the most dangerous ofthese passes, is a convent, in which is preserved a breed of large dogstrained to search for the benighted and frozen wanderer. Every night, and particularly when the wind blows tempestuously, some of these dogsare sent out. They traverse every path about the mountains, and theirscent is so exquisite that they can discover the traveller, although hemay lie many feet deep in the snow. Having found him, they set to workand endeavour to scrape away the snow, uttering a deep bark thatreverberates from rock to rock, and tells those who are watching in theconvent that some poor wretch is in peril. Generally, a little flask ofspirits is tied round the neck of the animal, by drinking which thebenighted traveller may recruit his strength, until more effectualrescue arrive. The monks hasten in the direction of the sound, and oftensucceed in rekindling the vital spark before it is quite extinguished. Very many travellers have been thus rescued from death by thesebenevolent men and their intelligent and interesting quadruped servants. 

One of these Bernardine dogs, named Barry, had a medal tied round hisneck as a badge of honourable distinction, for he had saved the lives offorty persons. He at length died nobly in his vocation. A Piedmontesecourier arrived at St. Bernard on a very stormy day, labouring to makehis way to the little village of St. Pierre, in the valley beneath themountain, where his wife and children lived. It was in vain that themonks attempted to check his resolution to reach his family. They atlast gave him two guides, each of whom was accompanied by a dog, one ofwhich was the remarkable creature whose service had been so valuable. Descending from the convent, they were overwhelmed by two avalanches orheaps of falling snow, and the same destruction awaited the family ofthe poor courier, who were travelling up the mountain in the hope ofobtaining some news of the husband and father. 

A beautiful engraving has been made of this noble dog. It represents himas saving a child which he had found in the Glacier of Balsore, andcherished, and warmed, and induced to climb on his shoulders, and thuspreserved from, otherwise, certain destruction. 

THE NEWFOUNDLAND DOG. 

The Newfoundland is a spaniel of large size. He is a native of theisland of which he bears the name; but his history is disgraceful to theowners of so valuable an animal. The employment of the lower classes ofthe inhabitants of St. John, in Newfoundland, is divided between thecutting of wood, and the drawing of it and other merchandise in thewinter, and fishing in the summer. 

The carts used in the winter work are drawn by these dogs, who arealmost invariably urged and goaded on beyond their strength, fed onlywith putrid salt-fish, and an inadequate quantity even of that. A greatmany of them are worn out and die before the winter is over; and, whenthe summer approaches, and the fishing season commences, many of themare quite abandoned, and, uniting with their companions, prowl aboutpreying on the neighbouring flocks, or absolutely starving. 

Mr. Macgregor, however, states that

 "in almost every other part of British America they are valuable and useful. They are remarkably docile and obedient to their masters, serviceable in all the fishing countries, and yoked in pairs to draw the winter's fuel home. They are faithful, good-natured, and ever friendly to man. They will defend their master and their master's property, and suffer no person to injure either the one or the other; and, however extreme may be the danger, they will not leave them for a minute. They seem only to want the faculty of speech, in order to make their good wishes and feelings understood, and they are capable of being trained for all the purposes for which every other variety of the canine species is used". [1]

That which most recommends the Newfoundland dog is his fearlessness ofwater, and particularly as connected with the preservation of humanlife. The writer of the present work knows one of these animals that haspreserved from drowning four human beings. 

[This breed of dog, though much esteemed both in England and otherportions of the world, as well for his majestic appearance as for manyuseful and winning traits of character, has but few sportsmen as patronswith us. He is not only used in England as a water-dog for the pursuitof wild fowl, but has been trained by many sportsmen to hunt onpartridges, woodcocks, and pheasants, and is represented by CaptainHawker and others as surpassing all others of the canine race, infinding wounded game of every description. 

Mr. Blain remarks that, "as a retriever, the Newfoundland dog is easily brought to do almost anything that is required of him, and he is so tractable, likewise, that, with the least possible trouble, he may be safely taken among pointers to the field, with whose province he will not interfere, but will be overjoyed to be allowed to look up the wounded game, which he will do with a perseverance that no speed and no distance can slacken, nor any hedge-row baulk. In cover he is very useful; some, indeed, shoot woodcocks to a Newfoundland, and he never shines more than when he is returning with a woodcock, pheasant, or hare, in his mouth, which he yields up, or even puts into your hand unmutilated. "

Notwithstanding the high commendations of these gentlemen, we cannotlook upon the Newfoundland in any other light than that of a dog, whosepowers of sagacity are destined for display in the water. 

In contending with this element, either in the preservation of humanlife, or in search of wounded fowl, he has no equal, and volumes mightbe filled with accounts of his various daring achievements in thisparticular branch, not only in England, but on the rivers of our owncountry. Mr. Blain mentions two varieties of these dogs as being commonin England, the Labrador and St. John. The former is very large, rough-haired, and carries his tail very high; the latter is smaller, more docile, and sagacious in the extreme, and withal much moremanageable. We were not aware of these varieties, and more particularlyas regards the difference in docility and sagacity, but are convinced, from subsequent observations, that such is the case even in our owncountry, for we have often noticed a great dissimilarity in the size andappearance of these dogs and attributed it to the effects of the climateand cross breeding with inferior animals. We are indebted to Mr. Skinnerfor bringing before the public a faithful and minute account of two ofthese animals imported into this country by Mr. Law, of Baltimore, andmay be pardoned for giving again publicity to this gentleman's letter inrelation to these two sagacious brutes. 

 BALTIMORE, MARYLAND, January 7th, 1845. 

 "MY DEAR SIR:--In the fall of 1807 I was on board of the ship Canton, belonging to my uncle, the late Hugh Thompson, of Baltimore, when we fell in, at sea, near the termination of a very heavy equinoctial gale, with an English brig in a sinking condition, and took off the crew. The brig was loaded with codfish, and was bound to Poole, in England, from Newfoundland. I boarded her, in command of a boat from the Canton, which was sent to take off the English crew, the brig's own boats having been all swept away, and her crew in a state of intoxication. I found on board of her two Newfoundland pups, male and female, which I saved, and, subsequently, on our landing the English crew at Norfolk, our own destination being Baltimore, I purchased these two pups of the English captain for a guinea a-piece. Being bound again to sea, I gave the dog-pup, which was called Sailor, to Mr. John Mercer, of West River; and the slut-pup, which was called Canton, to Doctor James Stewart, of Sparrow's Point. The history which the English captain gave me of these pups was, that the owner of his brig was extensively engaged in the Newfoundland trade, and had directed his correspondent to select and send him a pair of pups of the most approved Newfoundland breed, but of different families, and that the pair I purchased of him were selected under this order. The dog was of a dingy red colour, and the slut black. They were not large; their hair was short, but very thick coated; they had dew claws. Both attained great reputation as water-dogs. They were most sagacious in everything, particularly so in all duties connected with duck-shooting. Governor Lloyd exchanged a Mexican ram for the dog at the time of the merino fever, when such rams were selling for many hundred dollars, and took him over to his estate on the eastern shore of Maryland, where his progeny were well known for many years after, and may still he known there, and on the western shore, as the Sailor breed. The slut remained at Sparrow's Point till her death, and her progeny were, and are still, well known through Patapsco Neck, on the Gunpowder, and up the bay, amongst the duck-shooters, as unsurpassed for their purposes. I have heard both Doctor Stewart and Mr. Mercer relate most extraordinary instances of the sagacity and performances of both dog and slut, and would refer you to their friends for such particulars as I am unable, at this distance of time, to recollect with sufficient accuracy to repeat. 

 Yours, in haste, GEORGE LAW. "

These dogs are represented as being of fine carriage, broad-chested, compact figure, and in every respect built for strength and activity. 

Their patience and endurance were very great when pursuing wounded ducksthrough the floating ice, and when fatigued from extraordinary exertionswere known to rest themselves upon broken portions of ice tillsufficiently recovered again to commence the chase. We have seen some ofthe descendants of these sagacious animals on the Chesapeake, engaged, not only in bringing the ducks from the water when shot, but also tolingthem into shore within range of the murderous batteries concealed behindthe blind. 

This may not be an inappropriate place to speak of this wonderful modeof decoying ducks, termed toling, so extensively practised upon theChesapeake bay and its tributaries, where the canvass-back and red-headsresort in such numerous quantities every fall. A species of mongrelwater-dog, or often any common cur, is taught to run backwards andforwards after stones, sticks, or other missiles thrown from one side tothe other. In his activity and industry in this simple branch ofeducation, within the comprehension of any dog, consists the almostincredible art of toling the canvass-back. 

With a dog of this character, the shooting party, consisting of severalpersons all prepared with heavy double-barrelled duck-guns, ensconcethemselves at break of day behind some one of the numerous blindstemporarily erected along the shore contiguous to the feeding-grounds ofthese ducks. Everything being arranged, and the morning mists clearedoff, the ducks will be seen securely feeding on the shallows not lessthan several hundreds of yards from the shore. The dog is now put inmotion by throwing stones from one side of the blind to the other. Thiswill soon be perceived by the ducks, who, stimulated by an extremedegree of curiosity, and feeling anxious to inform themselves as to thissudden and singular phenomenon, raise their heads high in the water andcommence swimming for the shore. The dog being kept in motion, the duckswill not arrest their progress until within a few feet of the water'sedge, and oftentimes will stand on the shore staring, as it were, inmute and silly astonishment at the playful motions of the dog. 

If well trained the dog takes no notice whatever of the duck, butcontinues his fascination until the quick report of the batteryannounces to him that his services are now wanted in another quarter, and he immediately rushes into the water to arrest the flight of themaimed and wounded, who, struggling on every side, dye the water withtheir rich blood. 

The discovery of this mode of decoying ducks was quite an accident, being attributed to a circumstance noticed by a sportsman, who, concealed behind a blind patiently awaiting the near approach of thecanvass-back, observed that they suddenly lifted up their heads andmoved towards the shore. Wondering at this singular and unusualprocedure on the part of this wray bird, he naturally looked round todiscover the cause, and observed a young fox sporting upon the riverbank, and the ducks, all eagerness to gaze upon him, were steering theircourse directly for the shore. 

These ducks will not only be decoyed by the dog, but will often come inby waving a fancy coloured handkerchief attached to the ramrod. We haveseen a dog fail to attract their attention till bound around the loinswith a white handkerchief, and then succeed perfectly well. The tolingseason continues about three weeks from the first appearance of theducks, often a much shorter time, as these birds become more cautious, and are no longer deceived in this way. 

The canvass-back toles better than any other duck; in fact, it isasserted by many sportsmen, that this particular variety alone can bedecoyed in this mode. There are always numbers of other ducks feedingwith the canvass-back, particularly the red-heads and black-necks, whopartake of the top of the grass that the canvas-back discards aftereating off the root, which is a kind of celery. These ducks, though theycome in with the canvass-back when toled, do not seem to take any noticewhatever of the dog, but continue to swim along, carelessly feeding, asif entrusting themselves entirely to the guidance of the other ducks. 

As far as we have been able to judge, we are inclined to this opinionalso, and do not recollect ever having succeeded in toling any otherspecies of duck, unaccompanied by the canvass-back, although we havemade the effort many times. These ducks are a very singular bird, andalthough very cunning under ordinary circumstances, seem perfectlybewildered upon this subject, as we were one of a party several yearssince, who actually succeeded in decoying the same batch of ducks threesuccessive times in the course of an hour, and slaying at each fire alarge number, as we counted out over forty at the conclusion of thesport. 

Although the toling of ducks is so simple in its process, there are fewdogs that have sufficient industry and perseverance to arrive at anydegree of perfection in the art. The dog, if not possessed of somesagacity and considerable training, is very apt to tire and stop runningwhen the ducks have got near to the shore, but too far to be reached bythe guns, which spoils all, as the birds are very apt to swim or fly offif the motion of the animal is arrested for a few moments. --L. ]

A native of Germany was travelling one evening on foot through Holland, accompanied by a large dog. Walking on a high bank which formed one sideof a dyke, his foot slipped, and he was precipitated into the water;and, being unable to swim, soon became senseless. When he recovered hisrecollection, he found himself in a cottage on the contrary side of thedyke, surrounded by peasants, who had been using the means for therecovery of drowned persons. The account given by one of them was, that, returning home from his labour, he observed at a considerable distance alarge dog in the water, swimming and dragging, and sometimes pushingalong something that he seemed to have great difficulty in supporting, but which he at length succeeded in getting into a small creek on theopposite side. When the animal had pulled what he had hitherto supportedas far out of the water as he was able, the peasant discovered that itwas the body of a man, whose face and hands the dog was industriouslylicking. The peasant hastened to a bridge across the dyke, and, havingobtained assistance, the body was conveyed to a neighbouring house, where proper means soon restored the drowned man to life. Two veryconsiderable bruises, with the marks of teeth, appeared, one on hisshoulder and the other on his poll; hence it was presumed that thefaithful beast had first seized his master by the shoulder, and swamwith him in this manner for some time, but that his sagacity hadprompted him to quit this hold, and to shift it to the nape of the neck, by which he had been enabled to support the head out of water; and inthis way he had conveyed him nearly a quarter of a mile before he hadbrought him to the creek, where the banks were low and accessible. 

Dr. Beattie relates an instance of a gentleman attempting to cross theriver Dee, then frozen over, near Aberdeen. The ice gave way about themiddle of the river; but, having a gun in his hand, he supported himselfby placing it across the opening. His dog then ran to a neighbouringvillage, where, with the most significant gestures, he pulled a man bythe coat, and prevailed on him to follow him. They arrived at the spotjust in time to save the drowning man's life. 

Of the noble disposition of the Newfoundland dog, Dr. Abel, in one ofhis lectures on Phrenology, relates a singular instance. 

 "When this dog left his master's house, he was often assailed by a number of little noisy dogs in the street. He usually passed them with apparent unconcern, as if they were beneath his notice; but one little cur was particularly troublesome, and at length carried his impudence so far as to bite the Newfoundland dog in the leg. This was a degree of wanton insult beyond what he could patiently endure; and he instantly turned round, ran after the offender, and seized him by the skin of the back. In this way he carried him in his mouth to the quay, and, holding him some time over the water, at length dropped him into it. He did not, however, seem to design that the culprit should be punished capitally. He waited a little while, until the poor animal, who was unused to that element, was not only well ducked, but nearly sinking, and then plunged in, and brought him safe to land. "

 "It would be difficult, " says Dr. Hancock, in his Essay on Instinct, "to conceive any punishment more aptly contrived or more completely in character. Indeed, if it were fully analyzed, an ample commentary might be written in order to show what a variety of comparisons and motives and generous feelings entered into the composition of this act. "

No one ever drew more legitimate consequence from certain existingpremises. 

One other story should not be omitted of this noble breed of water-dogs. A vessel was driven on the beach of Lydd, in Kent. The surf was rollingfuriously. Eight poor fellows were crying for help, but not a boat couldbe got off to their assistance. At length a gentleman came on the beachaccompanied by his Newfoundland dog: he directed the attention of theanimal to the vessel, and put a short stick into his mouth. Theintelligent and courageous fellow at once understood his meaning, sprunginto the sea, and fought his way through the waves. He could not, however, get close enough to the vessel to deliver that with which hewas charged; but the crew understood what was meant, and they made fasta rope to another piece of wood, and threw it towards him. The noblebeast dropped his own piece of wood and immediately seized that whichhad been cast to him, and then, with a degree of strength anddetermination scarcely credible, --for he was again and again lost underthe waves, --he dragged it through the surge and delivered it to hismaster. A line of communication was thus formed, and every man on boardwas rescued. 

There is, however, a more remarkable fact recorded in the PennyMagazine. 

 "During a heavy gale a ship had struck on a rock near the land. The only chance of escape for the shipwrecked was to get a rope ashore; for it was impossible for any boat to live in the sea as it was then running. There were two Newfoundland dogs and a bull-dog on board. One of the Newfoundland dogs was thrown overboard, with a rope thrown round him, and perished in the waves. The second shared a similar fate: but the bull-dog fought his way through that terrible sea, and, arriving safe onshore, rope and all, became the saviour of the crew. "

Some of the true Newfoundland dogs have been brought to Europe and havebeen used as retrievers. They are principally valuable for the fearlessmanner in which they will penetrate the thickest cover. They arecomparatively small, but muscular, strong, and generally black. A largervariety has been bred, and is now perfectly established. He is seldomused as a sporting dog, or for draught, but is admired on account of hisstature and beauty, and the different colours with which he is oftenmarked. Perhaps he is not quite so good-natured and manageable as thesmaller variety, and yet it is not often that much fault can be foundwith him on this account. 

A noble animal of this kind was presented to the Zoological Society byHis Royal Highness Prince Albert. He is a great ornament to the gardens;but he had been somewhat unmanageable, and had done some mischief beforehe was sent thither. 

A portion of Lord Byron's beautiful epitaph on the death of hisNewfoundland dog will properly close our account of this animal:

 "The poor dog! In life the firmest friend, The first to welcome, foremost to defend; Whose honest heart is still his master's own; Who labours, fights, lives, breathes for him alone. "

[Notwithstanding the many excellent qualities so conspicuous in thisnoble breed of dog, he is said to possess one most ungenerous trait ofcharacter, "a peculiar antipathy to sheep, " and if not early trained toendure their presence, will take every opportunity to destroy theseinnocent animals. ]

THE ESQUIMAUX DOG

is a beast of burden and of draught, usefully employed by theinhabitants of the extreme parts of North America and the neighbouringislands. When the Esquimaux Indian goes in pursuit of the seal, therein-deer, or the bear, his dogs carry the materials of his temporaryhut, and the few necessaries of his simple life; or, yoked to thesledge, often draw him and his family full sixty miles a-day over thefrozen plains of these inhospitable regions. At other times they assistin the chase, and run down and destroy the bear and the rein-deer onland, and the seal on the coast. 

These dogs are very early trained to the work which they are destined tofollow, and even at the tender age of four or five months are harnessedtogether or in company with older animals, and are compelled, either bypersuasion or brutal chastisement, to draw heavy weights, and thus soonbecome accustomed to the trammels of the rude gearing, and familiar withthe service that they afterwards perform with so much sagacity andalacrity. 

Capt. Lyon states that they are very similar in appearance to theshepherd dog of England, but more muscular and broad chested, owing tosevere work; ears pointed, of a savage appearance; the finer dogs areequal to the Newfoundland breed in point of height and general symmetry. 

It is also somewhat curious to be informed that these dogs have noparticular season of oestrum, but bear young indiscriminately at alltimes of the year, cold or warm, having very little or no effect upontheir reproductive powers, being often seen in heat during the month ofDecember when the thermometer was forty degrees below zero. 

Their journeys are often without any certain object; but, if the dogsscent the deer or the bear, they gallop away in that direction untiltheir prey is within reach of the driver, or they are enabled to assistin destroying their foe. Captain Parry, in his Journal of a 'SecondVoyage for the Discovery of a North-West Passage', gives an amusingaccount of these expeditions. 

 "A number of dogs, varying from six to twelve, are attached to each sledge by means of a single trace, but with no reins. An old and tried dog is placed as the leader, who, in their simple journeys, and when the chase is the object, steadily obeys the voice of the driver sitting in front of the sledge, with a whip long enough to reach the leader. This whip, however, is used as seldom as possible; for these dogs, although tractable, are ferocious, and will endure little correction. When the whip is applied with severity on one, he falls upon and worries his neighbour, and he, in his turn, attacks a third, and there is a scene of universal confusion, or the dogs double from side to side to avoid the whip, and the traces become entangled, and the safety of the sledge endangered. The carriage must then be stopped, each dog put into his proper place, and the traces re-adjusted. This frequently happens several times in the course of the day. The driver therefore depends principally on the docility of the leader, who, with admirable precision, quickens or slackens his pace, and starts off or stops, or turns to the right or left, at the summons of his master. When they are journeying homeward, or travelling to some spot to which the leader has been accustomed to go, he is generally suffered to pursue his own course; for, although every trace of the road is lost in the drifting snow, he scents it out, and follows it with undeviating accuracy. Even the leader, however, is not always under the control of his master. If the journey lies homeward, he will go his own pace, and that is usually at the top of his speed; or, if any game starts, or he scents it at a distance, no command of his driver will restrain him. Neither the dog nor his master is half civilized or subdued. "

Each of these dogs will draw a weight of 120 lb. Over the snow, at therate of seven or eight miles an hour. 

[It is extraordinary to consider the powers and wonderful speed of theseanimals, almost equalling that of many horses. 

Captain Lyon informs us that three dogs drew a sledge weighing 100 lbs. And himself, one mile in six minutes; his leader dog, which is generallymore powerful than the others, drew 196 lb. The same distance in eightminutes; seven dogs ran one mile in four minutes and thirty seconds, with a heavy sledge full of men attached to them; ten dogs ran one milein five minutes; nine dogs drew 1611 lb. The same distance in nineminutes. --'Lyon's Journal', p. 243. --L. ]

In summer, many of these dogs are used as beasts of burden, and eachcarries from thirty to fifty pounds. They are then much better kept thanin the winter; for they have the remains of the whale and sea-calf, which their masters disdain to eat. The majority, however, are sentadrift in the summer, and they live on the produce of the chase or oftheir constant thievery. The exactness with which, the summer beingpast, each returns to his master, is an admirable proof of sagacity, andfrequently of attachment. 

In some parts of Siberia, on the borders of the Oby, there areestablished relays of dogs, like the post-horses in other countries. Four of these are attached to a very light vehicle; but, when much hasteis required, or any very heavy goods are to be conveyed, more thantreble or quadruple that number are harnessed to the vehicle. M. DeLesseps [2] gives an almost incredible account of this. He is speakingof the voracity of these poor beasts, in the midst of the snowy desert, with little or no food. 

 "We had unharnessed our dogs, in order to bring them closer together, in the ordinary way; but, the moment they were brought up to the pole, they seized their harness, constructed of the thickest and toughest leather, and tore it to pieces, and devoured it. It was in vain that we attempted every means of restraint. A great number of them escaped into the wilds around, others wandered here and there, and seized everything that came within their reach, and which their teeth could destroy. Almost every minute some one of them fell exhausted, and immediately became the prey of the others. Every one that could get within reach struggled for his share. Every limb was disputed, and torn away by a troop of rivals, who attacked all within their reach. As soon as one fell by exhaustion or accident, he was seized by a dozen others, and destroyed in the space of a few minutes. In order to defend ourselves from this crowd of famished beasts, we were compelled to have recourse to our bludgeons and our swords. To this horrible scene of mutual destruction succeeded, on the following day, the sad appearance of those that surrounded the sledge, to which we had retreated for safety and for warmth. They were thin, and starved, and miserable; they could scarcely move; their plaintive and continual howlings seemed to claim our succour; but there was no possibility of relieving them in the slightest degree, except that some of them crept to the opening in our carriage through which the smoke escapes; and the more they felt the warmth closer they crept, and then, through mere feebleness, losing their equilibrium, they rolled into the fire before our eyes. "

These dogs are not so high as the common pointer, but much larger andstouter, although their thick hair, three or four inches long in thewinter, gives them an appearance of more stoutness than they possess. Under this hair is a coating of fine close soft wool, which begins togrow in the early part of winter, and drops off in the spring. Theirmuzzles are sharp and generally black, and their ears erect. 

The Greenland, and Siberian, and Kamtschatdale are varieties of theEsquimaux or Arctic dogs, but enlarged in form, and better subdued. Thedocility of some of these is equal to that of any European breed. 

A person of the name of Chabert, who was afterwards better known by thetitle of "Fire King, " had a beautiful Siberian dog, who would draw himin a light carriage 20 miles a day. He asked £200 for him, and sold himfor a considerable portion of that sum; for he was a most beautifulanimal of his kind, and as docile as he was beautiful. Between the saleand the delivery, the dog fell and broke his leg. Chabert, to whom theprice agreed on was of immense consequence, was in despair. He took thedog at night to a veterinary surgeon. He formally introduced them toeach other. He talked to the dog, pointed to his leg, limped around theroom, then requested the surgeon to apply some bandages around the leg, and he seemed to walk sound and well. He patted the dog on the head, whowas looking alternately at him and the surgeon, desired the surgeon topat him, and to offer him his hand to lick, and then, holding up hisfinger to the dog, and gently shaking his head, quitted the room and thehouse. The dog immediately laid himself down, and submitted to areduction of the fracture, and the bandaging of the limb, without amotion, except once or twice licking the hand of the operator. He wasquite submissive, and in a manner motionless, day after day, until, atthe expiration of a month, the limb was sound. Not a trace of thefracture was to be detected, and the purchaser, who is now living, knewnothing about it. 

The employment of the Esquimaux dogs is nearly the same as those fromNewfoundland, and most valuable they are to the traveller who has tofind his way over the wild and trackless regions of the north. Themanner, however, in which they are generally treated seems illcalculated to cause any strong or lasting attachment. During theirperiod of labour, they, like their brethren in Newfoundland, are fedsparingly on putrid fish, and in summer they are turned loose to shiftfor themselves until the return of the severe season renders itnecessary to their masters' interest that they should again be soughtfor, and once more reduced to their state of toil and slavery. 

They have been known for several successive days to travel more than 60miles. They seldom miss their road, although they may be driven over oneuntrodden snowy plain, where they are occasionally unable to reach anyplace of shelter. When, however, night comes, they partake with theirmaster of the scanty fare which the sledge will afford, and, crowdinground, keep him warm and defend him from danger. If any of them fallvictims to the hardships to which they are exposed, their master ortheir companions frequently feed on their remains, and their skins areconverted into warm and comfortable dresses. 

THE LAPLAND DOG. 

Captain Clarke thus describes the Lapland dog:

 "We had a valuable companion in a dog belonging to one of the boatmen. It was of the true Lapland breed, and in all respects similar to a wolf, excepting the tail, which was bushy and curled like those of the Pomeranian race. This dog, swimming after the boat, if his master merely waved his hand, would cross the lake as often as he pleased, carrying half his body and the whole of his head and tail out of the water. Wherever he landed, he scoured all the long grass by the side of the lake in search of wild-fowl, and came back to us, bringing wild-ducks in his mouth to the boat, and then, having delivered his prey to his master, he would instantly set off again in search of more. " [3]

But we pass on to another and more valuable species of the dog:

THE SHEEP-DOG. 

The origin of the sheep-dog is somewhat various; but the predominantbreed is that of the intelligent and docile spaniel. Although it is nowfound in every civilized country in which the sheep is cultivated, ii isnot coeval with the domestication of that animal. When the pastures werein a manner open to the first occupant, and every shepherd had a commonproperty in them, it was not so necessary to restrain the wandering ofthe sheep, and the voice of the shepherd was usually sufficient tocollect and to guide them. He preceded the flock, and they "followed himwhithersoever he went. " In process of time, however, man availed himselfof the sagacity of the dog to diminish his own labour and fatigue, andthis useful servitor became the guide and defender of the flock. 

The sheep-dog possesses much of the same form and character in everycountry. The muzzle is sharp, the ears are short and erect, and theanimal is covered, particularly about the neck, with thick and shaggyhair. He has usually two dew claws on each of the hind legs; not, however, as in the one claw of other dogs, having a jointed attachmentto the limb, but merely connected by the skin and some slight cellularsubstance. These excrescences should be cut off when the dog is young. The tail is slightly turned upwards and long, and almost as bushy asthat of a fox, even in that variety whose coat is almost smooth. He isof a black colour or black prevails, mixed with gray or brown. 

Professor Grognier gives the following account of this dog as he isfound in France:

 "The shepherd's dog, the least removed from the natural type of the dog, is of a middle size; his ears short and straight; the hair long, principally on the tail, and of a dark colour; the tail is carried horizontally or a little elevated. He is very indifferent to caresses. Possessed of much intelligence and activity to discharge the duties for which he was designed. In one or other of its varieties it is found in every part of France. Sometimes there is but a single breed, in others there are several varieties. It lives and maintains its proper characteristics, while other races often degenerate. Everywhere it preserves its proper distinguishing type. It is the servant of man, while other breeds vary with a thousand circumstances. It has one appropriate mission, and that it discharges in the most admirable way: there is evidently a kind and wise design in this. "

This account of the French sheep-dog, or of the sheep-dog everywhere, isas true as it is beautiful. One age succeeds to another, we pass fromone climate to another, and everything varies and changes, but theshepherd's dog is what he ever was--the guardian of our flocks. Thereare, however, two or more species of this dog; the one which ProfessorGrognier has described, and which guards and guides the sheep in theopen and level country, where wolves seldom intrude; another crossedwith the mastiff, or little removed from that dog, used in the woody andmountainous countries, their guard more than their guide. [4] In GreatBritain, where he has principally to guide and not to guard the flock, he is comparatively a small dog. He is so in the northern and open partsof the country, where activity is principally wanted; but, in the moreenclosed districts, and where strength is often needed to turn anobstinate sheep, he is crossed with some larger dog, as the roughterrier, or sometimes the pointer, or now and then the bull-dog: infact, almost any variety that has strength and stoutness may beemployed. Thus we obtain the larger sheep-dog and the drover's dog. Thesagacity, forbearance, and kindness of the sheep-dog are generallyretained, but from these crosses there is occasionally a degree offerocity from which the sheep often suffer. 

In other countries, where the flock is exposed to the attack of thewolf, the sheep-dog is larger than the British drover's dog, and not farinferior in size to the mastiff. The strength and ferocity which qualifyhim to combat with the wolf, would occasionally be injurious or fatal tothose who somewhat obstinately opposed his direction; therefore, inDenmark and in Spain, the dog is rarely employed to drive the flock. Itis the office of the shepherd, to know every individual under hischarge, to, as in olden times, "call them all by their names, " and havealways some docile and tamed wether who will take the lead, almost assubservient to his voice as is the dog himself, and whom the flock willimmediately follow. 

In whatever country the dog is used, partly or principally to protectthe flock from the ravages of the wolf, he is as gentle as a lamb, except when opposed to his natural enemy; and it is only in England thatthe guardian of the sheep occasionally injures and worries them, andthat many can be found bearing the mark of the tooth. This may hesomewhat excusable (although it is often carried to a barbarous extent)in the drover's dog; but it will admit of no apology in the shepherd'sdog. It is the result of the idleness of the boy, or the mingledbrutality and idleness of the shepherd, who is attempting to make thedog do his own work and that of his master too. We have admired thePrussian sheep-dog in the discharge of his duty, and have seen him pickout the marked sheep, or stop and turn the flock, as cleverly as anyHighland colley, but he never bit them. He is a shorter, stronger, andmore compact dog than ours. He pushes against them and forces themalong. If they rebel against this mild treatment, the shepherd is athand to enforce obedience; and the flock is as easily and perfectlymanaged as any English or Highland one, and a great deal more so thanthe majority that we have seen. 

Mr. Trimmer, in his work on the Merinos, speaking of the Spanish flocks, says:

 "There is no driving of the flock; that is a practice entirely unknown; but the shepherd, when he wishes to remove his sheep, calls to him a tame wether accustomed to feed from his hands. The favourite, however distant, obeys his call, and the rest follow. One or more of the dogs, with large collars armed with spikes, in order to protect them from the wolves, precede the flock, others skirt it on each side, and some bring up the rear. If a sheep be ill or lame, or lag behind unobserved by the shepherds, they stay with it and defend it until some one return in search of it. With us, dogs are too often used for other and worse purposes. In open, unenclosed districts, they are indispensable; but in others I wish them, I confess, either managed, or encouraged less. If a sheep commits a fault in the sight of an intemperate shepherd, or accidentally offends him, it is 'dogged' into obedience: the signal is given, the dog obeys the mandate, and the poor sheep flies round the field to escape from the fangs of him who should be his protector, until it becomes half dead with fright and exhaustion, while the trembling flock crowd together dreading the same fate, and the churl exults in this cowardly victory over a weak and defenceless animal. " [5]

If the farmer will seriously calculate the number of ewes that haveyeaned before their time, and of the lambs that he has lost, and theaccidents that have occurred from the sheep pressing upon one another inorder to escape from the dog, and if he will also take into account thecontinual disturbance of the sheep while grazing, by the approach of thedog, and the consequent interference with the cropping and the digestionof the food, he will attach more importance to the good temper of thedog and of the shepherd than he has been accustomed to do. There wouldbe no injustice, or rather a great deal of propriety, in inflicting afine for every tooth-mark that could be detected. When the sheep, instead of collecting round the dog, and placing themselves under hisprotection on any sudden alarm, uniformly fly from him with terror, thefarmer may he assured there is something radically wrong in themanagement of the flock. 

Instinct and education combine to fit this dog for our service. Thepointer will act without any great degree of instruction, and the setterwill crouch; and most certainly the sheep-dog, and especially if he hasthe example of an older and expert one, will, almost without theteaching of the master, become everything that can be wished, obedientto every order, even to the slightest motion of the hand. There is anatural predisposition for the office he has to discharge, which itrequires little trouble or skill to develop and perfect. 

It is no unpleasing employment to study the degree in which the severalbreeds of dogs are not only highly intelligent, but fitted by nature forthe particular duty they have to perform. The pointer, the setter, thehound, the greyhound, the terrier, the spaniel, and even the bull-dog, were made, and almost perfected, by nature chiefly for one office alone, although they maybe useful in many other ways. This is well illustratedin the sheep-dog. If he be but with his master, he lies content, indifferent to every surrounding object, seemingly half asleep and halfawake, rarely mingling with his kind, rarely courting, and generallyshrinking from, the notice of a stranger; but the moment duty calls, hissleepy, listless eye, becomes brightened; he eagerly gazes on hismaster, inquires and comprehends all he is to do, and, springing up, gives himself to the discharge of his duty with a sagacity, andfidelity, and devotion, too rarely equalled even by man himself. 

Mr. James Hogg, the Ettrick Shepherd, living in his early days among thesheep and their quadruped attendants, and an accurate observer ofnature, as well an exquisite poet, gives some anecdotes of the colley, (the Highland term for sheep-dog), with which the reader will not bedispleased. 

 "My dog Sirrah, " says he, in a letter to the Editor of 'Blackwood's Edinburgh Magazine', "was, beyond all comparison, the best dog I ever saw. He had a somewhat surly and unsocial temper, disdaining all flattery, and refusing to be caressed, but his attention to my commands and interest will never again be equalled by any of the canine race. When I first saw him, a drover was leading him with a rope. He was both lean and hungry, and far from being a beautiful animal; for he was almost black, and had a grim face, striped with dark brown. I thought I perceived a sort of sullen intelligence in his countenance, notwithstanding his dejected and forlorn appearance, and I bought him. He was scarcely a year old, and knew so little of herding that he had never turned a sheep in his life; but, as soon as he discovered that it was his duty to do so, and that it obliged me, I can never forget with what anxiety and eagerness he learned his different evolutions; and when I once made him understand a direction, he never forgot or mistook it. "

 On one night, a large flock of lambs that were under the Ettrick Shepherd's care, frightened by something, scampered away in three different directions across the hills, in spite of all that he could do to keep them together. "Sirrah, " said the shepherd, "they're a' awa!"

 It was too dark for the dog and his master to see each other at any considerable distance, but Sirrah understood him, and set off after the fugitives. The night passed on, and Hogg and his assistant traversed every neighbouring hill in anxious but fruitless search for the lambs; but he could hear nothing of them nor of the dog, and he was returning to his master with the doleful intelligence that he had lost all his lambs. "On our way home, however, " says he, "we discovered a lot of lambs at the bottom of a deep ravine called the Flesh Cleuch, and the indefatigable Sirrah standing in front of them, looking round for some relief, but still true to his charge. We concluded that it was one of the divisions which Sirrah had been unable to manage, until he came to that commanding situation. But what was our astonishment when we discovered that not one lamb of the flock was missing! How he had got all the divisions collected in the dark, is beyond my comprehension. The charge was left entirely to himself from midnight until the rising sun; and, if all the shepherds in the forest had been there to have assisted him, they could not have effected it with greater promptitude. All that I can say is, that I never felt so grateful to any creature under the sun us I did to my honest Sirrah that morning. "

A shepherd, in one of his excursions over the Grampian Hills to collecthis scattered flock, took with him (as is a frequent practice, toinitiate them in their future business) one of his children about fouryears old. After traversing his pastures for a while, attended by hisdog, he was compelled to ascend a summit at some distance. As the ascentwas too great for the child, he left him at the bottom, with strictinjunctions not to move from the place. Scarcely, however, had he gainedthe height, when one of the Scotch mists, of frequent occurrence, suddenly came on, and almost changed the day to night. He returned toseek his child, but was unable to find him, and concluded a long andfruitless search by coming distracted to his cottage. His poor dog alsowas missing in the general confusion. On the next morning by daylight herenewed his search, but again he came back without his child. He found, however, that during his absence his dog had been home, and, onreceiving his allowance of food, instantly departed. For four successivedays the shepherd continued his search with the same bad fortune, thedog as readily coming for his meal and departing. Struck by thissingular circumstance, he determined to follow the dog, who departed asusual with his piece of cake. The animal led the way to a cataract atsome distance from the spot where the child had been left. It was arugged and almost perpendicular descent which the dog took, and hedisappeared in a cave, the mouth of which was almost on a level with thetorrent. The shepherd with difficulty followed; but, on entering thecavern, what were his emotions when he beheld the infant eating the cakewhich the dog had just brought to him, while the faithful animal stoodby, eyeing his young charge with the utmost complacency! From thesituation in which the child was found, it appeared that he had wanderedto the brink of the precipice, and then either fallen or scrambled down, the torrent preventing his re-ascent. The dog by means of his scent hadtraced him to the spot, and afterwards prevented him from starving bygiving up a part, or, perhaps, the whole of his own daily allowance. Heappears never to have quitted the child night or day, except for food, as he was seen running at full speed to and from the cottage. [6]

Mr. Hogg says, and very truly, that a single shepherd and his dog willaccomplish more in gathering a flock of sheep from a Highland farm thantwenty shepherds could do without dogs; in fact, that without thisdocile animal, the pastoral life would be a mere blank. It would requiremore hands to manage a flock of sheep, gather them from the hills, forcethem into houses and folds, and drive them to markets, than the profitsof the whole flock would be capable of maintaining. Well may theshepherd feel an interest in his dog; he it is indeed that earns thefamily bread, of which he is himself content with the smallest morsel:always grateful, and always ready to exert his utmost abilities in hismaster's interests. Neither hunger, fatigue, nor the worst treatmentwill drive him from his side, and he will follow him through everyhardship without murmur or repining. If one of them is obliged to changemasters, it is sometimes long before he will acknowledge the new owner, or condescend to work for him with the willingness that he did for hisformer lord; but, if he once acknowledges him, he continues attached tohim until death. [7]

We will add another story of the colley, and proceed. It illustrates thememory of the dog. A shepherd was employed in bringing up some mountainsheep from Westmoreland, and took with him a young sheep-dog who hadnever made the journey before. From his assistant being ignorant of theground, he experienced great difficulty in having the flock stopped atthe various roads and lanes he passed in their way to the neighbourhoodof London. 

In the next year the same shepherd, accompanied by the same dog, broughtup another flock for the gentlemen who had had the former one. On beingquestioned how he had got on, he said much better than the year before, as his dog now knew the road, and had kept the sheep from going up anyof the lanes or turnings that had given the shepherd so much trouble onhis former journey. The distance could not have been less than 400miles. [8]

Buffon gives an eloquent and faithful account of the sheep-dog:

 "This animal, faithful to man, will always preserve a portion of his empire and a degree of superiority over other beings. He reigns at the head of his flock, and makes himself better understood than the voice of the shepherd. Safety, order, and discipline are the fruits of his vigilance and activity. They are a people submitted to his management, whom he conducts and protects, and against whom he never employs force but for the preservation of good order. "

 "If we consider that this animal, notwithstanding his ugliness and his wild and melancholy look, is superior in instinct to all others; that he has a decided character in which education has comparatively little share; that he is the only animal born perfectly trained for the service of others; that, guided by natural powers alone, he applies himself to the care of our flocks, a duty which he executes with singular assiduity, vigilance, and fidelity; that he conducts them with an admirable intelligence which is a part and portion of himself; that his sagacity astonishes at the same time that it gives repose to his master, while it requires great time and trouble to instruct other dogs for the purposes to which they are destined: if we reflect on these facts we shall be confirmed in the opinion that the shepherd's dog is the true dog of nature, the stock and model of the whole species. " [9]

[After reading the above history of this truly valuable dog, it isalmost superfluous for us to attempt to add anything more on this head;however, we must pause for a few moments, to call the attention of ouragriculturists and others engaged in raising sheep, to the immenseadvantages to be derived from the introduction of this sagacious animalthroughout our own country. 

The increased vigour that is now given for the cultivation of sheep, tosupply the necessary demands of the numerous woollen factories springingup in every quarter, renders the services of this faithful creatureabsolutely indispensable, not only as a guardian of the flocks, but as amere expedient of economy. 

Many portions of our country, now lying idle, particularly themountainous ranges, are peculiarly adapted for the grazing of sheep, andwe are destined not only to supply the world with cotton, but may hopeere long to add to our national wealth the other equally valuable staplecommodity, that of wool. 

In the care of sheep, each dog not only supplies the place of two orthree men, but, as is seen in the foregoing pages, renders suchassistance as cannot be obtained from any other source. 

The shepherds of Mexico lead a life not unlike the patriarchs of old, shifting about from day to day, watching their immense flocks, attendedonly by a few dogs, who have the entire control of the sheep, keepingthem from straying away, and not only defending them from theblood-thirsty wolf, but even attacking, if necessary, the skulkingsavage. 

These dogs of Mexico are represented as being much larger than theEnglish variety, and no doubt are the descendants of the Spanishshepherd dog, so highly prized in protecting the Merino flocks from thewolves that infest the mountainous parts of Spain, most frequented bythe herds during the summer season. 

These dogs are the same breed as those engaged by the philanthropicmonks of St. Bernard in hunting up the benumbed traveller when sinkingfrom exhaustion, or already overwhelmed by the sudden rushing of anavalanche into some one of the mountain passes. 

The original Spanish shepherd dog is a very powerful animal, and eventhose of Mexico, when armed with spiked collars, are a sufficient matchfor the largest wolves. Mr. Kendall mentions having met on the grandprairie with a flock of sheep numbering seventeen thousand, whichimmense herd was guarded by a very few men, assisted by a large numberof noble dogs, which appeared gifted with the faculty of keeping themtogether. 

 "There was no running about, no barking or biting in their system of tactics; on the contrary, they were continually walking up and down, like faithful sentinels, on the outer side of the flock, and should any sheep chance to stray from his fellows, the dog on duty at that particular post would walk gently up, take him carefully by the ear, and lead him back to the fold. Not the least fear did the sheep manifest at the approach of these dogs, and there was no occasion for it. " Vol. I. P. 268. 

This account coincides with the remarks of Mr. Trinner upon this dog inold Spain; and Mr. Skinner very justly remarks, that the Mexicansheep-dog has not his equal in any part of the world, except, perhaps, in his native country, and that the Scotch or English dog sinks intoinsignificance when compared with him. 

A flock of a thousand sheep in Spain requires the attendance of two menand an equal number of dogs, who never for a moment quit their charge, watching them without intermission day and night. The great inferiorityof the English dogs, may be attributed, perhaps, to their want of carein training and bringing up, which is considered the most essential, andactually the foundation of all their future usefulness with theMexicans. The pups when first born, are taken from the bitch, and put toa sucking ewe, already deprived of her own lamb. For several days theewe is confined with the pups in the shepherd's hut, and either fromforce, or an instinctive desire to be relieved of the contents of theudder, she soon allows the little strangers to suck, and in the courseof a few days more, becomes quite reconciled to the change, and exhibitsa great degree of affection for her foster children, who, knowing noother parentage, becomes thus early engrafted into the generalcommunity, and returns their early kindness by every mark of affectionand fidelity hereafter; never being willing for a moment to quit theirsociety, but remains with them night and day, expressing a peculiarattachment to this particular flock, and seeming able to distinguisheach member of it from all other intruders. 

In the third volume of the 'American Agriculturist' will be found aninteresting article connected with this subject, and from which we mightextract much useful information, if our limits would allow of itsinsertion in the present volume. 

Mr. Skinner states, that in 1832 he had two of these dogs, a male andfemale, both trained, but unfortunately lost the latter before obtainingany pups from her; he also remarks, that they can be imported via Havanaand Santander, at an expense of not less than $70 or $80. We see noreason why the same dogs might not be obtained at a much less cost bythe Santa Fé traders, who, no doubt, would be glad to bring them intothe country as companions de voyages, provided there was any demand forthem. --L. ]

THE DROVER'S DOG

bears considerable resemblance to the sheep-dog, and has usually thesame prevailing black or brown colour. He possesses all the docility ofthe sheep-dog, with more courage, and sometimes a degree of ferocity, exercised without just cause upon his charge, while he is in his turncruelly used by a brutal master. 

There is a valuable cross between the colley and the drover's dog inWestmoreland, and a larger and stronger breed is cultivated inLincolnshire; indeed it is necessary there, where oxen as well as sheepare usually consigned to the dog's care. A good drover's dog is worth aconsiderable sum; but the breed is too frequently and injudiciouslycrossed at the fancy of the owner. Some drovers' dogs are as much likesetters, lurchers, and hounds, as they are to the original breed. 

Stories are told of the docility and sagacity of the drover's dog evenmore surprising than any that are related of the sheep-dog. The EttrickShepherd says, that a Mr. Steel, butcher in Peebles, had such implicitdependence on the attention of his dog to his orders, that whenever heput a lot of sheep before her, he took a pride in leaving them entirelyto her, and either remained to take a glass with the farmer of whom hehad made the purchase, or travelled another road to look after bargainsor business. At one time, however, he chanced to commit a drove to hercharge, at a place called Willenslee, without attending to hercondition, which he certainly ought to have done. This farm is aboutfive miles from Peebles, over wild hills, and there is no regularlydefined path to it. Whether Mr. Steel chose another road is uncertain;but, on coming home late in the evening, he was surprised to hear thathis faithful animal had not made her appearance with her flock. He andhis son instantly prepared to set out by different paths in search ofher; but, on going into the street, there was she with the flock, andnot one of the sheep missing; she, however, was carrying a young pup inher mouth. She had been taken in travail on those hills; and how thepoor beast had contrived to manage the sheep in her state of sufferingis beyond human calculation, for her road lay through sheep-pastures thewhole way. Her master's heart smote him when he saw what she hadsuffered and effected; but she was nothing daunted; and, havingdeposited her young one in a place of safety, she again set out at fullspeed to the hills, and brought another and another little one, untilshe had removed her whole litter one by one; the last, however, wasdead. 

Mr. Blaine relates as extraordinary an instance of intelligence, but notmingled, like the former, with natural affection. A butcher andcattle-dealer, who resided about nine miles from Alston, in Cumberland, bought a dog of a drover. The butcher was accustomed to purchase sheepand kine in the vicinity, which, when fattened, he drove to Alstonmarket and sold. In these excursions he was frequently astonished at thepeculiar sagacity of his dog, and at the more than common readiness anddexterity with which he managed the cattle; until at length he troubledhimself very little about the matter, but, riding carelessly along, usedto amuse himself with observing how adroitly the dog acquitted himselfof his charge. At length, so convinced was he of his sagacity, as wellas fidelity, that he laid a wager that he would intrust the dog with anumber of sheep and oxen, and let him drive them alone and unattended toAlston market. It was stipulated that no one should be within sight orhearing who had the least control over the dog, nor was any spectator tointerfere. This extraordinary animal, however, proceeded with hisbusiness in the most steady and dexterous manner; and, although he hadfrequently to drive his charge through other herds that were grazing, hedid not lose one; but, conducting them to the very yard to which he wasused to drive them when with his master, he significantly delivered themup to the person appointed to receive them by barking at his door. Whenthe path which he travelled lay through grounds in which others weregrazing, he would run forward, stop his own drove, and then, chasing theothers away, collect his scattered charge, and proceed. 

THE ITALIAN OR POMERANIAN WOLF-DOG. 

The wolf-dog is no longer a native of Great Britain, because hisservices are not required there, but he is useful in various parts ofthe Continent, in the protection of the sheep from the attacks of thewolf. A pair of these dogs was brought to the Zoological Society ofLondon in 1833, and there long remained, an ornament to the Gardens. They appeared to possess a considerable degree of strength, but to betoo gentle to contend with so powerful and ferocious an animal as thewolf. They were mostly covered with white or gray, or occasionally blackhair, short on the head, ears and feet, but long and silky on the bodyand tail. The forehead is elevated, and the muzzle lengthened andclothed with short hair. The attachment of this dog to his master andthe flock is very great, and he has not lost a particle of his sagacity, but, where wolves are common, is still used as a sheep-dog. 

THE CUR

is the sheep-dog crossed with the terrier. He has long and somewhatdeservedly obtained a very bad name, as a bully and a coward; andcertainly his habit of barking at everything that passes, and flying atthe heels of the horse, renders him often a very dangerous nuisance: heis, however, in a manner necessary to the cottager; he is a faithfuldefender of his humble dwelling; no bribe can seduce him from his duty;and he is likewise a useful and an effectual guard over the clothes andscanty provisions of the labourer, who may be working in some distantpart of the field. All day long he will lie upon his master's clothesseemingly asleep, but giving immediate warning of the approach of asupposed marauder. He has a propensity, when at home, to fly at everyhorse and every strange dog; and of young game of every kind there isnot a more ruthless destroyer than the village cur. 

Mr. Hogg draws the following curious parallel between the sheep-dog andthe cur:

 "An exceedingly good sheep-dog attends to nothing but the particular branch of business to which he is bred. His whole capacity is exerted and exhausted in it; and he is of little avail in miscellaneous matters; whereas a very indifferent cur bred about the house, and accustomed to assist in everything will often put the more noble breed to disgrace in these little services. If some one calls out that the cows are in the corn or the hens in the garden, the house colley needs no other hint, but runs and turns them out. The shepherd's dog knows not what is astir, and, if he is called out in a hurry for such work, all that he will do is to run to the hill, or rear himself on his haunches to see that no sheep are running away. A well-bred sheep-dog, if coming hungry from the hills, and getting into a milk-house, would likely think of nothing else than filling his belly with the cream. Not so his initiated brother: he is bred at home to far higher principles of honour. I have known such lie night and day among from ten to twenty pails full of milk, and never once break the cream of one of them with the tip of his tongue, nor would he suffer cat, rat, or any other creature to touch it. While, therefore, the cur is a nuisance, he is very useful in his way, and we would further plead for him, that he possesses a great deal of the sagacity and all the fidelity of the choicest breed of dogs. "

The dog who, according to the well-known and authentic story, watchedthe remains of his master for two years in the churchyard of St. Olave's, in Southwark, was a cur. 

The following story is strictly authentic:

 "Not long ago a young man, an acquaintance of the coachman, was walking, as he had often done, in Lord Fife's stables at Banff. Taking an opportunity, when the servants were not regarding him, he put a bridle into his pocket. A Highland cur that was generally about the stables saw him, and immediately began to bark at him, and when he got to the stable-door would not let him pass, but bit him by the leg in order to prevent him. As the servants had never seen the dog act thus before, and the same young man had been often with them, they could not imagine what could be the reason of the dog's conduct. However, when they saw the end of a valuable bridle peeping out of the young man's pocket, they were able to account for it, and, on his giving it up, the dog left the stable-door, where he had stood, and allowed him to pass. " [10]

THE LURCHER. 

This dog was originally a cross between the greyhound and the shepherd'sdog, retaining all the speed and fondness for the chase belonging to theone, and the superior intelligence and readiness for any kind of workwhich the latter possessed. This breed has been crossed again with thespaniel, combining the disposition to quest for game which distinguishesthe spaniel with the muteness and swiftness of the greyhound. Sometimesthe greyhound is crossed with the hound. Whatever be the cross, thegreyhound must predominate; but his form, although still to be traced, has lost all its beauty. 

The lurcher is a dog seldom found in the possession of the honourablesportsman. The farmer may breed him for his general usefulness, fordriving his cattle, and guarding his premises, and occasionally coursingthe hare; but other dogs will answer the former purposes much better, while the latter qualification may render him suspected by his landlord, and sometimes be productive of serious injury. In a rabbit-warren thisdog is peculiarly destructive. His scent enables him to follow themsilently and swiftly. He darts unexpectedly upon them, and, beingtrained to bring his prey to his master, one of these dogs will often inone night supply the poacher with rabbits and other game worth moremoney than he could earn by two days' hard labour. 

Mr. H. Faull, of Helstone, in Cornwall, lost no fewer than fifteen finesheep, and some of them store sheep, killed by lurchers in January, 1824. [11]

We now proceed to the different species of dog belonging to the seconddivision of Cuvier, which are classed under the name of Hound; and, first we take

THE BEAGLE. 

The origin of this diminutive hound is somewhat obscure. There isevidently much of the harrier and of the old southern, connected with aconsiderable decrease of size and speed, the possession of anexceedingly musical voice, and very great power of scent. Beagles arerarely more than ten or twelve inches in height, and were generally sonearly of the same size and power of speed, that it was commonly saidthey might be covered with a sheet. This close running is, however, considered as a mark of excellence in hounds of every kind. 

There are many pleasurable recollections of the period when "the goodold English gentleman" used to keep his pack of beagles or littleharriers, slow but sure, occasionally carried to the field in a pair ofpanniers on a horse's back; often an object of ridicule at an earlyperiod of the chase, but rarely failing to accomplish their object erethe day closed, "the puzzling pack unravelling wile by wile, maze withinmaze. " It was often the work of two or three hours to accomplish this;but is was seldom, in spite of her speed, her shifts, and her doublings, that the hare did not fall a victim to her pursuers. 

The slowness of their pace gradually caused them to be almost totallydiscontinued, until very lately, and especially in the royal park atWindsor, they have been again introduced. Generally speaking, they haveall the strength and endurance which is necessary to ensure theirkilling their game, and are much fleeter than their diminutive sizewould indicate. Formerly, considerable fancy and even judgment used tobe exercised in the breeding of these dogs. They were curiouslydistinguished by the names of "deep-flewed, " or "shallow-flewed, " inproportion as they had the depending upper lip of the southern, or thesharper muzzle and more contracted lip of the northern dogs. Theshallow-flewed were the swiftest, and the deep-flewed the stoutest andthe surest, and their music the most pleasant. The wire-haired beaglewas considered as the stouter and better dog. 

The form of the head in beagles has been much misunderstood. They have, or should have, large heads, decidedly round, and thick rather thanlong; there will then be room for the expansion of the nasal membrane, that of smell, and for the reverberation of the sound, so peculiarlypleasant in this dog. 

The beagle runs very low to the ground, and therefore has a strongerimpression of the scent than taller dogs. This is especially the casewhen the scent is more than usually low. 

Among the advocates for beagles, several years ago, was Colonel Hardy. He used to send his dogs in panniers, and they had a little barn fortheir kennel. The door was one night broken open, and every hound, panniers and all, stolen. The thief was never discovered, not evensuspected. 

The use of beagles was soon afterwards nearly abandoned by theintroduction of the harrier, and by his yielding in his turn to thefox-hound; but the beagles of Colonel Thornton and Colonel Molyneux willnot be soon forgotten. [12]

There is, however, a practice which fair sportsmen will never resortto--the use of a beagle to start a hare in order to be run down by abrace of greyhounds, or perhaps by a lurcher. The hare is not fairlymatched in this way of proceeding. 

THE HARRIER

occupies an intermediate station between the beagle and the fox-hound. It is the fox-hound bred down to a diminished size, and suited to theanimal he is to pursue. He retains, or did for a while retain, the longbody, deep chest, large bones, somewhat heavy head, sweeping ears, andmellow voice, which the sportsman of old so enthusiastically described, with the certainty of killing, and the pleasing prolongation of thechase. With this the farmer used to be content: it did not requireexpensive cattle, was not attended with much hazard of neck, and did nottake him far from home. 

Almost every country squire used in former days to keep his little packof harriers or beagles. He was mounted on his stout cob-horse, thatserved him alike for the road and the chase; and his huntsman probablyhad a still smaller and rougher beast, or sometimes ran afoot. He couldthen follow the sport, almost without going off his own land, and thefarmer's boys, knowing the country and the usual doublings of the hare, could see the greater part of the chase, and were almost able to keep upwith the hounds, so that they were rarely absent at the death: indeed, they saw and enjoyed far more of it than the fox-hunter or thestag-hunter now does, mounted on his fleetest horse. 

The harrier was not more than 18 or 19 inches high. He was crossed withthe fox-hound if he was getting too diminutive, or with the beagle if hewas becoming too tall. 

The principal objects the sportsman endeavoured to accomplish were topreserve stoutness, scent, and musical voice, with speed to follow thehare sufficiently close, yet not enough to run her down too quickly, orwithout some of those perplexities, and faults, and uncertainties whichgive the principal zest to the chase. 

The character and speed of the hound much depend on the nature of thecountry. The smaller harrier will best suit a deeply enclosed country;but where there is little cover, and less doubling greater size andfleetness are requisite. The harrier, nevertheless, let him be as talland as speedy as he may, should never he used for the fox; but every dogshould be strictly confined to his own game. 

Mr. Beckford, in his 'Thoughts upon Hunting', gives an account, unrivalled, of the chase of the hare and fox. Many sporting writers haveendeavoured to tread in his steps; but they have failed in giving thatgraphic account of the pleasures of the field which Mr. Beckford's essaycontains. 

He says that the sportsman should never have more than 20 couple in thefield, because it would he exceedingly difficult to get a greater numberto run together, and a pack of harriers cannot be complete if they donot. A hound that runs too fast for the rest, or that lags behind them, should be immediately discarded. His hounds were between the largeslow-hunting harrier and the fox-beagle. He endeavoured to get as muchbone and strength in as little compass as possible. He acknowledges thatthis was a difficult undertaking; but he had, at last, the pleasure tosee them handsome, small, yet bony, running well together, and fastenough, with all the alacrity that could be desired, and hunting thecoldest scent. 

He anticipates the present improvement of the chase when he lays it downas a rule never to be departed from, that hounds of every kind should bekept to their own game. They should have one scent, and one style ofhunting. Harriers will run a fox in so different a style from thepursuit of a hare, that they will not readily, and often will not atall, return to their proper work. The difference in the scent, and theeagerness of pursuit, and the noise that accompanies fox-hunting, allcontribute to spoil a harrier. 

Mr. Beckford pleasingly expresses a sportsman's consideration for thepoor animal which he is hunting to death. 

 "A hare, " he says, "is a timorous little animal that we cannot help feeling some compassion for at the time that we are pursuing her destruction. We should give scope to all her little tricks, nor kill her foully nor overmatched. Instinct instructs her to make a good defence when not unfairly treated, and I will venture to say that, as far as her own safety is concerned, she has more cunning than the fox, and makes shifts to save her life far beyond all his artifice. " [13]

THE FOX HOUND

is of a middle size, between the harrier and the stag-hound; it is theold English hound, sufficiently crossed with the greyhound to give himlightness and speed without impairing his scent; and he has now beenbred to a degree of speed sufficient to satisfy the man who holds hisneck at the least possible price, and with which few, exceptthorough-bred horses, and not all of them, can live to the end of thechase. The fox-hound is lighter, or as it is now called, more highlybred, or he retains a greater portion of his original size andheaviness, according to the nature of the country and the fancy of themaster of the pack: therefore it is difficult to give an accuratedescription of the best variety of this dog; but there are guidingpoints which can never be forgotten without serious injury. 

He derives from the greyhound a head somewhat smaller and longer inproportion to his size than either the stag-hound or the harrier. Butconsiderable caution is requisite here. The beauty of the head and face, although usually accompanied by speed, must never be sacrificed tostoutness and power of scent. The object of the sportsman is toamalgamate them, or rather to possess them all in the greatest possibledegree. This will generally be brought to a great degree of perfectionif the sportsman regards the general excellence of the dog rather thanthe perfection of any particular point. The ears should not, comparatively speaking, be so large as those of the stag-hound or theharrier; but the neck should be longer and lighter, the chest deep andcapacious, the fore legs straight as arrows, and the hind ones well bentat the hock. 

Some extraordinary accounts have been given of the speed of thefox-hound. A match that was run over the Beacon Course at Newmarket isthe best illustration of his fleetness. The distance is 4 miles 1furlong and 132 yards. The winning dog performed it in 8 minutes and afew seconds; but of the sixty horses that started with the hounds, onlytwelve were able to run in with them. Flying Childers had run the samecourse in 7 minutes and 30 seconds. 

 "The size, or, as we should rather say, the height of a fox-hound, is a point on which there has been much difference of opinion. Mr. Chule's pack was three inches below the standard of Mr. Villebois', and four inches below that of Mr. Warde's. The advocates of the former assert, that they get better across a deep and strongly fenced country, while the admirers of the latter insist on their being better climbers of hills and more active in cover. As to uniformity in size, it is by no means essential to the well-doing of hounds in the field, and has been disregarded by some of our best sportsmen: Mr. Meynell never drafted a good hound on account of his being over or under sized. The proper standard of height in fox-hounds is from 21 to 22 inches for bitches, and from 23 to 24 for dog-hounds. Mr. Warde's bitches, the best of the kind that our country contained, were rather more than 23 inches. A few of his dogs were 25 inches high. The amount of hounds annually bred will depend upon the strength of the kennel. From sixty to eighty couples is the complement for a four days a-week pack, which will require the breeding of a hundred couples of puppies every year, allowing for accidents and distemper. " [14]

Nimrod very properly observes, that

 "Mr. Beckford has omitted a point much thought of by the modern sportsmen, namely, 'the back-ribs', which should also be deep, as in a strong-bodied horse, of which we say, when so formed, that he has a good 'spur place;' a point highly esteemed in him. Nor is he sufficiently descriptive of the hinder legs of the hound; for there is a length of thigh discernible in first-rate hounds which, like the well-let-down hock of the horse, gives them much superiority of speed, and is also a great security against their laming themselves in leaping fences, which they are more apt to do when they become blown and consequently weak. The fore legs, 'straight as arrows, ' is an admirable illustration of perfection in those parts by Beckford; for, as in a bow or bandy legged man, nothing is so disfiguring to a hound as having his elbows projecting, and which is likewise a great check to speed. " [15]

Mr. Daniel gives a curious account of the prejudices of sportsmen on thesubject of colour. The white dogs were curious hunters, and had acapital scent; the black, with some white spots, were obedient, goodhunters, and with good constitutions; the gray-coloured had no veryacute scent, but were obstinate, and indefatigable in their quest; theyellow dogs were impatient and obstinate, and taught with difficulty. [16]

The dog exhibits no criteria of age after the first two years. Thatperiod having elapsed, the whiteness and evenness of the teeth soon passaway, and the 'old' dog can scarcely be mistaken. Nimrod scarcely speakstoo positively when he says that an old hound cannot be mistaken, ifonly looked in the face. At all events, few are found in a kennel afterthe eighth year, and very few after the ninth. 

Mr. Beckford advises the sportsman carefully to consider the size, shape, colour, constitution, and natural disposition of the dog fromwhich he breeds, and also the fineness of the nose, the evident strengthof the limb, and the good temper and devotion to his master which hedisplays. The faults or imperfections in one breed may be rectified inanother; and, if this is properly attended to, there is no reason whyimprovements may not continually be made. 

The separation of the sexes in the kennel and in the field is one of thelatest innovations in the hunting world, and generally considered to bea good one. The eye is pleased to see a pack of hounds, nearly or quiteof a size. The character of the animal is more uniformly displayed whenconfined to one sex. In consequence of the separation of the two, thedogs are less inclined to quarrel; and the bitches are more at theirease than when undergoing the importunate solicitations of the male. Asto their performances in the field, opinions vary, and each sex has itsadvocates. The bitch, with a good fox before her, is decidedly moreoff-hand at her work; but she is less patient, and sometimes overrunsthe scent. Sir Bellingharn Graham has been frequently heard to say, thatif his kennels would have afforded it, he would never have taken adog-hound into the field. That in the canine race the female has more ofelegance and symmetry of form, consequently more of speed, than themale, is evident to a common observer; but there is nothing to lead tothe conclusion that, in the natural endowments of the senses, anysuperiority exists. [17]

The bitch should not be allowed to engage in any long and severe chaseafter she has been lined. She should be kept as quiet as may bepracticable, and well but not too abundantly fed; each having a kennelor place of retreat for herself. She should be carefully watched, andespecially when the ninth week approaches. The huntsman and the keeperwithout any apparent or unnecessary intrusion, should be on the alert. 

The time of pupping having arrived, as little noise or disturbanceshould be made as possible; but a keeper should be always at hand incase of abortion or difficult parturition. Should there be a probabilityof either of these occurring, he should not be in a hurry; for, as muchshould be left to nature as can, without evident danger, be done, andthe keeper should rarely intrude unless his assistance is indispensable. 

The pupping being accomplished, the mother should be carefully attendedto. She should be liberally fed, and particularly should have her shareof animal food, and an increased quantity of milk. 

The bitch should not have whelps until she has hunted two seasons; for, before that time it will be scarcely possible to ascertain herexcellences or defects. If there are any considerable faults, she shouldbe immediately rejected. 

When the time approaches for her to produce her puppies, she should beallowed a certain degree of liberty, and should choose her couch and runabout a little more than usual; but, when the young ones are born, theless they are handled the better. The constitution and appearance of themother will indicate how many should be kept. If two litters are born ator about the same time, or within two or three days of each other, wemay interchange one or two of the whelps of each of them, and perhapsincrease the value of both. 

When the whelps are able to crawl to a certain distance, it will be timeto mark them, according to their respective litters, some on the ear andothers on the lip. The dew-claws should be removed, and, usually, asmall tip from the tail. Their names also should be recorded. 

The whelps will begin to lap very soon after they can look about them, and should remain with the mother until they are fully able to take careof themselves. They may then be prepared to go to quarters. 

Two or three doses of physic should be given to the mother, withintervals of four or five days between each: this will prepare her toreturn to the kennel. 

There is often considerable difficulty in disposing of the whelps untilthey get old and stout enough to be brought into the kennel. They aremostly sent to some of the neighbouring cottages, in order to be takencare of; but they are often neglected and half starved there. Inconsequence of this, distemper soon appears, and many of them are lost. 

Whelps 'walked', or taken care of at butchers' houses, soon grow to aconsiderable size; but they are apt to be heavy-shouldered and throaty, and perhaps otherwise deformed. There is some doubt whether it might notbe better for the sportsman to take the management of them himself, andto have a kennel built purposely for them. It may, perhaps, be fearedthat the distemper will get among them: they would, however, be wellfed, and far more comfortable than they now are; and, as to thedistemper, it is a disease that they must have some time or other. 

From twenty to thirty couples are quite as many as can be easilymanaged; and the principal consideration is, whether they are steady, and as nearly as possible equal of speed. When the packs are very large, the hounds are seldom sufficiently hunted to be good. Few persons chooseto hunt every day, or, if they did, it is not likely that the weatherwould permit them. The sportsman would, therefore, be compelled to takean inconvenient number into the field, and too many must be left behind. In the first place, too many hounds in the field would frequently spoilthe sport; and, on the other hand, the hounds that remained would getout of wind, or become riotous, or both. Hounds, to be useful and good, should be constantly hunted; but a great fault in many packs is theirhaving too many old dogs among them. 

Young hounds, when first taken to the kennel, should be kept separatefrom the rest of the pack, otherwise there will be frequent anddangerous quarrels. When these do occur, the feeder hears, andsometimes, but not so frequently as he ought, endeavours to discover thecause of the disturbance, and visits the culprits with deservedpunishment; too often, however, he does not give himself time for this, but rushes among them, and flogs every hound that he can get at, guiltyor not guilty. This is a shameful method of procedure. It is the causeof much undeserved punishment: it spoils the temper of the dog, andmakes him careless and indifferent as long as he lives. 

Mr. Beckford very properly remarks, that

 "Young hounds are, and must be awkward at first, and should be taken out, a few at a time, with couples not too loose. They are thus accustomed to the usual occurrences of the road, and this is most easily accomplished when a young and an old dog are coupled together. "

A sheep-field is the next object, and the young hound, properly watched, soon becomes reconciled, and goes quietly along with the companion ofthe preceding day. A few days afterwards the dogs are uncoupled in thefield, and perhaps, at first, are not a little disposed to attack thesheep; but the cry of "Ware sheep!" in a stern tone of voice, arreststhem, and often, without the aid of the whip; it being taken as aprinciple that this instrument should be used as seldom as possible. If, indeed, the dog is self-willed, the whip must be had recourse to, andperhaps with some severity; for, if he is once suffered to taste theblood of the sheep, it may be difficult to restrain him afterwards. Anobleman was told that it was possible to break his dogs of the habit ofattacking his sheep, by introducing a large and fearless ram among them;one was accordingly procured and turned into the kennel. The men withtheir whips and voices, and the ram with his horns, soon threw the wholekennel into confusion. The hounds and the ram were left together. Meeting a friend soon afterwards, "Come, " said he, "to the kennel, andsee what rare sport the ram is making among the hounds. " His friendasked whether he was not afraid that some of them might be spoiled. "No, " said he; "they deserve it, and let them suffer. " They proceeded tothe kennel; all was quiet. The kennel-door was thrown open, and theremains of the ram were found scattered about: the hounds, having filledtheir bellies, had retired to rest. 

The time of entering young hounds must vary in different countries. In acorn country, it should not be until the wheat is carried; in grasscountries, somewhat sooner; and, in woodlands, as soon as we please. Frequent hallooing may be of use with young hounds; it makes them moreeager; but, generally speaking, there is a time when it may be of use, atime when it does harm, and a time when it is perfectly indifferent. 

The following remarks of Mr. Beckford are worthy of their author:

 "Hounds at their first entering cannot be encouraged too much. When they begin to know what is right, it will be soon enough to chastise them for doing wrong, and, in such case, one rather severe beating will save a great deal of trouble. The voice should be used as well as the whip; and the smack of the whip will often be of as much avail as the lash to him who has felt it. "

Flogging hounds in the kennel, the frequent practice of too manyhuntsmen, should be held in utter abhorrence, and, if carried to aconsiderable excess, is a disgrace to humanity. Generally speaking, nonebut the sportsman can form an adequate conception of the perfectobedience of the hound both in the kennel and the field. Atfeeding-time, each dog, although hungry enough, will go through the gatein the precise order in which he is called by the feeder; and, in awell-broken pack, to chop at, or to follow a hare, or to give tongue ona false scent, or even to break cover alone, although the fox is inview, are faults that are rarely witnessed. 

Let not this obedience, however, be purchased by the infliction of adegree of cruelty that disgraces both the master and the menial. A youngfox-hound may, possibly, mistake the scent of a hare for that of a fox, and give tongue. In too many hunts he will be unmercifully flogged forthis, and some have almost died under the lash. Mercy is a word totallyunknown to a great proportion of whippers-in, and even to many who callthemselves gentlemen. There can be no occasion or excuse for barbarity:a little trouble, and moderate punishment, and the example of hisfellows, will gradually teach the wildest hound his duty. 

That the huntsman, and not the hound, may occasionally be in fault, thefollowing anecdote will furnish sufficient proof. In drawing a strongcover, a young bitch gave tongue very freely, while none of the otherhounds challenged. The whipper-in railed to no purpose; the huntsmaninsisted that she was wrong, and the whip was applied with greatseverity. In doing this, the lash accidentally struck one of her eyesout of its socket. 

Notwithstanding the dreadful pain that must have ensued, she again tookup the scent, and proved herself right; for the fox had stolen away, andshe had broken cover after him, unheeded and alone. After much delay andcold hunting, the pack hit off the same scent. 

At some distance a farmer informed the sportsmen, that they were a longway behind the fox, for he had seen a single hound, very bloody aboutthe head, running breast-high, so that there was but little chance oftheir getting up with her. The pack, from her coming to a check, did atlast overtake her. 

The same bitch once more hit off the scent, and the fox was killed, after a long and severe run. The eye of the poor animal, that had hungpendent through the chase, was then taken off with a pair of scissors. 

THE COMMENCEMENT OF THE SEASON. 

During the beginning of autumn, the hounds should be daily exercisedwhen the weather will permit. They should often be called over in thekennel to habituate them to their names, and walked out among the sheepand deer, in order that they may he accustomed perfectly to disregardthem. 

A few stout hounds being added to the young ones, some young foxes mayoccasionally be turned out. If they hunt improper game, they must besternly checked. Implicit obedience is required until they have beensufficiently taught as to the game which they are to pursue. Noobstinate deviation from it must ever be pardoned. The hounds should be, as much as possible, taken out into the country which they areafterwards to hunt, and some young foxes are probably turned out forthem to pursue. At length they are suffered to hunt their game inthorough earnest, and to taste of its blood. 

After this they are sent to more distant covers, and more old hounds areadded, and so they continue until they are taken into the pack, whichusually happens in September. The young hounds continue to be added, twoor three couple at a time, until all have hunted. They are then dividedinto two packs, to be taken out alternate days. Properly speaking, thesport cannot be said to begin until October, but the two precedingmonths are important and busy ones. [18]

 "It would appear, then, " says Nimrod, "that the breeding of a pack of fox-hounds, bordering on perfection, is a task of no ordinary difficulty. The best proof of it is to be found in the few sportsmen that have succeeded in it. Not only is every good quality obtained if possible, but every imperfection or fault is avoided. The highest virtue in a fox-hound is his being true to the line his game has gone, and a stout runner at the end of the chase. He must also be a patient hunter when there is a cold scent and the pack is at fault. "

While there is no country in the world that can produce a breed ofhorses to equal the English thorough-bred in his present improved state, there are no dogs like the English fox-hound for speed, scent, andcontinuance. It would seem as if there were something in the climatefavourable and necessary to the perfection of the hound. Packs of themhave been sent to other countries, neighbouring and remote; but theyhave usually become more or less valueless. 

As regards the employment of the voice and the horn when out withhounds, too much caution cannot be used. A hound should never be cheeredunless we are perfectly convinced that he is right, nor rated unless weare sure that he is wrong. When we are not sure of what is going on weshould sit still and be silent. A few moments will possibly put us inpossession of all that we wish to know. [19]

The horn should only be used on particular occasions, and a huntsmanshould speak by his horn as much as by his voice. Particular notesshould mean certain things, and the hounds and the field shouldunderstand the language. We have heard some persons blowing the horn allthe day long, and the hounds have become so careless as to render it ofno use. When a hound first speaks in cover to a fox, you may, if youthink it necessary, use 'one single' and prolonged note to get the packtogether. The same note will do at any time to call up a lost orloitering hound; but, when the fox breaks cover, then let your horn bemarked in its notes: let it sound as if you said through it, "Gone away!gone away! gone away! away! away! away!" dwelling with full emphasis onthe last syllable. Every hound will fly from the cover the moment hehears this, and the sportsmen and the field will know that the fox isaway. 

It is the perfection of the horse, and the perfection of the hound, andthe disregard of trifling expense, that has given to Englishmen apartiality for field-sports, unequalled in any other country. Mr. Ware'spack of fox-hounds cost 2000 guineas, and the late Lord Middleton gavethe same to Mr. Osbaldeston for ten couples of his hounds. 

HUNTING-KENNELS. 

It is time, however, to speak of the kennel, whether we regard thesporting architecture of Mr. G. Tattersall, or the scientific inquiriesof Mr. Vyner, or a sketch of the noble buildings at Goodwood. 

The lodging-rooms should be ceiled, but not plastered, with ventilatorsabove and a large airy window on either side. The floors should be laidwith flags or paved with bricks. Cement may be used instead of mortar, and the kennels will then be found wholesome and dry. The doorways ofthe lodging-houses will generally be four feet and a half wide, in theclear. The posts are rounded, to prevent the hounds from being injuredwhen they rush out. The benches may be made of cast-iron or wood; thosecomposed of iron being most durable, but the hounds are more frequentlylamed in getting to them. The wooden benches must be bound with iron, orthe hounds will gnaw or destroy them. A question has arisen, whether thebenches should be placed round the kennel, or be in the centre of it, allowing a free passage by the side. There is least danger of the latterbeing affected by the damp. The walls should be wainscoted to the heightof three feet at least. This will tend very considerably to theircomfort. 

The floors of all the courts should be arranged in nearly the same way;the partition walls being closed at the bottom, but with some iron workabove. The doorways should also be so contrived, that the huntsman maybe able to enter whenever he pleases. The boiling-house should be at asgreat a distance from the hunting-kennel as can be managed, continuingto give warmth to the infirmary for distempered puppies, and at the sametime being out of the way of the other courts. 

Mr. Vyner gives an interesting account of the young hounds' kennel:

 "This building, " he says, "should be as far from the other lodging-rooms as the arrangements of the structure will allow. There is also an additional court, or grass-yard, an indispensable requisite in the puppies' kennel. The size must be regulated according to the waste land at the end of the building; but the longer it is, the better. At the farther end of the grass-court is a hospital for such young hounds as are distempered, so contrived as to be remote from the other kennels, and, at the same time, within an easy distance of the boiling-house, whence it is apparently approached by an outside door, through which the feeder can constantly pass to attend to the sick hounds without disturbing the healthy lots. Although this lodging room is warmed by the chimney of the boiling-house, it must be well ventilated by two windows, to which shutters must be attached; ventilation and good air being quite as necessary to the cure of distemper as warmth. "

KENNEL LAMENESS. 

We now proceed to a most important and ill-understood subject--thenature and treatment of 'kennel lameness'. It is a subject that nearlyconcerns the sportsman, and on which there are several and the mostcontrary opinions. 

This is a kind of lameness connected with, or attributable to, thekennel. According to the early opinion of Mr. Asheton Smith, who is agood authority, it was referable to some peculiarity in the breed ormanagement of the hounds; but, agreeably to a later opinion, it isdependent on situation and subsoil, and may be aggravated or increasedby circumstances over which we have no control. Some kennels are in lowand damp situations, yet the hounds are free from all complaint: andothers, with the stanchest dogs and under the best management, arecontinually sinking under kennel lameness. 

Mr. R. T. Vyner was one of the first who scientifically treated on thispoint, and taught us that 'clay is not by any means an objectionablesoil to build a kennel upon', although so many pseudo-sportsmen arefrightened by the very name of it. 

He enters at once into his subject. 

 "I am thoroughly convinced, " says he, "from my own experience, and, I may add, my own suffering, that the disease of kennel lameness arises only from one cause, and that is an injudicious and unfortunate selection of the spot for building. The kennel is generally built on a sand-bed, or on a sandstone rock, while the healthiest grounds in England are on a stiff clay, and they are the healthiest because they are the least porous. Although this may be contrary to the opinion and prejudice of the majority of sportsmen, it is a fact that cannot be contradicted. 

 "Through a light and friable soil, such as sand and sandstone, a vapour, more or less dense, is continually exhaling and causing a perpetual damp, which produces that fearful rheumatism which goes by the name of kennel lameness, while the kennels that are built on a clay soil, a soil of an impervious nature, are invariably healthy. 

 "I could, " he adds, "enumerate twenty kennels to prove the effect--the invariable effect--of the existence of the disease on the one part, and of the healthiness of the situation on the other. I turn particularly to her Majesty's kennel at Ascot, the arches of which were laid under the very foundation strain, and yet little at no amendment has ever taken place in the healthiness and comfort of the dogs. It is necessary to select a sound and healthy situation when about to erect a kennel, and that sound and healthy situation can be met with alone on a strong impervious clay soil. We must have no fluid oozing through the walls or the floor of the kennel, and producing damp and unhealthy vapours, such as we find in the sandbed. "

With regard to this there can be no error. 

Nimrod, in his excellent treatise on 'Kennel Lameness', asks, whether itdoes not appear that this disease is on the increase. He asks, "How is it that neither Beckford nor Somerville says one word that clearly applies to the disease; and no one, however learned he might be in canine pathology, has been able clearly to define the disease, much less to discover a remedy for it?"

All that Mr. Blaine says on the matter amounts only to this:

 "The healthiness of the situation on which any kennel is to be built, is an important consideration. It is essential that it should be both dry and airy, and it should also be warm. A damp kennel produces rheumatism in dogs, which shows itself sometimes by weakness in the loins, but more frequently by lameness in the shoulders, known under the name of kennel lameness. "

Mr. Blaine illustrates this by reference to his own experience. 

 "There is no disease, with the exception of distemper and mange, to which dogs are so liable as to a rheumatic affection of some part of the body. It presents almost as many varieties in the dog as it does in man; and it has some peculiarities observable in the dog only. Rheumatism never exists in a dog without affecting the bowels. There will be inflammation or painful torpor through the whole of the intestinal canal. It is only in some peculiar districts that this occurs; it pervades certain kennels only; and but until lately there has been little or almost no explanation of the cause of the evil. " [20]

Nimrod took a most important view of the matter, and to him the sportingworld is much indebted. 

 "How is it, " he asks, "that, in our younger days, we never heard of kennel lameness, or, indeed, of hounds being lame at all, unless from accident, or becoming shaken and infirm from not having been composed of that iron-bound material which the labours of a greyhound or a hound require? How is it, that, in our younger days, masters of hounds began the season with 50 or 60 couples, and, bating the casualties, left off at the end of it equally strong in their kennels, and able, perhaps, to make a valuable draft; whereas we now hear of one-half of the dogs in certain localities being disabled by disease, and some masters of hounds compelled to be stopped in their work until their kennels are replenished. "

Washing hounds when they come home after work must be injurious to them, although it has almost become the fashion of modern times. If they arenot washed at all, and we believe it to be unnecessary, yet the kennelsin which lameness has appeared should be strictly avoided. It should beon the day following and not in the evening of a hunting-day thatwashing should take place. 

Mr. Hodgson told Nimrod, that the Quorn Pack never had a case of kennellameness until his late huntsman took to washing his hounds afterhunting, and then he often had four or five couples ill from this cause. He deprecated even their access to water in the evening after hunting, and we believe that he was quite right in so doing. 

The tongue of the dog, with the aid of clean straw, is his best andsafest instrument in cleansing his person; and, if he can be brought tohis kennel with tolerably clean feet, as Mr. Foljambe enables him to bebrought, he will never be long before he is comfortable in his bed, after his belly is filled. 

There is another mode, as a preventive of kennel lameness, which we havethe best authority for saying deserves particular attention, and thatis, the frequently turning hounds off their benches during the day, evenif it were to the extent of every two hours throughout the entire day. We do not mean to deny the existence of a disease, which, being producedin the kennel, is properly termed kennel lameness. Some kennels are, nodoubt, more unhealthy and prone to engender rheumatic affections thanothers; but, by proper management, and avoiding as much as possible allexciting causes, their effects may, at least, be very much lessened, ifnot entirely obviated. 

LORD FITZHARDINGE'S MANAGEMENT. 

Lord Fitzhardinge's opinion of the situation of the kennel and themanagement of the hounds, as given in the 'New Sporting Magazine', issomewhat different from that which has been just given. The following isthe substance of it: [21]

He states that the kennel should be built on a dry and warm situation. Of this there can be no doubt: the comfort and almost the existence ofthe dog depend upon it. To this he adds that it must not be placed on agravelly or porous soil, over which vapours more or less dense arefrequently or continually travelling, and thus causing a destructiveexhalation over the whole of the building. There must be no fluid oozingthrough the walls or the floor of the kennel, and producing damp andunhealthy vapours. When we have not a deep supersoil of clay, one or twolayers of bricks or of stone may line the floor, and then, not even themost subtile vapour can penetrate through the floor. A clean bed ofstraw should be allowed every second day, or oftener when the weather iswet. The lodging-houses should be ceiled, and there should be shuttersto the windows. A thatched roof is preferable to tiles, being warmer inwinter and cooler in summer. 

Stoves in the kennels are not necessary: probably they are best avoided;for, if dogs are accustomed to any considerable degree of artificialheat, they are more easily chilled by a long exposure to cold. Theirteeth and the setting-up of their backs will confirm this. 

Hounds, when they feel cold, naturally seek each other for warmth, andthey may be seen lying upon the straw and licking each other; and thatis by far the most wholesome way of procuring comfort and warmth. 

On returning from hunting, their feet should be washed with some warmfluid, and especially the eyes should be examined, and their food gotready for them as soon as possible. The feeding in the morning should bean hour, or an hour and a half, before they start for the field. 

It is truly observed by the noble writer to whom we have referred, thatthere is no part of an establishment of this kind that merits moreattention than the boiling and feeding house. The hounds cannot performtheir work well unless judiciously fed. Each hound requires particularand constitutional care. No more than five of them should be let in tofeed together, and often not more than one or two. The feeder shouldhave each hound under his immediate observation, or they may get toomuch or too little of the food. 

Some hounds cannot run if they carry much flesh; others are all thebetter for having plenty about them. The boilers should be of iron, twoin number, --one for meal and the smaller one for flesh. The large boilershould render it necessary to be used not more than once in four days ora week. The food should be stirred for two hours, then transferred toflat coolers, until sufficiently gelatinous to be cut with a kind ofspade. By the admixture of some portion of soups it may be brought toany thickness requisite. The flesh to be mixed with it should be cutvery small, that the greedy hounds may not be able to obtain more thantheir share. Four bushels and a half of genuine old oatmeal should beboiled with a hundred gallons of water. The flesh should he boiled everysecond or third day. Too great a proportion of soup would render themixture of a heating nature. 

Mr. Delmé Radcliffe very truly observes that the feeding of hounds, asregards their condition, is one of the most essential proofs of ahuntsman's skill in the management of the kennel. To preserve that evenstate of condition throughout the pack which is so desirable, he must bewell acquainted with the appetite of every hound; for some will feedwith a voracity scarcely credible, and others will require every kind ofenticement to induce them to feed. 

Mr. Meynell found that the use of dry unboiled oatmeal succeeded betterthan any other thing he had tried with delicate hounds. When onceinduced to take it, they would eat it greedily, and it seemed to be farmore heartening than most kinds of aliment. Other hounds of delicateconstitution might be tempted with a little additional flesh, and withthe thickest and best of the trough, but they required to be watched, and often to be coaxed to eat. 

The dog possesses the power of struggling against want of food for analmost incredible period. One of these animals, six years old, wasmissing three-and-twenty days; at length some children wandering in adistant wood thought that they frequently heard the baying of a dog. Themaster was told of it, and at the bottom of an old quarry, sixty feetdeep, and the mouth of which he had almost closed by his vain attemptsto escape, the voice of the poor fellow was recognised. With muchdifficulty he was extricated, and found in a state of emaciation; hisbody cold as ice and his thirst inextinguishable, and he scarcely ableto move. They gave him at intervals small portions of bread soaked inmilk and water. Two days afterwards he was able to follow his master ashort distance. 

This occurrence is mentioned by M. Pinguin as a proof that neitherhunger nor thirst could produce rabies. Messrs. Majendie and F. Cousinshave carried their observations to the extent of forty days--adisgraceful period. [22]

MANAGEMENT OF THE PACK. 

Sixty-five couple of hounds in full work will consume the carcases ofthree horses in one week, or five in a fortnight. The annual consumptionof meal will be somewhat more than two tons per month. 

In feeding, the light eaters should be let in first, and a little extraflesh distributed on the surface of the food, in order to coax thosethat are most shy. Some hounds cannot be kept to their work unless fedtwo or three times a day; while others must not be allowed more than sixor seven laps, or they would get too much. 

In summer an extra cow or two will be of advantage in the dairy; for themilk, after it has been skimmed, may be used instead of flesh. Theremust always be a little flesh in hand for the sick, for bitches withtheir whelps, and for the entry of young hounds. [23] About Christmas isthe time to arrange the breeding establishment. The number of puppiesproduced is usually from five to eight or nine; but, in one strangecase, eighteen of them made their appearance. The constitution and otherappearances in the dam, will decide the number to be preserved. When thewhelps are sufficiently grown to run about, they should be placed in awarm situation, with plenty of fresh grass, and a sufficient quantity ofclean, but not too stimulating, food. They should then be markedaccording to their respective letters, that they may be alwaysrecognised. When the time comes, the ears of the dog should be rounded;the size of the ear and of the head guiding the rounding-iron. 

This being passed, the master of the pack takes care that his treatmentshall be joyous and playful; encouragement is always with him the word. The dog should be taught the nature of the fault before he is corrected:no animal is more grateful for kindness than a hound; the peculiaritiesof his temper will soon be learned, and when he begins to love hismaster, he will mind, from his natural and acquired affection, a word ora frown from him more than the blows of all the whips that were ever putinto the hands of the keepers. 

The distemper having passed, and the young hounds being in good health, they should be walked out every day, and taught to follow the horse, with a keeper who is selected as a kind and quiet person, and will beartheir occasionally entangling themselves in their couples. They are thentaken to the public roads, and there exercised, and checked from riot, but with as little severity as possible; a frequent and free use of thewhip never being allowed. No animals take their character from theirmaster so much as the hounds do from theirs. If he is wild, or noisy, ornervous, so will his hounds be; if he is steady and quick, the pack willbe the same. The whip should never be applied but for some immediate anddecided fault. A rate given at an improper time does more harm thangood: it disgusts the honest hound, it shies and prevents from huntingthe timid one, and it is treated with contempt by those of anothercharacter who may at some future time deserve it. It formerly was thecustom, and still is too much so, when a hound 'has hung on a hare', tocatch him when he comes up, and flog him. The consequence of this is, that he takes good care the next time he indulges in a fault not to comeout of cover at all. 

We will conclude this part of our subject by a short account of thesplendid kennel at Goodwood, for which we are indebted to Lord W. Lennox, with the kind permission of the Duke of Richmond. It isdescribed as one of the most complete establishments of the kind inEngland. The original establishment of this building, although a littlefaulty, possesses considerable interest from its errors being correctedby the third Duke of Richmond, a man who is acknowledged to have beenone of the most popular public characters of the day, and who in moreprivate life extended his patronage to all that was truly honourable. Itwas to the Duke's support of native talent that we may trace the originof the present Royal Academy. In 1758, the Duke of Richmond displayed, at his residence in Whitehall, a large collection of original plastercasts, taken from the finest statues and busts of the ancient sculptors. Every artist was freely admitted to this exhibition and, for the furtherencouragement of talent, he bestowed two medals annually on such as hadexhibited the best models. 

We have thus digressed in order to give a slight sketch of the noblemanby whom this kennel was built, and we do not think that we can do betterthan lay before our readers the original account of it. 

Early in life the Duke built what was not then common, a tennis-court, and what was more uncommon, a dog-kennel, which cost him above £6000. The Duke was his own architect, assisted by, and under the guidance of, Mr. Wyatt; he dug his own flints, burnt his own lime, and conducted thewood-work in his own shops. The result of his labours was the noblebuilding of which a plan is here given. 

The dog-kennel is a grand object when viewed from Goodwood. The front ishandsome, the ground well raised about it, and the general effect good;the open court in the centre adds materially to the noble appearance ofthe building. 

The entrance to the kennel is delineated in the centre with a flight ofstairs leading above. The huntsman's rooms, four in number first presentthemselves, and are marked in the plan before us by the letter C; eachof them is fifteen feet four inches, by fourteen feet six inches. 

At each end of the side towards the court is one of the feeding-rooms, twenty-nine feet by fourteen feet four inches, and nobly constructedrooms they are; they are designated by the letters B. At the back of thefeeding-rooms, are one set of the lodging-rooms, from thirty-five feetsix inches, to fourteen feet four inches, and marked by the letters A, and at either extremity is another lodging-room, thirty-two feet sixinches in length, and fourteen feet six inches in width: this is alsomarked by the letter A. 

Coming into the court we find the store-room twenty-four feet byfourteen and a half, marked by the letter D, and the stable, of the samedimensions, by the letter E. 

At the top of the buildings are openings for the admission of cold air, and stoves to warm the air when too cold. There are plentiful suppliesof water from tanks holding 10, 000 gallons; so that there is noinconvenience from the smell, and the whole can at any time be drained, and not be rendered altogether useless. 

Round the whole building is a pavement five feet wide; airy yards andplaces for breeding, &c. , making part of each wing. For the huntsman andwhipper-in there are sleeping-rooms, and a neat parlour or kitchen. 

Soon after the kennel was erected, it would contain two packsof hounds. 

THE STAG-HOUND. 

The largest of the English hounds that has been lately used, is devoted, as his name implies, to the chase of the deer. He is taller than thefox-hound, and with far more delicate scent, but he is not so speedy. Heanswers better than any other to the description given of the oldEnglish hound, so much valued when the country, less enclosed, and theforests, numerous and extensive, were the harbours of the wild deer. Thedeer-hound and the harrier were for many centuries the onlyhunting-dogs. The fox-hound has been much more recently bred. 

The most tyrannic and cruel laws were enforced for the preservation ofthis species of game, and the life of the deer, except when sacrificedin the chase, and by those who were privileged to join in it, wasguarded with even more strictness than the life of the human being. When, however, the country became more generally cultivated, and thestag was confined to enclosed parks, and was seldom sought in his lair, but brought into the field, and turned out before the dogs, so muchinterest was taken from the affair, that this species of hunting grewout of fashion, and was confined to the neighbourhood of the scatteredforests that remained, and enjoyed only by royalty and a few noblemen, of whose establishment a kennel of deer-hounds had, from timeimmemorial, formed a part. 

Since the death of George III, who was much attached to this sport, stag-hunting has rapidly declined, and the principal pleasure seems nowto consist in the concourse of people brought together to an appointedplace and hour, to witness the turning out of the deer. There is stillmaintained a royal establishment for the continuance of this noblesport, but, unless better supported than it has of late years been, itwill gradually decline. 

The stag-hounds are now a part of the regular Crown establishment. Theroyal kennel is situated upon Ascot Heath, about six miles from Windsor. At the distance of a mile from the kennel is Swinley Lodge, the officialresidence of the Master of the Stag-hounds. 

The stag-hound is a beautiful animal. He is distinguished from thefox-hound by the apparent broadness and shortness of his head, hislonger cheek, his straighter hock, his wider thigh and deeper chest, andbetter feathered and more beautifully arched tail. His appearanceindicates strength and stoutness, in which indeed he is unequalled, andhe has sufficient speed to render it difficult for the best horses longto keep pace with him; while, as is necessary, when the distance betweenthe footmarks of the deer is considered, his scent is most exquisite. Heis far seldomer at fault than any other hound except the blood-hound, and rarely fails of running down his game. 

Of the stoutness of this dog, the following anecdotes will be asufficient illustration. A deer, in the spring of 1822, was turned outbefore the Earl of Derby's hounds in Hayes Common. The chase wascontinued nearly four hours without a check, when, being almost rundown, the animal took refuge in some outhouses near Speldhurst in Kent, more than forty miles across the country, and having actually run morethan fifty miles. Nearly twenty horses died in the field, or inconsequence of the severity of the chase. 

A stag was turned out at Wingfield Park, in Northumberland. The wholepack, with the exception of two hounds, was, after a long run, thrownout. The stag returned to his accustomed haunt, and, as his last effort, leaped the wall of the park, and lay down and died. One of the hounds, unable to clear the wall, fell and expired, and the other was found deadat a little distance. They had run about forty miles. 

 "When the stag first hears the cry of the hounds, he runs with the swiftness of the wind, and continues to run as long as any sound of his pursuers can be distinguished. That having ceased, he pauses and looks carefully around him; but before he can determine what course to pursue, the cry of the pack again forces itself upon his attention. Once more he darts away, and after a while again pauses. His strength perhaps begins to fail, and he has recourse to stratagem in order to escape. He practises the doubling and the crossing of the fox or the hare. This being useless, he attempts to escape by plunging into some lake or river that happens to lie in his way, and when, at last, every attempt to escape proves abortive, he boldly faces his pursuers, and attacks the first dog or man who approaches him. " [24]

SOUTHERN HOUND. 

There used to be in the south of Devon a pack or cry of the genuine oldEnglish or southern hounds. There is some reason to believe that thiswas the original stock of the island, or of this part of the island, andthat this hound was used by the ancient Britons in the chase of thelarger kinds of game with which the country formerly abounded. Itsdistinguishing characters are its size and general heavy appearance; itsgreat length of body, deep chest, and ears remarkably large andpendulous. The tones of its voice were peculiarly deep. It answered thedescription of Shakspeare:

 "So flewed, so sanded; and their heads are hung With ears that sweep away the morning dew; Crook-knee'd, and dew-lapp'd, like Thessalian bulls; Slow in pursuit, but match'd in mouth like bells, Each under each. "

It was the slowness of the breed which occasioned its disuse. Several ofthem, however, remained not long ago at a village called Aveton Gifford, in Devonshire, in the neighbourhood of which some of the most opulent ofthe farmers used to keep two or three dogs each. When fox-hunting hadassumed somewhat of its modern form, the chase was followed by a slowheavy hound, whose excellent olfactory organs enabled him to carry onthe scent a considerable time after the fox-hound passed, and also overgrassy fallows, and hard roads, and other places, where the modernhigh-bred fox-hound would not be able to recognise it. Hence the chasecontinued for double the duration which it does at present, and hencemay be seen the reason why the old English hunter, so celebrated informer days and so great a favourite among sportsmen of the old school, was enabled to perform those feats which were exultingly bruited in hispraise. The fact is, that the hounds and the horse were well matched. Ifthe latter possessed not the speed of the Meltonian hunter, the houndswere equally slow and stanch. 

THE BLOOD-HOUND. 

This dog does not materially differ in appearance from the olddeer-hound of a larger size, trained to hunt the human being instead ofthe quadruped. If once put on the track of a supposed robber, he wouldunerringly follow him to his retreat, although at the distance of many amile. Such a breed was necessary when neither the private individual northe government had other means to detect the offender. Generallyspeaking, however, the blood-hound of former days would not injure theculprit that did not attempt to escape, but would lie down quietly andgive notice by a loud and peculiar howl what kind of prey he had found. Some, however, of a savage disposition, or trained to unnaturalferocity, would tear to pieces the hunted wretch, if timely rescue didnot arrive. 

Hounds of every kind, both great and small, may be broken in to followany particular scent, and especially when they are feelingly convincedthat they are not to hunt any other. This is the case with theblood-hound. He is destined to one particular object of pursuit, and atotal stranger with regard to every other. 

In the border country between England and Scotland, and until the unionof the two kingdoms, these dogs were absolutely necessary for thepreservation of property, and the detection of robbery and murder. A taxwas levied on the inhabitants for the maintenance of a certain number ofblood-hounds. When, however, the civic government had sufficient powerto detect and punish crime, this dangerous breed of hounds fell intodisuse and was systematically discouraged. It, nevertheless, at thepresent day, is often bred by the rangers in large forests or parks totrack the deer-stealer, but oftener to find the wounded deer. 

The blood-hound is taller and better formed than the deer-hound. It haslarge and deep ears, the forehead broad and the muzzle narrow. Theexpression of the countenance is mild and pleasing, when the dog is notexcited; but, when he is following the robber, his ferocity becomestruly alarming. 

The Thrapstone Association lately trained a blood-hound for thedetection of sheepstealers. In order to prove the utility of this dog, aperson whom he had not seen was ordered to run as far and as fast as hisstrength would permit. An hour afterwards the hound was brought out. Hewas placed on the spot whence the man had started. He almost immediatelydetected the scent and broke away, and, after a chase of an hour and ahalf, found him concealed in a tree, fifteen miles distant. 

Mr. John Lawrence says, that a servant, discharged by a sporting countrygentleman, broke into his stables by night, and cut off the ears andtail of a favourite hunter. As soon as it was discovered, a blood-houndwas brought into the stable, who at once detected the scent of themiscreant, and traced it more than twenty miles. He then stopped at adoor, whence no power could move him. Being at length admitted, he ranto the top of the house, and, bursting open the door of a garret, foundthe object that he sought in bed, and would have torn him to pieces, hadnot the huntsman, who had followed him on a fleet horse, rushed up afterhim. 

Somerville thus describes the use to which he was generally put, inpursuit of the robber:

 "Soon the sagacious brute, his curling tail Flourished in air, low bending, plies around His busy nose, the steaming vapour snuffs Inquisitive, nor leaves one turf untried, Till, conscious of the recent stains, his heart Beats quick. His snuffing nose, his active tail, Attest his joy. Then, with deep opening mouth, That makes the welkin tremble, he proclaims Th' audacious felon. Foot by foot he marks His winding way. Over the watery ford, Dry sandy heaths, and stony barren hills, Unerring he pursues, till at the cot Arrived, and seizing by his guilty throat The caitiff vile, redeems the captive prey. "

THE SETTER

is evidently the large spaniel improved to his peculiar size and beauty, and taught another way of marking his game, viz. , by 'setting' orcrouching. If the form of the dog were not sufficiently satisfactory onthis point, we might have recourse to history for information on it. Mr. Daniel, in his 'Rural Sports', has preserved a document, dated in theyear 1685, in which a yeoman binds himself for the sum of ten shillings, fully and effectually to teach a spaniel to 'sit' partridges andpheasants. 

[As this old document may prove interesting to the curious, we take theliberty of inserting it, knowing full well, that Mr. Daniel's work isquite rare in this country, and copies of it are not easily obtainedeven in England. 

 Ribbesford, Oct. 7, 1685, "I, John Harris, of Willdon, in the parish of Hastlebury, in the county of Worcester, yeoman, for and in consideration of ten shillings of lawful English money this day received of Henry Herbert of Ribbesford, in the said county, Esqr. , and of thirty shillings more of like money by him promised to be hereafter pay'd me, do hereby covenant and promise to and with the said Henry Herbert, his exôrs and admôrs, that I will, from the day of the date hereof, untill the first day of March next, well and sufficiently mayntayne and keepe a Spanile Bitch named Quand, this day delivered into my custody by the said Henry Herbert, and will, before the first day of March next, fully and effectually traine up and teach the said Bitch to sitt Partridges, Pheasants, and other game, as well and exactly as the best sitting Doggers usually sett the same. And the said bitch, so trayned and taught, shall and will delivere to the said Henry Herbert, or whom he shall appoint to receive her, att his house in Ribbesford aforesaid, on the first day of March next. And if at anytime after the said Bitch shall, for want of use or practice, or orwise, forgett to sett Game as aforesaid, I will, at my costes and charges, maynetayne her for a month, or longer, as often as need shall require, to trayne up and teach her to sett Game as aforesaid, and shall and will, fully and effectually, teach her to sett Game as well and exactly as is above mentyon'd. 

 Witness my hand and seal the day and year first above written, John Harris, his X mark. 

 Sealed and delivered in presence of

 H. Payne, his X mark. "

 L. ]

The first person, however, who systematically broke-in setting dogs issupposed to have been Dudley Duke of Northumberland in 1335. 

A singular dog-cause was tried in Westminster, in July, 1822. At aprevious trial it was determined that the mere possession of a dog, generally used for destroying game, was sufficient proof of its beingactually so used. Mr. Justice Best, however, determined that a man mightbe a breeder of such dogs without using them as game-dogs; and Mr. Justice Bailey thought that if a game-dog was kept in a yard, chained upby day, and let loose at night, and, being so trained as to guard thepreimises, he was to be considered as a yard-dog, and not as a game-dog. 

The setter is used for the same purpose as the pointer, and there isgreat difference of opinion with regard to their relative value assporting-dogs. Setters are not so numerous; and they are dearer, andwith great difficulty obtained pure. It was long the fashion to crossand mix them with the pointer, by which no benefit was obtained, but thebeauty of the dog materially impaired; many Irish sportsmen, however, were exceedingly careful to preserve the breed pure. Nothing of thepointer can be traced in them, and they are useful and beautiful dogs, altogether different in appearance from either the English or Scotchsetter. The Irish sportsmen are, perhaps, a little too much prejudicedwith regard to particular colours. Their dogs ate either very red, orred and white, or lemon-coloured, or white, patched with deep chestnut;and it was necessary for them to have a black nose, and a black roof tothe mouth. This peculiar dye is supposed to be as necessary to a goodand genuine Irish setter as is the palate of a Blenheim spaniel to thepurity of his breed. A true Irish setter will obtain a higher price thaneither an English or Scotch one. Fifty guineas constituted no unusualprice for a brace of them, and even two hundred guineas have been given. It is nevertheless, doubtful whether they do in reality so much exceedthe other breeds, and whether, although stout and hard-working dogs, andwith excellent scent, they are not somewhat too headstrong and unruly. 

The setter is more active than the pointer. He has greater spirit andstrength. He will better stand continued hard work. He will generallytake the water when necessary, and, retaining the character of thebreed, is more companionable and attached. He loves his master forhimself, and not, like the pointer, merely for the pleasure he shareswith him. His somewhat inferior scent, however, makes him a little tooapt to run into his game, and he occasionally has a will of his own. Herequires good breaking, and plenty of work; but that breaking must be ofa peculiar character: it must not partake of the severity which toooften accompanies, and unnecessarily so, the tuition of the pointer. Hehas more animal spirit than the pointer, but he has not so much patientcourage; and the chastisement, sometimes unnecessary and cruel, butleaving the pointer perfect in his work, and eager for it too, wouldmake the setter disgusted with it, and leave him a mere 'blinker'. It isdifficult, however, always to decide the claim of superiority betweenthese dogs. He that has a good one of either breed may be content, butthe lineage of that dog must be pure. The setter, with much of thepointer in him, loses something in activity and endurance; and thepointer, crossed with the setter, may have a degree of wildness andobstinacy, not a little annoying to his owner. The setter may bepreferable when the ground is hard and rough; for he does not soonbecome foot-sore. He may even answer the purpose of a springer forpheasants and woodcocks, and may be valuable in recovering a woundedbird. His scent may frequently be superior to that of the pointer, andsufficiently accurate to distinguish, better than the pointer, when thegame is sprung; but the steadiness and obedience of the pointer willgenerally give him the preference, especially in a fair and tolerablysmooth country. At the beginning of a season, and until the weather ishot, the pointer will have a decided advantage. 

[We beg leave to finish this history of the setter by referring to ouressay on this dog, published in vol. Xv, No. 47, of the "New York Spiritof the Times", or as lately transferred to the pages of an interestingand valuable sporting work, about being published by our esteemedfriend, Wm. A. Porter, and from which we now abstract our remarks upon

THE MERITS OF THE SETTER COMPARED WITH THOSE OF THE POINTER. 

It cannot for a moment be doubted that the setter has superioradvantages to the pointer, for hunting over our uncleared country, although the pointer has many qualities that recommend him to thesportsman, that the setter does not possess. In the first place, theextreme hardiness and swiftness of foot, natural to the setter, enableshim to get over much more ground than the pointer, in the same space oftime. Their feet also, being more hard and firm, are not so liable tobecome sore from contact with our frozen ground. The ball pads beingwell protected by the spaniel toe-tufts, are less likely to be woundedby the thorns and burs with which our woods are crowded during thewinter season. His natural enthusiasm for hunting, coupled with hissuperior physical powers, enables him to stand much more work than thepointer, and oftentimes he appears quite fresh upon a long continuedhunt, when the other will be found drooping and inattentive. 

The long, thick fur of the setter, enables him to wend his way throughbriary thickets without injury to himself, when a similar attempt on thepart of a pointer, would result in his ears, tail, and body beinglacerated and streaming with blood. 

On the other hand, the pointer is superior to the setter in retaininghis acquired powers for hunting, and not being naturally enthusiastic inpursuit of game, he is more easily broken and kept in proper subjection. 

The setter frequently requires a partial rebreaking at the commencementof each season, in his younger days, owing to the natural eagerness withwhich he resumes the sport. The necessity of this, however, diminisheswith age, as the character and habits of the dog become more settled, and then we may take them into the field, with a perfect assurance oftheir behaving quite as well on the first hunt of the season, as thestanchest pointer would. 

The extreme caution, and mechanical powers of the pointer in the field, is a barrier to his flushing the birds, as is often witnessed in theprecipitate running of the setter, who winds the game and frequentlyoverruns it in his great anxiety to come up with it. But this occasionalfault on the part of the setter, may be counterbalanced by the largerquantity of game that he usually finds in a day's hunt, owing to hisenthusiasm and swiftness of foot. Setters require much more water whilehunting than the pointer, owing to their thick covering of fur, encouraging a greater amount of insensible perspiration to fly off thanthe thin and short dress of the pointer. Consequently they are bettercalculated to hunt in the coldest seasons than early in our falls, whichare frequently quite dry and warm. 

A striking instance of this fact came under our own immediateobservation this fall, when shooting in a range of country thinlysettled and uncommonly dry. The day being warm and the birds scarce, thedogs suffered greatly from thirst, in so much that a very fine setter ofuncommon bottom, was forced to give up entirely, completely prostrated, foaming at the mouth in the most alarming manner, breathing heavily, andvomiting from time to time a thick frothy mucus. 

His prostration of both muscular and nervous powers was so great, thathe could neither smell nor take the slightest notice of a bird, althoughplaced at his nose. He could barely manage to drag one leg after theother, stopping to rest every few moments, and we were fearful that weshould be obliged to shoulder and carry him to a farm-house, aconsiderable distance off. However, he succeeded, with much difficulty, in reaching the well, where he greedily drank several pints of wateradministered to him with caution. 

He recovered almost immediately, gave me a look of thanks, and was offto the fields in a few moments, where he soon found a fine covey ofbirds. 

The pointer, his associate in the day's work, and a much less hardy dog, stood the hunt remarkably well, and seemed to suffer little or noinconvenience from the want of water. The setter has natural claims uponthe sportsman and man generally, in his affectionate disposition andattachment to his master, and the many winning manners he exhibitstowards those by whom he is caressed. 

The pointer displays but little fondness for those by whom he issurrounded, and hunts equally as well for a stranger as his master. --L. ]

Of the difference between the old English setter and the setters of thepresent day, we confess that we are ignorant, except that the first wasthe pure spaniel improved, and the latter the spaniel crossed toofrequently with the pointer. 

It must be acknowledged, that of companionableness, and disinterestedattachment and gratitude, the pointer knows comparatively little. If heis a docile and obedient servant in the field, it is all we want. Thesetter is unquestionably his superior in every amiable quality. Mr. Blaine says, that a large setter, ill with the distemper, had beennursed by a lady more than three weeks. At length he became so ill as tobe placed in a bed, where he remained a couple of days in a dying state. After a short absence, the lady, re-entering the room, observed him tofix his eyes attentively on her, and make an effort to crawl across thebed towards her. This he accomplished, evidently for the sole purpose oflicking her hand, after which he immediately expired. 

[Daniel Lambert celebrated for his enormous magnitude, weighing sevenhundred and thirty-nine pounds, had a very superior breed of sellers, which were publicly sold, at the following prices; after his death, which forcibly illustrates the immense value placed on this dog inEngland; whereas, many American sportsmen considers it a great hardshipto be obliged to give thirty or forty dollars for a well-bred setter inthis country. 

 Guineas

Peg, a black Setter Bitch. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41Punch, a Setter Dog. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26Brush, do . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17Bob, do. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30Bell, do. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32Bounce, do. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22Sam, do. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26Charlotte, a Pointer Bitch. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22Lucy, do. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12 ------ 218 --L. ]

The pointer is evidently descended from the hound. 

[We beg leave to make the following extracts from our essay on thissubject, published in No. 1, vol. Xvi, of the "Spirit of the Times":

The origin of the pointer, like that of the setter, is involved in muchobscurity; he is of mixed blood, and no doubt largely indebted to bothhound and spaniel for his distinct existence. 

Many sportsmen are under the erroneous idea that the pointer iscontemporary with, if not older than, the Setter. Such, however, is notthe case; and we are led to believe that the Pointer is of quite modernorigin; at all events, the production of a much later date than thespaniel. 

Strut, in his "Sports and Pastimes", chap. 1, sects. Xv. And xvi. , mentions a MS. In the Cotton Library, originally written by WilliamTwici, or Twety, Grand Huntsman to Edward II, who ascended the throne in1307. 

This manuscript contains the earliest treatise on hunting that theEnglish possess, and enumerates the various kinds of game and differentspecies of dogs then in existence, as also the modes of taking theformer and using the latter. 

After describing, in the usual minute manner, the specific employment ofeach dog, he finishes by stating:

 "The spaniel was for use in hawking, hys crafte is for the perdrich or partridge, and the quail; and when taught to couch, he is very serviceable to the fowler, who takes these birds with nets. "

No mention is made in this treatise of the pointer, and we naturallyinfer that he did not exist, or he would have been noticed in connexionwith the spaniel, who, it appears, even at this early period, was taughtto 'couch' on and point out game to those employed in netting it. 

In the early portion of the sixteenth century, we have anotherenumeration of dogs, 'then' in use, in a book entitled--"A Jewel forGentrie;" which, besides the dogs already descanted upon by Twici, wefind added to the list, "bastards and mongrels, lemors, kenets, terrours, butchers' hounds, dung-hill dogs, trindel-tailed dogs, prychercard curs, and ladies' puppies. " (Chap. 1st. , Sec. XVI. --Strut. )

The pointer being the offspring of the fox-hound and spaniel, isconsequently sprung from the two ancient races known as 'Sagaces' and'Pugnaces' or 'Bellicosi'. He certainly evinces a larger share of the'Bellicosi' blood than the setter, being ever ready for fight whenassailed, while the latter generally exhibits a conciliatory dispositionunder the most trying circumstances. --L. ]

It is the fox-hound searching for game by the scent, but more perfectlyunder the control of the sportsman, repressing his cry of joy when hefinds his game, and his momentary pause, and gathering himself up inorder to spring upon it artificially, converted into a steady anddeliberate point. There still remains a strong resemblance, incountenance and in form, between the pointer and the fox-hound, exceptthat the muzzle is shorter, and the ears smaller, and partly pendulous. 

Seventy or eighty years ago, the breed of pointers was nearly white, orvaried with liver-coloured spots; some, however, belonging to the Dukeof Kingston, were perfectly black. This peculiarity of colour wassupposed to be connected with exquisite perfection of scent. That is notthe case with the present black pointers, who are not superior to anyothers. 

Mr. Daniel relates an anecdote of one of his pointers. He had a dog thatwould always go round close to the hedges of a field before he wouldquarter his ground. He seemed to have observed that he most frequentlyfound his game in the course of this circuit. [25]

Mr. Johnson gives the following characteristic sketches of the differentbreeds of pointer:

THE SPANISH POINTER, originally a native of Spain, was once considered to be a valuable dog. He stood higher on his legs, but was too large and heavy in his limbs, and had widely spread, ugly feet, exposing him to frequent lameness. Hismuzzle and head were large, corresponding with the acuteness of hissmell. His ears were large and pendent, and his body ill-formed. He wasnaturally an ill-tempered dog, growling at the hand that would caresshim, even although it were his master's. He stood steadily to his birds;but it was difficult to break him of chasing the hare. He was deficientin speed. His redeeming quality was his excellent scent, unequalled inany other kind of dog. 

[To convince our readers of the value of this particular breed, we maymention the very singular sale of Colonel Thornton's dog Dash, who waspurchased by Sir Richard Symons for one hundred and sixty pounds worthof champagne and burgundy, a hogshead of of claret, and an elegant gunand another pointer, with a stipulation that if any accident befell thedog, he was to be returned to his former owner for fifty guineas. Dashunfortunately broke his leg, and in accordance with the agreement ofsale was returned to the Colonel, who considered him a fortunateacquisition as a stallion to breed from. (See Blain or Daniel). --L. ]

THE PORTUGESE POINTER, although with a slighter form than the Spanish one, is defective in thefeet, often crooked in the legs, and of a quarrelsome disposition. Hesoon tires, and is much inclined to chase the hare. The tail is largerthan that of the spaniel, and fully fringed. 

THE FRENCH POINTER

is distinguished by a furrow between his nostrils, which materiallyinterferes with the acuteness of smell. He is better formed and moreactive than either the Spanish or Portugese dog, and capable of longercontinued exertion; but he is apt to be quarrelsome, and is too fond ofchasing the hare. 

[We will close this account of the Pointer by transferring from thepages of the "Spirit of the Times" our remarks upon this particularbreed. 

The French variety, as described by English authors, is much smallerthan either of the above breeds; and although possessed of great beauty, acute scent, and other qualifications that would render him valuable intheir eyes, still is considered much inferior, not being able to copewith their dogs in hunting, owing to a want of physical power ofendurance. 

Youatt states, that he is distinguished by a furrow in his nose, whichmaterially interferes with his acuteness of smell. 

These accounts do not agree with the French writers, to whom, it is verytrue, the English should not look for any particular informationrespecting hunting or shooting. Nevertheless, all must admit that theyare quite as capable of describing their particular breeds of animals asother nations; and, in fact, we might go farther, and say that they aremuch more competent to the task than English writers, judging from theirextensive knowledge in comparative anatomy, and their long array ofcelebrated writers on natural history--the Cuviers, Buffon, &c. 

'Baudrillart', in his 'Dictionnaire des Chases', describes the FrenchPointer as having endurance and great industry, and of their being usedoftentimes solely for 'la grande chasse'. In the atlas of platesaccompanying this interesting work, will be found two distinct andextremely correct drawings of the English Pointer, and also an engravingof the French variety, which latter, certainly, is represented as beingequally, if not more muscular and and hardy, than the English. 

As for the furrow in the nose, as mentioned by Youatt, no reference ismade to it in connection with this species, and in the engraving thenose is square. But in describing another variety, known in France ascoming from Spain, 'Baudrillart' states, that they are vulgarly called"à deux nez, parceque ce chien a les narines separées par une gouttiere. "

As for Mr. Youatt's declaration in reference to the furrow in the nose"materially interfering with the acuteness of smell, " I cannotunderstand how, or on what principle of reasoning, this slight deviationfrom nature should affect the properties of the olfactory apparatus. That these furrow-nosed dogs are inferior to the English in scentingpowers, as stated by Mr. Youatt, we do not question; but that theirdeficiency depends upon this furrow, remains to be proved. 

This furrow in the nose is merely a deformity, and like many others invarious breeds of animals, was solely the result of accident in thefirst place; and as we often see, even in the human species, thedeformities and infirmities of our ancestors entailed upon theirprogeny, so has this 'cut in the nose' been so extensively inherited bysucceeding generations, that it has now become a distinctive mark of awhole class of dogs. 

The French Pointer, as known in this country, is a beautiful, well-shaped, compact, square-nosed dog; not so long or high as theEnglish, but extremely well built, full-chested, large head, pendentears, projecting eyes, large feet, and thickish tail. His colour, seldomwhite, but generally intermingled with small spots of brown or chocolateover the body, and more particularly over the head and ears. Such a dogis in the possession of the writer, who knows nothing of his ancestry;but is convinced from those he saw in France, that they must have beenimported from that country. 

The English Pointer will now claim more particularly our attention. Itis quite useless to go into a general description of an animal of whomwe have already said much, and with whom we are all familiar; but wewill endeavour to mention the most striking points of the species, whichmarks can be referred to as guides in the purchase of a dog. 

It is a difficult matter to put on paper, in a manner satisfactoryeither to the reader or writer, the peculiarities of any animal, wherebyhe may be judged pure or mixed. However, there are, generally, some fewpoints in each species, that can be selected as proofs of theirgenuineness and ability to perform certain actions peculiar to the race. 

But, after all, more reliance must be placed upon the good faith of theseller, or the previous knowledge of the strain from which the purchaserselects--and what is better than either, from actual observation in thefield; all of which precautions may, nevertheless, prove abortive, andour dog be worthless. 

As regards the size of the English Pointer, we may say, that he averagesin length about 3 feet from the tip of the muzzle to the base of thetail, and from 22 to 26 inches high. His head not bulky nor too narrow, the frontal sinuses largely developed. 

The muzzle long and rather tapering, the nostrils large and well open, the ear slightly erect, not over long, and the tip triangular; if toopendent, large and rounded at the tip, there is too much of the houndpresent. The eyes lively, but not too prominent; the neck rather longand not over thick, the chest broad, the limbs large and muscular; thepaws strong, hard and wide. The body and loins thin, rather than bulky, the hind quarters broad, and the limbs in the same proportion with thefore members; the tail long and tapering. --L. ]

THE RUSSIAN POINTER

is a rough, ill-tempered animal, with too much tendency to stupidity, and often annoyed by vermin. He runs awkwardly, with his nose near theground, and frequently springs his game. He also has the cloven ordivided nose. 

THE EARLY TRAINING OF THE DOG. 

The education of these dogs should commence at an early period, whetherconducted by the breeder or the sportsman; and the first lesson--that onwhich the value of the animal, and the pleasure of its owner, will muchdepend--is a habit of subjection on the part of the dog, and kindness onthe part of the master. This is a 'sine quâ non'. The dog must recognisein his owner a friend and a benefactor. This will soon establish in themind of the quadruped a feeling of gratitude, and a desire to please. All this is natural to the dog, if he is encouraged by the master, andthen the process of breaking-in may commence in good earnest. 

No long time probably passes ere the dog commits some little fault. Heis careless, or obstinate, or cross. The owner puts on a seriouscountenance, he holds up his finger, or shakes his head, or produces thewhip, and threatens to use it. Perhaps the infliction of a blow, thatbreaks no bones, occasionally follows. In the majority of cases nothingmore is required. The dog succumbs; he asks to be forgiven; or, if hehas been self-willed, he may be speedily corrected without any seriouspunishment. 

A writer, under the signature of "Soho, " in The New Sporting Magazinefor 1833, gives an interesting account of the schooling of the pointeror setter, thus commenced. A short abstract from it may not beunacceptable:

 "The first lesson inculcated is that of passive obedience, and this enforced by the infliction of severity as little as the case will admit. We will suppose the dog to be a setter. He is taken into the garden or into a field, and a strong cord, about eighteen or twenty yards long, is tied to his collar. The sportsman calls the dog to him, looks earnestly at him, gently presses him to the ground, and several times, with a loud, but not an angry voice, says, 'Down!' or 'Down charge!' The dog knows not the meaning of this, and struggles to get up; but, as often as he struggles, the cry of 'Down charge!' is repeated, and the pressure is continued or increased. 

 "This is repeated a longer or shorter time, until the dog, finding that no harm is meant, quietly submits. He is then permitted to rise; he is patted and caressed, and some food is given to him. The command to rise is also introduced by the terms 'Hie up!' A little afterwards the same process is repeated, and he struggles less, or perhaps ceases altogether to struggle. 

 "The person whose circumstances permit him occasionally to shoot over his little demesne, may very readily educate his dog without having recourse to keepers or professional breakers, among whom he would often be subject to imposition. Generally speaking, no dog is half so well broken as the one whose owner has taken the trouble of training him. The first and grand thing is to obtain the attachment of the dog, by frequently feeding and caressing him, and giving him little hours of liberty under his own inspection; but, every now and then, inculcating a lesson of obedience, teaching him that every gambol must be under the control of his master; frequently checking him in the midst of his riot with the order of 'Down charge!' patting him when he is instantly obedient; and rating, or castigating him, but not too severely, when there is any reluctance to obey. 'Passive obedience is the first principle, and from which no deviation should be allowed. ' [26]

 "Much kindness and gentleness are certainly requisite when breaking-in the puppy, whether it be a pointer or a setter. There is heedlessness in the young dog which is not readily got rid of until age has given him experience. He must not, however, be too severely corrected, or he may be spoiled for life. If considerable correction is sometimes necessary, it should be followed, at a little distance of time, by some kind usage. The memory of the suffering will remain; but the feeling of attachment to the master will also remain, or rather be increased. The temper of a young dog must be almost as carefully studied as that of a human being. Timidity may be encouraged, and eagerness may be restrained, but affection must be the tie that binds him to his master, and renders him subservient to his will. 

 "The next portion of the lesson is more difficult to learn. He is no longer held by his master, but suffered to run over the field, seemingly at his pleasure, when, suddenly, comes the warning 'Down!' He perhaps pays no attention to it, but gambols along until seized by his master, forced on the ground, and the order of 'Down!' somewhat sternly uttered. 

 "After a while he is suffered again to get up. He soon forgets what has occurred, and gallops away with as much glee as ever. Again the 'Down!' is heard, and again little or no attention is paid to it. His master once more lays hold of him and forces him on the ground, and perhaps inflicts a slight blow or two, and this process continues until the dog finds that he must obey the command of 'Down charge!'

 "The owner will now probably walk from him a little way backward with his hand lifted up. If the dog makes the slightest motion, he must be sharply spoken to, and the order peremptorily enforced. 

 "He must then be taught to 'back, ' that is, to come behind his master when called. When he seems to understand all this, he is called by his master in a kindly tone, and patted and caressed. It is almost incredible how soon he will afterwards understand what he is ordered to do, and perform it. 

 "It will be seen by this that no one should attempt to break-in a dog who is not possessed of patience and perseverance. The sportsman must not expect to see a great deal of improvement from the early lessons. The dog will often forget that which was inculcated upon him a few hours before; but perseverance and kindness will effect much: the first lessons over, the dog, beginning to perceive a little what is meant, will cheerfully and joyfully do his duty. 

 "When there is much difficulty in teaching the dog his lesson, the fault lies as often with the master as with him; or they are, generally speaking, both in fault. Some dogs cannot be mastered but by means of frequent correction. The less the sportsman has to do with them the better. Others will not endure the least correction, but become either ferocious or sulky. They should be disposed of as soon as possible. The majority of dogs are exceedingly sagacious. They possess strong reasoning powers; they understand, by intuition, almost every want and wish of their master, and they deserve the kindest and best usage. 

 "The scholar being thus prepared, should be taken into the field, either alone, or, what is considerably better, with a well-trained, steady dog. When the old dog makes a point, the master calls out, 'Down!' or 'Soho!' and holds up his hand, and approaches steadily to the birds; and, if the young one runs in or prepares to do so, as probably he will at first, he again raises his hand and calls out, 'Soho!' If the youngster pays no attention to this, the whip must be used, and in a short time he will be steady enough at the first intimation of game. 

 "If he springs any birds without taking notice of them, he should be dragged to the spot from which they rose, and, 'Soho!' being cried, one or two sharp strokes with the whip should be inflicted. If he is too eager, he should be warned to 'take heed. ' If he 'rakes' or runs with his nose near the ground, he should be admonished to 'hold up', and, if he still persists, the 'muzzle-peg' may be resorted to. Some persons fire over the dog for running at hares: but this is wrong; for, besides the danger of wounding or even killing the animal, he will for some time afterwards he frightened at the sound, or even at the very sight of a gun. The best plan to accustom dogs to the gun, is occasionally to fire one off when they are being fed. 

 "Some persons let their dog fetch the dead birds. This is very wrong. Except the sportsman has a double-barrelled gun, the dog should not be suffered to move until the piece is again charged. The young one, until he is thoroughly broken of it, is too apt to run in whether the bird is killed or not, and which may create much mischief by disturbing the game. 

 "Although excessive punishment should not be administered, yet no fault, however small, should pass without reproof: on the other hand, he should be rewarded, but not too lavishly, for every instance of good conduct. 

 "When the dog is grown tolerably steady, and taught to come at the call, he should also learn to range and quarter his ground. Let some clear morning, and some place where the sportsman is likely to meet with game, be selected. Station him where the wind will blow in his face; wave your hand and cry, 'Heigh on, good dog!' Then let him go off to the right, about seventy or eighty yards. After this, call him in by another wave of the hand, and let him go the same distance to the left. Walk straight forward with your eye always upon him; then, let him continue to cross from right to left, calling him in at the limit of each range. 

 "This is at first a somewhat difficult lesson, and requires careful teaching. The same ground is never to be twice passed over. The sportsman watches every motion, and the dog is never trusted out of sight, or allowed to break fence. When this lesson is tolerably learned, and on some good scenting morning early in the season, he may take the field, and perhaps find. Probably he will be too eager, and spring his game. Make him 'down' immediately, and take him to the place where the birds rose. Chide him with 'Steady!' 'How dare you!' Use no whip; but scold him well, and be assured that he will be more cautious. If possible, kill on the next chance. The moment the bird is down, he will probably rush in and seize it. He must be met with the same rebuff, 'Down charge!' If he does not obey, he deserves to have, and will have, a stroke with the whip. The gun being again charged, the bird is sought for, and the dog is suffered to see it and play with it for a minute before it is put into the bag. 

 "He will now become thoroughly fond of the sport, and his fondness will increase with each bird that is killed. At every time, however, whether he kills or misses, the sportsman should make the dog 'Down charge. ' and never allow him to rise until he has loaded. 

 "If a hare should be wounded, there will, occasionally, be considerable difficulty in preventing him from chasing her. The best broken and steadiest dog cannot always be restrained from running hares. He must be checked with 'Ware chase, ' and, if he does not attend, the sportsman must wait patiently. He will by-and-by come slinking along with his tail between his legs, conscious of his fault. It is one, however, that admits of no pardon. He must be secured, and, while the field echoes with the cry of 'Ware chase, ' he must be punished to a certain but not too great extent. The castigation must be repeated as often as he offends; or, if there is much difficulty in breaking him of the habit, he must be got rid of. "

The breaking-in or subjugation of pointers and setters is a veryimportant, and occasionally a difficult affair; the pleasure of thesportsman, however, depends on it. The owner of any considerableproperty will naturally look to his keeper to furnish him with dogs onwhich he may depend, and he ought not to be disappointed; for thosewhich belong to other persons, or are brought at the beginning of theseason, whatever account the breaker or the keeper of them may give, will too often be found deficient. 

THE OTTER HOUND

used to be of a mingled breed, between the southern hound and the roughterrier, and in size between the harrier and the fox-hound. The headshould be large and broad, the shoulders and quarters thick, and thehair strong, wiry, and rough. They used to be kept in small packs, forthe express purpose of hunting the otter. 

Two hundred and fifty years ago, otter-hunting was a favourite amusementin several parts of Great Britain. Many of our streams then aboundedwith this destructive animal; but, since the population are morenumerous, and many contrivances are adopted to ensnare and destroyotters, few are now to be found. 

THE TURNSPIT

This dog was once a valuable auxiliary in the kitchen, by turning thespit before jacks were invented. It had a peculiar length of body, withshort crooked legs, the tail curled, its ears long and pendent, and thehead large in proportion to the body. It is still used in the kitchen onvarious parts of the Continent. There are some curious stories of theartfulness with which he often attempted to avoid the task imposed uponhim. 

There is a variety of this dog; the crooked-legged turnspit. 

[Footnote 1: 'Historical and Descriptive Sketches of British America', by J. Macgregor]

[Footnote 2: 'Journal Historique du Voyage de M. De Lesseps', Paris, 1790. 2 vols. --tome 1. ]

[Footnote 3: Clarke's 'Scandinavia', vol. I. P. 432. ]

[Footnote 4: The migratory sheep, in some parts of the south of Francealmost as numerous as in Spain, are attended by a GOAT, as aguide; and the intelligence and apparent pride which he displays areremarkable. ]

[Footnote 5: 'Trimmer on the Merinos', p. 50. See also the Society'swork on Sheep. ]

[Footnote 6: 'Annals of Sporting', vol. Viii. P. 83. ]

[Footnote 7:

 "The Ettrick Shepherd has probably spoken somewhat too enthusiastically of his dog; but accounts of the sagacity and almost superhuman fidelity of this dog crowd so rapidly upon us that we are compelled to admire and to love him. "

'Hogg's Shepherd's Calendar', vol. Ii. P. 308. ]

[Footnote 8: 'Jesse's Gleanings', vol. I. P. 93]. 

[Footnote 9: 'Buffon's Natural History', vol. V. P. 314. ]

[Footnote 10: 'Travels in Scotland', by the Rev. J. Hall, vol. Ii. P. 395. ]

[Footnote 11: 'Annals of Sporting', vol. V. P. 137. ]

[Footnote 12: Mr Beckford at one time determined to try how he shouldlike the use of beagles, and, having heard of a small pack of them, hesent his coachman, the person he could best spare, to fetch them. It wasa long journey, and, although he had some assistance, yet not being usedto hounds, he had some trouble in getting them along, especially as theyhad not been out of the kennel for several weeks before. They wereconsequently so riotous that they ran after everything they saw, sheep, cur dogs, birds of all sorts, as well as hares and deer. However, helost but one hound; and, when Mr. Beckford asked him what he thought ofthem, he said that they could not fail of being good hounds, for theywould hunt everything. ]

[Footnote 13: 'Beckford on Hunting', p. 150. ]

[Footnote 14: 'The Horse and the Hound', by Nimrod, p. 340. ]

[Footnote 15: 'The Horse and the Hound', by Nimrod, p, 332. ]

[Footnote 16: 'Daniel's Foxhound', p. 205. ]

[Footnote 17: 'The Horse and the Hound', by Nimrod, p. 355. ]

[Footnote 18: 'Beckford's Thoughts on Hunting', p. 95. ]

[Footnote 19: Mr. Beckford gives the following excellent account of whata huntsman should be:

 "A huntsman should be attached to the sport, and indefatigable, young, strong, active, bold, and enterprising in the pursuit of it. He should be sensible, good-tempered, sober, exact, and cleanly--a good groom and an excellent horseman. His voice should be strong and clear, with an eye so quick as to perceive which of his hounds carries the scent when all are running, and an ear so excellent as to distinguish the leading hounds when he does not see them. He should be quiet, patient, and without conceit. Such are the qualities which constitute perfection in a huntsman. He should not, however, be too fond of displaying them until called forth by necessity; it being a peculiar and distinguishing trait in his character to let his hounds alone while they thus hunt, and have genius to assist them when they cannot. "

'Beckford on Hunting', Letter ix. ]

[Footnote 20: 'Blaine on the Diseases of the Dog', p. 140. ]

[Footnote 21: See 'Hints to Young Masters of Fox-Hounds'--'New Sport. Mag. ', vol. Viii. P. 174-290. ]

[Footnote 22: 'Traité de la Folie dex Animaux', tom. Ii. 39. ]

[Footnote 23: Mr. D. Radcliffe. ]

[Footnote 24: The late Lord Oxford reduced four stags to so perfect adegree of submission that, in his short excursions, he used to drivethem in a phaeton made for the purpose. He was one day exercising hissingular and beautiful steeds in the neighbourhood of Newmarket, whentheir ears were saluted with the unwelcome cry of a pack of hounds, which, crossing the road in their rear, had caught the scent, andleaving their original object of pursuit, were now in rapid chase of thefrightened stags. In vain his grooms exerted themselves to the utmost, the terrified animals bounded away with the swiftness of lightning, andentered Newmarket at full speed. They made immediately for the Ram Inn, to which his lordship was in the habit of driving, and, havingfortunately entered the yard without any accident, the stable-keepershuddled his lordship, the phaeton, and the deer into a large barn, justin time to save them from the hounds, who came into the yard in full crya few seconds afterwards. 

('Annals of Sporting', vol. Iii. 1833. )]

[Footnote 25: The author of the 'Field Book' says that he saw anextremely small pointer, whose length, from the tip of the nose to thepoint of the tail, was only two feet and half an inch, the length of thehead being six inches, and round the chest one foot and three inches. Hewas an exquisite miniature of the English pointer, being in all respectssimilar to him, except in his size. His colour was white, with darkliver-coloured patches on each side of the head, extending half down theneck. The ears, with some patches on the back, were also of the samecolour, and numerous small dark-brown spots appeared over his whole bodyand legs. 

This beautiful little animal had an exquisite sense of smell. Some ofthe same breed, and being the property of the Earl of Lauderdale, werebroken-in and made excellent pointers, although, from their minute size, it could not be expected that they would be able to do much work. Whenintent upon any object, the dog assumed the same attitude as otherpointers, holding up one of his feet. 

('The Field Book', p. 399. )]

[Footnote 26: Another writer in the same volume gives also aninteresting account of the management of the setter. ]

 * * * * *

CHAPTER IV. 

THE VARIETIES OF THE DOG. 

THIRD DIVISION. 

 'The muzzle more or less shortened, the frontal sinus enlarged, and the cranium elevated and diminished in capacity. '

At the head of this inferior or brutal division of dogs stands

THE BULL-DOG. 

The round, thick head, turned-up nose, and thick and pendulous lips ofthis dog are familiar to all, while his ferocity makes him in thehighest degree dangerous. In general he makes a silent althoughferocious attack, and the persisting powers of his teeth and jaws enablehim to keep his hold against any but the greatest efforts, so that theutmost mischief is likely to ensue as well to the innocent visitor ofhis domicile as the ferocious intruder. The bull-dog is scarcely capableof any education, and is fitted for nothing but ferocity and combat. 

The name of this dog is derived from his being too often employed, untila few years ago, in baiting the bull. It was practised by the low anddissolute in many parts of the country. Dogs were bred and trained forthe purpose; and, while many of them were injured or destroyed, the headof the bull was lacerated in the most barbarous manner. Nothing canexceed the fury with which the bull-dog rushed on his foe, and theobstinacy with which he maintained his hold. He fastened upon the lip, the muzzle, or the eye, and there he hung in spite of every effort ofthe bull to free himself from his antagonist. 

Bull-dogs are not so numerous as they were a few years ago; and everykind-hearted person will rejoice to hear that bull-baiting is now putdown by legal authority in every part of the kingdom. 

THE BULL TERRIER. 

This dog is a cross between the bull-dog and the terrier, and isgenerally superior, both in appearance and value, to either of itsprogenitors. A second cross considerably lessens the underhanging of thelower jaw, and a third entirely removes it, retaining the spirit anddetermination of the animal. It forms a steadier friendship than eitherof them, and the principal objection to it is its love of wantonmischief, and the dangerous irascibility which it occasionally exhibits. 

Sir Walter Scott, a warm friend of dogs, and whose veracity cannot beimpeached, gives an interesting account of a favourite one belonging tohim. 

 "The cleverest dog I ever had was what is called a bull-dog terrier. I taught him to understand a great many words, insomuch that I am positive the communication between the canine species and ourselves might be greatly enlarged. Camp, the name of my dog, once bit the baker when bringing bread to the family. I beat him, and explained the enormity of the offence; after which, to the last moment of his life, he never heard the least allusion to the story without creeping into the darkest corner of the room. Towards the end of his life when he was unable to attend me while I was on horseback, he generally watched for my return, and, when the servant used to tell him, his master was coming down the hill, or through the moor, although he did not use any gesture to explain his meaning, Camp was never known to mistake him, but either went out at the front to go up the hill, or at the back to get down to the moor-side. "

THE MASTIFF

The head considerably resembles that of the bull-dog, but with the earsdependent. The upper lip falls over the lower jaw. The end of the tailis turned up, and frequently the fifth toe of the hind feet is more orless developed. The nostrils are separated one from another by a deepfurrow. He has a grave and somewhat sullen countenance, and hisdeep-toned bark is often heard during the night. The mastiff is tallerthan the bull-dog, but not so deep in the chest, and his head is largecompared with his general form. 

It is probable that the mastiff is an original breed peculiar to theBritish islands. 

He seems to be fully aware of the impression which his large size makeson every stranger; and, in the night especially, he watches the abode ofhis master with the completest vigilance; in fact, nothing would tempthim to betray the confidence which is reposed in him. 

Captain Brown states that, "notwithstanding his commanding appearance and the strictness with which he guards the property of his master, he is possessed of the greatest mildness of conduct, and is as grateful for any favours bestowed upon him as is the most diminutive of the canine tribe. There is a remarkable and peculiar warmth in his attachments. He is aware of all the duties required of him, and he punctually discharges them. In the course of the night he several times examines every thing with which he is intrusted with the most scrupulous care, and, by repeated barkings, warns the household or the depredator that he is at the post of duty. " [1]

The mastiff from Cuba requires some mention, and will call up some ofthe most painful recollections in the history of the human race. He wasnot a native of Cuba, but imported into the country. 

The Spaniards had possessed themselves of several of the South Americanislands. They found them peopled with Indians, and those of a sensual, brutish, and barbarous class--continually making war with theirneighbours, indulging in an irreconcilable hatred of the Spaniards, anddetermined to expel and destroy them. In self-defence, they were drivento some means of averting the destruction with which they werethreatened. They procured some of these mastiffs, by whose assistancethey penetrated into every part of the country, and destroyed thegreater portion of the former inhabitants. 

Las Casas, a Catholic priest, and whose life was employed inendeavouring to mitigate the sufferings of the original inhabitants, says that

 "it was resolved to march against the Indians, who had fled to the mountains, and they were chased like wild beasts, with the assistance of bloodhounds, who had been trained to a thirst for human blood, so that before I had left the island it had become almost entirely a desert. "

THE ICELAND DOG. 

The head is rounder than that of the northern dogs; the ears partlyerect and partly pendent; and the fur soft and long, especially behindthe fore legs and on the tail. It much resembles the Turkish dog removedto a colder climate. 

This dog is exceedingly useful to the Icelanders while travelling overthe snowy deserts of the north. By a kind of intuition he rarely failsin choosing the shortest and the safest course. He also is more awarethan his master of the approach of the snow storms; and is a mostvaluable ally against the attack of the Polar bear, who, drifted onmasses of ice from the neighbouring continent, often commitsdepredations among the cattle, and even attacks human beings. When thedog is first aware of the neighbourhood of the bear, he sets up afearful howl, and men and dogs hasten to hunt down and destroy thedepredator. 

The travelling in Iceland is sometimes exceedingly dangerous at thebeginning of the winter. A thin layer of snow covers and conceals someof the chasms with which that region abounds. Should the traveller fallinto one of them, the dog proves a most useful animal; for he runsimmediately across the snowy waste, and, by his howling, induces thetraveller's friends to hasten to his rescue. 

THE TERRIER

The forehead is convex; the eye prominent; the muzzle pointed; the tailthin and arched; the fur short; the ears of moderate size, half erect, and usually of a deep-black colour, with a yellow spot over the eyes. Itis an exceedingly useful animal; but not so indispensable anaccompaniment to a pack of fox-hounds as it used to be accounted. Foxesare not so often unearthed as they formerly were, yet many a day's sportwould be lost without the terrier. Some sportsmen used to have twoterriers accompanying in the pack, one being smaller than the other. This was a very proper provision; a large terrier might be incapable ofpenetrating into the earth, and a small one might permit the escape ofthe prey. Many terriers have lost their lives by scratching up the earthbehind them, and thus depriving themselves of all means of retreat. 

The coat of the terrier may be either smooth or rough; the smooth-hairedones are more delicate in appearance, and are somewhat more exposed toinjury or accident; but in courage, sagacity, and strength, there isvery little difference if the dogs are equally well bred. The roughterrier possibly obtained his shaggy coat from the cur, and the smoothterrier may derive his from the hound. 

The terrier is seldom of much service until he is twelve months old; andthen, incited by natural propensity, or the example of the older ones, or urged on by the huntsman, he begins to discharge his supposed duty. 

An old terrier is brought to the mouth of the earth in which a vixenfox--a fox with her young ones--has taken up her abode, and is sent into worry and drive her out. Some young terriers are brought to the mouthof the hover, to listen to the process that is going forward within, andto be excited to the utmost extent of which they are capable. The vixenis at length driven out, and caught at the mouth of the hole; and theyoung ones are suffered to rush in, and worry or destroy their firstprey. They want no after-tuition to prepare them for the discharge oftheir duty. 

This may be pardoned. It is the most ready way of training the young dogto his future business; but it is hoped that no reader of this work willbe guilty of the atrocities that are often practised. An old fox, orbadger, is caught, his under jaw is sawn off, and the lower teeth areforcibly extracted, or broken. A hole is then dug in the earth, or abarrel is placed large and deep enough to permit a terrier, or perhapstwo of them, to enter. Into this cavity the fox or badger is thrust, anda terrier rushes after him, and drags him out again. The question to beascertained is, how many times in a given period the dog will draw thispoor tortured animal out of the barrel--an exhibition of cruelly whichno one should be able to lay to the charge of any human being. It is aprinciple not to be departed from, that wanton and useless barbarityshould never be permitted. The government, to a certain extent, hasinterfered, and a noble society has been established to limit, or, ifpossible, to prevent the infliction of useless pain. 

The terrier is, however, a valuable dog, in the house and the farm. Thestoat, the pole-cat, and the weazel, commit great depredations in thefields, the barn, and granary; and to a certain extent, the terrier isemployed in chasing them; but it is not often that he has a fair chanceto attack them. He is more frequently used in combating the rat. 

The mischief effected by rats is almost incredible. It has been saidthat, in some cases, in the article of corn, these animals consume aquantity of food equal in value to the rent of the farm. Here the dog isusefully employed, and in his very element, especially if there is across of the bull-dog about him. 

There are some extraordinary accounts of the dexterity, as well ascourage, of the terrier in destroying rats. The feats of a dog called"Billy" will he long remembered. He was matched to destroy one hundredlarge rats in eight and a half minutes. The rats were brought into thering in bags, and, as soon as the number was complete, he was put overthe railing. In six minutes and thirty-five seconds they were alldestroyed. In another match he destroyed the same number in six minutesand thirteen seconds. At length, when he was getting old, and had buttwo teeth and one eye left, a wager was laid of thirty sovereigns, bythe owner of a Berkshire bitch, that she would kill fifty rats in lesstime than Billy. The old dog killed his fifty in five minutes and sixseconds. The pit was then cleared, and the bitch let in. When she hadkilled thirty rats, she was completely exhausted, fell into a fit, andlay barking and yelping, utterly incapable of completing her task. 

The speed of the terrier is very great. One has been known to run sixmiles in thirty-two minutes. He needs to be a fleet dog if, with hiscomparatively little bulk, he can keep up with the foxhound. 

A small breed of 'wry-legged' terriers was once in repute, and, to acertain degree, is retained for the purpose of hunting rabbits. Itprobably originated in some rickety specimens, remarkable for the slowdevelopment of their frame, except in the head, the belly, and thejoints, which enlarge at the expense of the other parts. 

THE SCOTCH TERRIER

There is reason to believe that this dog is far older than the Englishterrier. There are three varieties: first the common Scotch terrier, twelve or thirteen inches high; his body muscular and compact--considerable breadth across the loins--the legs shorter and stouter thanthose of the English terriers. The head large in proportion to the sizeof the body--the muzzle small and pointed--strong marks of intelligencein the countenance--warm attachment to his master, and the evidentdevotion of every power to the fulfilment of his wishes. The hair islong and tough, and extending over the whole of the frame. In colour, they are black or fawn: the white, yellow, or pied are always deficientin purity of blood. 

Another species has nearly the same conformation, but is covered withlonger, more curly, and stouter hair; the legs being apparently, but notactually, shorter. This kind of dog prevails in the greater part of theWestern Islands of Scotland, and some of them, where the hair hasobtained its full development, are much admired. 

Her Majesty had one from Islay, a faithful and affectionate creature, yet with all the spirit and determination that belongs to his breed. Thewriter of this account had occasion to operate on this poor fellow, whohad been bitten under somewhat suspicious circumstances. He submittedwithout a cry or a struggle, and seemed to be perfectly aware that weshould not put him to pain without having some good purpose in view. 

A third species of terrier is of a considerably larger bulk, and threeor four inches taller than either of the others. Its hair is shorterthan that of the other breeds, and is hard and wiry. 

THE SHOCK-DOG

is traced by Buffon, but somewhat erroneously, to a mixture of the smallDanish dog and the pug. The head is round, the eyes large, but somewhatconcealed by its long and curly hair, the tail curved and bent forward. The muzzle resembles that of the pug. It is of small size, and is usedin this country and on the Continent as a lap-dog. It is very properlydescribed by the author of "The Field Book" as a useless little animal, seeming to possess no other quality than that of a faithful attachmentto his mistress. 

THE ARTOIS DOG

with his short, flat muzzle, is a produce of the shock-dog and the pug. He has nothing peculiar to recommend him. 

THE ANDALUSIAN, OR ALICANT DOG, has the short muzzle of the pug with the long hair of the spaniel. 

THE EGYPTIAN AND BARBARY DOG, according to Cuvier, has a very thick and round head, the ears erect atthe base, large and movable, and carried horizontally, the skin nearlynaked, and black or dark flesh-colour, with large patches of brown. Asub-variety has a kind of mane behind the head, formed of long stiffhairs. 

Buffon imagines that the shepherd's dog--transported to differentclimates, and acquiring different habits--was the ancestor of thevarious species with which almost every country abounds; but whence theyoriginally came it is impossible to say. They vary in their size, theircolour, their attitude, their usual exterior, and their strangelydifferent interior construction. Transported into various climates, theyare necessarily submitted to the influence of heat and cold, and of foodmore or less abundant and more or less suitable to their naturalorganization; but the reason or the derivation of these differences ofstructure it is not always easy to explain. 

[Footnote 1: Brown's 'Biographical Sketches', p. 425. ]

 * * * * *

CHAPTER V. 

THE GOOD QUALITIES OF THE DOG; THE SENSE OF SMELL; INTELLIGENCE; MORALQUALITIES; DOG-CARTS; CROPPING; TAILING; BREAKING-IN; DOG-PITS;DOG-STEALING. 

In our history of the different breeds of the dog we have seen enough toinduce us to admire and love him. His courage, his fidelity, and thedegree in which he often devotes every power that he possesses to ourservice, are circumstances that we can never forget nor overlook. Hisvery foibles occasionally attach him to us. We may select a pointer forthe pureness of his blood and the perfection of his education. Hetransgresses in the field. We call him to us; we scold him well;perchance, we chastise him. He lies motionless and dumb at our feet. Thepunishment being over, he gets up, and, by some significant gesture, acknowledges his consciousness of deserving what he has suffered. Thewriter operated on a pointer bitch for an enlarged cancerous tumour, accompanied by much inflammation and pain in the surrounding parts. Aword or two of kindness and of caution were all that were necessary, although, in order to prevent accidents, she had been bound securely. The flesh quivered as the knife pursued its course--a moan or twoescaped her, but yet she did not struggle; and her first act, after allwas over, was to lick the operator's hand. 

From the combination of various causes, the history of no animal is moreinteresting than that of the dog. First, his intimate association withman, not only as a valuable protector, but as a constant and faithfulcompanion throughout all the vicissitudes of life. Secondly, from hisnatural endowments, not consisting in the exquisite delicacy of oneindividual sense--not merely combining memory with reflection--butpossessing qualities of the mind that stagger us in the contemplation ofthem, and which we can alone account for in the gradation existing inthat wonderful system which, by different links of one vast chain, extends from the first to the last of all things, until it forms aperfect whole on the wonderful confines of the spiritual and materialworld. 

We here quote the beautiful account of Sir Walter Scott and his dogs, asdescribed by Henry Hallam:

 "But looking towards the grassy mound Where calm the Douglass chieftains lie, Who, living, quiet never found, I straightway learnt a lesson high;

 For there an old man sat serene, And well I knew that thoughtful mien Of him whose early lyre had thrown O'er mouldering walls the magic of its tone. 

 It was a comfort, too, to see Those dogs that from him ne'er would rove, And always eyed him reverently, With glances of depending love. They know not of the eminence Which marks him to my reasoning sense, They know but that he is a man, And still to them is kind, and glads them all he can

 And hence their quiet looks confiding; Hence grateful instincts seated deep By whose strong bond, were ill betiding, They'd lose their own, his life to keep. What joy to watch in lower creature Such dawning of a moral nature, And how (the rule all things obey) They look to a higher mind to be their law and stay!"

The subject of the intellectual and moral qualities of the inferioranimals is one highly interesting and somewhat misunderstood--urgedperhaps to a ridiculous extent by some persons, yet altogether neglectedby others who have no feeling for any but themselves. 

Anatomists have compared the relative bulk of the brain in differentanimals, and the result is not a little interesting. In man the weightof the brain amounts on the average to 1-30th part of the body. In theNewfoundland dog it does not amount to 1-60th part, or to 1-100th partin the poodle and barbet, and not to more than 1-300th part in theferocious and stupid bull-dog. 

When the brain is cut, it is found to be composed of two substances, essentially different in construction and function--the cortical and themedullary. The first is small in quantity, and principally concerned inthe food and reproduction of the animal, and the cineritious in a greatmeasure the register of the mind. Brute strength seems to be thecharacter of the former, and superior intelligence of the latter. Thereis, comparing bulk with bulk, less of the medullary substance in thehorse than in the ox--and in the dog than in the horse--and they arecharacterized as the sluggish ox, the intelligent horse, and theintellectual and companionable dog. 

From the medullary substance proceed certain cords or prolongations, termed 'nerves', by which the animal is enabled to receive impressionsfrom surrounding objects and to connect himself with them, and also topossess many pleasurable or painful sensations. One of them is spreadover the membrane of the nose, and gives the sense of smell; anotherexpands on the back of the eye, and the faculty of sight is gained; athird goes to the internal structure of the ear and the animal isconscious of sound. Other nerves, proceeding to different parts, givethe faculty of motion, while an equally important one bestows the powerof feeling. One division, springing from a prolongation of the brain, and yet within the skull, wanders to different parts of the frame, forimportant purposes connected with respiration or breathing. The act ofbreathing is essential to life, and were it to cease, the animal woulddie. 

There are other nerves--the sympathetic--so called from their union andsympathy with all the others, and identified with life itself. Theyproceed from a small ganglion or enlargement in the upper part of theneck, or from a collection of minute ganglia within the abdomen. They goto the heart, and it beats; and to the stomach, and it digests. Theyform a net-work round each vessel, and the frame is nourished and builtup. They are destitute of sensation, and they are perfectly beyond thecontrol of the will. 

We have been accustomed, and properly, to regard the nervous system, orthat portion of it which is connected with animal life--that whichrenders us conscious of surrounding objects and susceptible of pleasureand of pain--as the source of intellectual power and moral feeling. Itis so with ourselves. All our knowledge is derived from our perceptionof things around as. A certain impression is made on the outward fibresof a sensitive nerve. That impression, in some mysterious way, isconveyed to the brain; and there it is received--registered--stored--andcompared; there its connections are traced and its consequencesappreciated; and thence a variety of interesting impressions areconveyed, and due use is made of them. 

THE SENSE OF SMELL

Our subject--the intellectual and moral feelings of brutes, and themechanism on which they depend--may be divided into two parts, theportion that receives and conveys, and that which stores up and comparesand uses the impression. 

The portion that receives and conveys is far more developed in the brutethan in the human being. Whatever sense we take, we clearly perceive thetriumph of animal power. 

The olfactory nerve in the horse, the dog, the ox, and the swine, is thelargest of all the cerebral nerves, and has much greater comparativebulk in the quadruped than in the human being. The sense of smell, bearing proportion to the nerve on which it depends, is yet more acute. In man it is connected with pleasure--in the inferior animals with life. The relative size of the nerve bears an invariable proportion to thenecessity of an acute sense of smell in the various animals--large inthe horse compared with the olfactory nerve in the human being--largerin the ox, who is often sent into the fields to shift forhimself--larger still in the swine, whose food is buried under the soil, or deeply immersed in the filth or refuse, --and still larger in the dog, the acuteness of whose scent is so connected with our pleasure. 

[The disposition to hunt by scent is not peculiar to the setter orpointer, but in fact is common to all animals; developing itself indifferent proportions according to their various physical constructionsand modes of life. The method of finding and pointing at game, nowpeculiar to these dogs, and engendered in their progeny throughsuccessive generations, is not the result of any special instinct, thatusually governs the actions of the brute creation--but rather the effectof individual education and force of habit upon their several ancestors. This habit of life, engrafted through progressive generations into thesebreeds, has become a second nature, and so entirely the property of thespecies, that all its members, with but little care on the part of man, will perform these same actions in the same way, and will ever continueto exhibit these propensities for hunting, provided opportunities beoffered for indulging them. Nevertheless, as these peculiarpredilections for "'setting or pointing', " as before said, are theeffect of education and habit, the artificial impulse would very soon beentirely obliterated, if not encouraged in the young dogs of eachgeneration. This circumstance alone, proves to us the importance ofgetting dogs from a well-known good strain, whose ancestors have beenremarkable for their exploits in the field. This necessary precautionwill insure a favourable issue to our troubles, and lessen materiallyour labours. In fact young puppies have been frequently known to exhibitthis propensity the first time they have been taken to the field. Someof these dogs have come under the notice of the writer, who at a fewmonths old exhibited all the peculiarities of their race; in fact were"self-broke. " These dogs were the progeny of a well-known importedstock, in the possession of a gentleman who selected them in England. 

Although other dogs, and other animals even, have been with greatdifficulty and perseverance taught to find and point game, still thesetwo breeds seem especially adapted by nature, both in their physical andintellectual construction, for the performance of this particular dutyto man. 

The sense of smell is differently developed in different animals; theolfactory nerve of the dog is larger than any other in the cerebrum, which peculiarity will at once account for their wonderful powers ofscent. 

'Swine', also, have these nerves largely developed; and necessarily so, as both in a state of nature or half-civilization, the greater portionof their food is buried under the earth or mingled with the filth andmire of their sties, and would pass unheeded, if not for the acutenessof their nasal organs. 

In Daniels' "Rural Sports, " will be found an interesting account of asow having been taught to find and point game of various kinds, andoften having been known to stand on partridges at a distance of fortyyards, which is more than can reasonably be expected of every first-ratedog. She was not only broke to find and stand game, but hunted with thedogs, and backed successfully when on a point. This extraordinary animalevinced great aptness for learning, and afterwards great enthusiasm inthe sport; showing symptoms of pleasure at the sight of a gun, or whencalled upon to accompany a party to the field. Her hunting was notconfined to any particular game, but stood equally well on partridges, pheasants, snipes, rabbits, &c. (See Blaine, part vii, chap, iii, page792. )

Most of animals instinctively employ the organ of scent to seek outfood, or avert personal danger, in preference to that of sight; but somedepend more upon the latter than the former, either from instinct or theforce of education. 

For instance, the greyhound, though equally gifted with the sense ofsmell, as that of sight, has been taught to depend upon the one organ tothe entire exclusion of the other, which is quite the reverse of thesetter and pointer; but the wonderful speed of these dogs renders itquite unnecessary that he should employ the olfactory nerves, as noanimal, however swift, can hope to escape from him in a fair race, whenonce near enough to be seen; though there are some that may elude hisgrasp by a "'ruse de guerre'" when too hardly pressed. ('Extracted fromour essay in No. 1, vol. Xvi, of the "Spirit of the Times. '")--L. ]

INTELLIGENCE

We find little mention of insanity in the domesticated animals in any ofour modern authors, whether treating on agriculture, horsemanship, orveterinary medicine, and yet there are some singular and veryinteresting cases of aberration of intellect. The inferior animals are, to a certain extent, endowed with the same faculties as ourselves. Theyare even susceptible of the same moral qualities. Hatred, love, fear, hope, joy, distress, courage, timidity, jealousy, and many variedpassions influence and agitate them, as they do the human being. The dogis an illustration of this---the most susceptible to everyimpression--approaching the nearest to man in his instincts, and in manyactions that surprise the philosopher, who justly appreciates it. 

What eagerness to bite is often displayed by the dog when labouringunder enteritis, and especially by him who has imbibed the poison ofrabies! How singular is the less dangerous malady which induces thehorse and the dog to press unconsciously forward under the influence ofvertigo!--the eagerness with which, when labouring under phrenitis, hestrikes at everything with his foot, or rushes upon it to seize it withhis teeth! A kind of nostalgia is often recognised in that depressionwhich nothing can dissipate, and the invincible aversion to food, bymeans of which many animals perish, who are prevented from returning tothe place where they once lived, and the localities to which they hadbeen accustomed. 

These are circumstances proving that the dog is endowed withintelligence and with affections like ours; and, if they do not equalours, they are of the same character. 

With regard to the foundation of intellectual power, viz. : attention, memory, association, and imagination, the difference between man andanimals is in degree, and not in kind. Thus stands the account, --withthe quadruped as well as the biped, --the impression is made on the mind;attention fixes it there; memory recurs to it; imagination combines it, rightly or erroneously, with many other impressions; judgment determinesthe value of it, and the conclusions that are to be drawn from it, ifnot with logical precision, yet with sufficient accuracy for everypractical purpose. 

A bitch, naturally ill-tempered, and that would not suffer a stranger totouch her, had scirrhous enlargement on one of her teats. As she lay inthe lap of her mistress, an attempt was repeatedly made to examine thetumour, in spite of many desperate attempts on her part to bite. All atonce, however, something seemed to strike her mind. She whined, waggedher tail, and sprung from the lap of her mistress to the ground. It wasto crouch at the feet of the surgeon, and to lay herself down and exposethe tumour to his inspection. She submitted to a somewhat painfulexamination of it, and to a far more serious operation afterwards. Someyears passed away, and whenever she saw the operator, she testified herjoy and her gratitude in the most expressive and endearing manner. 

A short time since, the following scene took place in a street adjoiningHanover-square. It was an exhibition of a highly interesting character, and worthy to be placed upon record. The editor of the Lancet havingheard that a French gentleman (M. Léonard), who had for some time beenengaged in instructing two dogs in various performances that requiredthe exercise, not merely of the natural instincts of the animal and thepower of imitation, but of a higher intellect, and a degree ofreflection and judgment far greater than is commonly developed in thedog; was residing in London, obtained an introduction, and wasobligingly favoured by M. Leonard with permission to hold a'conversazione' with his extraordinary pupils. He thus describes theinterview:

Two fine dogs, of the Spanish breed, were introduced by M. Leonard, withthe customary French politesse, the largest by the name of M. Philax, the other as M. Brac (or spot); the former had been in training three, the latter two, years. They were in vigorous health, and, having bowedvery gracefully, seated themselves on the hearth-rug side by side. M. Léonard then gave a lively description of the means he had employed todevelop the cerebral system in these animals--how, from having been fondof the chase, and ambitious of possessing the best-trained dogs, he hademployed the usual course of training--how the conviction had beenimpressed on his mind, that by gentle usage, and steady perseverance ininducing the animal to repeat again and again what was required, notonly would the dog be capable of performing that specific act, but thatpart of the brain which was brought into activity by the mental effortwould become more largely developed, and hence a permanent increase ofmental power be obtained. 

This reasoning is in accordance with the known laws of the physiology ofthe nervous system, and is fraught with the most important results. Wemay refer the reader interested in the subject to the masterly littlework of Dr. Verity, "Changes produced in the Nervous System byCivilization. "

After this introduction, M. Léonard spoke to his dogs in French, in hisusual tone, and ordered one of them to walk, the other to lie down, torun, to gallop, halt, crouch, &c. , which they performed as promptly andcorrectly as the most docile children. Then he directed them to gothrough the usual exercises of the 'manége', which they performed aswell as the best-trained ponies at Astley's. 

He next placed six cards of different colours on the floor, and, sittingwith his back to the dogs, directed one to pick up the blue card, andthe other the white, &c. , varying his orders rapidly, and speaking insuch a manner that it was impossible the dogs could have executed hiscommands if they had not had a perfect knowledge of the words. Forinstance, M. Léonard said, "Philax, take the red card and give it toBrac; and, Brac, take the white card and give it to Philax;" the dagsinstantly did this, and exchanged cards with each other. He then said, "Philax, put your card on the green, and Brac, put yours on the blue;"and this was instantly performed. Pieces of bread and meat were placedon the floor, with figured cards, and a variety of directions were givento the dogs, so as to put their intelligence and obedience to a severetest. They brought the meat, bread, or cards, as commanded, but did notattempt to eat or to touch unless ordered. Philax was then ordered tobring a piece of meat and give it to Brac, and then Brac was told togive it back to Philax, who was to return it to its place. Philax wasnext told he might bring a piece of bread and eat it; but, before he hadtime to swallow it, his master forbade him, and directed him to showthat he had not disobeyed, and the dog instantly protruded the crustbetween his lips. 

While many of these feats were being performed, M. Léonard snapped awhip violently, to prove that the animals were so completely underdiscipline, that they would not heed any interruption. 

After many other performances, M. Léonard invited a gentleman to play agame of dominos with one of them. The younger and slighter dog thenseated himself on a chair at the table, and the writer and M. Léonardseated themselves opposite. Six dominos were placed on their edges inthe usual manner before the dog, and a like number before the writer. The dog having a double number, took one up in his mouth, and put it inthe middle of the table; the writer placed a corresponding piece on oneside; the dog immediately played another correctly, and so on until allthe pieces were engaged. Other six dominos were then given to each, andthe writer intentionally placed a wrong number. The dog lookedsurprised, stared very earnestly at the writer, growled, and finallybarked angrily. Finding that no notice was taken of his remonstrances, he pushed away the wrong domino with his nose, and took up a suitableone from his own pieces, and placed it in its stead. The writer thenplayed correctly; the dog followed, and won the game. Not the slightestintimation could have been given by M. Léonard to the dog. This mode ofplay must have been entirely the result of his own observation andjudgment. It should be added that the performances were strictlyprivate. The owner of the dogs was a gentleman of independent fortune, and the instruction of his dogs had been taken up merely as a curiousand amusing investigation. [1]

Another strange attainment of the dog is the learning to speak. TheFrench Academicians mention one of these animals that could call in anintelligible manner for tea, coffee, chocolate, &c. The account is givenby the celebrated Leibnitz, who communicated it to the Royal Academy ofFrance. This dog was of a middling size, and was the property of apeasant in Saxony. 

A little boy, a peasant's son, imagined that he perceived in the dog'svoice an indistinct resemblance to certain words, and therefore took itinto his head to teach him to speak. For this purpose he spared neithertime nor pains with his pupil, who was about three years old when hislearned education commenced, and in process of time he was able toarticulate no fewer than thirty distinct words. He was, however, somewhat of a truant, and did not very willingly exert his talent, andwas rather pressed than otherwise into the service of literature. It wasnecessary that the words should be pronounced to him each time, and thenhe repeated them after his preceptor. Leibnitz attests that he heard theanimal talk in this way, and the French Academicians add, that unlessthey had received the testimony of so celebrated a person they wouldscarcely have dared to report the circumstance. It took place in Misnia, in Saxony. 

THE MORAL QUALITIES OF THE DOG. 

We pass on to another division of our subject, 'the moral qualities ofthe dog', strongly developed and beautifully displayed, and oftenputting the biped to shame. 

It is truly said of the dog that he possesses

 "Many a good And useful quality, and virtue too, Attachment never to be weaned or changed By any change of fortune; proof alike Against unkindness, absence, and neglect; Fidelity, that neither bribe nor threat Can move or warp; and gratitude, for small And trivial favours, lasting as the life, And glistening even in the dying eye. "

It may here be noticed that, among the inferior animals with largenerves and more medullary substance, there are acuter senses; but man, excelling them in the general bulk of his brain, and more particularlyin the cortical portion of it, has far superior powers of mind. Theseare circumstances that deserve the deepest consideration. In their wildstate the brutes have no concern--no idea beyond their food and theirreproduction. In their domesticated state, they are doomed to be theservants of man. Their power of mind is sufficient to qualify them forthis service: but were proportionate intellectual capacity added tothis--were they made conscious of their strength, and of the objectsthat could be effected by it--they would burst their bonds, and manwould in his turn be the victim and the slave. 

There is an important faculty, termed 'attention'. It is that whichdistinguishes the promising pupil from him of whom no good hope could beformed, and the scientific man from the superficial and ignorant one. The power of keeping the mind steadily bent upon one purpose, is thegreat secret of individual and moral improvement. We see the habit ofattention carried in the dog to a very considerable extent. The terriereagerly watching for vermin--the sporting dog standing staunch to hispoint, however he may be annoyed by the blunders of his companion or theunskilfulness of his master--the foxhound, insensible to a thousandscents, and deaf to every other sound, while he anxiously andperseveringly searches out the track of his prey--these are strikingillustrations of the power of attention. 

Then, the impression having been received, and the mind having beenemployed in its examination, it is treasured up in the storehouse of themind for future use. 

This is the faculty of memory; and a most important one it is. Of the'memory' of the 'dog', and the recollection of kindness received, thereare a thousand stories, from the return of Ulysses to the present day, and we have seen enough of that faithful animal to believe most of them. An officer was abroad with his regiment, during the American war. He hada fine Newfoundland dog, his constant companion, whom he left with hisfamily. After the lapse of several years he returned. His dog met him atthe door, leaped upon his neck, licked his face, and died. 

Of the accuracy and retentiveness of memory in the dog, as respects theinstruction he has received from his master, we have abundant proof inthe pointer and the hound, and it may perhaps be with some of them, aswith men, that the lesson must sometimes be repeated, and even impressedon the memory in a way not altogether pleasant. 

[We know an imported Irish setter, formerly in possession of a gentlemanof this city, who on many occasions, while hunting, displayed anextraordinary instinct, even sufficiently remarkable to make us believethat he possessed not only the most acute powers of observation, butthat he also enjoyed the faculty of "inductive reasoning, " independentof any mechanical training, many of his performances being entirelyvoluntary, and the result of causes dependent upon accidentalcircumstances alone: for instance, when lost from observation, he wouldnoiselessly withdraw from his point, hunt up his master, and induce him, by peculiar signs, to follow him to the spot where he had previouslyobserved the birds. 

In his old days, "Smoke" was much opposed to hunting with an indifferentshot, and would leave the field perfectly disgusted, after a successionof bad shooting; seeming to argue that he no longer sought after gamefor amusement, but that he expected his efforts to be repaid by thedeath of the birds. 

This dog was of a morose and dignified disposition, surly withstrangers, and inclined to quarrel with any one who carried a stick orwhip in their hands; never forgetting an injury, and growling wheneverany person who had offended him made their appearance. He was alsoparticularly irritable and tenacious of his rights when hunting, shunning all puppies or heedless dogs, and exhibiting a very irascibledisposition if superseded in a point by another dog; and on one occasionattacked a young pointer in the field, who, in opposition to all hisgrowling and show of irony, would persist in crawling before him, whenon a point. --L]

DOG-CARTS. 

These were, and still are, in the country, connected with many an act ofatrocious cruelty. We do not object to the dog as a beast of draught. Heis so in the northern regions, and he is as happy as any other animal inthose cold and inhospitable countries. He is so in Holland, and he is ascomfortable there as any other beast that wears the collar. He is not soin Newfoundland: there he is shamefully treated. It is to the abuse ofthe thing, the poor and half-starved condition of the animal, thescandalous weight that he is made to draw, and the infamous usage towhich he is exposed, that we object. We would put him precisely on thesame footing with the horse, and then we should be able, perhaps, toafford him, not all the protection we could wish, but nearly as much aswe have obtained for the horse. We would have every cart licensed, notfor the sake of adding to the revenue, but of getting at the owner; andtherefore the taxing need not be any great sum. We would have the cartlicensed for the carrying of goods only; or a separate license taken outif it carried or drew a human being. 

It is here that the cruelty principally exists. Before the dog-cartswere put down in the metropolis, we then saw a man and a woman in one ofthese carts, drawn by a single dog, and going at full trot. Everypassenger execrated them, and the trot was increased to a gallop, inorder more speedily to escape the just reproaches that proceeded fromevery mouth. We would have the name and address of the owner, and thenumber of the cart, painted on some conspicuous part of the vehicle, andin letters and figures as large as on the common carts. Every passengerwho witnessed any flagrant act of cruelty would then be enabled to takethe number of the cart, and summon the owner; and the police should havethe same power of interference which they have with regard to othervehicles. 

After a plan like this had been working a little while, the nuisancewould be materially abated; and, indeed, the consciousness of the easewith which the offender might be summoned, would go far to get rid of it. 

CROPPING. 

This is an infliction of too much torture for the gratification of anonsensical fancy; and, after all, in the opinion of many, and of those, too, who are fondest of dogs, the animal looks far better in his naturalstate than when we have exercised all our cruel art upon him. Besides, the effects of this absurd amputation do not cease with the healing ofthe ear. The intense inflammation that we have set up, materiallyinjures the internal structure of this organ. Deafness is occasionallyproduced by it in some dogs, and constantly in others. The frequentdeafness of the pug is solely attributable to the outrageous as well asabsurd rounding of his ears. The almost invariable deafness of the whitewire-haired terrier is to be traced to this cause. 

[Among the many tastes and fancies that the Americans have inheritedfrom their ancestors, the English, may be enumerated the absurd practiceof fashioning the ears of different breeds of dogs to a certain standardof beauty. Mr. Blain very justly remarks that it must be a false tastewhich has taught us to prefer a curtailed organ to a perfect one, without gaining any convenience by the operation. The dogs upon whichthis species of barbecuing are more particularly practised in thiscountry, are the bull-dogs and terriers. 

We imagine that many of our readers will be surprised when they learnthat this operation, although so simple in itself, and performed byevery reckless stable-boy, is attended with great suffering to thepuppy, and not unfrequently with total deafness. Severe inflammation, extending to the interior of the ear, often follows this operation, moreespecially when awkwardly performed, as is frequently the case, by theaid of the miserable instruments within the reach of our hostlers; tosay nothing of the savage fashion of using the teeth for this purpose, as is often done by ignorant fellows, who even take credit to themselvesfor the clever style in which they perform this outlandish operation. Mr. Blain states, that it is a barbarous custom to twist the ears off, by swinging the dog around; and we are satisfied that every sensibleperson will respond to this humane sentiment. We have never had themisfortune to see this latter method put into practice, and trust thatsuch an operation is unknown among us, although, from the manner inwhich this gentleman condemns it, we are led to suppose that this modeis not uncommon in the old country. 

As custom has sanctioned the cropping of dogs, in spite of all that canbe said upon the subject, it should be done in such a manner as to causethe least possible pain to the animal. The fourth or fifth week is theproper age for this operation; if done sooner, the flap is apt to sproutand become deformed: if later, the cartilage has grown more thick andsensitive. The imaginary beauty of a terrier crop consists in the foxyappearance of the ears, which is easily produced by the clean cut of asharp, strong pair of scissors. The first cut should commence at theposterior base of the ear, near to the head, and be carried to theextremity of the flap, taking off about the eighth of an inch or more inwidth. The second cut should extend from the base of the ear in front, somewhat obliquely, to intersect the other cut within a few lines of thepoint of the flap. These two cuts will shape the ear in such a style asto please the most fastidious eye, and will require no further trimming. The pieces taken from the first ear will answer as guides in cutting theother. The mother should not be allowed to lick the ears of the puppies, as is generally done, under the supposition that she assists in thehealing process, when, in fact, she irritates them, and occasionsincreased inflammation. If the wounds are tardy at healing, or becomemangy, they may be bathed gently with a weak solution of alum. 

We regret to find that Mr. Skinner, so well known to the sporting worldas the able extoller and defender of the rights of our canine friends, should recommend the cropping of terriers. We are convinced that hewould change his feelings upon this subject, if he placed any confidencein the opinions of Blain, Youatt, Scott, or Daniel, all of whom condemnthe practice as barbarous, and as often occasioning great suffering, andeven total deafness, throughout the progeny of successive generations, as witnessed in the white wire-haired terrier and pug above mentioned. 

Wo have had the good fortune to persuade some of our friends to desistfrom thus mutilating their terrier pups, all of whom, consequently, grewup with beautiful full ears and long tails, which were much admired; andto the eyes of many, the dogs seemed more sprightly and knowing withtheir long flaps, than when deprived of those natural appendages. --L. ]

TAILING. 

Then 'the tail' of the dog does not suit the fancy of the owner. It mustbe shortened in some of these animals, and taken off altogether inothers. If the sharp, strong scissors, with a ligature, were used, theoperation, although still indefensible, would not be a very cruel one, for the tail may be removed almost in a moment, and the wound soonheals; but for the beastly gnawing off of the part, and the drawing outof the tendons and nerves--these are the acts of a cannibal; and he whoorders or perpetrates a barbarity so nearly approaching to cannibalism, deserves to be scouted from all society. 

[As a matter of necessity, we cannot sanction the too frequent and cruelpractice of cutting or otherwise barbecuing different portions of thebodies of our domestic animals, and more particularly the often absurdfancy or cropping and sterning dogs. Nevertheless, we must admit thepropriety of, and, in fact, recommend, the taking off a small portion ofthe pointer's tail, not to increase his beauty, but to save him someafter suffering. A long tail is frequently lacerated in close thickets, and thus rendered sore and mangy: this is prevented by the operation, asit becomes better protected by the body, as also more thickly covered bythe feather which generally forms over it. 

When the pups are a month or six weeks old, this operation can beperformed with little pain to the animal, by means of sharp scissors ora knife; but never allow any one to bite the tail off, as is often doneby some dirty and unfeeling stable-men. Although a long tail isinconvenient, a too short one is more unsightly; care should thereforebe taken not to remove too much. The quantity should be regulated by thesize of the breed: for a medium breed, an inch is sufficient to be cutoff at this age. Some sportsmen in England, Mr. Blain also informs us, draw out the lower tendons of the tail, which present themselves afteramputation, with a pair of forceps, with a view of causing the tail tobe carried higher, which adds to the style and appearance of the dog, when in the field. This practice, we agree with Mr. Youatt, iscannibal-like, and very painful; and, to say the least of it, of verydoubtful propriety, as it is but seldom we find a good breed of dogcarrying, while hunting, a slovenly tail. 

If there should be any appearance of hemorrhage after this operation, asmall piece of tape or twine may be tied around the tail, which willimmediately arrest the bleeding. This ligature should not remain onlonger than a few hours, as the parts included in it will be apt toslough and make a mangy ulcer, difficult to heal. --L. ]

DEW-CLAWS

Next comes the depriving the dog of his 'dew-claws'--the supplementarytoes a little above the foot. They are supposed to interfere withhunting by becoming entangled with the grass or underwood. This rarelyhappens. The truth of the matter is, they are simply illustrations ofthe uniformity of structure which prevails in all animals, so far as isconsistent with their destiny. The 'dew-claws' only make up the numberof toes in other animals. If they are attached, as they are in somedogs, simply by a portion of skin, they may be removed without any verygreat pain, yet the man of good feeling would not meddle with them. Hewould not unnecessarily inflict any pain that he can avoid; and here, inseveral of the breeds, the toe is united by an actual joint; and if theyare dissected because they are a little in the way, it is a barbarousoperation, and nothing can justify it. 

[Notwithstanding our author's condemnation of this practice, there aremany sportsmen who think it very necessary to remove this supernumerarytoe, fearing that it may interfere with the dog while hunting, as abovestated. 

Mr. Blain, both a practical sportsman and scientific gentleman, to whoseopinions we must at all times show a due regard, considers the removalof these false appendages very necessary, stating that they often becometroublesome, not only in the field, but that they frequently turn in andwound the flesh with their nails. 

We have never seen any particular inconvenience arising from thepresence of these dew-claws, and are not in the habit of taking themoff; but, as the operation is a trifling one, and attended with littleor no pain, we are disposed to recommend its general adoption, as itimproves the appearance of the legs; and their presence may sometimesprove inconvenient to the animal, as stated by Mr. Blain. These clawsmost commonly have a ligamentous attachment only to the leg, which maybe divided, a few days after birth, by a pair of sharp scissors or aknife; and if a bony union exists, it is generally of such a triflingnature that it can be severed in the same way. --L. ]

The cruelties that are perpetrated on puppies during the course of theireducation or 'breaking-in', are sometimes infamous. Young dogs, likeyoung people, must be to a certain degree coerced; but these animalsreceive from nature so great an aptitude for learning, and practisingthat which we require of them, and their own pleasure is so muchconnected with what they learn, that there is no occasion for one-tenthpart of the correction that is occasionally inflicted; and the frequentconsequence of the cruelty to which they are subjected, is cowardice orferocity during life. 

Not many years ago, as the author was going over one of the commons inthe neighbourhood of the metropolis, now enclosed, he heard the loudsounds of the lash and the screams of a dog. He hurried on, and foundtwo men, one holding a greyhound while another was unmercifully flogginghim. He had inflicted many lashes, and was continuing the correction. The author indignantly interfered, and the dog was liberated, but with agreat deal of abuse from the men; and a gentleman galloping up, and whowas the owner of the dog, and a Middlesex magistrate to boot, seemeddisposed to support his people in no very measured terms On beingaddressed, however, by name, and recognising the speaker, and hisattention being directed to the 'whaled' and even bloody state ofthe dog, he offered the best excuse that he could. 

We met again some months afterwards. "That hiding, " said he, "thatoffended you so much did Carlo good, for he has not been touched since. ""No, " was the reply; "you were a little ashamed of your fellows, andhave altered your system, and find that your dogs do not want thisunmerciful negro-whipping. "

Stories are told of the 'kennel-hare'--a hare kept on purpose, and whichis sometimes shown to the fox or stag-hounds. The moment that any ofthem open, they are tied up to the whipping-post, and flogged, while thekeepers at every stroke call out "Ware hare!" A sheep has also beenshown to them, or still is, after which another unmerciful flogging isadministered, amidst cries of "Ware sheep!" If this is not sufficient, some of the wool is dipped in train oil, and put into the dog's mouth, which is sewed up for many hours in order to cure him of sheep-biting. There was an almost similar punishment for killing poultry; and therewas the 'puzzle' and the 'check-collar', cruelly employed, for killingother dogs. 

There is a great deal of truth, and there may occasionally be someexaggeration, in these accounts; but the sportsman who is indebted forthe pleasures of the field to the intelligence and exertions of hishorses and his dogs, is bound, by every principle that can influence anhonourable mind, to defend them from all wanton and useless cruelty. There is a dog, and a faithful and valuable one, that powerfully demandsthe assistance of the humane--the yard or watch-dog. He is not only forthe most part deprived of his liberty, but too often neglected and madeunnecessarily to suffer. How seldom do we see him in the enjoyment of agood bed of straw, or, rather, how frequently is everything about hiskennel in a most filthy and disgusting state! The following hint notonly relates to him, but to every dog that is tied up out of doors. "Their cribs or their kennels, as they are called, should be constructedso as to turn, in order to prevent their inmates from being exposed tothe cutting blasts of winter. Where they have no other refuge, allanimals seek shelter from the weather by turning their backs to thewind; but, as the dog thus confined cannot do so, his kennel should becapable of turning, or at least should be placed so as not to face theweather more than is necessary. The premises would be in quite as greatsecurity, for the dog depends as much upon his ear and sense of smell asupon his eye, and would equally detect a stranger's presence if he weredeprived of sight. "

In the Zoological Gardens, an old blind dog used to be placed at thedoor of the dissecting-house. Few had any business there, and every oneof them he, after a while, used to recognise and welcome full ton yardsoff, by wagging his tail; at the same distance, he would begin to growlat a stranger unless accompanied by a friend. From the author's longhabit of noticing him, he used to recognise his step before it wouldseem possible for its sound to be heard. He followed him with hissightless eyes in whatever direction he moved, and was not satisfieduntil he had patted and fondled him. 

DOG-PITS. 

Of the demoniacal use of the dog in the 'fighting-pits', and theatrocities that were committed there, I will not now speak. These placeswere frequented by few others than the lowest of the low. Cruelties werethere inflicted that seemed to be a libel on human nature; and such wasthe baneful influence of the scene, that it appeared to be scarcelypossible for any one to enter these pits without experiencing a greateror less degree of moral degradation. 

The public dog-pits have now been put down; but the system ofdog-fighting, with most of its attendant atrocities, still continues. There are many more low public-houses than there used to be pits, thathave roomy places behind, and out of sight, where there are regularmeetings for this purpose. Those among the neighbours who cannot fail ofbeing annoyed and disgusted by the frequent uproar, might give a clue tothese dens of infamy; and the depriving of a few of the landlords oftheir license would go a great way towards the effectual suppression ofthe practice. 

Would it be thought possible that certain of our young aristocracy keepfighting-dogs at the repositories of various dealers in the outskirts ofthe metropolis; and that these animals remain there, as it were, atlivery, the owners coming at their pleasure, and making and devisingwhat matches they think proper?

However disgraceful it may be, it is actually the fact. Here is a fieldfor "the suppression of cruelty!"

DOG-STEALING. 

The practice of stealing dogs is both directly and indirectly connectedwith a great deal of cruelty. There are more than twenty miscreants whoare well known to subsist by picking up dogs in the street. There aregenerally two of them together with aprons rolled round their waists. The dog is caught up at the corner of one of the streets, concealed in amoment in the apron, and the thieves are far away before the ownersuspects the loss. These dogs, that have been used to every kind ofluxury, are crowded into dark and filthy cellars, where they becomeinfected by various diseases. The young ones have distemper, and the oldones mange, and all become filled with vermin. There they remain until asufficient reward is offered for their recovery, or they are sent farinto the country, or shipped for France or some other foreign market. Little or nothing is done by punishing the inferior rogues in thistraffic. The blow must be struck at those of a superior class. I willnot assert that every dog-dealer is in league with, and profits by, thelower thieves; but it is true of a great many of them, and it is theprincipal and most lucrative part of their trade. They are likewiseintimately connected with the dog-fights, and encourage them, for thesake of their trade as dealers. An attempt should be made to bring thematter home to these scoundrels. [2]

[Dog-stealing, we are more particularly informed by Col. Hawker, isreduced to a perfect system in London, and carried on by a set offellows who, by their cunning and peculiar knack, are enabled to avoidall detection in their nefarious traffic, and thus, by extortion ofrewards or sales of stolen dogs, reap a rich harvest for the wholefraternity from the well-stored pockets of the numerous dog-fanciers ofthe English capital. 

The villains engaged in this business are known among themselves underthe too often abused sobriquet of "the Fancy, " and assuming the garb ofdifferent mechanics, prowl about the streets, oftentimes with the propertools in their hands, carelessly watching the movements of every dogthat passes by, ready to grab him up the first fitting opportunity. Thedog is then concealed till a suitable reward is offered for him, when, through the intervention of a third person, a trusty agent of thesociety, he is delivered over to his rightful owner, the actual roguenever appearing in the whole transaction. 

If no reward, or an insufficient one, is offered for the recovery of thedog, he is either sent off to the country, or, perhaps, cautiouslyexposed for sale in some distant quarter of the city, or perhaps killedfor his skin alone. 

These gentry, however, prefer returning dogs to their owners for amoderate compensation, as they thus know at what rate the animal isvalued, and cherish the hope of soon being able to steal him again, andthus obtaining another reward. 

There have been instances of a lady paying, in successive rewards, a sumnot less than fifteen guineas for a miserable little lap-dog not worthas many shillings. 

If anything is said about the law, or threats of prosecution held out inthe notice offering a reward for a "lost or stolen dog, " the death ofthe kidnapped animal is inevitable, as the "Fancy" prefer sacrificing anoccasional prize rather than run the risk of detection by someenthusiastic or stubborn dog owner. These fellows, as well as thievesgenerally, are said to have a method of quieting the fiercest watch-dogsby throwing them a narcotic ball, which they call "puddening theanimal. "

The following account, extracted from Hawker's work, will give theAmerican reader a 'perfect' insight into the maneuvering of thesesharpers. 

 "In the month of May, 1830, Mr. Lang lost a favourite setter. He posted handbills offering two guineas reward; on hearing of which a man came and told him the reward was not enough, but that if he would make it four guineas he could find his dog, and the amount must be deposited in the hands of a landlord who would procure him a ticket-card. He should then be met to his appointment in some private field, where he would receive his dog on condition that no questions should be asked. Mr. Lang sent his shopman, about half-past ten at night, to White Conduit Fields to meet the parties, who, on receiving the ticket, delivered up the dog. But there was great hesitation in transacting this affair, in consequence of the dog having on a lock to a steel chain collar with Mr. Lang's name, and which, therefore, induced them to proceed with extreme caution, through fear, as they supposed, of detection for felony. The whole amount paid for recovering this setter was £4 17s. , £2 10s. Of which went to the men who had him. The rest was divided among others of the "Fancy". The same person who gave Mr. Lang the information, said that if ever he lost a dog, and applied to him, he could undertake to get him back again within thirty-six hours, provided he would make it worth his while to do so; because all dogs taken by the "Fancy" are brought to their office and regularly booked by the secretary. " ('Hawker on Shooting', p. 592. )--L. ]

[Footnote 1: Plutarch relates that, at the theatre of Marcellus, a dogwas exhibited before the emperor Vespasian, so well instructed as toexercise in every kind of dance. He afterwards feigned illness in a mostsingular manner, so as to strike the spectators with astonishment. Hefirst exhibited various symptoms of pain; he then fell down as if dead, and, afterwards seeming to revive, as if waking from a profound sleep, and then sported about and showed various demonstrations of joy. ]

[Footnote 2: Mr. Bishop, of Bond-street, has assured the public, that heis able to prove that money has recently been extorted from the ownersof dogs by dog-stealers and their confederates, to the amount of morethan a thousand pounds. Surely this calls for the decided interpositionof the legislature. A strange case of atrocity and cruelty was relatedby a gentleman to Mr. Bishop. 

 "A young dog of mine, " says he, "was lost in London, and, being aware that if a noise was made about it, a great price would be asked for it, I gave out that I wanted to purchase one: I was shown my own dog. I seized it; but there were several scoundrels present who professed to belong to it, and threatened to kill the dog if I did not pay for it. I proceeded to describe it as my own, stating that it had 'bad back or double teeth'. Judge of my surprise when, after great difficulty, and the dog crying greatly, its mouth was opened, and all the back teeth had been taken out! I paid two pounds for it before they would let me take it away; but, in consequence of the injuries it had received, it died a few days afterward. "]

 * * * * *

INTRODUCTION TO CANINE PATHOLOGY. 

BY THE EDITOR. 

PREDISPOSITION TO, AND CAUSES OF, DISEASES IN DOGS. --THECLAIMS OF DOGS UPON US. 

 "Unnumbered accidents and various ills Attend thy pack, hang hovering o'er their heads, And point the way that leads to death's dark cave. Short is their span, few at the date arrive Of ancient Argus, in old Homer's song So highly honour'd. "

The dog from early youth, in fact oftentimes at the very period ofbirth, is exposed to many dangerous and troublesome affections, theresult of causes not less complex and multifarious than those that exertan influence over the human organization. Many diseases are theconsequence of their domesticity and the hereditary defects of theirprogenitors, others are dependent upon accidental circumstances, badtreatment, and improper nourishment. Not a few, however, of their mostmortal maladies are the production of contagion, infection, and otherlike causes, all exercising a general tendency to disease difficult todefine and impossible to avoid. 

Although every species of dog is more or less subject to certaindiseases peculiar to their race, those breeds of most value and moreparticularly subservient to the will of man are liable to a greaternumber of ills and casualties than other dogs, for the reason that theyare more frequently exposed to unnatural fatigue, extremes of heat andcold, as also to the various dangers dependent upon the chase of wildanimals. Those diseases resulting from specific causes, either naturalto the race or artificially produced by the animal itself in a state ofmorbid derangement, are most frequent and fatal, as witnessed indistemper, rabies, mange, &c. The intimate connexion existing betweenthe diseases of our canine friends and those of the human race, as alsothe strong similarity in the action of many drugs over the two systems, render the study of one branch almost synonymous with that of the other. 

A little attention, therefore, on the part of the physician will renderhim quite familiar with and competent to relieve the many sufferings ofthese our most faithful and grateful of companions, and at the same timecreate an interest in a study that cannot fail to be productive ofpleasure as well as information. 

This subject, though claiming the attention of many skilful andintelligent persons in England and other countries, has scarce beenthought of among us, and the mere mention of an infirmary or hospitalfor the accommodation of invalid dogs, would involuntarily create asmile of incredulity or contempt upon the face of most of ourcountrymen. Notwithstanding this display of ignorance and positive wantof humane feeling for animal suffering, or a just appreciation of canineworth, we must beg leave to inform these unbelievers that suchinstitutions are quite numerous in many large cities of the old world;and they must also learn that these institutions are conducted bygentlemen of science upon a system not less regular and useful in thisparticular branch, than similar establishments appropriated for therelief of suffering humanity. 

To these hospitals hundreds of valuable sick dogs are annually sent, where they receive every attention, and are often snatched from the veryjaws of death, or prevented, when attacked by rabies or other frightfulaffections, from doing mischief or propagating infection. Medicines themost potent are administered to these interesting patients with theutmost care, either as assuagers of temporary pain, or as remedialagents in the cure of disease. Operations the most complex are performedwith the greatest skill, and every attention is bestowed upon theseinvalids in their different wards, and no trouble is considered toogreat to save the life and secure the services of a valuable andfaithful dog. 

As we have no such establishments in this country, and but a few personsupon whom we can rely for assistance in case of need, it behooves everylover of the dog to make himself familiar with, and the mode of treatingthe most prominent affections of these companions of our sports, and atthe same time acquire a knowledge of the operations of certain medicinesupon the system in a state of health or disease, so that our trustyfollowers may not be left to the tender mercies and physickingpropensities of ignorant stablemen, or the officious intermeddling ofthe "pill-directing horse doctor. "

The necessity of resorting to the assistance of either one or the otherof these worthies is equally unfortunate, as the former will mostgenerally kill the patient by slow degrees in forcibly and largelyadministering the two modern specifics for all canine affections, viz. :"soap pills and flowers of sulphur. " While the latter, more bold but notless ignorant than the former, and his practice is perhaps thepreferable of the two evils, will murder the dog out-right by the freeexhibition of calomel, nux vomica and other deleterious substances, ofthe operation of which he has but little knowledge or conception. Thislatter system, as before said, is the most preferable, as its adoptionsecures for our favourite a speedy termination of his sufferings, andalso relieves our own minds from a state of suspense that illustratestoo forcibly the remark, "Hope deferred maketh the heart sick. "

REMEDIAL MEANS FOR THE CURE OF DISEASES. 

There are but few remedies useful for the cure of diseases in the humanrace that might not he employed by a skilful practitioner in overcomingthe same or different ailments in the dog. There are, however, severaldrugs that cannot be used in the same proportions for the one as for theother, without danger of producing fatal consequences, as instanced incalomel, a medicine so often abused by those who pretend to a knowledgeof its administration in the maladies of dogs. 

This article, though given with impunity to mankind in doses varyingfrom five grains to twenty grains, as also oftentimes administered tohorses in quantities three or four times as great, without anyappreciable effect, will not unfrequently, in minute doses of threegrains to four grains, produce the most violent symptoms in thestrongest dogs. We have seen severe vomiting and purging occasioned bythese small doses, and we once salivated a large mastiff by theadministration of two blue pills. It is thus that both the regularphysician, and even the veterinary surgeon, unacquainted with thisremarkable peculiarity, will make fatal mistakes; and how much oftenermust such blunders take place when we intrust our canine friends to thecare of stable-boys, or a "routine horse-doctor!"

Nux vomica, another medicine much used, and most important in thetreatment of all nervous affections, is particularly noxious to dogseven in small quantities; a dose sufficient for a human subject undersome circumstances, would almost inevitably destroy the animal under thesame or analogous conditions. 

A drachm of the powdered nux vomica is sufficient to destroy the largestand most powerful dog, while a few grains will sometimes produce deathin a few minutes if administered to smaller animals. 

We prescribed forty grains in a roll of butter for a worthless cur ashort time since, which, as expected, produced great anxiety, difficultyof respiration, severe vomiting, tremors, spasmodic twitchings of themuscles, convulsions, and ultimate death in the course of half an hour. This powerful drug acts by causing a spasmodic stricture of the musclesengaged in respiration, as no signs of inflammation are observable inthe stomach and other organs after death. 

Spirits of turpentine, another remedy both simple and innocent in itsoperations upon the human economy, and so frequently prescribed for theexpulsion of worms from the bowels, is a dangerous medicine for a dog, and will often in very small quantities prove fatal. 

Aloes, a medicine more extensively used in canine pathology than anyother in the materia medica, is also very peculiar in its operationsupon these animals, they being able to bear immense doses of it, in factquite sufficient to produce death if given to a hearty man. 

Thus we might continue to enumerate other drugs which we haveascertained, from practical observation as well as the experiments ofother, to exercise a peculiar action on the vital functions of the wholecanine race, quite at variance with that common to both man and theother domestic animals. 

In combating with the diseases of animals, the veterinary surgeon hasmore to contend with than the regular physician, and, in fact, shouldpossess a knowledge and habit of observation even superior to theformer; although the responsibility of his calling, in a moral sense, ismuch inferior to that of the other, as the importance of animalexistence, under no circumstances, can be placed in comparison with thatof human life: still acuteness of observation alone can direct him tothe main cause of suffering in the brute creation, as the animal, thoughgroaning under the most severe pains, cannot by any word of explanationpoint out to us the seat, the probable cause, or peculiarcharacteristics of such pain. We see that our dog is ill, he refuses hisfood, retires gloomily to his house, looks sullen, breathes heavy, is nolonger delighted at our call. We cannot question him as to his feelings, or ask him to point out the particular region of his sufferings; wewatch his motions, study his actions, and rely for our diagnosis upongeneral symptoms deduced from close observation. 

Besides these external ocular evidences of morbid action, we have, as inthe human subject, guides to direct us in forming a just opinion as tothe nature of a dog's indisposition. 

The state of the circulation is the first thing that should command ourparticular attention. 

The pulse of dogs in health varies from one hundred to one hundred andtwenty strokes per minute, according to the size and peculiartemperament of the animal, being more frequent in the small breeds. 

The standard of the setter, pointer, hound, &c. , may be stated at onehundred and five. 

The action of the heart may be felt by placing the hand immediately overthat organ, or applying the fingers to several points in the body andlimbs where the large arteries are somewhat superficial, as on theinside of the fore-knee and the thigh of the hind-leg. 

If the pulse in a state of rest exceeds the average standard infrequency, regularity, and softness, and a general feeling of uneasinessbe present, together with reddened eyes, warm nose, and coated tongue, we know at once that there is an unnatural derangement of the vitalfunctions, and that fever in some form is present. The next question todetermine is, upon what does this fever depend? whether it beidiopathic, arising from morbific causes difficult to define, or whetherit be sympathetic, with some organic affection yet to be discovered. 

The appearance of the tongue in canine diseases will often materiallyassist us in forming a correct diagnosis; this organ in simple feverloses its rose-colour and becomes pale and coated, the gums and fæcesalso participate in this change. 

If, however, the tongue be much furred, with a bright inflammatoryappearance around the edges, with high arterial excitement, and disgustof food, with general anxiety and craving for water in small butfrequent quantities, inflammation of the stomach or bowels may besuspected. If, on the other hand, the tongue remains brown and streaked, with less action of the pulse, variable appetite and diminution of pain, derangement of the liver may be apprehended. 

If, in connection with some or all of the above symptoms, the breathingbe laboured and painful, with a disposition to remain in the erect orsitting position, with great anxiety and general distress, we must lookto the pulmonic viscera as the seat of the disease. 

Thus, by examining each and every individual symptom of disease, theintelligent sportsman will soon be able to arrive at the proximate causeof all this unnatural state of things, and then he will be competent toadminister such remedies as may seem most likely to afford relief. Without these precautions, however, he would often be groping in thedark, and, consequently, not unfrequently, apply those remedies morecalculated to aggravate than cure the malady. 

 * * * * *

CHAPTER VI. 

DESCRIPTION OF THE SKELETON. 

DISEASES OF THE NERVOUS SYSTEM:--FITS; TURNSIDE, OR GIDDINESS, EPILEPSY;CHOREA; RHEUMATISM AND PALSY. 

[As with all the illustrations in this text, the canine skeleton andlegend to the diagram are displayed fully in the html version. ]

DISEASES OF THE NERVOUS SYSTEM. 

FITS

24th Feb. 1814. --A pug was accustomed to howl frequently when his youngmaster played on the flute. If the higher notes were sounded, he wouldleap on his master's lap, look in his face, and howl vehemently. To-daythe young man purposely blew the shrillest sound that he could. The dog, after howling three or four times, began to run round the room, and overthe tables and chairs, barking incessantly. This he continued more thanan hour. 

When I saw him all consciousness of surrounding objects was gone. He wasstill running feebly, but barking might and main. 

I dashed a basin of cold water in his face, and he dropped as if he hadbeen shot. He lay motionless nearly a minute, and then began to struggleand to bark; another cup of water was dashed in his face, and he layquite motionless during two minutes or more. In the mean time I had gota 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 againbegan to yelp, although much softer; but, in about a quarter of an hour, sickness commenced, and he ceased his noise. He vomited three or fourtimes, and lay frightened and quiet. A physic-ball was given him in theevening, 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 notreturn during a couple of hours. On the following day he made his escapeagain, and so the matter went on; but before the expiration of the week, his master might play the flute if he pleased. 

TURNSIDE, OR GIDDINESS. 

This is a singular disease prevalent among cattle, but only occasionallyseen in the dog. He becomes listless, dull, off his food, and scarcelyrecognises any surrounding object. He has no fit, but he wanders aboutthe room fur several hours at a time, generally or almost invariably inthe same direction, and with his head on one side. At first he carefullyavoids the objects that are in his way; but by degrees his mentalfaculties become impaired; his sense of vision is confused or lost, andhe blunders against everything: in fact, if uninterrupted, he wouldcontinue his strange perambulation incessantly, until he was fairly wornout and died in convulsions. 

I used to consider the complaint to be uniformly fatal. I have resortedto every remedial measure that the case could suggest. I have bled, andphysicked and setoned, and blistered, and used the moxa; but all withoutavail, for not in a single case did I save my patient. 

No opportunity of 'post-mortem' examination was lost. In some cases Ihave found spicula projecting from the inner plate of the skull, andpressing upon or even penetrating the dura mater. I know not why the dogshould be more subject to these irregularities of cranial surface thanany of our other patients; but decidedly he is so, and where they havepressed upon the brain, there has been injection of the membranes, andsometimes effusion between them. 

In some cases I have found effusion without this external pressure, and, in some cases, but comparatively few, there has not been any perceptiblelesion. Hydatids have been found in the different passages leading tothe cranium, but they have not penetrated. 

I used to recommend that the dog should be destroyed; but I met with twoor three favourable cases, and, after that, I determined to try everymeasure that could possibly be serviceable. I bled, and physicked, andinserted setons, and tried to prevent the utter exhaustion of theanimal. When he was unable longer to perform his circumvolutions, andfound that he was foiled, he laid himself down, and by degrees resumedhis former habits. He was sadly impatient and noisy; but in a few caseshe was cured. 

[We have seen but two or three cases of this disease in dogs, are led tobelieve that it is quite uncommon with our domestic animals. One case ina valuable setter came on suddenly, and without any apparent cause(except perhaps over-feeding), and terminated fatally in the course of afew days. --L. ]

EPILEPSY

in the dog assumes a most fatal character. It is an accompaniment, or aconsequence, of almost every other disease. When the puppy is undergoingthe process of dentition, the irritation produced by the pressure of thetooth, as it penetrates the gum, leads on to epilepsy. When he is goingthrough the stages of distemper, with a very little bad treatment, or inspite of the best, fits occur. The degree of intestinal irritation whichis caused by worms, is marked by an attack of epilepsy. If the usualexercise be neglected for a few days, and the dog is taken out, andsuffered to range as he likes, the accumulation of excitability isexpended in a fit. 

The dog is, without doubt, the most intellectual animal. He is thecompanion and the friend of man: he exhibits, and is debased by some ofhis vices; but, to a greater degree than many will allow, he exhibitsall the intelligence and the virtues of the biped. In proportion to hisbulk, the weight of his brain far exceeds that of any otherquadruped--the very smallest animals alone being excepted, in whom theremust be a certain accumulation of medullary matter in order to giveorigin to the nerves of every system, as numerous in the minutest as inhim of greatest bulk. 

As it has been said of the human being that great power and exertion ofthe mental faculties are sometimes connected with a tendency toepilepsy, and, as violent emotions of joy or of grief have been known tobe followed by it, I can readily account for its occurrence in the youngdog, when frightened at the chiding of his master, or by the dread of apunishment which he was conscious that he had deserved. Then, too, I canunderstand that, when breaking loose from long confinement, he ranges inall the exuberance of joy; and especially when he flushes almost hisfirst covey, and the game falls dead before him, his mental powers arequite overcome, and he falls into an epileptic fit. 

The treatment of epilepsy in the dog is simple, yet often misunderstood. It is connected with distemper in its early stage. It is the produce ofinflammation of the mucous passages generally, which an emetic and apurgative will probably, by their direct medicinal effect, relieve, andfree the digestive passages from some source of irritation, and by theirmechanical action unburthen the respiratory ones. 

When it is symptomatic of a weak state of the constitution, or connectedwith the after stages of distemper, the emeto-purgative must besucceeded by an anodyne, or, at least, by that which will strengthen, but not irritate the patient. 

A seton is an admirable auxiliary in epilepsy connected with distemper;it is a counter-irritant and a derivative, and its effects are asalutary discharge, under the influence of which inflammation elsewherewill gradually abate. 

I should, however, be cautious of bleeding in distemper fits. I shouldbe fearful of it even in an early stage, because I well know that theacute form of that general mucous inflammation soon passes over, and issucceeded by a debility, from the depression of which I cannot alwaysrouse my patient. When the fits proceed from dentition, I lance thejaws, and give an emetic, and follow it up with cooling purgativemedicine. When they are caused by irregular and excessive exercise, Iopen the bowels and make my exercise more regular and equable. When theyarise from excitation, I expose my patient more cautiously to theinfluence of those things which make so much impression on his littlebut susceptible mind. 

If the fit has resisted other means, bleeding should be resorted to. Afit in other animals is generally connected with dangerous determinationof blood to the head, and bleeding is imperative. A fit in the dog maybe the consequence of sudden surprise and irritation. If I had the meansI should see whether I could not break the charm; whether I could notget rid of the disturbance, by suddenly affecting the nervous system, and the system generally, in another way. I would seize him by the napeof the neck, and, with all my force, dash a little cold water in hisface. The shock of this has often dispersed the epileptic agency, as itwere by magic. I would give an emeto-purgative; a grain or a grain and ahalf of calomel and the same quantity of tartar emetic: I would sootheand coax the poor animal. Then, --and if I saw it at the beginning, Iwould do it early, --if the fit was more dependent upon, or was beginningto be connected with, determination of blood to the head, and not on anytemporary cause of excitation or irritation, I would bleed freely fromthe jugular. 

The following singular case of epilepsy is narrated by M. W. Leblanc:

A dog of small size, three years old, was very subject to thoseepileptic fits that are so frequent among dogs. After a considerableperiod, the fits would cease, and the animal recover the appearance ofperfect health; but the more he advanced in age the more frequent werethe fits, which is contrary to that which usually happens. 

The last fit was a very strong one, and was followed by peculiarsymptoms. The animal became dispirited. The eyes lost their usual livelyappearance, and the eyelids were often closed. The dog was very drowsy, and, during sleep, there were observed, from time to time, spasmodicmovements, principally of the head and chest. 'He always lay down on theleft side'. When he walked, he had a marked propensity to turn to theleft. 

M. Leblanc employed purgatives, a seton to the back part of the neck, and the application of the cautery to the left side of the forehead; butnothing would stop the progress of the disease, and he died in thecourse of two months after the last fit. The nearer he approached hisend the smaller were the circles that he took; and, in the latter partof his existence, he did little more than turn as if he were on a pivot, and, when the time arrived that he could walk no more, he used to layhimself down on the right side. 

On the 'post-mortem' examination, a remarkable thickness of the meningeswas found on almost the whole of the left lobe of the brain. The duramater, the two leaves of the arachnoid membrane, and the pia mater didnot constitute more than one membrane of the usual thickness, andpresented a somewhat yellow colouring. The cerebral substance of theleft lobe appeared to be a little firmer than that of the right lobe. The fissures of the cerebral devolutions were much less deep than thoseof the other side The red vessels which ran in the fissures were ofsmaller size, and in some places could scarcely be discovered. 

[Confinement, over-feeding, blows on the head or spine, drying up of oldulcers, repelling of cutaneous affections, or, in fact, anything that isliable to derange the general health of the animal, will produceepileptic fits. 

We formerly had a beagle hound of very active temperament, which we werenecessarily obliged to keep much confined while in the city; and torestrain her from running too wildly when taken into the streets, wewere in the habit of coupling her with a greyhound of much milderdisposition. Not being willing to submit lamely to this unpleasant checkupon her liberty, she was ever making fruitless attempts to escape, either by thrusting herself forwards, or obstinately pulling backwards. These efforts resulted on several occasions in fits, produced bycongestion of the brain, owing to the pressure of the collar on theneck, thereby interrupting the circulation, and inducing an influx ofblood to those parts. We were ultimately obliged to abandon this methodof restraint, which nearly proved fatal to our much-admired beagle: shebeing suddenly seized with one of these fits on a hot summer's day inone of our principal thoroughfares, the crowd of ignorant bystandersconcluded it to be a case of rabies, and nothing but my taking her up inmy arms, and carrying her from the scene of action, saved her fromfalling a victim to their ignorance. 

If the disease appears dependent upon plethora the result of confinementand gross living, the animal must be reduced by bleeding and purging, low diet, and exercise. If, however, the malady proceeds from weakness, as is sometimes the case in bitches while suckling a large litter, itwill be necessary to relieve her of some of the pups, and supply herwith the most nutritious diet, as also administer tonic balls; thefollowing will answer. 

[Symbol: Rx]: Extract of Gentian, Quassia, ââ (each) grs. V, made intotwo pills, and one or two given morning and evening;

or, [Symbol: Rx]: Powdered Columbo. Carbonate of Iron, ââ, grs. V, madeinto two pills, and one given morning and evening, or more frequently ifdesirable. 

A seton placed in the poll will often prevent these attacks, particularly when depending upon slight cerebral irritation, accompanying distemper and mange. Blisters and frictions to the spineare also serviceable. --L. ]

CHOREA. 

This is an irregular reception or distribution of nervous power--aconvulsive involuntary twitching of some muscle or set of muscles. It isan occasional consequence of distemper that has been unusually severe orimperfectly treated, and sometimes it is seen even after that diseasehas existed in its mildest form. 

[This nervous affection, more commonly known as St. Vitus' dance, is nota rare disease, and we doubt not that examples of it have been seen bymost of our readers, more particularly in young dogs affected withdistemper. 

This malady is characterized by sudden involuntary twitchings of thedifferent muscles of the body, the disease being sometimes confined toone limb, sometimes to two, and frequently pervades the whole system, giving the dog a distressing and painful appearance. These involuntarymotions, it is very true, are generally restricted during sleep, although in old chronic cases of long standing they often continue infull activity without any remission whatever. The disease is notattended with fever, and all the functions generally remain for aconsiderable time unimpaired. --L. ]

It first appears in one leg or shoulder, and is long, or perhapsentirely, confined to that limb. There is a singular spasmodic jerkingaction of the limb. It looks like a series of pulsations, and averagesfrom forty to sixty in a minute. Oftener, perhaps, than otherwise, bothlegs are similarly affected. When the animal is lying down, the legs areconvulsed in the way that I have described, and when he stands there isa pulsating depressing or sinking of the head and neck. In some cases, the muscles of the neck are the principal seat of the disease, or somemuscle of the face; the temporal muscle beating like an artery; themasseter opening and closing the mouth, the muscles of the eyelid, and, in a few cases, those of the eye itself being affected. These convulsivemovements generally, yet not uniformly, cease during sleep, but thatsleep is often very much disturbed. If the case is neglected, and thedog is in a debilitated state, this spasmodic action steals over thewhole frame, and he lies extended with every limb in constant andspasmodic action. 

In the majority of cases, such an expenditure of nervous and muscularpower slowly destroys the strength of the animal, and he dies a mereskeleton; or the disease assumes the character of epilepsy, or it quietsdown into true palsy. 

In the most favourable cases, no curative means having been used, thedog regains his flesh and general strength; but the chorea continues, the spasmodic action, however, being much lessened. At other times, itseems to have disappeared; but it is ready to return when the animal isexcited or attacked by other disease. In a variety of instances, thereis the irritable temper which accompanies chorea in the human being, andmost certainly when the disease has been extensive and confirmed. 

Chorea, neglected or improperly treated, or too frequently pursuing itsnatural course, degenerates into paralysis agitans. There is a tremulousor violent motion of almost every limb. The spasms are not relaxed, butare even increased during sleep, and when the animal awakes, he riseswith agitation and alarm. There is not a limb under the perfect controlof the will; there is not a moment's respite; the constitution soonsinks, and the animal dies. No person should be induced to undertake thecure of such a case: the owner should be persuaded to permit a speedytermination to a life which no skill can render comfortable. 

Chorea is oftenest observed in young dogs, and especially afterdistemper; and it seems to depend on a certain degree of primary orsympathetic inflammatory affection of the brain. 

Chorea is often very plainly a consequence of debility: either thedistribution of nervous power is irregular, or the muscles have losttheir power of being readily acted upon, or have acquired a state ofmorbid irritability. The latter is the most frequent state. Their actionis irregular and spasmodic, and it resembles the struggles of expiringnature far more than the great and uniform action of health. It is notthe chorea that used to be described, in which there was an irresistibleimpulse to excessive action, and which was best combated by completemuscular exhaustion; but the foundation of this disease is palpabledebility. 

[Rickets, bad feeding, cold and damp housing, worms in the alimentarycanal, mange, and other chronic affections, are all forerunners of thismalady. --L. ]

In the treatment of chorea there must be no bleeding, no excessivepurgation, but aperients or alteratives, merely sufficient to keep thefæces in a pultaceous state, so as to carry off any source of irritationto the intestinal canal, and particularly some species of worms, toofrequent sources of irritation there. To these should be addednutritious food, gentle exercise, tonic medicines, and general comforts. Counter-irritants may be applied--such as blisters over the head, andsetons, extending from poll to poll--the application of turpentine, orthe tincture of cantharides; but all of these will frequently be of noeffect, and occasionally a rapid and fearful increase of irritabilitywill ensue: antispasmodics are in this case of no use, and narcotics arealtogether powerless. As for tonics, iron and gentian have beenserviceable to a certain extent, but they have never cured thecomplaint. The nitrate of silver will be the sheet-anchor of thepractitioner, and if early used will seldom deceive him. It should becombined with ginger, and given morning and night, in doses varying fromone-sixth to one-third of a grain, according to the size of the dog. 

The condition and strength of the dog, and the season of the year, willbe our best guides. If the patient has not lost much flesh, and is notlosing it at the time that we have to do with him, and has few symptomsof general debility, and spring or summer are approaching we may withtolerable confidence predict a cure; but, if he has been rapidly losingground, and is doing so still, and staggers about and falls, there is nomedicine that will restore him. 

5th October, 1840. --A pointer, eighteen months old, had had thedistemper, but not severely, and was apparently recovering when hesuddenly lost all voluntary power over his limbs. He was unable to getup, and his legs were in constant, rapid, and violent motion. Thiscontinued three days, during which he had refused all food, when, thedog being in the country, my advice was asked. I ordered a strong emeticto be given to him, and after that a dose of Epsom salts, the insertionof a seton, and, in addition to this, our usual tonic was to be giventwice every day. His food to consist chiefly of good strong soup, whichwas to be forced upon him in a sufficient quantity. 

In two days he was able to get up and stagger about, although frequentlyfalling. His appetite returned. He continued to improve, and mostrapidly gained strength and especially flesh. A very peculiar, high-lifting, clambering, and uncertain motion of the legs remained, with an apparent defect of sight, for he ran against almost everything. 

In six weeks the seton was removed, and the dog remained in the samestate until the 7th of December. The uncertain clambering motion was nowincreasing, and likewise the defect of sight. He ran against almostevery person and every thing. The cornea was transparent, the iriscontracted, there was no opacity of the lens, or pink tint of theretina, but a peculiar glassy appearance, as unconscious of everythingaround it. An emetic was given, and, after that, an ounce of sulphate ofmagnesia. 

8th. He was dreadfully ill after taking the salts; perhaps they were notgenuine. For two days he panted sadly, refused his food, and vomitedthat which was forced upon him. His muzzle was hot; he could scarcelystand; he lost flesh very rapidly. An emetic was given immediately, anda distemper-ball daily. 

16th. He soon began rapidly to recover, until he was in nearly the samestate as before, except that the sight was apparently more deficient. The sulphate of magnesia was given every fourth day, and another setoninserted. 

21st. He continued the medicine, and evidently improved, the sightreturning, and the spasms being considerably less. The distemper-ballwas continued. 

4th January, 1841. --The spasms were better; but the vision did notimprove. In the afternoon he fell into a momentary fit. He almostimmediately rose again, and proceeded as if nothing had happened. Anounce of Epson salts was given, and then the tonic balls as before. 

22d. The spasms were lessened, the clambering gait nearly ceased, butthe vision was not improved. The seton was removed, and only anadditional dose of salts given. 

27th. The spasms suddenly and very considerably increased. The left sideappeared now to be particularly affected. The left leg before and behindwere most spasmed, the right scarcely at all so. The vision of the lefteye was quite gone. The dog had been taken to Mr. Alexander's, theoculist, who attributed the affection of the eye and the generalspasmodic disease to some pressure on the brain, and recommended thetrial of copious and repeated bleeding. 

28th. The dog was dull; the spasms appeared to have somewhat increasedand decidedly to affect the left side. Fever-balls were ordered to begiven. 

29th. Considerable change took place. At three o'clock this morning Iwas disturbed by a noise in the hospital. The poor fellow was in aviolent fit. Water was dashed in his face, and a strong emetic given;but it was not until seven o'clock that the fit had ceased; he lay untileleven o'clock, when the involuntary spasms were almost suspended. Whenhe was placed on his feet, he immediately fell; he then graduallyrevived and staggered about. His master brought a physician to see him, who adopted Mr. Alexander's idea and urged bleeding. Ten ounces of bloodwere immediately taken; the dog refused to eat. 

1st February. --The strength of the animal was not impaired, but thespasms were more violent, and he lay or wandered about stupid and almostunconscious. I subtracted eight ounces more of blood. 

2d. The spasms were fully as violent, and no amendment in the vision. Eight ounces more of blood were subtracted without benefit. A fever-ballwas ordered to be given. 

3d. No amendment; but the bleeding having been carried to its fullextent, I again resorted to the tonic balls, which were given morningand night. The dog was well fed and the seton replaced. 

5th. A very considerable amendment is evident. 

9th. The spasms rapidly subsided and almost disappeared. Vision was notperfectly restored; but the dog evidently saw with his left eye. He wastaken away, and tonic balls sent with him and ordered to be continued. 

6th March. --The dog had improved in strength and no spasmodic affectionremained; he likewise evidently saw with his left eye. The tonic-ballshad been discontinued for a week, and his master hoped that all wouldturn out well, when suddenly, while at home, he was seized with a fitthat lasted ten minutes. A strong emetic was given, which brought up avast quantity of undigested food. A strong purging-ball was given to himin the evening. 

13th. The dog had lain slightly spasmed for two or three days, when theyall at once ceased, and the animal appeared as well as before. Suddenlyhe was taken with another fit, and again a vast quantity of food wasvomited. These spasms remained two days, but on the 21st the fitreturned with the same discharge of food. Courses of purgatives werethen determined on. A strong dose of sulphate of magnesia was givenevery third day. After four doses had been given, it was impossible toforce any more upon him. The syrup of buckthorn was tried, but thefourth dose of that it was impossible to give. The dog was then sentinto the country; no fit occurred, but there were occasional spasms. 

23d September. --He was brought back to town, and I saw him. During thelast month he had had many fits. His owner at length consented that theactual cautery should be applied to his head. The searing-iron fordoctoring was used, and applied red-hot to the centre of the head. Itwas exceedingly difficult so to confine the dog as to make theapplication effectual, without destroying the skin. 

Under the influence of the sudden violent pain, he wandered about formore than two hours, and then the spasms returned with greater forcethan usual. He refused all food. 

We determined to try the cautery to its full extent. We chained him upin the morning, and penetrated through the skin with the budding-iron. The spasms were dreadfully violent, and he was scarcely able to walk orto stand. This gradually subsided, and then he began to run round andround, and that increased to an extraordinary velocity: he would thenlie for a while with every limb in action. The owner then yielded to allour wishes, and he was destroyed with prussic acid. No morbid appearancepresented itself in the brain; but, on the inner plate of the rightparietal bone, near the sagittal suture, were two projections, one-sixthof an inch in length, and armed with numerous minute spicula. There wasno peculiar inflammation or vascularity of any other part of the brain. 

[We once cured a case quite accidentally, by throwing a pup into a coldstream of water, and making him swim ashore; we do not recommend theplan, although we should be willing to try it again with one of our owndogs. The animal should be forced to swim till nearly exhausted, andwrapped up in blankets on coming out of the water. The intense alarmcreated in the pup, together with the violent struggle and coldness ofthe water, all act as revulsives to the disease, which, if purelynervous, may be overcome by these powerful agents. 

If the dog be weak, and the stomach deranged, the following tonic ballswill answer a good purpose:

[Symbol: Rx]: Carbonate of Iron. 

Ground Ginger, ââ, grs. X, made into two pills, one given morning andevening, or more frequently according to the age or size of theanimal. --L. ]

RHEUMATISM AND PALSY. 

I do not know any animal so subject to 'rheumatism' as the dog, nor anyone in which, if it is early and properly treated, it is so manageable. 

[We agree with our author, that the canine family are exceedingly liableto inflammation of the fibrous and muscular structures of the body, andthere is no disease from which they suffer more, both in their youth andold age, than rheumatism. No particular species of dogs are more subjectto its attacks than others, all being alike victims to its ravages. Mr. Blaine remarks, that the bowels always sympathize with other parts ofthe body suffering under this disease, and that inflammation will alwaysbe found existing in the abdominal viscera, if rheumatism be present, and the lower bowels will be attended with a painful torpor, which hedesignates as rheumatic colic. We ourselves noticed, that old settersparticularly, when suffering from this disease, are frequently attackedwith an acute diarrhoea, or suffer from obstinate constipation attendedby griping pains, but did not know that this state of things was souniform an accompaniment to the other affection. There are two varietiesof rheumatism, the 'acute' and 'chronic', both of which are attendedwith either general fever or local inflammation. The attacks usuallycome on rather suddenly, the joints swell, the pulse becomes full andtense, the parts tender, and the eyes blood-shot, the stomach deranged, and the bowels costive. Severe lancinating pain runs through thearticulation, and along the course of the larger muscles, the tongue iscoated, the muzzle hot and dry, and the poor animal howls with agony. The breathing becomes laboured, all food is rejected, and if you attemptto move the sufferer he sends forth piteous cries of distress. 'Thecauses' of this serious affection are very numerous; among the mostusual and active agents may be enumerated, exposure to atmosphericalvicissitudes, remaining wet and idle after coming from the water, dampkennels, suppressed perspiration, metastasis of eruptive diseases, luxurious living, laziness and over-feeding. These and many other causesare all busy in the production of this disease. Duck dogs on theChesapeake, we have noticed as often suffering from this affection, owing no doubt to the great exposure they are obliged to endure; but fewof 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 timesshifts about suddenly to other portions of the body. The muscles aretender and the joints stiff, the animal seems lame till he becomeshealed, and limber when all appearance of the disease vanishes. In oldcases the limbs become so much enlarged, and the joints so swollen, thatthe dog is rendered perfectly useless, and consequently increases hissufferings by idleness. 'This form of the disease is known as gout. '

Treatment of 'acute rheumatism'--bleeding largely is very important inthis affection, and if followed up with two or three purges of aloes, gamboge, colocynth and calomel will arrest the progress of this disease. 

Rx. Extract of Colocynth 3 [Symbol: scruple] i. Calomel grs. X. Powdered Gamboge grs. Ii. Socet. Aloes grs. X. 

Made into four pills, two to be given at night, and the other thefollowing morning. If these medicines should not be handy, give a largepurging ball of aloes, to be followed by a full dose of salts. When theinflammatory action is not sufficiently high to demand depletion, warmbathing, friction and keeping the dog wrapped up in blankets before afire will generally afford relief. If the pain appear very severe, itwill be necessary to repeat the baths at short intervals: greatattention must be paid to the state of the bowels: if a diarrhoeasupervenes, it must not he checked too suddenly, by the use ofastringent medicines, but rather corrected by small doses of oil andmagnesia. If constipation attended with colic be the character of theaffection, small quantities of oil and turpentine in connexion with warmenemata will be the proper remedies. If paralysis should occur, it willbe found very difficult to overcome, but must be treated, after thereduction of inflammation, upon principles laid down under the head ofthis latter affection. Blisters to the spine, setons, electricity, acupuncturation, &c. 

'Treatment of chronic rheumatism'--warm baths are useful, and warmhousing absolutely necessary, attention to diet, and an occasional purgeof blue mass and aloes, together with electricity, acupuncture, rubefacient applications to the spine, &c. --L. ]

A warm bath--perchance a bleeding--a dose or two of the castor-oilmixture, and an embrocation composed of spirit of turpentine, hartshorn, camphorated spirit, and laudanum, will usually remove it in two or threedays, unless it is complicated with muscular sprains, or other lesions, such as the 'chest-founder' of kennels. 

This chest-founder is a singular complaint, and often a pest in kennelsthat are built in low situations, and where bad management prevails. Where the huntsman or whippers-in are too often in a hurry to get home, and turn their dogs into the kennel panting and hot; where the beds arenot far enough from the floor, or the building, if it should be in asufficiently elevated situation, has yet a northern aspect and isunsheltered from the blast, chest-founder prevails; and I have knownhalf the pack affected by it after a severe run, the scent breast-high, and the morning unusually cold. It even occasionally passes on intopalsy. 

The veterinary surgeon will be sometimes consulted respecting thisprovoking muscular affection. His advice will comprise--dryness, attention to the bowels, attention to the exercise-ground, and perhaps, occasionally, setons--not where the huntsman generally places them, onthe withers above, but on the brisket below, and defended from the teethof the dog by a roller of a very simple construction, passing round thechest between the fore legs and over the front of the shoulders oneither side. 

The pointer, somewhat too heavy before, and hardly worked, becomes whatis called chest-foundered. From his very make it is evident that, inlong-continued and considerable exertion, the subscapular muscles willbe liable to sprain and inflammation. There will be inflammation of thefasciæ, induration, loss of power, loss of nervous influence and palsy. Cattle, driven far and fast to the market, suffer from the same causes. 

[By palsy, we mean a partial or complete loss of the powers of motion orsensation in some portion of the muscular system: this affection is verycommon to the canine race, and very few of them reach an advanced agewithout having at some time in their life experienced an attack of thismalady. 

The loins and hind legs suffer oftener than other parts, in fact we donot recollect ever meeting with paralysis of the fore limbs alone. Although the limbs become perfectly powerless, and are only draggedafter the animal by the combined efforts of the fore legs and back, itis seldom that they lose their sensibility. --L. ]

Palsy is frequent, as in the dog. However easy it may be to subdue arheumatic affection, in its early stage, by prompt attention, yet if itis neglected, it very soon simulates, or becomes essentially connectedwith, or converted into, palsy. 

No animal presents a more striking illustration of the connexion betweenintestinal irritation and palsy than the dog. He rarely or never hasenteritis, even in its mildest form, without some loss of power over thehinder extremities. This may at first arise from the participation ofthe lumbar muscles with the intestinal irritation; but, if the diseaseof the bowels continues long, it will be evident enough that it is notpain alone that produces the constrained and incomplete action of themuscles of the hind extremities, but that there is an actual loss ofnervous power. A dog is often brought to the veterinary surgeon, with noapparent disease about him except a staggering walk from weakness of thehind limbs. He eats well and is cheerful, and his muzzle is moist andcool; but his belly is tucked up, and there are two longitudinal cords, running parallel to each other, which will scarcely yield to pressure. The surgeon orders the castor-oil mixture twice or thrice daily, untilthe bowels are well acted upon, and, as soon as that is accomplished, the dog is as strong and as well as ever. Perhaps his hind limbs aredragged behind him; a warm bath is ordered, he is dosed well with thecastor-oil mixture, and, if it is a recent case, the animal is well in afew days. In more confirmed palsy, the charge, or plaster on the loins, is added to the action of the aperient on the bowels. The process may besomewhat slow, but it is seldom that the dog does not ultimately andperfectly recover. 

It is easy to explain this connexion, although we should have scarcelysupposed that it would have been so intimate, had not frequentexperience forced it on our observation. The rectum passes through thepelvis. Whatever may be said of that intestine, considering its verticalposition in the human being, it is always charged with fæces in thequadruped. It therefore shares more in the effect, whatever that may be, which is produced by the retention of fæces in the intestinal canal, andit shares also in the inflammatory affection of other parts of thecanal. Almost in contact with this viscus, or at least passing throughthe pelvis, are the crural nerves from the lumbar vertebræ, theobtusator running round the rim of the pelvis, the glutal nerveoccupying its back, and the sciatic hastening to escape from it. It isnot difficult to imagine that these, to a certain degree, willsympathize with the healthy and also the morbid state of the rectum; andthat, when it is inert, or asleep, or diseased, they also may bepowerless too. Here is something like fact to establish a very importanttheory, and which should be deeply considered by the sportsman and thesurgeon. 

[Loss of the contractile power of the sphincters of the bladder andrectum, sometimes attends this disease, and involuntary evacuations areconstantly taking place, or costiveness and retention are theconsequences. --L. ]

Mr. Dupuy has given a valuable account of the knowledge we possess ofthe diseases of the spinal marrow in our domestic quadrupeds. 

He has proved:

1. That in our domestic animals the spinal marrow is scarcely everaffected through the whole of its course. 

2. That the dorsal and lumbar regions are the parts oftenest affected. 

3. That inflammation of the spinal marrow of these regions alwaysproduces palsy, more or less complete, of the abdominal members. 

4. That, in some cases, this inflammation is limited to the inferior orsuperior parts of the spinal marrow, and that there is loss only offeeling or of motion. 

5. That sometimes animals die of palsy without any organic lesion. 

[Blows on the head, producing effusion on the brain, poisoning by lead, inflammation of the spinal marrow, affections of the nerves, caries ofthe spine, costiveness and affections of the bowels, are all productiveof palsy. If the disease proceeds from rheumatism, or other inflammatoryaffections, independent of any organic lesion, the disease, if takenearly, is not difficult to overcome in the young subject. Warm baths, bleeding, purging, and stimulating applications to the parts and alongthe spine, will answer. Castor oil and turpentine is a good purge: wherethe malady depends upon costiveness, purges of aloes should beadministered in connexion with warm enemata, stimulating frictions alongthe spine, and hot baths. Croton oil dropped on the tongue will also beof great benefit: if there should be effusion or compression fromfracture of the bones of the cranium, nothing but trephining will be ofany service, as we can hardly hope for the absorption of the matter, andthe removal of the spicula of bone can alone afford relief to thepatient. Paralysis arising from poisoning should be treated as describedunder the head of mineral poisons. Chronic cases of paralysis arisingfrom want of tone of the nerves and spinal marrow, repeated blistering, introduction of the seton along the spine, electricity, &c. , have allbeen tried with some success. 

Strychnia, from its peculiar effects upon the animal economy, and itsalmost exclusive direction to the nerves of motion, makes it a medicineparticularly applicable to the treatment of this disease. It may begiven in all stages of the malady, but is most serviceable after thereduction of inflammatory action, and when we are convinced that thedisease depends upon want of tone in the motor muscles. 

Great care should be had in its administration, as it is a powerfulpoison in too large doses, to a large dog; commence with a quarter of agrain in pill, three times daily, and gradually increase to a half grainor more if the animal seems to bear it well. But it should bediscontinued immediately on the appearance of any constitutionalsymptoms, such as spasmodic twitchings of the eyelids or muzzle. --L. ]

PALSY--MANGE

11th February, 1835. --A Persian bitch, at the Zoological Gardens, whowas well yesterday, now staggers as she walks, and has nearly lost theuse of her hind legs. Gave a good dose of the castor-oil mixture. 

18th. She is materially worse and drags her hind legs after her. I wouldfain put on a charge, but the keeper does not like that her beautifulcoat should be spoiled, and wishes to try what gentle exercise will do. She certainly, after she has been coaxed a great deal, will get on herlegs and stagger on fifty yards or more. Gave the castor-oil mixturedaily. 

19th. She is a little stronger, and walks a little better. Continue themixture. Embrocate well with the rheumatic mixture--sp. Tereb. , sp. Camph. , liq. Ammon. , et tinct. Opii--and give gentle exercise. 

2d March. --She does improve, although slowly; the charge is thereforepostponed. Continue treatment. 

30th. She is considerably better. Continue the mixture, and use theembrocation every second day. 

10th April--She has mange in the bend of her arm, and on her chest. Usethe sulphur ointment and alterative balls, and omit the embrocation andmixture. In less than a week she nearly recovered from her lameness, andran about almost as well as ever. 

30th. She runs about very fairly, but the mange has assumed thatcharacter of scurvy which I do not know how to grapple with. Continuethe alterative balls, and the ointment. 

18th May. --The mange has disappeared, but the palsy is returning; shestaggers slightly, and droops behind. Give the castor-oil mixture anduse the embrocation. 

14th June. --Mange quite gone, but palsy continues to a very considerabledegree. I want to use the plaster; but the keeper pleads for a littledelay. Continue the treatment. 

1st July. --I have at length determined to have recourse to the charge. Apiece of thick sheep's leather was fitted lo her loins and haunches. 18th. She appears to be improving, but it is very slowly. 

31st. Very little change. The plaster keeps on well: she has no powerover her hind limbs; but she eats and drinks as well as ever. 

23d August. --No change. Give her half a grain of strychnia, morning andnight. 

26th That singular secretion of milk, to which the bitch is subject nineweeks after oestrum, is now appearing. Her mammæ are enlarged, and Ican squeeze a considerable quantity of milk out of the teats. Give analoetic pill, and continue the strychnia. 

31st. The secretion of milk continues. There is slight enlargement andsome heat of the mammæ; but she feeds as well as ever. Increase thedose of strychnia to three-quarters of a grain. 

On the following day she was found dead. In making the usuallongitudinal incision through the integuments of the abdomen aconsiderable quantity of milky fluid, mingled with blood, followed theknife. There was very slight enlargement of the teats, but intenseinflammation of the whole of the mammary substance. The omentum, andparticularly the portion opposite to the external disease, was alsoinflamed. Besides this there was not a vestige of disease. 

This is an interesting case and deserves record. I fear that justice wasnot done to the animal at the commencement of the paralytic affection. In nineteen cases out of twenty in the dog, the constant but mildstimulus of a charge over the lumbar and sacral regions removes thedeeper-seated inflammation of the spinal cord or its membranes, when thepalsy is confined to the hind extremities, and has not been sufficientlylong established to produce serious change of structure. The chargeshould have been applied at first. The almost total disappearance of thepalsy during the cutaneous disease, which was attended with more thanusual inflammation of the integument, is an instructive illustration ofthe power of counter-irritation, and of what might possibly have beeneffected in the first case; for much time was lost before theapplication of the charge, and when at length it was applied, it and thestrychnia were powerless. 

I consider the following case as exceedingly valuable, at least withreference to the power of strychnia in removing palsy:--

19th August, 1836. --A fine Alpine dog was suddenly attacked with astrange nervous affection. He was continually staggering about andfalling. His head was forcibly bent backward and a little on one side, almost to his shoulder. A pound of blood was abstracted, a setoninserted from ear to ear, and eight grains of calomel administered. 

21st. He has perfectly lost the use of every limb. He has alsoamaurosis. Perfect blindness, which had not appeared the day before. Hehears perfectly, and he eats, and with appetite, when the food is putinto his mouth. Gave him two large spoonfuls of the castor-oil mixturedaily; this consists of three parts of castor-oil, two of syrup ofbuck-thorn, and one of syrup of white poppies. 

23d. A little better; can lift his head and throw it upon his side, andwill still eat when fed. Continue the mixture, and give half a grain ofstrychnia daily. 

24th. Little change. 

27th. No change, except that he is rapidly losing flesh. Continue thetreatment. 

31th. The strychnia increased to three-fourths of a grain morning andnight. The castor-oil mixture continued in its full quantity. He wasfed well, but there was a sunken, vacant expression of countenance. 

2d September. --He can move his head a little, and has some slight motionin his limbs. 

4th. He can almost get up. He recognises me for the first time. Hisappetite, which was never much impaired, has returned: this is to beattributed to strychnia, or the seton, or the daily aperient mixture. They have all, perhaps, been serviceable, but I attribute most to thestrychnia; for I have rarely, indeed, seen any dog recover from such anattack. Continue the treatment. 

6th. Fast recovering. Medicine as before. 

14th. Improving, but not so fast as before. Still continue thetreatment. 

28th. Going on slowly, but satisfactorily. Remove the seton, butcontinue the other treatment. 

13th October. --Quite well. 

 * * * * *

CHAPTER VII. 

RABIES. 

We are now arrived at one of the most important subjects in veterinarypathology. In other cases the comfort and the existence of our quadrupedpatients are alone or chiefly involved, but here the lives of ouremployers, and our own too, are at stake, and may be easily, and toooften are, compromised. Here also, however other portions of the chainmay be overlooked or denied, we have the link which most of all connectsthe veterinary surgeon with the practitioner of human medicine; or, rather, here is the circumscribed but valued spot where the veterinarysurgeon has the vantage-ground. 

In describing the nature, and cause and treatment of rabies, it will bemost natural to take the animal in which it oftenest appears, by whichit is most frequently propagated; the time at which the dangercommences, and the usual period before the death of the patient. 

Some years ago a dog, naturally ferocious, bit a child at Lisson Grove. The child, to all appearance previously well, died on the third day, andan inquest was to be held on the body in the evening. The Coronerordered the dog to be sent to me for examination The animal was, contrary to his usual habit, perfectly tractable. This will appear to beof some importance hereafter. I examined him carefully. No suspiciouscircumstance could be found about him. There was no appearance ofrabies. In the mean time the inquest took place, and the corpse of thechild was carefully examined. One medical gentleman thought that therewere some suspicious appearances about the stomach, and another believedthat there was congestion of the brain. 

The owner of the dog begged that the animal might not be taken from him, but might accompany him home. He took him home and destroyed him that noexperiments might be made. 

With great difficulty we procured the carcass, and from someinflammatory appearances about the tongue and the stomach, and thepresence of a small portion of indigestible matter in the stomach, wewere unanimously of opinion that the dog was rabid. 

I do not mean to say that the child died hydrophobous, or that its deathwas accelerated by the nascent disease existing in the dog. There wasprobably some nervous affection that hastened the death of the infant, and the dog bit the child at the very period when the malady first beganto develop itself. On the following day there were morbid lesions enoughto prove beyond doubt that he was rabid. 

This case is introduced because I used afterwards to accompany everyexamination of supposed or doubtful rabies with greater caution than Iprobably had previously used. 

It is occasionally very difficult to detect the existence of rabies inits nascent state. In the year 1813, a child attempted to rob a dog ofits morning food, and the animal resisting the theft, the child wasslightly scratched by its teeth. No one dreamed of danger. Eight daysafterwards symptoms of rabies appeared in the dog, the malady ran itscourse, and the animal died. A few days afterwards the childsickened--undoubted characteristics of rabies were observed--they rantheir course and the infant was lost. 

There are other cases--fortunately not numerous--in the records of humansurgery, resembling this. A person has been bitten by a dog, he has paidlittle or no attention to it, and no application of the caustic has beenmade. Some weeks, or even months, have passed, he has nearly or quiteforgotten the affair, when he becomes languid and feverish, and full offearful apprehensions, and this appearing perhaps during several days, or more than a week. The empoisonment has then ceased to be a localaffair, the virus has entered into the circulation, and its impressionis made on the constitution generally. Fortunately the disposition tobite rarely develops itself until the full establishment of the disease, otherwise we might sometimes inquire whether it were not our duty toexterminate the whole race of dogs. 

The following case deserves to be recorded. On the 21st of October, 1813, a dog was brought to me for examination. He had vomited aconsiderable quantity of coagulated blood. I happened to be particularlybusy at the moment, and not observing anything peculiar in hiscountenance or manner, I ordered some astringent sedative medicine, andsaid that I would see him again in the afternoon. 

In the course of the afternoon he was again brought. The vomiting hadquite ceased. His mouth seemed to be swollen, and, on examining him, Ifound that some of his incisor teeth, both in the upper and lower jaw, had been torn out. This somewhat alarmed me; and, on inquiring of theservant, I was told that he suspected that they had had thieves aboutthe house on the preceding night, for the dog had torn away the side ofhis kennel in attempting to get at them. I scolded him for not havingtold me of this in the morning; and then, talking of various things, inorder to prolong the time and to be able closely to watch my patient, Isaw, or thought I saw, but in a very slight degree, that the animal wastracing the fancied path of some imaginary object. I was then trulyalarmed, and more especially since I had discovered that in the givingof the physic in the morning the man's hand had been scratched; a youthhad suffered the dog to lick his sore finger, and the animal had alsobeen observed to lick the sore ear of an infant. He was a remarkablyaffectionate dog, and was accustomed to this abominable and inexcusablenonsense. 

I insisted on detaining the dog, and gave the man a letter to thesurgeon, telling him all my fears. He promptly acted on the hint, andbefore evening, the proper means were taken with regard to all three. 

I watched this dog day after day. He would not eat, but he drank a greatdeal more water than I liked. The surgeon was evidently beginning todoubt whether I was not wrong, but he could not dispute the occasionalwandering of the eye, and the frequent spume upon the water. On the 26thof October, however, the sixth day after his arrival, we both of usheard the rabid howl burst from him: he did not, however, die until the30th. I mention this as another instance of the great difficulty thereis to determine the real nature of the case in an early stage of thedisease. 

M. Perquin relates an interesting case. A lady had a greyhound, nineyears old, that was accustomed to lie upon her bed at night, and coverhimself with the bed-clothes. She remarked, one morning, that he hadtorn the covering of his bed, and, although he ate but little, drankoftener, and in larger quantity, than he was accustomed to do. She ledhim to a veterinary surgeon, who assured her that there was nothingserious the matter. On the following day, he bit her fore-finger nearthe nail, as she was giving him something to eat. She led him again tothe veterinary surgeon, who assured her that she needed not to be underthe least alarm, and as for the little wound on her finger, it was of noconsequence. On the following day, the 27th of December, the dog died. He had not ceased to drink most abundantly to the very last. 

On the 4th of February, as the lady was dining with her husband, shefound some difficulty in deglutition. She wished to take some wine, butwas unable to swallow it. 

On the 5th, she consulted a surgeon. He wished her to swallow a littlesoup in his presence. She attempted to do it, but could not accomplishher object after many an effort. She then fell into a state of violentagitation, with constriction of the pharynx, and the discharge of aviscid fluid from the mouth. 

On the 7th, she died, four days after the first attack of the disease, and in a state of excessive loss of flesh. 

There can be no doubt that both the dog and his mistress died rabid, theformer having communicated the disease to the latter; but there is nosatisfactory account of the manner in which the dog became diseased. [1]

Joseph Delmaire, of Looberghe, twenty-nine years old, was, on the 6th ofOctober, 1836, bitten in the hand by a dog that he met with in theforest, and that was evidently rabid. On the following morning, he wentto a medical man of some repute in the country, who washed the wound, and scarified it, and terminated the operation by tracing a bloody crosson the forehead of the patient. 

He returned home, but he was far from being satisfied. The image of thedog that had attacked him was always before him, and his sleep wastroubled with the most frightful dreams. So passed four-and-twenty days, when Delmaire, rising from his bed, felt the most dreadful trepidation;he panted violently; it seemed as if an enormous weight oppressed hischest, and from time to time there was profound sighing and sobbing. Hecomplained every moment that he was smothered. He attempted to drink, but it was with great difficulty that a few drops of barley-water wereswallowed. His mouth was dry, his throat burning, his thirst excessive, and all that he attempted to swallow was rejected with horror. 

At nine o'clock at night he was largely bled. His respiration was morefree, but the dread of every fluid remained. After an hour's repose, hestarted and felt the most fearful pain in every limb--his whole body wasagitated with violent convulsions. The former place of bleeding wasreopened, and a great quantity of blood escaped. The pulse became smalland accelerated. The countenance was dreadful--the eyes were startingfrom their sockets--he continually sprung from his seat and uttered themost fearful howling. A quantity of foam filled his mouth, and compelleda continued expectoration. In his violent fits, the strength of six menwas not sufficient to keep him on his bed. In the midst of a suddenrecess of fury he would disengage himself from all that were attemptingto hold him, and dash himself on the floor; there, freed from allcontrol, he rolled about, beat himself, and tore everything that hecould reach. In the short intervals that separated these crises, heregained possession of his reasoning powers: he begged his old father topardon him, he talked to him and to those around with the most intenseaffection, and it was only when he felt that a new attack was at hand, that he prayed them to leave him. At length his mental excitation beganto subside; his strength was worn out, and he suffered himself to beplaced on his bed. The horrible convulsions from time to time returned, but the dread of liquors had ceased. He demanded something to drink. They gave him a little white wine, but he was unable to swallow it; itwas returned through his nostrils. The poor fellow then endeavoured tosleep; but it was soon perceived that he had ceased to live. 

The early symptoms of rabies in the dog are occasionally very obscure. In the greater number of cases, these are sullenness, fidgetiness, andcontinual shifting of posture. Where I have had opportunity, I havegenerally found these circumstances in regular succession. For severalconsecutive hours perhaps he retreats to his basket or his bed. He showsno disposition to bite, and he answers the call upon him laggardly. Heis curled up and his face is buried between his paws and his breast. Atlength he begins to be fidgety. He searches out new resting-places; buthe very soon changes them for others. He takes again to his own bed; buthe is continually shifting his posture. He begins to gaze strangelyabout him as he lies on his bed. His countenance is clouded andsuspicious. He comes to one and another of the family and he fixes onthem a steadfast gaze as if he would read their very thoughts. "I feelstrangely ill, " he seems to say: "have you anything to do with it? oryou? or you?" Has not a dog mind enough for this? If we have observed arabid dog at the commencement of the disease, we have seen this to thevery life. 

There is a species of dog--the small French poodle--the essence of whosecharacter and constitution is fidgetiness or perpetual motion. 

If this dog has been bitten, and rabies is about to establish itself, heis the most irritative restless being that can be conceived of; startingconvulsively at the slightest sound; disposing of his bed in everydirection, seeking out one retreat after another in order to rest hiswearied frame, but quiet only for a moment in any one, and the motion ofhis limbs frequently stimulating chorea and even epilepsy. 

A peculiar delirium is an early symptom, and one that will neverdeceive. A young man had been bitten by one of his dogs; I was requestedto meet a medical gentleman on the subject: I was a little behind mytime; as I entered the room I found the dog eagerly devouring a pan ofsopped bread. "There is no madness here, " said the gentleman. He hadscarcely spoken, when in a moment the dog quitted the sop, and, with afurious bark sprung against the wall as if he would seize some imaginaryobject that he fancied was there. "Did you see that?" was my reply. "What do you think of it?" "I see nothing in it, " was his retort: "thedog heard some noise on the other side of the wall. " At my seriousurging, however, he consented to excise the part. I procured a poorworthless cur, and got him bitten by this dog, and carried the diseasefrom this dog to the third victim: they all became rabid one after theother, and there my experiment ended. The serious matter underconsideration, perhaps, justified me in going so far as I did. 

This kind of delirium is of frequent occurrence in the human patient. The account given by Dr. Bardsley of one of his patients is veryappropriate to on profit purpose:

 "I observed that he frequently fixed his eyes with horror and affright on some ideal object, and then, with a sudden and violent emotion, buried his head beneath the bed-clothes. The next time I saw him repeat this action, I was induced to inquire into the cause of his terror. He asked whether I had not heard howlings and scratchings. On being answered in the negative, he suddenly threw himself on his knees, extending his arms in a defensive posture, and forcibly threw back his head and body. The muscles of the face were agitated by various spasmodic contractions; his eye-balls glazed, and seemed ready to start from their sockets; and, at the moment, when crying out in an agonizing tone, 'Do you not see that black dog?' his countenance and attitude exhibited the most dreadful picture of complicated horror, distress, and rage that words can describe or imagination paint. "

I have again and again seen the rabid dog start up after a momentaryquietude, with unmingled ferocity depicted on his countenance, andplunge with a savage howl to the end of his chain. At other times hewould stop and watch the nails in the partition of the stable in whichhe was confined, and fancying them to move he would dart at them, andoccasionally sadly bruise and injure himself from being no longer ableto measure the distance of the object. In one of his sudden fits ofviolence a rabid dog strangled the Cardinal Crescence, the Legate of thePope, at the Council of Trent in 1532. 

M. Magendie has often injected into the veins of an hydrophobous dog asmuch as five grains of opium without producing any effect; while asingle grain given to the healthy dog would suffice to send him almostto sleep. 

One of Mr. Babington's patients thought that there was a cloud of fliesabout him. "Why do you not kill those flies!" he would cry; and then hewould strike at them with his hand, and shrink under the bed-clothes, inthe most dreadful fear. 

There is also in the human being a peculiarity in this delirium whichseems to distinguish it from every other kind of mental aberration. 

 "The patient, " in Mr. Lawrence's language, "is pursued by a thousand phantoms that intrude themselves upon his mind; he holds conversation with imaginary persons; he fancies himself surrounded with difficulties, and in the greatest distress. These thoughts seem to pass through his mind with wonderful rapidity, and to keep him in a state of the greatest distress, unless he is quickly spoken to or addressed by his name, and, then, in a moment the charm is broken; every phantom of imagination disappears, and at once he begins to talk as calmly and as connectedly as in perfect health. "

So it is with the dog, whether he is watching the motes that arefloating in the air, or the insects that are annoying him on the walls, or the foes that he fancies are threatening him on every side--one wordrecalls him in a moment. Dispersed by the magic influence of hismaster's voice, every object of terror disappears, and he crawls towardshim with the same peculiar expression of attachment that used tocharacterize him. 

Then comes a moment's pause--a moment of actual vacuity--the eye slowlycloses, the head droops, and he seems as if his fore feet were givingway, and he would fall: but he springs up again, every object of terroronce more surrounds him--he gazes wildly around--he snaps--he barks, andhe rushes to the extent of his chain, prepared to meet his imaginaryfoe. 

The expression of the countenance of the dog undergoes a considerablechange, principally dependent on the previous disposition of the animal. If he was naturally of an affectionate disposition, there will be ananxious, inquiring countenance, eloquent, beyond the power of resistingits influence. It is made up of strange suppositions as to the nature ofthe depression of mind under which he labours, mingled with some passingdoubts, and they are but passing, as to the concern which the master hasin the affair; but, most of all, there is an affectionate and confidingappeal for relief. At the same time we observe some strange fancy, evidently passing through his mind, unalloyed, however, by the slightestportion of ferocity. 

In the countenance of the naturally savage brute, or him that has beentrained to be savage, there is indeed a fearful change; sometimes theconjunctiva is highly injected; at other times it is scarcely affected, hut the eyes have an unusually bright and dazzling appearance. They arelike two balls of fire, and there is a peculiar transparency of thehyaloid membrane, or injection of that of the retina. 

A very early symptom of rabies in the dog, is an extreme degree ofrestlessness. Frequently, he is almost invariably wandering about, shifting from corner to corner, or continually rising up and lying down, changing his posture in every possible way, disposing of his bed withhis paws, shaking it with his mouth, bringing it to a heap, on which hecarefully lays his chest, or rather the pit of his stomach, and thenrising up and bundling every portion of it out of the kennel. If he isput into a closed basket, he will not be still for an instant, but turnround and round without ceasing. If he is at liberty, he will seem toimagine that something is lost, and he will eagerly search round theroom, and particularly every corner of it, with strange violence andindecision. 

In a very great portion of cases of hydrophobia in the human being, there is, as a precursory symptom, uneasiness, pain, or itching of thebitten part. A red line may also be traced up the limb, in the directionof the lymphatics. In a few cases the wound opens afresh. 

The poison is now beginning fatally to act on the tissue, on which ithad previously lain harmless. When the conversation has turned on thissubject, long after the bitten part has been excised, pain has dartedalong the limb. I have been bitten much oftener than I liked, by dogsdecidedly rabid, but, proper means being taken, I have escaped; and yetoften, when I have been over-fatigued, or a little out of temper, someof the old sores have itched and throbbed, and actually become red andswollen. 

The dog appears to suffer a great deal of pain in the ear in commoncanker. He will be almost incessantly scratching it, crying piteouslywhile thus employed. The ear is, oftener than any other part, bitten bythe rabid dog, and, when a wound in the ear, inflicted by a rabid dog, begins to become painful, the agony appears to be of the intensest kind. The dog rubs his ear against every projecting body, he scratches itmight and main, and tumbles over and over while he is thus employed. 

The young practitioner should be on his guard there. Is this dreadfulitching a thing of yesterday, or, has the dog been subject to canker, increasing for a considerable period. Canker both internal and externalis a disease of slow growth, and must have been long neglected before itwill torment the patient in the manner that I have described. Thequestion as to the length of time that an animal has thus suffered willusually be a sufficient guide. 

The mode in which he expresses his torture will serve as anotherdirection. He will often scratch violently enough when he has canker, but he will not roll over and over like a football except he is rabid. If there is very considerable inflammation of the lining membrane of theear, and engorgement and ulceration of it, this is the effect of canker;but if there is only a slight redness of the membrane, or no redness atall, and yet the dog is incessantly and violently scratching himself, itis too likely that rabies is at hand. 

In the early stage of rabies, the attachment of the dog towards hisowner seems to be rapidly increased, and the expression of that feeling. He is employed, almost without ceasing, licking the hands, or face, orany part he can get at. Females, and men too, are occasionally apt topermit the dog, when in health, to indulge this filthy and verydangerous habit with regard to them. The virus, generated under theinfluence of rabies, is occasionally deposited on a wounded or abradedsurface, and in process of time produces a similar disease in the personthat has been so inoculated by it. Therefore it is that the surgeon soanxiously inquires of the person that has been bitten, and of all thoseto whom the dog has had access, "Has he been accustomed to lick you?have you any sore places about you that can by possibility have beenlicked by him?" If there are, the person is in fully as much danger asif he had been bitten, and it is quite as necessary to destroy the partwith which the virus may have come in contact. A lady once lost her lifeby suffering her dog to lick a pimple on her chin. 

There is a beautiful species of dog, often the inhabitant of thegentleman's stable--the Dalmatian or coach dog. He has, perhaps, lessaffection for the human species than any other dog, except the greyhoundand the bull-dog; he has less sagacity than most others, and certainlyless courage. He is attached to the stable; he is the friend of thehorse; they live under the same roof; they share the same bed; and, whenthe horse is summoned to his work, the dog accompanies every step. Theyare certainly beautiful dogs, and it is pleasing to see the thousandexpressions of friendship between them and the horse; but, in theircontinual excursions through the streets, they are exposed to somedanger, and particularly to that of being bitten by rabid dogs. It is afearful business when this takes place. The coachman probably did notsee the affray; no suspicion has been excited. The horse rubs his muzzleto the dog, and the dog licks the face of the horse, and in a greatnumber of cases the disease is communicated from the one to the other. The dog in process of time dies, the horse does not long survive, and, frequently too, the coachman shares their fate. I have known at leasttwenty horses destroyed in this way. 

A depraved appetite is a frequent attendant on rabies in the dog. Herefuses his usual food; he frequently turns from it with an evidentexpression of disgust; at other times, he seizes it with greater or lessavidity, and then drops it, sometimes from disgust, at other timesbecause he is unable to complete the mastication of it. This palsy ofthe organs of mastication, and dropping of the food, after it has beenpartly chewed, is a symptom on which implicit confidence may be placed. 

Some dogs vomit once or twice in the early period of the disease: whenthis happens, they never return to the natural food of the dog, but areeager for everything that is filthy and horrible. The natural appetitegenerally fails entirely, and to it succeeds a strangely depraved one. The dog usually occupies himself with gathering every little bit ofthread, and it is curious to observe with what eagerness and method hesets to work, and how completely he effects his object. He then attacksevery kind of dirt and filth, horse-dung, his own dung, and humanexcrement. Some breeds of spaniels are very filthy feeders without itsbeing connected with disease, but the rabid dog eagerly selects theexcrement of the horse, and his own. Some considerable care, however, must be exercised here. At the period of dentition, and likewise at thecommencement of the sexual affection, the stomach of the dog, andparticularly that of the bitch, sympathises with, or shares in, theirritability of the gums, and of the constitution generally, and thereis a considerably perverted appetite. The dog also feels the samepropensity that influences the child, that of taking hard substancesinto the mouth, and seemingly trying to masticate them. Their pressureon the gums facilitates the passage of the new teeth. A young dog will, therefore, be observed gathering up hard substances, and, if he shouldchance to die, a not inconsiderable collection of them is sometimesfound in the stomach. They are, however, of a peculiar character; theyconsist of small pieces of bone, slick, and coal. 

The contents of the stomach of the rabid dog, are often, or generally, of a most filthy description. Some hair or straw is usually found, butthe greater part is composed of horse-dung, or of his own dung, and itmay be received as a certainly, that if he is found deliberatelydevouring it, he is rabid. 

Some very important conclusions may be drawn from the appearance andcharacter of the urine. The dog, and at particular times when he is morethan usually salacious, may, and does diligently search the uriningplaces; he may even, at those periods, be seen to lick the spot whichanother has just wetted; but, if a peculiar eagerness accompanies thisstrange employment, if, in the parlour, which is rarely disgraced bythis evacuation, every corner is perseveringly examined, and licked withunwearied and unceasing industry, that dog cannot be too carefullywatched, there is great danger about him; he may, without any othersymptom, be pronounced to be decidedly rabid. I never knew a singlemistake about this. 

Much has been said of the profuse discharge of saliva from the mouth ofthe rabid dog. It is an undoubted fact that, in this disease, all theglands concerned in the secretion of saliva, become increased in bulkand vascularity. The sublingual glands wear an evident character ofinflammation; but it never equals the increased discharge thataccompanies epilepsy, or nausea. The frothy spume at the corners of themouth, is not for a moment to be compared with that which is evidentenough in both of these affections. It is a symptom of short duration, and seldom lasts longer than twelve hours. The stories that are told ofthe mad dog covered with froth, are altogether fabulous. The dogrecovering from, or attacked by a fit, may be seen in this state; butnot the rabid dog. Fits are often mistaken for rabies, and hence thedelusion. 

The increased secretion of saliva soon passes away. It lessens inquantity; it becomes thicker, viscid, adhesive, and glutinous. It clingsto the corners of the mouth, and probably more annoyingly so to themembrane of the fauces. The human being is sadly distressed by it, heforces it out with the greatest violence, or utters the falsely supposedbark of a dog, in his attempts to force it from his mouth. This symptomoccurs in the human being, when the disease is fully established, or ata late period of it. The dog furiously attempts to detach it with hispaws. 

It is an early symptom in the dog, and it can scarcely be mistaken inhim. When he is fighting with his paws at the corners of his mouth, letno one suppose that a bone is sticking between the poor fellow's teeth;nor should any useless and dangerous effort be made to relieve him. Ifall this uneasiness arose from a bone in the mouth, the mouth wouldcontinue permanently open instead of closing when the animal for amoment discontinues his efforts. If after a while he loses his balanceand tumbles over, there can be no longer any mistake. It is the salivabecoming more and more glutinous, irritating the fauces and threateningsuffocation. 

To this naturally and rapidly succeeds an insatiable thirst. The dogthat still has full power over the muscles of his jaws continues lo lap. He knows not when to cease, while the poor fellow labouring under thedumb madness, presently to be described, and whose jaw and tongue areparalysed, plunges his muzzle into the water-dish to his very eyes, inorder that he may get one drop of water into the back part of his mouthto moisten and to cool his dry and parched fauces. Hence, instead ofthis disease being always characterised by the dread of water in thedog, it is marked by a thirst often perfectly unquenchable. Twenty yearsago, this assertion would have been peremptorily denied. Even at thepresent day we occasionally meet with those who ought to know better, and who will not believe that the dog which fairly, or perhaps eagerly, drinks, can be rabid. 

January 22d, 1815. --A Newfoundland dog belonging to a gentleman inPiccadilly was supposed to have swallowed a penny-piece on the 20th. Onthe evening of that day he was dull, refused his food, and would notfollow his master. 

21st. He became restless and pouting, and continually shifting hisposition. He would not eat nor would he drink water, but followed hismistress into her bed-room, which he had never done before, and eagerlylapped the urine from her chamber-pot. He was afterwards seen lappinghis own urine. His restlessness and panting increased, He would neithereat nor drink, and made two or three attempts to vomit. 

22d. He was brought to me this evening. His eyes were wild, theconjunctiva considerably inflamed, and he panted quickly and violently. There was a considerable flow of saliva from the corners of his mouth. He was extremely restless and did not remain in one position half aminute. There was an occasional convulsive nodding motion of the head. The eyes were wandering, and evidently following some imaginary object;but he was quickly recalled from his delirium by my voice or that of hismaster. In a few moments, however, he was wandering again. He hadpreviously been under my care, and immediately recognised me and offeredme his paw. His bark was changed and had a slight mixture of the howl, and there was a husky choking noise in the throat. 

I immediately declared that he was rabid, and with some reluctance onthe part of his master, he was left with me. 

23d, 8 A. M. The breathing was less quick and laborious. The spasm ofthe head was no longer visible. The flow of saliva had stopped and therewas less delirium. The jaw began to be dependent: the rattling, chokingnoise in his throat louder. He carried straw about in his mouth. Hepicked up some pieces of old leather that lay within his reach andcarefully concealed them under his bed. Two minutes afterwards he wouldtake them out again, and look at them, and once more hide them. Hefrequently voided his urine in small quantities, but no longer lappedit. A little dog was lowered into the den, but he took no notice of it. 

10 P. M. Every symptom of fever returned with increased violence. Hepanted very much, and did not remain in the same posture two seconds. Hewas continually running to the end of his chain and attempting to bite. He was eagerly and wildly watching some imaginary object. His voice washoarser--more of the howl mixing with it. The lips were distorted, andthe tongue very black. He was evidently getting weaker. After two orthree attempts to escape, he would sit down for a second, and then riseand plunge to the end of his chain. He drank frequently, yet but littleat a time, and that without difficulty or spasm. 

12 P. M. The thirst strangely increased. He had drunk or spilled fullthree quarts of water. There was a peculiar eagerness in his manner. Heplunged his nose to the very bottom of his pan, and then snapped at thebubbles which he raised. No spasm followed the drinking. He took two orthree pieces from my hand, but immediately dropped them from want ofpower to hold them. Yet he was able for a moment suddenly to close hisjaws. When not drinking he was barking with a harsh sound, andfrequently started suddenly, watching, and catching at some imaginaryobject. 

24th, A. M. He was more furious, yet weaker. The thirst was insatiable. He was otherwise diligently employed in shattering and tearingeverything within his reach. He died about three o'clock. 

It is impossible to say what was the origin of this disease in him. Itis not connected with any degree or variation of temperature, or anyparticular state of the atmosphere. It is certainly more frequent in thesummer or the beginning of autumn than in the winter or spring, becauseit is a highly nervous and febrile disease, and the degree of fever, andirritability, and ferocity, and consequent mischief are augmented byincrease of temperature. In the great majority of cases, the inoculationcan be distinctly proved. In very few can the possibility be denied. Theinjury is inflicted in an instant. There is no contest, and before theinjured party can prepare to retaliate, the rabid dog is far away. 

It can easily be believed that when a favourite dog has, but for amoment, lagged behind, he may be bitten without the owner's knowledge orsuspicion. A spaniel belonging to a lady became rabid. The dog was hercompanion in her grounds at her country residence, and it was rarely outof her sight except for a few minutes in the morning, when the servanttook it out. She was not conscious of its having been bitten, and theservant stoutly denied it. The animal died. A few weeks afterwards thefootman was taken ill. He was hydrophobous. In one of his intervals ofcomparative quietude he confessed that, one morning, his charge had beenattacked and rolled over by another dog; that there was no appearance ofits having been bitten, but that it had been made sadly dirty, and hehad washed it before he suffered it again to go into the drawing-room. The dog that attacked it must have been rabid, and some of his salivamust have remained about the coat of the spaniel, by which the servantwas fatally inoculated. 

Another case of this fearful disease must not be passed over. A dog thathad been docile and attached to his master and mistress, was missing onemorning, and came home in the evening almost covered with dirt. He slunkto his basket, and would pay no attention to any one. His owners thoughtit rather strange, and I was sent for in the morning. He was lying onthe lap of his mistress, but was frequently shifting his posture, andevery now and then he started, as if he heard some strange sound. Iimmediately told them what was the matter, and besought them to placehim in another and secure room. He had been licking both their hands. Iwas compelled to tell them at once what was the nature of the case, andbesought them to send at once for their surgeon. They were perfectlyangry at my nonsense, as they called it, and I took my leave, but wentimmediately to their medical man, and told him what was the real stateof the case. He called, as it were accidentally, a little whileafterwards, and I was not far behind him. The surgeon did his duty, andthey escaped. 

In May, 1820, I attended on a bitch at Pimlico. She had snapped at theowner, bitten the man-servant and several dogs, was eagerly watchingimaginary objects, and had the peculiar rabid howl. I offered her water. She started back with a strange expression of horror, and fell intoviolent convulsions that lasted about a minute. This was repeated alittle while afterwards, and with the same result. She was destroyed. 

The horrible spasms of the human being at the sight of, or the attemptto swallow, fluids occur sufficiently often to prove the identity of thedisease in the biped and the quadruped; but not in one in fifty cases isthere, in the dog, the slightest reluctance to liquids, or difficulty inswallowing them. 

In almost every case in which the dog utters any sound during thedisease, there is a manifest change of voice. In the dog labouring underferocious madness, it is perfectly characteristic. There is no othersound that it resembles. The animal is generally standing, oroccasionally sitting, when the singular sound is heard. The muzzle isalways elevated. The commencement is that of a perfect bark, endingabruptly and very singularly, in a howl, a fifth, sixth, or eighthhigher than at the commencement. Dogs are often enough heard howling, but in this case it is the perfect bark, and the perfect howl rapidlysucceeding to the bark. 

Every sound uttered by the rabid dog is more or less changed. Thehuntsman, who knows the voice of every dog in his pack, occasionallyhears a strange challenge. He immediately finds out that dog, and putshim, as quickly as possible, under confinement. Two or three days maypass over, and there is not another suspicious circumstance about theanimal; still he keeps him under quarantine, for long experience hastaught him to listen to that warning. At length the disease is manifestin its most fearful form. 

There is another partial change of voice, to which the ear of thepractitioner will, by degrees, become habituated, and which willindicate a change in the state of the animal quite as dangerous as thedismal howl; I mean when there is a hoarse inward bark, with a slightbut characteristic elevation of the tone. In other cases, after two orthree distinct barks, will come the peculiar one mingled with the howl. Both of them will terminate fatally, and in both of them the rabid howlcannot possibly be mistaken. 

There is a singular brightness in the eye of the rabid dog, but it doesnot last more than two or three days. It then becomes dull and wasted; acloudiness steals over the conjunctiva, which changes to a yellow tinge, and then to a dark green, indicative of ulceration deeply seated withinthe eye. In eight and forty hours from the first clouding of the eye, itbecomes one disorganised mass. 

There is in the rabid dog a strange embarrassment of generalsensibility--a seemingly total loss of feeling. 

Absence of pain in the bitten part is an almost invariable accompanimentof rabies. I have known a dog set to work, and gnaw and tear the fleshcompletely away from his legs and feet. At other times the penis isperfectly demolished from the very base. Ellis in his "Shepherd's SureGuide, " asserts, that, however severely a mad dog is beaten, a cry isnever forced from him. I am certain of the truth of this, for I haveagain and again failed in extracting that cry. Ellis tells that at thekennel at Goddesden, some of the grooms heated a poker red hot, andholding it near the mad hound's mouth, he most greedily seized it, andkept it until the mouth was most dreadfully burned. 

In the great majority of cases of furious madness, and in almost everycase of dumb madness, there is evident affection of the lumbar portionof the spinal cord. There is a staggering gait, not indicative ofgeneral weakness, but referable to the hind quarters alone, andindicating an affection of the lumbar motor nerve. In a few cases itapproaches more to a general paralytic affection. 

In the very earliest period of rabies, the person accustomed to dogswill detect the existence of the disease. 

The animal follows the flight, as has been already stated, of variousimaginary objects. I have often watched the changing countenance of therabid dog when he has been lost to every surrounding object. I have seenthe brightening countenance and the wagging tail as some pleasing visionhas passed before him; but, oftener has the countenance indicated themingled dislike and fear with which the intruder was regarded. As soonas the phantom came within the proper distance he darted on it with truerabid violence. 

A spaniel, seemingly at play, snapped, in the morning, at the feet ofseveral persons. In the evening he bit his master, his master's friend, and another dog. The old habits of obedience and affection thenreturned. His master, most strangely, did not suspect the truth, andbrought the animal to me to be examined. The animal was, as I had oftenseen him, perfectly docile and eager to be caressed. At my suggestion, or rather entreaty, he was left with me. On the following morning thedisease was plain enough, and on the following day he died. Apost-mortem examination took place, and proved that he was unequivocallyrabid. 

A lady would nurse her dog, after I had declared it to be rabid, andwhen he was dangerous to every one but herself, and even to her from thesaliva which he plentifully scattered about. At length he darted atevery one that entered the room, until a footman keeping the animal atbay with the poker, the husband of the lady dragged her from the room. The noise that the dog made was then terrific, and he almost gnawed hisway through the door. At midnight his violence nearly ceased, and thedoor was partially opened. He was staggering and falling about, withevery limb violently agitated. At the entreaty of the lady, a servantventured in to make a kind of bed for him. The dog suddenly darted athim, and dropped and died. 

A terrier, ten years old, had been ill, and refused all food for threedays. On the fourth day he bit a cat of which he had been unusuallyfond, and he likewise bit three dogs. I was requested to see him. Ifound him loose in the kitchen, and at first refused to go in, but, after observing him for a minute or two, I thought that I might venture. He had a peculiarly wild and eager look, and turned sharply round at theleast noise. He often watched the flight of some imaginary object, andpursued with the utmost fury every fly that he saw. He searchinglysniffed about the room, and examined my legs with an eagerness that mademe absolutely tremble. His quarrel with the cat had been made up, andwhen he was not otherwise employed he was eagerly licking her and herkittens. In the excess or derangement of his fondness, he fairly rolledthem from one end of the kitchen to another. With difficulty I inducedhis master to permit me to destroy him. 

It is not every dog, that in the most aggravated state of the diseaseshows a disposition to bite. The finest Newfoundland dog that I ever sawbecame rabid. He had been bitten by a cur, and was supposed to have beenthoroughly examined in the country. No wound, however, was found: thecircumstance was almost forgotten, and he came up to the metropolis withhis master. He became dull, disinclined to play, and refused all food. He was continually watching imaginary objects, but he did not snap atthem. There was no howl, nor any disposition to bite. He offered himselfto be caressed, and he was not satisfied except he was shaken by thepaw. On the second day I saw him. He watched every passing object withpeculiar anxiety, and followed with deep attention the motions of ahorse, his old acquaintance; but he made no effort to escape, norevinced any disposition to do mischief. I went to him, and patted andcoaxed him, and he told me as plainly as looks and actions, and asomewhat deepened whine could express it, how much he was gratified. Isaw him on the third day. He was evidently dying. He could not crawleven to the door of his temporary kennel; but he pushed forward his pawa little way, and, as I shook it, I felt the tetanic muscular actionwhich accompanies the departure of life. 

On the other hand there are rabid dogs whose ferocity knows no bounds. If they are threatened with a stick, they fly at, and seize it, andfuriously shake it. They are incessantly employed in darting to the endof their chain, and attempting to crush it with their teeth, and tearingto pieces their kennel, or the wood work that is within their reach. They are regardless of pain. The canine teeth, the incisor teeth aretorn away; yet, unwearied and insensible to suffering, they continuetheir efforts to escape. A dog was chained near a kitchen fire. He wasincessant in his endeavours to escape, and, when he found that he couldnot effect it, he seized, in his impotent rage, the burning coals asthey fell, and crushed them with his teeth. 

If by chance a dog in this state effects his escape, he wanders over thecountry bent on destruction. He attacks both the quadruped and thebiped. He seeks the village street, or the more crowded one of the town, and he suffers no dog to escape him. The horse is his frequent prey, andthe human being is not always safe from his attack. A rabid dog runningdown Park-lane, in 1825, bit no fewer than five horses, and fully asmany dogs. He was seen to steal treacherously upon some of his victims, and inflict the fatal wound. Sometimes he seeks the more distantpasturage. He gets among the sheep, and more than forty have beenfatally inoculated in one night. A rabid dog attacked a herd of cows, and five-and-twenty of them fell victims. In July, 1813, a mad dog brokeinto the menagerie of the Duchess of York, at Oatlands, and although thepalisades that divided the different compartments of the menagerie werefull six feet in height, and difficult, or apparently almost impossibleto climb, he was found asleep in one of them, and it was clearlyascertained that he had bitten at least ten of the dogs. 

At length the rabid dog becomes completely exhausted, and slowly reelsalong the road with his tail depressed, seemingly half unconscious ofsurrounding objects. His open mouth, and protruding and blackenedtongue, and rolling gait sufficiently characterise him. He creeps intosome sheltered place and then he sleeps twelve hours or more. It isdangerous to disturb his slumbers, for his desire to do mischiefimmediately returns, and the slightest touch, or attempt to caress him, is repaid by a fatal wound. This should be a caution never to meddlewith a sleeping dog in a way-side house, and, indeed, never to disturbhim anywhere. 

In an early period of the disease in some dogs, and in others when thestrength of the animal is nearly worn away, a peculiar paralysis of themuscles of the tongue and jaws is seen. The mouth is partially open, andthe tongue protruding. In some cases the dog is able to close his mouthby a sudden and violent effort, and is as ferocious and as dangerous asone the muscles of whose face are unaffected. At other times the palsyis complete, and the animal is unable to close his mouth or retract histongue. These latter cases, however, are rare. 

A dog must not be immediately condemned because he has this open mouthand fixed jaw. Bones constitute a frequent and a considerable portion ofthe food of dogs. In the eagerness with which these bones are crushed, spicula or large pieces of them become wedged between the molar teeth, and form an inseparable obstacle to the closing of the teeth. The tonguepartially protrudes. There is a constant discharge of saliva from themouth, far greater than when the true paralysis exists. The dog iscontinually fighting at the corners of his mouth, and the countenance isexpressive of intense anxiety, although not of the same irritablecharacter as in rabies. 

I was once requested to meet a medical gentleman in consultationrespecting a supposed case of rabies. There was protrusion anddiscoloration of the tongue, and fighting at the corners of the mouth, and intense anxiety of countenance. He had been in this state forfour-and-twenty hours. This was a case in which I should possibly havebeen deceived had it been the first dog that I had seen with dumbmadness. After having tested a little the ferocity or manageableness ofthe animal, I passed my hand along the outside of the jaws, and felt abone wedged between two of the grinders. The forceps soon set all rightwith him. 

It is time to inquire more strictly into the post-mortem appearances ofrabies in the dog. 

In dumb madness the unfailing accompaniment is, to a greater or lessdegree, paralysis of the muscles of the lower jaw, and the tongue isdiscoloured and swollen, and hanging from the mouth; more blood thanusual also is deposited in the anterior and inferior portion of it. Itscolour varies from a dark red to a dingy purple, or almost black. Inferocious madness it is usually torn and bruised, or it is discolouredby the dirt and filth with which it has been brought into contact, and, not unfrequently, its anterior portion is coated with some disgustingmatter. The papillae, or small projections on the back of the tongue, are elongated and widened, and their mucous covering evidently reddened. The orifices of the glands of the tongue are frequently enlarged, particularly as they run their course along the froenum of the tongue. 

The fauces, situated at the posterior part of the mouth, generallyexhibit traces of inflammation. They appear in the majority of cases offerocious madness, and they are never deficient after dumb madness. Theyare usually most intense either towards the palatine arch or the larynx. Sometimes an inflammatory character is diffused through its wholeextent, but occasionally it is more or less intense towards one or bothof the terminations of the fauces, while the intermediate portionretains nearly its healthy hue. 

There is one circumstance of not unfrequent occurrence, which will atonce decide the case--the presence of indigestible matter, probablysmall in quantity, in the back part of the mouth. This speaks volumes asto the depraved appetite of the patient, and the loss of power in themuscles of the pharynx. 

Little will depend on the tonsils of the throat. They occasionallyenlarge to more than double their usual size; but this is more in quietthan in ferocious madness. The insatiable thirst of the rabid dog isperhaps connected with this condition of them. 

The epiglottis should be very carefully observed. It is more or lessinjected in every case of rabies. Numerous vessels increase in size andmultiply round its edge, and there is considerable injection andthickening. 

Inflammation of the edges of the glottis, and particularly of themembrane which covers its margin, is often seen, and accounts for theharsh guttural breathing which frequently accompanies dumb madness. Theinflammatory blush of the larynx, though often existing in a very slightdegree, deserves considerable attention. 

The appearances in the trachea are very uncertain. There is occasionallythe greatest intensity of inflammation through the whole of it; at othertimes there is not the slightest appearance of it. There is the sameuncertainty with regard to the bronchial tubes and the lungs; but thereis no characteristic symptom or lesion in the lungs. 

Great stress has been laid on the appearance of the heart; but, generally speaking, in nine cases out of ten, the heart of the rabid dogwill exhibit no other symptoms of disease than an increased yet variabledeepness of colour in the lining membrane of the ventricles. Nodependence can be placed on any of the appearances of the oesophagus;and, when they are at the worst, the inflammation occupies only aportion of that tube. 

With regard to the interior of the stomach, if the dog has been deadonly a few hours the true inflammatory blush will remain. Iffour-and-twenty hours have elapsed, the bright red colour will havechanged to a darker red, or a violet or a brownish hue. In a few hoursafter this, a process of corrosion will generally commence, and themucous membrane will be softened and rendered thinner, and, to a certainextent, eaten through. The examiner, however, must not attribute that todisease which is the natural process of the cession of life. 

Much attention should be paid to the appearance of the stomach and itscontents. If it contains a strange mingled mass of hair, and hay, andstraw, and horse-dung, and earth, or portions of the bed on which thedog had lain, we should seldom err if we affirmed that he died rabid;for it is only under the influence of the depraved appetite of rabiesthat such substances are devoured. It is not the presence of every kindof extraneous substance that will be satisfactory: pieces of coal, orwood, or even the filthiest matter, will not justify us in pronouncingthe animal to be rabid; it is that peculiarly mingled mass of straw, andhair, and filth of various kinds, that must indicate the existence ofrabies. 

When there are no solid indigesta, but a fluid composed principally ofvitiated bile or extravasated blood, there will be a strong indicationof the presence of rabies. When, also, there are in the duodenum andjejunum small portions of indigesta, the detection of the least quantitywill be decisive. The remainder has been ejected by vomit; and inquiryshould be made of the nature of the matter that has been discharged. 

The inflammation of rabies is of a peculiar character in the stomach. Itis generally confined to the summits of the folds of the stomach, or itis most intense there. On the summits of the rugae there are effusionsof bloody matter, or spots of ecchymosis, presenting an appearancealmost like crushed black currants. There may be only a few of them; butthey are indications of the evil that has been effected. 

From appearances that present themselves in the intestines, the bladder, the blood-vessels, or the brain, no conclusion can be drawn; they aresimply indications of inflammation. 

We now rapidly, and for a little while, retrace our steps. What is thecause of this fatal disease, that has so long occupied our attention? Itis the saliva of a rabid animal received into a wound, or on an abradedsurface. In horses, cattle, sheep, swine, and the human being, it iscaused by inoculation alone; but, according to some persons, it isproduced spontaneously in other animals. 

I will suppose that a wound by a rabid dog is inflicted. The virus isdeposited on or near its surface, and there it remains for a certainindefinite period of time. The wound generally heals up kindly; in fact, it differs in no respect from a similar wound inflicted by the teeth ofan animal in perfect health. Weeks and months, in some cases, pass on, and there is nothing to indicate danger, until a degree of itching inthe cicatrix of the wound is felt. From its long-continued presence as aforeign body, it may have rendered the tissue, or nervous fibreconnected with it, irritable and susceptible of impression, or it mayhave attracted and assimilated to itself certain elements, and rabies isproduced. 

The virus does not appear to have the same effect on every animal. Offour dogs bitten by, or inoculated from, one that is rabid, three, perhaps, would display every symptom of the disease. Of four humanbeings, not more than one would become rabid. John Hunter used to saynot more than one in twenty; but that is probably erroneous. Cattleappear to have a greater chance of escape, and sheep a still greaterchance. 

The time of incubation is different in different animals. With regard tothe human being, there are various strange and contradictory stories. Some have asserted that it has appeared on the very day on which thebite was inflicted, or within two or three days of that time. Dr. Bardsley, on the other hand, relates a case in which twelve yearselapsed between the bite and the disease. If the virus may lurk so longas this in the constitution, it is a most lamentable affair. Accordingto one account, more than thirty years intervened. The usual timeextends from three weeks to six or seven months. 

In the dog I have never seen a case in which plain and palpable rabiesoccurred in less than fourteen days after the bite. The average time Ishould calculate at five or six weeks. In three months I should considerthe animal as tolerably safe. I am, however, relating my own experience, and have known but two instances in which the period much exceeded threemonths. In one of these five months elapsed, and the other did notbecome affected until after the expiration of the seventh month. 

The quality and the quantity of the virus may have something to do withthis, and so may the predisposition in the bitten animal to be affectedby the poison. If it is connected with oestrum, the bitch will probablybecome a disgusting, as well as dangerous animal; if with parturition, there is a strange perversion of maternal affection--she is incessantlyand violently licking her young, continually shifting them from place toplace; and, in less than four-and-twenty hours, they will be destroyedby the reckless manner in which they are treated. In both cases thedevelopment of the disease seems to wait on the completion of her timeof pregnancy. It appears in the space of two months after the bite, ifher parturition is near at hand, or it is delayed for double that time, if the period of labour is so far distant. 

The duration of the disease is different in different animals. In man ithas run its course in twenty-four hours, and rarely exceeds seventy-two. In the horse from three to four days; in the sheep and ox from five toseven; and in the dog from four to six. 

Of the real nature of the rabid virus, we know but little. It has neverbeen analysed, and it would be a difficult process to analyse it. It isnot diffused by the air, nor communicated by the breath, nor even byactual contact, if the skin is sound. It must be received into a wound. It must come in contact with some tissue or nervous fibre, and liedormant there for a considerable, but uncertain period. The absorbentsremove everything around; whatever else is useless, or would heinjurious, is taken away, but this strange substance is unchanged. Itdoes not enter into the circulation, for there it would undergo somemodification and change, or would be rejected. It lies for a timeabsolutely dormant, and far longer than any other known poison; but, atlength, the tissue on which it has lain begins to render it somewhatsensible, and assimilates to itself certain elements. The cicatrixbegins to be painful, and inflammation spreads around. The absorbentsare called into more powerful action; they begin to attack the virusitself, and a portion of it is taken up, and carried into thecirculation, and acquires the property of assimilating other secretionsto its own nature, or it is determined to one of the secretions only; italters the character of that secretion, envenoms it, and gives it thepower of propagating the disease. 

Something like this is the history of many animal poisons. In variolaand the vaccine disease the poison is determined to the skin, inglanders to the Schneiderian membrane, and in farcy to the superficialabsorbents. Each in its turn becomes the depot of the poison. So it iswith the salivary glands of the rabid animal; in them it is formed, orto them it is determined, and from them, and them alone, it iscommunicated to other animals. 

Professor Dick, in his valuable Manual of Veterinary Science, statessome peculiar views, and those highly interesting, respecting thedisease of rabies. He holds it to be essentially an inflammatoryaffection, attacking peculiarly the mucous membrane of the nose, andextending thence through the cribriform plate of the ethmoid bones tothe interior part of the brain, and so giving rise to a derangement ofthe nervous system as a necessary consequence. This train of symptomsconstitutes mainly, if not wholly, the essence of an occasional epidemicnot unlike some forms of influenza or epizootic disease, and the bite ofa rabid animal is not always, to an animal so bitten, the exciting causeof the disease, but merely an accidental concomitant in the prevailingdisorder. Also the disease hydrophobia, produced in man, is not alwaysthe result of any poison introduced into his system, but merely themelancholy, and often fatal result of panic fear, and of the disorderedslate of the imagination. Those who are acquainted with the effects ofsympathy, and imitation, and panic, in the production of nervousdisorders, will readily apprehend the meaning of the Professor. 

Some of these diseases speedily run their course and exhaust themselves. Cowpox and farcy, in many instances, have this character. Perhaps, to acertain degree, this may be affirmed of all of them. I have seen cases, which I could not mistake, in which the symptoms of rabies were oneafter another developed. The dog was plainly and undeniably rabid, and Ihad given him up as lost; but, after a certain period, the symptomsbegan to be less distinct; they gradually disappeared, and the animalreturned to perfect health. This may have formed one ground of belief inthe power of certain medicines, and most assuredly it givesencouragement to perseverance in the use of remedial measures. 

It has then been proved, and I hope demonstratively, that rabies ispropagated by inoculation. It has also been established that althoughevery animal labouring under this disease is capable of communicatingit, yet, with very few exceptions, it can be traced to the bite of thedog. It has still further been shown that the malady, generally appearsat some period between the third and seventh month from the time ofinoculation. At the expiration of the eighth month, the animal may beconsidered to be safe; for there is only one acknowledged case onrecord, in which the disease appeared in the dog after the seventh monthfrom the bite had passed. 

Then it would appear that if a species of quarantine could beestablished, and every dog confined separately for eight months, thedisease would be annihilated in our country, or could only reappear inconsequence of the importation of some infected animal. Such a course ofproceeding, however, could never be enforced either in the sportingworld or among the peasantry. Other measures, however, might be resortedto in order to lessen the devastations of this malady; and that whichfirst presents itself to the mind as a powerful cause of rabies is thenumber of useless and dangerous dogs that are kept in the country forthe most nefarious and, in the neighbourhood of considerable towns, themost brutal purposes; without the slightest hesitation, I will affirmthat rabies is propagated, nineteen times out of twenty, by the cur andthe lurcher in the country, and the fighting-dog in towns. 

A tax should be laid on every useless dog, and doubly or trebly heavierthan on the sporting-dog. No dog except the shepherd's should be exemptfrom this tax, unless, perhaps, it is the truck-dog, and his ownershould be compelled to take out a license; to have his name in largeletters on his cart; and he should be heavily fined if the animal isfound loose in the streets, or if he is used for fighting. 

The disease is rarely propagated by petted and house-dogs They arelittle exposed to the danger of inoculation; yet, we pity, or almostdetest, the folly of those by whom their favourites are indulged, andspoiled even more than their children. 

We will now suppose that a person has had the misfortune to be bitten bya rabid dog: what course is he to pursue? What preventive means are tobe adopted? Some persons, and of no mean standing in the medical world, have recommended a ligature. The reply would be, that this ligature mustbe worn during a very inconvenient and dangerous period of time. Thevirus lies in the wound inert during many successive weeks and months. 

Dr. Haygarth first suggested that a long-continued stream of warm watershould be poured upon the wound from the mouth of a kettle. He says thatthe poison exists in a fluid form, and therefore we should suppose thatwater would be its natural solvent. Dr. Massey adds to this, that if thewound is small, it should be dilated, in order that the stream maydescend on the part on which the poison is deposited. We are far, however, from being certain that this falling of water on the part, maynot by possibility force a portion of the virus farther into thetexture, or cause it to be entangled with other parts of the wound. [2]

There is a similar or stronger objection to the cupping-glass of Dr. Barry. The virus, forced from the texture with which it lies in contactby the rush of blood from the substance beneath, is too likely toinoculate, or become entangled with, other parts of the wound. 

There is great objection to suction of the wound; for, in addition tothis possible entanglement, the lips, or the mouth, may have beenabraded, and thus the danger considerably aggravated. There also remainsthe undecided question as to the absorption of the virus through themedium of a mucous surface. 

Excision of the part is the mode of prevention usually adopted by thehuman surgeon, and to a certain extent it is a judicious practice. Ifthe virus is not received into the circulation, but lies dormant in thewound for a considerable time, the disease cannot supervene if theinoculated part is destroyed. 

This operation, however, demands greater skill and tact than isgenerally supposed. It requires a determination fully to accomplish thedesired object; for every portion of the wound with which the toothcould possibly have come into contact, must be removed. This is oftenexceedingly difficult to accomplish, on account of the situation anddirection of the wound. The knife must not enter the wound, or it willbe likely to be itself empoisoned, and then the mischief and the dangerwill be increased instead of removed. Dr. Massey was convinced of theimpropriety of this when he advised that, "should the knife by chance enter the wound that had been made by the dog's tooth, the operation should be recommenced with a clean knife, otherwise the sound parts will become inoculated. "

If the incision is made freely and properly round the wound, and doesnot penetrate into it, yet the blood will follow the knife, and aportion of it will enter into the wound caused by the dog, and will comein contact with the virus, and will probably be contaminated, and willthen overflow the original wound, and will be received into the newincision, and will carry with it the seeds of disease and death:therefore it is, that scarcely a year passes without some lamentableinstances of the failure of incisions. It has occurred in the practiceof the most eminent surgeons, and seems scarcely or not all to impeachthe skill of the operator. 

Aware of this, there are very few human practitioners who do not use thecaustic after the knife. Every portion of the new wound is submitted toits influence. They do not consider the patient to be safe without thissecond operation. But has the question never occurred to them, that ifthe caustic is necessary to give security to the operation by incision, the knife might have been spared, and the caustic alone used?

The veterinary surgeon, when operating on the horse, or cattle, or thedog, frequently has recourse to the actual cautery. I could, perhaps, excuse this practice, although I would not adopt it, in superficialwounds; but I do not know the instrument that could be safely used indeeper ones. If it were sufficiently small to adapt itself to thetortuous course of little wounds, it would be cooled and inert before itcould have destroyed the lower portions of them. If it were ofsufficient substance long to retain the heat, it would make a large andfearful chasm, and probably interfere with the future usefulness of theanimal. The result of the cases in which the cautery has been usedproves that in too many instances it is an inefficient protection. Therabid dog in Park Lane has already been mentioned. He bit several horsesbefore he could be destroyed. Caustic was applied to one of them, andthe hot iron to the others. The first was saved, almost all the otherswere lost. A similar case occurred last spring; the caustic was anefficacious preventive; the cautery was perfectly useless. What causticthen should be applied? Certainly not that to which the surgeon usuallyhas recourse--a liquid one. Certainly not one that speedily deliquesces;for they are both unmanageable, and, what is a more importantconsideration, they may hold in solution, and not decompose the poison, and thus inoculate the whole of the wound. The application whichpromises to be successful, is that of the 'lunar caustic'. It isperfectly manageable, and, being sharpened to a point, may be appliedwith certainty to every recess and sinuosity of the wound. 

Potash and nitric acid form a caustic which will destroy the substanceswith which they come in contact, but the combination of this caustic andthe animal fibre will be a soft or semi-fluid mass. In this the virus issuspended, and with this it lies or may be precipitated upon the livingfibre beneath. Then there is danger of re-inoculation; and it would seemthat this fatal process is often accomplished. The eschar formed by thelunar caustic is dry, hard, and insoluble. If the whole of the wound hasbeen fairly exposed to its action, an insoluble compound of animal fibreand the metallic salt is produced, in which the virus is wrapped up, andfrom which it cannot be separated. In a short time the dead mattersloughs away, and the virus is thrown off with it. 

Previous to applying the caustic it will sometimes be necessary toenlarge the wound, in order that every part may be fairly got at; andthe eschar having sloughed off, it will always be prudent to apply thecaustic a second time, but more slightly, in order to destroy any partthat may not have received the full influence of the first operation, orthat, by possibility, might have been inoculated during the operation. 

Mr. Smerdon, in the Medical and Physical Journal, March 1820, thusreasons:

 "All the morbid poisons that require to lie dormant a certain time before their effects are manifested, pass into the system through the medium of the absorbents, " (we somewhat differ from Mr. Smerdon here, but his reasoning is equally applicable to the nervous system, ) "and if the absorbents are excited, their action is increased. I am satisfied that even in a venereal sore the application of a caustic, instead of destroying the disease, causes its rapid extension. Then, " asks he, "if the virus on a small venereal sore is rendered more active by the caustic, is it not highly probable that the same law holds good with respect to the poison of rabies?"

The sooner the caustic is applied the better; but I should not hesitateto have recourse to it even after the constitution has become affected. It is related in the Medico-Chirurgical Annals of Altenburg (Sept. 1821), that two men were bitten by a rabid dog. One became hydrophobousand died; the other had evident symptoms of hydrophobia a few daysafterwards. A surgeon excised the bitten part, and the diseasedisappeared. After a period of six days the symptoms returned. The woundwas examined; considerable fungus was found sprouting from its bottom. This was extirpated. The hydrophobia symptoms were again removed, andthe man did well. This is a most instructive case. 

In the Journal Pratique de Médecine Vétérinaire, M. Damalix gives aninteresting account of the effect of a bite of a rabid dog on a horse. On the 8th of July, 1828, a fowl-merchant, proceeding to the market ofColmar, was attacked by a dog, who, after some fruitless efforts to getinto the cart, bit the horse on the left side of the face, and fledprecipitately. A veterinary surgeon was sent for, who applied thecautery to the horse, gave him some populeum ointment, and bled him. Everything appeared to go on well, and on the 16th the wounds werehealed. 

On the 25th a great alteration took place. The horse was careless andslow; he sometimes refused to go at all, and would not attend in theleast to the whip, which had never occurred before. In the evening thewounds opened spontaneously, an ichorous and infectious pus run fromthem; there was salivation and utter loss of appetite: strange fanciesseemed to possess him; he showed a desire to bite his master. Theveterinary surgeon might approach him with safety; but the moment hisowner or the children appeared, he darted at them, and would have tornthem in pieces. The disease now took on the appearance of acuteglanders; livid and fungous wounds broke out; the stable was saturatedwith an infectious smell, the horse refused his food, or was unable toeat. The mayor at last interfered, and the animal was destroyed. In theTreatises on The Horse, Cattle, and Sheep, in former volumes, accountsare fully given of this dreadful malady in these animals. It may not beuninteresting to give a hasty sketch of it in some of the inferiorclasses. 

'Rabies in the Rabbit. '--I very much regret that I never instituted acourse of experiments on the production and treatment of rabies in thisanimal. It would have been attended with little expense or danger, andsome important discoveries might have been made. Mr. Earle, in a case inwhich he was much interested, inoculated two rabbits with the saliva ofa dog that had died rabid. They were punctured at the root of the ears. One of the rabbits speedily became inflamed about the ears, and the earswere paralysed in both rabbits. The head swelled very much, andextensive inflammation took place around the part where the virus wasinserted. One of them died without exhibiting any of the usual symptomsof the disease; the other, after a long convalescence, survived, andeventually recovered the use of his ears. Mr. Earle very properlydoubted whether this was a case of rabies. 

Dr. Capello describes, but in not so satisfactory a manner as could bewished, a case of supposed rabies in one of these animals. A rabbit anda dog lived together in a family. They were strange associates; but suchfriendships are not unfrequent among animals. The dog became rabid, anddied. A man bitten by that dog became hydrophobous, and died. No onedreamed of the rabbit being in danger, and he ran about the house asusual; but, one day, he found his way to the chamber of the mistress ofthe house, with a great deal of viscid saliva running from his mouth, furiously attacked her, and left the marks of his violence on her leg. He then ran into a neighbouring stable, and bit the hind-legs of a horseseveral times. Finally, he retreated to a corner of the stable, and wasthere found dead. Neither the lady nor the horse eventually suffered. 

'Rabies in the Guinea-pig'. --A man suspected of being hydrophobous wastaken to the Middlesex Hospital. He was examined before several of themedical students; one of whom, in order to make more sure of the affair, inoculated a guinea-pig with the saliva taken from the man's mouth. Theguinea-pig had been usually very playful, and fond of being noticed;but, on the eleventh day after this inoculation, he began to be dull andsullen, retiring into his house, and hiding himself as much as he couldin a corner. On the following day he became out of temper, and evenferocious in his way; he bit at everything that was presented to him, gnawed his cage, and made the most determined efforts to escape. Once ortwice his violence induced convulsions of his whole frame; and theymight be produced at pleasure by dashing a little water at him. In thecourse of the night following he died. 

'Rabies in the Cat'. --Fortunately for us, this does not often occur; fora mad cat is a truly ferocious animal. I have seen two cases, one ofthem to my cost; yet, I am unable to give any satisfactory account ofthe progress of the disease. The first stage seems to be one ofsullenness, and which would probably last to death; but from thatsullenness it is dangerous to rouse the animal. It probably would not, except in the paroxysm of rage, attack any one; but during that paroxysmit knows no fear, nor has its ferocity any bounds. 

A cat, that had been the inhabitant of a nursery, and the playmate ofthe children, had all at once become sullen and ill-tempered. It hadtaken refuge in an upper room, and could not be coaxed from the cornerin which it had crouched. It was nearly dark when I went. I saw thehorrible glare of her eyes, but I could not see so much of her as Iwished, and I said that I would call again in the morning. 

I found the patient, on the following day, precisely in the samesituation and the same attitude, crouched up in a corner, and ready tospring. I was very much interested in the case; and as I wanted to studythe countenance of this demon, for she looked like one, I was foolishly, inexcusably imprudent. I went on my hands and knees, and brought my facenearly on a level with hers, and gazed on those glaring eyes, and thathorrible countenance, until I seemed to feel the deathly influence of aspell stealing over me. I was not afraid, but every mental and bodilypower was in a manner suspended. My countenance, perhaps, alarmed her, for she sprang on me, fastened herself on my face, and bit through bothmy lips. She then darted down stairs, and, I believe, was never seenagain. I always have nitrate of silver in my pocket, even now I am neverwithout it; I washed myself, and applied the caustic with some severityto the wound; and my medical adviser and valued friend, Mr. Millington, punished me still more after I got home. My object was attained, although at somewhat too much cost, for the expression of that brute'scountenance will never be forgotten. 

The later symptoms of rabies in this animal, no one, perhaps, has hadthe opportunity of observing: we witness only the sullenness and theferocity. 

'Rabies in the Fowl'. --Dr. Ashburner and Mr. King inoculated a hen withthe saliva from a rabid cow. They made two incisions through theintegument, under the wings, and then well rubbed into these cuts thefoam taken from the cow's mouth. She was after this let loose amongother fowls in the poultry-yard. The incisions soon healed, and theirplaces could with difficulty be discovered. Ten weeks passed over, whenshe was observed to refuse her food, and to run at the other fowls. Shehad a strange wild appearance, and her eyes were blood-shot. Early onthe following morning her legs became contracted, so that she very soonlost the power of standing upright. She remained sitting a long time, with the legs rigid, refusing food and water, and appearing veryirritable when touched. She died in the evening, immediately afterdrinking a large quantity of water which had been offered to her. 

'Rabies in the Badger'. --Hufeland, in his valuable Journal of PracticalMedicine, relates a case of a rabid female badger attacking two boys. She bit them both, but she fastened on the thigh of one of them, and wasdestroyed in the act of sucking his blood. The poor fellow diedhydrophobous, but the other escaped. This fact, certainly, gives us noidea of the general character of the disease in this animal; but itspeaks volumes as to its ferocity. 

'Rabies in the Wolf'. --Rabies is ushered in by nearly the same symptoms, and pursues the same course in the wolf us in the dog, with thisdifference, which would be readily expected, that his ferocity and themischief which he accomplishes are much greater. The dog hunts out hisown species, and his fury is principally directed against them;although, if he meets with a flock of sheep, or a herd of cattle, hereadily attacks them, and, perhaps, bites the greater part of them. Thedog, however, frequently turns out of his way to avoid the human being, and seldom attacks him without provocation. The wolf, on the contrary, although he commits fearful ravages among the sheep and cattle, searchesout the human being as his favorite prey. He conceals himself near theentrance to the village, and steals upon and wounds every passenger thathe can get at. There are several accounts of more than twenty personshaving been bitten by one wolf; and there is a fearful history ofsixteen persons perishing from the bite of one of these animals. This isin perfect agreement with the account which I have given of theconnexion between the previous temper and habits of the rabid dog, andthe mischief that he effects under the influence of this malady. Thewolf, as he wanders in the forest, regards the human being as hispersecutor and foe; and, in the paroxysm of rabid fury, he is most eagerto avenge himself on his natural enemy. Strange stories are told of thearts to which he has recourse in order to accomplish his purpose. In thegreat majority of cases he steals unawares upon his victim, and themischief is effected before the wood-cutter or the villager is consciousof his danger. 

The following observations and experiments respecting rabies, by Dr. Hertwich, Professor at the Veterinary School at Berlin, are well worthyof attention. 

1. Out of fifty dogs that had been inoculated with virus taken from arabid animal of the same species, fourteen only were infected. 

2. In the cases where inoculation had been practised without effect, noreason could be assigned why the disease should not have taken place. This consequently proves that the malady is similar to others of acontagious nature, and that there must exist a predisposition in theindividual to receive the disease before it can occur. In oneexperiment, a mastiff dog, aged four years, was inoculated withoutexhibiting any symptoms of the malady, while seven others, who had beeninoculated at the same time and place, soon became rabid. Several ofthese animals had been inoculated several times before any symptomsshowed themselves, while in others, on the contrary, once wassufficient. 

3. It appears that in a state of doubtful rabies, one or two accidentalor artificial inoculations are not sufficient to create a negative proofof its existence. 

4. This disease has never ben communicated to an individual from oneinfected by means of the perspirable matter; this, therefore, is a proofthat the contagious part of the disease is not of a volatile nature. 

5. It does not only exist in the saliva and the mucus of the mouth, butlikewise in the blood and the parenchyma of the salivary glands; but notin the pulpy substance of the nerves. 

6. The power of communicating infection is found to exist in all stagesof the confirmed disease, even twenty-four hours after the decease ofthe rabid animal. 

7. The morbid virus, when administered internally, appears to beincapable of communicating this disease; inasmuch as of twenty dogs towhom was given a certain quantity, not one exhibited the least symptomof rabies. 

8. The application of the saliva upon recent wounds appears to have beenas often succeeded by confirmed rabies as when the dog had been bittenby a rabid animal. 

9. It cannot now be doubled that the disease is produced by the wounditself, as was supposed by M. Girard of Lyons, not by the fright of theindividual, according to the opinion of others, but only from theabsorption of the morbid virus from its surface. 

10. Several experiments have proved to me the little reliance there isto be placed on the opinions of Baden and Capello, who believe that, inthose dogs who become rabid after the bite of an animal previouslyattacked with this disease, the contagious properties of the saliva isnot continued, but only exists in those primarily bitten. 

11. During the period of incubation of the virus there are no morbid, local, or general alterations of structure or function to be seen in theinfected animal; neither are there any vesicles to be perceived on theinferior surface of the tongue, nor any previous symptoms which arefound in other contagious diseases. 

12. This disease is generally at its height at the end of fifty daysafter either artificial or accidental inoculation; and the author hasnever known it to manifest itself at a later period. 

13. It is quite an erroneous idea to suppose that dogs in a state ofhealth are enabled to distinguish, at first sight, a rabid animal, inasmuch as they never refuse their food when mixed with the secretionsof those infected. [3]

The following singular trial respecting the death of a child byhydrophobia is worth quoting:

'Jones v. Parry. '--The plaintiff is a labourer, who gets only fourteenshillings a week to support himself and his family. The defendant is hisneighbour, and keeps a public-house. This was an action brought by theplaintiff to recover damages against the defendant for the loss of hisson, who was bitten by the defendant's dog, and afterwards becameaffected with rabies, of which disease he died. 

It appeared in the evidence that the defendant's dog had, some time ago, been bitten by another dog; in consequence of which this dog was tied inthe cellar, but the length of the rope which was allowed him enabled himto go to a considerable distance. The plaintiff's child knew the dog, having often played with him when he was at large. Some time ago thechild crossed the street, near to the place where the dog was fastened, who rushed out of the place in which he was confined to where the childstood, sprung upon him, and bit him sadly in the face, and afterwardsviolently shook him. The child being thus wounded, a surgeon was sentfor, who, after having dressed him, and attended him for a certain time, gave directions that he should be taken to the sea-side, and bathed inthe salt water. 

This having been continued for some time, the child was brought home, and, at the expiration of a month from the day on which he was bitten, became evidently and strangely ill. The surgeon proved beyond allshadow of doubt thai the child laboured under rabies; that he had thenever-failing symptoms of that dreadful affliction; and that a littlewhile before he expired, he even barked like a dog. The surgeon's chargeto the father for his attendance was'£1. 6s. 6d. ', which, together withthe charge of the undertaker for the funeral of the child, amounted tobetween six and seven pounds. Application was made to the defendant todefray this expense, which at first he expressed a willingness to complywith, but afterwards refused; upon which this action was brought. 

After some time the defendant offered to pay the plaintiff the sum of'£6. 3s. 6d. ', and the expense of the funeral and the surgeon, providedthe plaintiff would bear the expenses of the lawsuit, which he was notin a condition to do, as probably it would amount to more than thatmoney. On this account, therefore, the action was now brought intocourt. There was no proof that the defendant knew or suspected his dogto be mad, previously to his attacking the boy; but an animal known tohave been bitten by a mad dog, ought either to have been at oncedestroyed, or so secured that it was impossible for him to do mischief. 

Lord Kenyon observed to the jury, that this was one of those causeswhich came home to the feelings of all, yet must not be carried fartherthan justice demanded. A cause like this never, perhaps, before occurredin a court of justice; but there had been many resembling it in point ofprinciple. If a dog, known to be ill-tempered and vicious, did anyperson an injury without provocation, there could be no question thatthe owner of the dog was answerable, in a court of justice, for theinjury inflicted. Here was a worse case. The dog by whom the child wasbitten had been attacked by another that was undeniably rabid. Hismaster was aware of this, and placed him in a state of partialconfinement--a confinement so lax, and so inefficient, that this poorchild had broken through it, and was bitten and died. What other peoplewould have done in such a situation he could not tell; but, if he wereasked what he would do, he answered, he certainly would kill the dog, however much of a favourite he had been, because no atonement was withinthe reach of his fortune to make to the injured party for such adreadful visitation of Providence as this. It was not enough for theowner of such a dog to say, he took precaution to prevent mischief: heought to have made it impossible that mischief could happen; and, therefore, as soon as there was any reasonable suspicion that the dogwas rabid, he ought to have destroyed him. 

But, if the owner wished to save the animal, until he was satisfied ofthe actual state of the case, he ought to have secured him, so thatevery individual might be safe. Whether the defendant thought he haddone all that was necessary, his lordship did not know; but this heknew, that the dog was not perfectly secured, otherwise this misfortunecould not have happened. 

The care which the defendant took in this case was not enough, and, therefore, he had no doubt that this action was maintainable. The jurywould judge what damages they ought to give. He would refer this totheir feelings. They could not avoid commiserating the distress of thefamily of this poor man. He should, however, observe to the jury, thatthey must not give vindictive damages; but still he did not think thatdamages merely to the amount of '£6'. Or '£7'. , which was stated to bethe expense of the funeral, &c. , would at all meet the justice of thecase. He was inclined to advise them to go beyond that, although he didnot plead vindictive damages. There would be costs to be defrayed by theplaintiff, well known in the profession under the head of "extra costs, "even although he had a verdict. If the verdict had been at his disposal, he would have taken care that these costs should have been borne by theparty that had been the cause of the injury. That appeared to him to bethe justice of the case. 

He trusted that none who heard him would doubt his sincerity, when hesaid, he lamented the misfortune which had given birth to this action;and, with that qualification of the case, he must say that he was notsorry that this action had been brought. He thanked the plaintiff forbringing it; for it might be of public benefit. It would teach a lessonthat would not soon be forgotten, "That a person, who knowingly keeps avicious, dangerous animal, should be considered to be answerable for allthe acts of that animal. " There were instances in which very largedamages had been given to repair such injuries. He did not say that thepresent case called for large damages; but, if other cases of the samekind should be brought into court after this had been made public, hehoped the jury would go beyond the ordinary limits, and give verdictswhich might operate 'in terrorem' on the offending parties. 

Verdict for the plaintiff--damages £36. [4]

A child was bitten by a rabid dog at York, and became hydrophobous. Allpossibility of relief having vanished, the parents, desirous of puttingan end to the agony of their child, or fearful of its doing mischief, smothered it between two pillows. They were tried for murder, and foundguilty. They were afterwards pardoned; but the intention of theprosecutor was that of deterring others from a similar practice, in alike unfortunate situation [5]. 

In 1821, a physician, at Poissy, was sentenced to pay 8000 francs (£320)to a poor widow whose husband died of hydrophobia, in consequence of abite from the physician's dog, he knowing that the dog had been bitten, yet not confining him. 

[Our author having written so extensively upon the subject of rabies, itwould seem superfluous in us to attempt to add anything more upon asubject so ably and practically handled by one having so greatopportunities to make personal observations. However, to allay thefeelings of many of our dogkilling citizens, we will not hesitate toassert that we do not place as much credence in the frequency of rabiesas is generally done; but, on the other hand, are strongly led tobelieve that the accounts of this much-dreaded malady are greatlyexaggerated both in this country and in England. 

That there may be a few cases of rabies in our country in the course ofa year, we do not doubt; but, at the same time, we are satisfied thatthe affection in its genuine form is quite rare, and that the great hueand cry made every season about mad dogs, is more the result ofignorance and fright than of reality. 

Our limits in this publication would not allow us sufficient space toenlarge upon the many pathological questions naturally arising from aminute examination of this subject, more particularly as our views aresomewhat at variance with the generally received opinion, and which, ofcourse, we would be forced to express with considerable diffidence, owing to the impossibility of collecting such evidence as might seemnecessary to substantiate any peculiar doctrine. 

That tetanus, hysteria, and other spasmodic affections have often beenmistaken for rabies, there is no doubt, and we can easily imagine themental effect produced upon an individual of a highly nervoustemperament, by the knowledge of his being bitten by an animal known tobe hydrophobic; and we can, without difficulty, reconcile with our bestjudgment the belief 'that the workings of such an individual'simagination, occasioned by the never-ceasing dread of the horrid maladyto which he is now exposed, might be sufficient to produce a train ofsymptoms somewhat resembling the actual state of rabies. '

For the benefit of these nervous unfortunates, we might say to them, that the statistics of this affection show a very considerable ratio infavour of escape from inoculation when bitten, or of entire recoveryeven after the development of the disease, and that there are manyother ills in the catalogue of medicine that they should take equalpains to provide against as lyssa canina. We doubt not that the minds ofmany will be relieved, when informed that John Hunter mentions aninstance, in which, out of twenty persons bitten by a rabid dog, onlyone suffered from the malady; and that of fifty-nine dogs inoculated byProfessor Hertwick at the veterinary school of Berlin, only fourteenwere affected; and of eleven patients entrusted to the care of M. Blaiseof Cluny, seven recovered after exhibiting greater or less degrees ofspasmodic symptoms. 

It may prove interesting to our readers, to insert in these pages anaccount of the first two cases of rabies known in Philadelphia, and asrelated to us by a venerable and much-esteemed citizen, who is wellknown in the scientific world as a gentleman of deep research, and weagree with him in opinion, that this much-dreaded disease is mostfrequently the result of like causes, or rather that like symptoms ofteninduce the belief of the presence of this malady, when, in fact, no suchdisease does exist. 

Towards the close of the last century, there lived a tailor in Frontstreet, near Market, in the midst of the most respectable people of thatperiod; among the number was our esteemed friend Mr. Hembel, as alsoJudge Tilghman. This tailor possessed an ill-tempered little spaniel, who, lounging about the street-door, attacked every one that passed by, snapping and snarling in the most worrisome manner, more particularly atevery little urchin that invaded his "right of pavement, " and notunfrequently biting them or tearing their clothes from their back. Theowner of the dog was appealed to on many occasions by the neighbours, begging that the quarrelsome brute should either be disposed of or keptwithin doors. To all these solicitations and warnings the little tailorpaid no heed, but continued stitching his breeches and cribbing hiscustomers' goods, while the ugly little spaniel, without interruption, amused himself by snapping at and biting the heels of the passers-by. 

The nuisance at last became insufferable, and Judge Tilghman applied toMr. Hembel to assist him in getting rid of this troublesome brute; thelatter gentleman advised the administration of a small quantity ofstrychnia, concealed in a portion of meat, which proposition was agreedupon and immediately carried into execution. A short time after theadministering of this dose the spaniel sickened, and retired from hispost to the kitchen, which was in the basement, and where an Irishdomestic was engaged in washing; the dog appeared uneasy for a time, andsuddenly, being taken with the involuntary muscular convulsions thatso frequently follow the administration of this powerful drug, ranaround the kitchen yelping and howling at a most terrible rate, andultimately, to the no small discomfiture and amazement of the maid, sprang up into the wash-tub, at which unceremonious caper, on the partof the dog, the woman became greatly alarmed and ran out into thestreet, followed by the whole household, crying mad dog, which soonproduced an uproar in the neighbourhood, no one daring to satisfyhimself as to the correctness of the report, and all, perhaps, tooignorant of the subject to discern the real cause of the animal'ssingular behaviour. The tailor, still bearing a strong attachment to hisunfortunate favourite, and being somewhat more daring than hisneighbours, ventured, at length, to peep into the kitchen to see thestate of affairs, and seeing the dog still convulsed and foaming at themouth, was more than ever confirmed in the belief of hydrophobia, andknowing full well the biting propensities of the animal, independent ofrabies, concluded, much to the relief of every one, to shoot him. Thenext step in the programme was the dragging out and consigning of thepatient to a watery grave, which was accomplished by placing, with apair of tongs, a noose over the head of the animal, and thus hauling himout of the basement window amid the cheers of the assembled populace whosoon cast him into the Delaware. 

The second case of rabies as related to us by Mr. Hembel was asfollows:--In 1793 the barbers of the city were in the habit of goingaround to the various boarding-houses for the purpose of shaving thevisitors in their apartments, instead of accommodating them, as at thepresent time, in their own establishments. 

One of these knights of the razor, living also in Front street, whengoing to and from a fashionable boarding-house in the vicinity, was notunfrequently assailed by a small cur who often took him by the heelswhen hurrying along. 

To get rid of this annoying little animal as speedily and secretly aspossible, he had recourse to the powers of strychnia, which produced ina very short time similar effects upon the poor victim, and the resultwas another great hue and cry about mad dogs. 

These authentic and remarkable cases of hydrophobia were heralded in allthe papers of the day, which, from that time forward, were filled withnotes of caution to all dog-owners. 

Of the 'treatment' of rabies we will make but a few remarks, as of theimmense number of specifics proposed for this disease, amounting in allto several hundred, few or none can be relied on to the exclusion of theothers; but those medicines, perhaps, known as opiates oranti-spasmodics, claim a larger share of attention than any others incombating the disease after its development. In looking over the veryoriginal works of Jacques Du Fouilloux, a worthy cynegetical writer ofthe sixteenth century, we find a prescription that was supposed by manyto be an infallible specific for this disease, and as it appears to usquite as certain in its effects on the animal economy as many others ofthe inert substances that have been lauded to the skies both in ourcountry and in other parts of the world as antidotes, we take theliberty of transcribing it, as also of adding a translation of hisquaint French. 

'Autre recepte par mots preservants la rage. '

'Ay appris vne recepte d'vn Gentil-homme, en Bretaigne, lequel faisoitde petits escriteaux, où n'y auoit seulement que deux lignes, lesquelsil mettoit en vne omellette d'oeufs, puis les faisoit aualer aux chiensqui auorient esté mords de chiens enragez, et auoit dedans l'escriteau, 'Y Ran Quiran Cafram Cafratrem, Cafratrosque'. Lesquels mots disoitestre singuliers pour empescher les chiens de la rage, mais quant à moiie n'y adiouste pas foy. 

I have learned a recipe from a nobleman of Brittany, which is composedof a written charm, in which there are only two lines; these he put inan omelet of eggs, he then made the dogs that had been bitten by a rabidanimal swallow them. There was on the paper "'Y Ran Quiran CaframCafratrem, Cafratrosque'". These words were said to be singularlyefficacious in preventing madness in dogs, but for my part I do notcredit it. 

Although our quaint author considered the above charm even toomarvellous for his belief, we give below his own prescription in whichhe placed implicit confidence, but, no doubt, on trial it would prove'"as singularly efficacious" as the other'. 

Baing pour lauer, les chiens, quand ils ont esté mords des chiensenragez, de peur qu'ils enragent. 

Quand les chiens sont mords ou desbrayez de chiens enragez, il fautincontinent emplir vne pippe d'eau, puis prendre quatre boisseaux de selet les ietter dedans, en meslaut fort le sel auec vn baston pour lefaire fondre soudainement: et quand il sera fondu, faut mettre le chiendedans, et le plonger tout, sans qu'il paroisse rien, par neuf fois:puis quand il sera bien laué, faut le laisser aller, celà l'empescherad'enrager. 

When a dog has been bitten or scratched by another affected withmadness, we must immediately take a tub of water and throw into it fourbushels of salt, stirring it briskly with a stick to make it dissolvequickly. When the salt shall be dissolved, put the dog into the bath, and plunge him well nine times, so that the bath shall cover him eachtime; now that he is well washed you may let him go, as this willprevent his becoming rabid. 

Having given publicity to the two preceding valuable receipts, we mustbe pardoned for adding our own views upon this point, as a caution tothose who may not feel sufficient faith in the remedies above mentioned. 

The wound should be thoroughly washed and cleansed as soon as possibleafter the bite is inflicted: no sucking of the parts, as is advised bymany, for the purpose of extracting the poison, as the presence of asmall abrasion of the lips or interior of the mouth would most assuredlysubject the parts to inoculation. If the wound be ragged, the edges maybe taken off with a pair of sharp scissors; the wound must then bethoroughly cauterized with nitrate of silver (lunar caustic), being sureto introduce the caustic into the very depths of the wound, so that itwill reach every particle of poison that may have insinuated itself intothe flesh. If the wound is too small to admit of the stick of caustic, it may be enlarged by the knife, taking care, however, not to carry thepoison into the fresh cut, which can be avoided by wiping the knife ateach incision. Should the wound be made on any of the limbs, a bandagemay be placed around it during the application of these remedies, themore effectually to prevent the absorption of the virus. Nitrate ofsilver is a most powerful neutralizer of specific poisons, and theaffected parts will soon come away with the slough, no dressings beingnecessary, except perhaps olive oil, if there should be muchinflammation of the parts. If the above plan be pursued, the patientneed be under no apprehension as to the result, but make his mindperfectly easy on the point. This is the course generally pursued by theveterinary surgeons of Europe, and there are but few of them who have not, some time in their practice, been bitten and often severely lacerated byrabid animals; nevertheless, we never hear of their having suffered anybad effects from such accidents. If caustic be not at hand, the woundmay be seared over with red-hot iron, which will answer as good apurpose, although much more painful in its operation. Mr. Blaine, inclosing his able and scientific article on this subject, very justlyremarks, "Would I could instil into such minds the 'uncertainty' of the disease appearing at all; that is, even when no means have been used; and the 'perfect security' they may feel who have submitted to the preventive treatment detailed. I have been bitten several times, Mr. Youatt several also; yet in neither of us was any dread occasioned: our experience taught us the 'absolute certainty' of the 'preventive' means; and such I take on me to pronounce they always prove, when performed with dexterity and judgment. " We acknowledge ourselves a convert to this gentleman's doctrine; and feel satisfied that if the above course be adopted, there need be no fear whatever of the development of this frightful affection. --L. ]

[Footnote 1: 'La Folie des Animaux', by M. Perquin. ]

[Footnote 2: The physician Apollonius, having been bitten by a rabiddog, induced another dog to lick the wound, "ut idem medicus esset qui vulneris auctor fuit. "]

[Footnote 3: 'Journal Pratique de Méd. Vét. ']

[Footnote 4: 'Sporting Magazine', vol. Xviii. P. 186. ]

[Footnote 5: Daniel's 'Rural Sports', vol. I. P. 220. ]

 * * * * *

CHAPTER VIII. 

THE EYE AND ITS DISEASES. 

The diseases that attack the same organ are essentially different, indifferent animals, in their symptoms, intensity, progress, and mode oftreatment. In periodic ophthalmia--that pest of the equine race andopprobrium of the veterinary profession--the cornea becomes suddenlyopaque, the iris pale, the aqueous humour turbid, the capsule of thelens cloudy, and blindness is the result. After a time, however, thecornea clears up, and becomes as bright as ever; but the lens continuesimpervious to light, and vision is lost. 

Ophthalmia in the dog presents us with symptoms altogether different. The conjunctiva is red; that portion of it which spreads over thesclerotica is highly injected, and the cornea is opaque. As the diseaseproceeds, and even at a very early period of its progress, an ulcerappears on the centre; at first superficial, but enlarging and deepeninguntil it has penetrated the cornea, and the aqueous humour has escaped. Granulations then spring from the edges of the ulcer, rapidly enlarge, and protrude through the lids. Under proper treatment, however, or by aprocess of nature, these granulations cease to sprout; they begin todisappear; the ulcer diminishes; it heals; scarcely a trace of it can beseen; the cornea recovers its perfect transparency, and vision is not inthe slightest degree impaired. 

There is a state of the orbit which requires some consideration. It isconnected with the muscles employed in mastication. Generally speaking, the food of the dog requires no extraordinary degree of mastication, noris there usually any great time employed in this operation. That musclewhich is most employed in the comminution of the food, namely, thetemporal muscle, has its action very much limited by the position of thebony socket of the eye; yet sufficient room is left for all the forcethat can be required. In some dogs, either for purposes of offence ordefence, or the more effectual grasping of the prey, a sudden violentexertion of muscular power, and a consequent contraction of the temporalmuscle, are requisite, but for which the imperfect socket of the orbitdoes not seem to afford sufficient scope and room. There is an admirableprovision for this in the removal of a certain portion of the orbitalprocess of the frontal bone on the outer and upper part of the externalridge, and the substitution of an elastic cartilage. This cartilagemomentarily yields to the swelling of the muscles; and then, by itsinherent elasticity, the external ridge of the orbit resumes itspristine form. The orbit of the dog, the pig, and the cat, exhibits thissingular mechanism. 

The horse is, to a certain extent, also an illustration of this. Herequires an extended field of vision to warn him of the approach of hisenemies in his wild state, and a direction of the orbits somewhatforward to enable him to pursue with safety the headlong course to whichwe sometimes urge him; and for this purpose his eyes are placed moreforward than those of cattle, sheep, or swine. That which Mr. Percivallstates of the horse is true of our other domesticated animals:

 "The eyeball is placed within the anterior or more capacious part of the orbit, nearer to the frontal than to the temporal side, with a degree of prominence peculiar to the individual, and, within certain limits, variable at his will. "

In many of the carnivorous animals the orbit encroaches on the bones ofthe face. A singular effect is also produced on the countenance, bothwhen the animal is growling over his prey and when he is devouring it. The temporal muscle is violently acted upon; it presses upon thecartilage that forms part of the external ridge; that again forcesitself upon and protrudes the eye, and hence the peculiar ferocity ofexpression which is observed at that time. The victims of thesecarnivorous animals are also somewhat provided against danger by theacuteness of sight with which they are gifted. Adipose matter alsoexists in a considerable quantity in the orbit of the eye, which enablesit to revolve by the slightest contraction of the muscles. 

We should scarcely expect to meet with cases of fracture of the orbitalarch in the dog, because, in that animal, cartilage, or acartilago-ligamentous substance, occupies a very considerable part ofthat arch; but I have again and again, among the cruelties that arepractised on the inferior creation, seen the cartilage partly, or evenentirely, torn asunder. I have never been able satisfactorily toascertain the existence of this during life; but I have found it onthose whom I have recommended to be destroyed on account of the brutalusage which they had experienced. Blows somewhat higher, or on the thicktemporal muscle of this animal, will very rarely produce a fracture. 

A few cases of disease in the eye may be interesting and useful. 

'Case' I. --The eyes of a favourite spaniel were found inflamed andimpatient of light. Nothing wrong had been perceived on the precedingday. No ulceration could be observed on the cornea, and there was but aslight mucous discharge. An infusion of digitalis, with twenty times thequantity of tepid water, was employed as a collyrium, and an aloeticball administered. On the following day the eyes were more inflamed, Thecollyrium and the aloes were employed as before, and a seton inserted inthe poll. 

Three or four days afterwards the redness was much diminished, thedischarge from the eye considerably lessened, and the dog was sent home. The seton, however, was continued, with an aloetic ball on every thirdor fourth day. 

Two or three days after this the eyes were perfectly cured and the setonremoved. 

'Case' II. --The eye is much inflamed and the brow considerablyprotruded. 

This was supposed to be caused by a bite. I vainly endeavoured to bringthe lid over the swelling. I scarified the lid freely, and ordered thebleeding to be encouraged by the constant application of warm water, andphysic-ball to be given. 

On the following day the brow was found to be scarcely or at allreduced, and the eye could not be closed. I drew out the haw with acrooked needle, and cut it off closely with sharp scissors. The excisedportion was as large as a small-kidney-bean. The fomentation wascontinued five days afterwards, and the patient then dismissed cured. 

'Case' III. --A pointer was brought in a sad state of mange. Redness, scurf, and eruptions were on almost every part. Apply the mange ointmentand the alterative and physic balls. On the following day there was anulcer on the centre of the cornea, with much appearance of pain andimpatience of light. Apply an infusion of digitalis, with the liquorplumbi diacetatis. He was taken away on the twelfth day, the mangeapparently cured, and the inflammation of the eye considerably lessened. A fortnight afterwards this also appeared to be cured. 

'Case' IV. --A spaniel had been bitten by a large dog. There was no woundof the lids, but the eye was protruded from the socket. I first triedwhether it could be reduced by gentle pressure, but I could notaccomplish it. I then introduced the blunt end of a curved needlebetween the eye and the lid; and thus drawing up the lid with the righthand, while I pressed gently on the eye with the left hand, Iaccomplished my object. I then subtracted three ounces of blood and gavea physic-ball. On the following day the eye was hot and red, with sometumefaction. The pupil was moderately contracted, but was scarcelyaffected by any change of light. The dog was sent home, with someextract of goulard, and a fortnight afterwards was quite well. 

'Case' V. --A dog received a violent blow on the right eye. Immediateblindness occurred, or the dog could apparently just discern thedifference between light and darkness, but could not distinguishparticular objects. The pupil was expanded and immovable. Apink-coloured hue could be perceived on looking earnestly into the eye. A seton was introduced into the poll, kept there nearly a month, andoften stimulated rather sharply. General remedies of almost every kindwere tried: depletion was carried to its full extent, the electric fluidwas had recourse to; but at the expiration of nine weeks the case wasabandoned and the dog destroyed. Permission to examine him was refused. 

I have, in two or three instances, witnessed decided cases of dropsy ofthe eye, accumulation of fluid taking place in both the anterior andposterior chambers of the eye; there was also effusion of blood in thechambers, but in one case only was there the slightest benefit producedby the treatment adopted, and in that there was gradual absorption ofthe effused fluid. 

About the same time there was another similar case. A pointer hadsuddenly considerable opacity of one eye, without any known cause: theother eye was not in the least degree affected. The dog had not been outof the garden for more than a week. The eye was ordered to be fomentedwith warm water. 

On the following day the inflammation had increased, and the adiposematter was protruded at both the inner and outer canthus. The eye wasbathed frequently with a goulard lotion. On the fourth day the eyeballwas still more inflamed, and the projections at both canthi wereincreased. A curved needle was passed through both eyes, and there wasconsiderable bleeding. On the following day the inflammation began tosubside. At the expiration of a week scarcely any disease remained, andthe eye became as transparent as ever. 

A curious ease of congenital blindness was brought to my infirmary. Afemale pointer puppy, eight weeks old, had both her eyes of theirnatural size and formation, but the inner edge of the iris was strangelydiseased. The pupil was curiously four-cornered, and very small. Therehung out of the pupil a grayish-white fibrous matter, which appeared tobe the remainder of the pupillary membrane. 

Six months afterwards we examined her again, and found that the pupilwas considerably enlarged, and properly shaped, and the white skin hadvanished. In the back-ground of the eye there was a faint yellow-greenlight, and the dog not only showed sensibility to light, but someperception of external objects. At this period we lost sight of her. 

A very considerable improvement has taken place with regard to thetreatment of the enlarged or protruded ball of the eye. A dog may getinto a skirmish, and have his eye forced from the socket. If there islittle or no bleeding, the case will probably be easily and successfullytreated. 

The eye must, first, be thoroughly washed, and not a particle of gritmust be left. A little oil, a crooked needle, and a small piece of softrag should be procured. The blunt end of the needle should he dippedinto the oil, and run round the inside of the lid, first above and thenbelow. The operator will next--his fingers being oiled--press upon theprotruded eye gently, yet somewhat firmly, changing the pressure fromone part of the eye to the other, in order to force it back into thesocket. 

If, after a couple of minutes' trial, he does not succeed, let him againoil the eye on the inside and the out, and once more introduce the bluntend of the needle, attempting to carry it upwards under the lid with twoor three fingers pressing on the eye, and the points of pressure beingfrequently changed. In by far the greater number of cases, the eye willbe saved. 

If it is impracticable to cause the eye to retract, a needle with athread attached must be passed through it, the eye being then drawn asforward as possible and cut off close to the lids. The bleeding willsoon cease and the lids perfectly close. 

'Ophthalmia' is a disease to which the dog is often liable. It is theresult of exposure either to heat or to cold, or violent exertion; it isremedied by bleeding, purging, and the application of sedative medicine, as the acetate of lead or the tincture of opium. When the eye isconsiderably inflamed, in addition to the application of tepid or coldwater, either the inside of the lids or the white of the eye may belightly touched with the lancet. From exposure to cold, or accident orviolence, inflammation often spreads on the eye to a considerabledegree, the pupil is clouded, and small streaks of blood spread over theopaque cornea. The mode of treatment just described must be pursued. 

The crystalline lens occasionally becomes opaque. There is cataract. Itmay be the result of external injury or of internal predisposition. Olddogs are particularly subject to cataract. That which arises fromaccident, or occasionally disease, may, although seldom, be reinstated, especially in the young dog, and both eyes may become sound; but, in theold, the slow-growing opacity will, almost to a certainty, terminate incataract. 

There is occasionally an enlargement of the eye, or rather anaccumulation of fluid within the eye, to a very considerable extent. Noexternal application seems to have the slightest effect in reducing thebulk of the eye. If it is punctured, much inflammation ensues, and theeye gradually wastes away. 

In 'amaurosis', the eye is beautifully clear, and, for a little while, this clearness imposes upon the casual observer; but there is a peculiarpellucid appearance about the eye--a preternatural and unchangingbrightness. In the horse, the sight occasionally returns, but I havenever seen this in the dog. 

The occasional glittering of the eyes of the dog has been oftenobserved. The cat, the wolf, some carnivora, and also sheep, cows, andhorses, occasionally exhibit the same glittering. Pallas imagined thatthe light of these animals emanated from the nervous membrane of theeye, and considered it to be an electrical phenomenon. It is found, however, in every animal that possesses a 'tapetum lucidum'. Theshining, however, never takes place in complete darkness. It is neitherproduced voluntarily, nor in consequence of any moral emotion, butsolely from the reflection that falls on the eye. 

[The eye and its diseases being so concisely treated by Mr. Youatt, weare emboldened to add a more full and particular treatise on thisinteresting subject, couched in language the most simple, and we trustsufficiently plain to be understood by the most unscientific patron ofthe canine race. 

THE EYE AND ITS DISEASES. 

THE NICTITATING MEMBRANE. 

It is somewhat astonishing that an organ, so delicate and so muchexposed as the eye of the hunting dog necessarily is, should not morefrequently be attacked with disease, or suffer from the thorns, poisonous briars, and bushes that so constantly oppose their progresswhile in search of game. Nature, ever wise in her undertakings, whileendowing this organ with extreme sensibility, also furnished it with themeans of protecting itself in some measure against the many evils thatso constantly threaten its destruction. 

The plica semilunaris, haw or nictitating membrane, though not aslargely developed in the dog as in some other animals, is, nevertheless, of sufficient size to afford considerable protection to the ball of theeye, and assists materially in preventing the accumulation of seeds andother minute particles within the conjunctiva. This delicate membrane isfound at the inner canthus of the eye, and can be drawn at pleasure overa portion of the globe, so as to free its surface from any foreignsubstances that might be upon it. Although the eye of the dog isattacked by many diseases, almost as numerous as those of the humanbeing, still they are much less frequent and far more tractable. 

OPTHAMALIA--SIMPLE INFLAMMATION OF THE EYE. 

In its mild form this disease is frequently met with, and easily yieldsto the administration of the proper remedies, but when it appears as anepidemic, in a kennel, it proves more stubborn. The discharge inepidemic ophthalmia, when carried from one dog to the eyes of another, no doubt is contagious, and, therefore, it is necessary to separate dogsas much from each other as possible during any prevalent epidemic ofthis nature. 

The disease announces itself by slight redness of the conjunctiva, tenderness to light, and increased flow of the secretions. 

The eyeball appears retracted in its socket, and more moist andtransparent than usual. The infected vessels of the conjunctiva form aspecies of net-work, and can be moved about with this membrane, showingthat the inflammation is entirely superficial, and not penetrating theother coverings of the eye. Extravasation of blood within theconjunctiva, (bloodshot, ) is also not an uncommon appearance, but isfrequently the first symptom that draws our attention to the malady. 

As the disease progresses, the conjunctiva becomes more vascular, thephotophobia intolerable, the cornea itself becomes opaque, and sometimesexhibits a vascular appearance. There is considerable itching of theball, as evinced by the disposition of the dog to close the eye. If thedisease progresses in its course, unchecked by any remediate means, thecornea may lose its vitality, ulceration commence, and the sight be forever destroyed by the bursting and discharge of the contents of the eye. 

'Causes. '--Simple canine opthalmia proceeds from many causes, distinctin their character, but all requiring pretty much the same treatment. Bad feeding, bad lodging, want of exercise, extremes of heat, and cold, are the most active agents in producing this affection. 

'Treatment. '--The disease in its mild form is very tractable, andrequires but little attention; soothing applications, in connexion withconfinement to an obscure apartment and low diet, will generally correctthe affection in its forming stage. 

In all inflammations of the eye, tepid applications we considerpreferable to cold, the latter producing a temporary reaction, but nopermanent good, while the former exerts a soothing and relaxinginfluence over the tissues and parts to which they are applied. 

Weak vinegar and water, with a small proportion of laudanum, we havefrequently seen used with advantage as a wash in this complaint. 

When there is fever, it will be necessary to bleed, and purge. Scarifying the conjunctiva with the point of a lancet, has been resortedto by some veterinary surgeons with success. 

CHRONIC OPHTHALMIA. 

When the disease assumes this form, the discharge from the eyes islessened, and becomes more thick, the conjunctiva is not of such abright arterial red, but more of a brick-dust colour, and the inner sideof the lids when exposed will present small prominences and ulcerations. 

'Treatment. '--More stimulating collyria will now be necessary, assolutions of sulphate of zinc, copper, acetate of lead, &c. See No. 1, 2, 3, of the Collyria. The direct application of sulphate of copper, ornitrate of silver, will often be of great benefit in changing the actionof the parts. 

The lids should be turned down and brushed over two or three times withthe above articles in substance, and the dog restrained for a fewmoments to prevent him from scratching during the temporary paininflicted upon him by the application. 

Laudanum dropped in the eye will also prove very beneficial, allayingthe itching and pain, at the same time stimulating the organs to renewedaction. If the disease does not succumb under this treatment, a setonplaced in the pole will generally conquer it. 

TRAUMATIC OPHTHALMIA

is produced by wounds of poisoned briars, stings of insects, bites ofother dogs, the scratching of cats, or the actual presence of foreignbodies in the eye itself, which latter cause frequently occurs, and isoften overlooked by the sportsman. 

'Treatment'. --This species of ophthalmia is best subdued by theapplication of emollient poultices, depletion, purgation and coolingwashes. If a seed, small briar, or other substance has got in under thelids, or inserted itself in the globe of the eye, the dog keeps the eyeclosed, it waters freely, and in a short time becomes red and inflamed. The removal of the article alone, will generally produce a cure;sometimes it is necessary to use a cooling wash and administer a purgeor two. Great care should he had for the extraction of extraneoussubstances from the eyes of dogs, as their presence often causes greatsuffering to the animal even while diligently employed in the field. Thewriter has seen dogs more than once rendered useless while hunting, bygrass, cloverseeds, or other small particles burying themselves underthe lids. 

'Ophthalmia of Distemper'. --This species of inflammation will be spokenof when treating of this latter affection. 

SYMPATHETIC OPHTHALMIA

arises from the presence of some other disease located in anotherportion of the body, as derangement of the stomach, mange, surfeit, &c. The presence of one of these affections will indicate the cause of theother. 

'Treatment'. --Soothing applications to the organ itself, and remediesfor the removal of the primary affection. 

HYDROPHTHALMIA

though not a common affection in the canine race, is occasionally metwith; several cases have come under the observation of the writer, andno doubt there are but few dog-fanciers who have not seen the eyeballsof some dog suffering with this malady, ready to start from theirsockets. 

This affection depends upon a superabundance of the humours of the eye, occasioned by over-secretion, or a want of power in the absorbentvessels to carry off the natural secretions of the parts. 

Old dogs are more apt to suffer from this disease than young dogs:nevertheless, the latter are not by any means exempt; we once saw a pup, a few days old, with the globe of the eye greatly extended by thisaffection. 

As the disease progresses, the eye becomes more hard and tender, thesight is greatly impaired, and ultimately, if not arrested, the eyebursts, discharges its contents, and total blindness ensues, greatly tothe relief of the poor animal. 

'Treatment'. --This disease is very intractable, and is to be combated bysaline purges, bleeding, and stimulating application to the organitself. Mercurial ointment, rubbed over the eyebrow, will assist instimulating the absorbents. 

When the disease has progressed for a long time, and the pain, as isoften the case, seems intense, it will save the animal great suffering, by opening the ball and allowing the humours to escape. This may be doneby puncturing the cornea or the sclerotic coat with a needle. Setonsintroduced along the spine would have a good effect. 

CONGENITAL BLINDNESS

occasionally occurs throughout a whole litter, no doubt being entailedupon the progeny of those dogs who have defective vision, or who are oldand infirm at the time of copulation. The best and only remedy is speedydrowning. 

CATARACT

consists in the partial or complete opacity of the crystalline lens; itresults from numerous causes, and is more frequent in the old than theyoung subject. In old dogs both eyes are usually attacked, producingabsolute blindness, while in young animals one eye alone is generallyattacked. 

'Causes. '--Old age, hard work, and bad feeding, are the agents mostactive in the production of this affection; it generally comes onslowly, but sometimes very quickly. 

When the disease occurs in young dogs, it is generally the result ofwounds or blows over the head, convulsions and falls. 

'Treatment. '--Little can be accomplished towards curing this diseaseeither in the old or young dog, as the disease, in spite of all ourefforts, will run its course, and terminate in total opacity of thelens. Mild purging, blistering on the neck, introduction of the seton, and blowing slightly stimulating powders into the eye, will sometimesarrest the progress of the disease in the young dog. 

ULCERATIONS ON THE CORNEA

are sometimes very troublesome, and if not put a stop to, will oftencause opacity and blindness, if not total destruction of the eye. 

Slightly stimulating washes and purges are useful; the carefulapplication of nitrate of silver will often induce the ulcer to heal; itmust be put on very nicely and gently. 

SPOTS ON THE CORNEA

are the result of ulcers and inflammation. If they do not materiallyinterfere with vision, they had better be left alone. 

Powdered sugar and a small quantity of alum blown into the eye dailythrough a quill, we have seen used with much success. 

AMAUROSIS--GUTTA SERENA OR GLASS EYE, A partial or complete paralysis of the optic nerves of either side isnot a frequent disease. It usually comes on gradually, but sometimes mayappear in the course of a few hours from the effects of wounds orconvulsions. When the paralysis is complete, total blindness of courseensues. The intimate connection, or sympathy, existing between thenerves of either eye, is so peculiar that disease of one is quicklyfollowed by a corresponding disease in the other. 

Amaurosis, therefore, ordinarily ends in total blindness. The disease ischaracterized by a dilated stage of the pupil, which seldom contractsunder the effect of any degree of light thrown upon it. The coats andhumours of the eye are perfectly transparent, in fact appear to be morepellucid than natural. 

'Causes. '--This affection is produced in many different ways; among themost common causes may be mentioned wounds on the head, or of the partssurrounding the nerve, strains, falls, disease of the bone, convulsions, and epileptic fits. 

We have seen a case produced by a tumour, which occupied the posteriorportion of the orbit, and caused the organ to be somewhat protruded fromits proper position, giving the eye the appearance of hydrophthalmia, for which it was taken, the existence of the tumour never for a momentbeing suspected. In this case there was partial amaurosis in both sides, although nothing of disease could be discovered in the left eye. 

Amaurosis is a very deceptive disease, the nerves alone being affected;the humours and coverings of the eye remaining perfectly transparent andnatural, imposes upon the inexperienced observer, but is easily detectedby those who have witnessed the disease in others. There is a singularwatery appearance and vacant stare about the eye of the dog that cannotbe mistaken. This peculiarity is owing, no doubt, to the enlargement ofthe pupil, as before observed. 

'Treatment'. --When proceeding from blows, convulsions, or inflammationof the nerve itself, bleeding will be serviceable, as also purging andblistering. If the disease should appear without any symptom, or othercause, to lead us to believe that there is any local affection, theantiphlogistic course should be laid aside, and resort be had to localand constitutional tonic applications, and revulsive frictions to thenape of the neck and spine. A seton may also be applied; and electricityhas been recommended in such cases, no doubt arising from want of tonein the general system. 

This affection, in spite of every effort, is very unmanageable, and butseldom yields to any course of treatment. Strychnia has been usedlately, both internally and externally, in the cure of this complaint;it may be sprinkled over a blistered surface immediately above the eye, in the proportion of a grain morning and evening; it may also beadministered inwardly at the same time, in doses from the half a grainto a grain twice a day. 

EXTIRPATION OF THE EYE. 

It sometimes becomes necessary, from the diseased state of this organ, that it should be taken completely from its socket. This operation, though frightful, perhaps, to consider, is very simple in itsapplication, and may be performed without difficulty by any oneaccustomed to the use of the knife. The animal is to be held firmly, asbefore directed, and an assistant to keep the lids widely extended. 

If the lids cannot be drawn well over the eye, owing to enlargement ofthe ball caused by disease, they may be separated by an incision at theexternal angle. A curved needle armed with a thread is now to be passedentirely through the eye, being careful to include sufficient of thesound parts within its grasp to prevent its tearing out. This finished, the needle may be detached, and the ends of the thread being united, themovements of the eye can be governed by means of this ligature: thenproceed as follows:

1st. The assistant keeping the lids well separated, the operator drawsthe eye upward and outward, and then inserting the scalpel at the innerand lower angle of the eye, with a gentle sweep separates the ball fromthe lids, extending the incisions through to the external canthus. 

2d. The ball is now to be drawn inwardly and downward, while thescalpel, continuing the circular movement as far as the internalcanthus, separates the upper lid. 

3d. The muscles and optic nerves still bind this organ to the orbit, which attachments can easily be destroyed by the scalpel, by pulling theeye forward sufficiently to reach them. If the eye has been extirpatedon account of any malignant disease, it is necessary to remove everyparticle of muscle from the orbit; and when the disease has extendeditself to the lids, it will also be proper to remove that portion ofthem included in the affection. 

The hemorrhage from the operation is trifling, and may generally bearrested by the pressure of the fingers, or the insertion of a conicalball of lint within the socket, which may be allowed to remain two orthree days if necessary. If there is nothing to apprehend fromhemorrhage, it is only necessary to draw the lids together, and unitethat portion which has been separated by a suture, and place a hood overthe whole. 

We do not recommend the stuffing of the orbit with lint, except in caseof hemorrhage, as its presence will sometimes produce violentinflammation, which may extend to the brain. The cavity of the eye will, in a measure, be filled up by newly formed matter. The dog must berestricted to a low cooling diet, and have administered two or threesaline purges. 

ULCERATIONS OF THE EYELIDS

are often met with in old mangy, ill-fed animals, and are difficult toovercome, except by curing the the primary affection, which is often noeasy task. The lids become enlarged, puffy, and tender, the lashes fallout, and the edges present an angry reddish appearance. 

'Treatment'--Must be directed, in the first place, to the curing of theold affection, by which, in connection with blisters, purging, stimulating washes, &c. , a cure may be effected. When the swelling ofthe lids is considerable, scarifying them with the point of a lancetwill often be of much service. Ointment of nitrate of silver may also besmeared on the edges. 

WARTS ON THE EYELIDS

sometimes make their appearance; they may be lifted up with the forceps, and excised with a knife or scissors, and the wound touched with nitrateof silver. The same treatment will answer for those warts, or littleexcrescences, that sometimes come on the inside of the lids. 

ENTROPIUM--INVERSION OF THE EYELIDS. 

This disease we do not find mentioned by any of the writers on caninepathology: nevertheless, we are led to believe that it is not anuncommon form of ophthalmia; and we must express our surprise that itshould have escaped the attention of such close observers as Blain andYouatt. 

The acute form of the disease resulting from, or attending, simpleophthalmia, we have often witnessed, but the chronic form, of which wemore particularly speak, is more rare. We have seen three cases of thelatter, and, no doubt, might have found many more if our opportunitiesof studying canine pathology were equal to those of the English writers. The inversion of the eyelids upon the globe is accompanied with pain andirritation, swelling and inflammation, both of the lids and eye, whichultimately renders the dog almost useless, if not entirely blind. 

'Causes'. --Neglected chronic ophthalmia was, no doubt, the cause of thedisease in two cases, a setter and a pointer, while the other, in ahound, was the result of an acute attack of ophthalmia brought on byscalding with hot pitch thrown upon the animal. Some of this substanceentered the eye, while a large portion adhered to the muzzle and lids. The eye, as well as the lids, became inflamed; the latter, being puffedup and contracted on their edges, were necessarily drawn inwards fromthe tension of the parts, and double entropium was thus produced. Theinflammation and tumefaction of the parts continued for a considerabletime, and when ultimately reduced by the application of tepidfomentations, the skin appeared greatly relaxed; and the muscular fibreshaving lost their power of support or contractility, owing to their longquiescence, seemed no longer able to keep their lids in their propersituation; the edges therefore remained in the abnormous positionpreviously assumed. 

By this strange condition of the parts, the eyeball continued greatlyirritated by the constant friction of the lashes; water was continuallyflowing over the lids, and from its irritating character producedconsiderable excoriation of the face and muzzle. The conjunctivaremained inflamed, the cornea in due course became ulcerous, and the eyewas ultimately destroyed by the discharge of its contents. This was thecourse and final termination of the disease in the case of the houndabove referred to, all of which disastrous results might have beenprevented by proper management. 

'Treatment. '--When in England, we sent to the United States a fine bredpointer dog, designed as a present for one of our sporting friends. Thisanimal travelled from Leeds to Liverpool, chained on top of the railroadcars; the journey occupied several hours, daring which the weather wascold and boisterous, and we noticed on his arrival at the latter placethat his eyes were watering and somewhat inflamed. On examining themmore particularly, we were enabled to extract several pieces of cinderfrom under the lids, which seemed to relieve him somewhat. He went tosea, in the care of the steward, on the following day; and remained ondeck exposed to the inclemency of the weather during a long voyage. Whenhe arrived in Philadelphia, the inflammation, we were informed, was veryconsiderable, occasioned by the presence of some other small particlesof cinder that may have escaped our attention before shipping him. Thepresence of these foreign substances in the eye, in connection with thesalt spray and irritating atmosphere, greatly aggravated the ophthalmia, and resolved it into a chronic affection, which ultimately resulted inentropium. 

"Fop" was hunted during the same autumn, which no doubt increased themalady to a considerable extent; and before the hunting season was over, the dog was rendered almost useless: the lids becoming so much swollenand the irritation so considerable, that it was deemed cruel to allowhim to go into the field. 

When we saw him some time in the course of the same winter, the lowerlids of both eyes were completely inverted on their globes, and theconjunctival inflammation and flow of tears considerable. 

The eyes seemed contracted within their sockets, and at times werenearly hidden from view, the corneas were somewhat opaque, thephotophobia intolerable, and the animal showed evident signs of extremepain, by his restless anxiety and constant efforts at scratching andrubbing the eyes. 

Under the judicious application of cooling astringent collyria, andother remediate means, the irritation and pain of the parts wererelieved, and the lids somewhat retracted. 

"Fop" remained in this condition till the following autumn, suffering attimes considerably from the increased inflammation and tumefaction ofthe lids, which continued obstinately to persist, insomuch that whenturned out by the pressure of the fingers on them, they immediatelycontracted, and were forced inwards on the ball when freed from thefingers. 

Finding that no external application was of any permanent benefit, weresolved to have resort to the same operation we saw practised in theParisian hospitals for the cure of a similar malformation in the humansubject. 

To insure quiet we enclosed the body of the dog in a case, madestationary and sufficiently small to prevent struggling, with the headfirmly fixed by a sliding door, as represented in the accompanyingdrawing. 

The mouth was kept closed by a small strap passed around the muzzle. This method of fixing a strong dog, we consider the best ever adoptedfor all nice operations on the face. The first step in the operation wasto pinch up a portion of the lax skin of the diseased lid and pass threeneedles, armed with silk ligatures, successively through the base of theupraised integuments. 

One needle approximating the external canthus, another the internal, anda third midway between these two points, as represented in the annexeddrawing. 

The next step was lo raise up the integuments included in the ligature, and, by means of a pair of sharp scissors, cut off the super-abundantskin as near to the ligatures as possible; having care however to leavesufficient substance included in the ligatures, to prevent theirsloughing out before adhesion has taken place. The next and last step ofthe operation was, to draw the edges of the wound together by tying eachligature, which procedure immediately secured the lid and held it firmlyin its natural position. The ligatures were now cut short, and a largewire muzzle, covered over with some dark substance on the operated eye, being put on him, and his legs hobbled with a piece of strong twine, more effectually to prevent his scratching the head, "Fop" was then setat liberty, and soon became reconciled to this eye-shade. 

The hemorrhage was trifling, the wound healed up by the first intentionand the ligatures were drawn away in a few days, when a perfect cure waseffected--the conjunctiva having lost its inflammatory appearance, andthe cornea having again become quite transparent. 

The other eye was operated on in the same way and with like success. Inthe first operation we cut away the loose flaccid integuments only;whereas, in the second, we snipped small longitudinal fibres from thecartilage itself, and the operation consequently was more perfect, ifpossible, than in the first instance. 

The eyes were now perfectly restored, and remained well during the wholeof the shooting season, after which we lost sight of our patient, hehaving accompanied one of our friends as a "compagnon de voyage" on acommercial expedition to Santa Fe, and, when on his return, had themisfortune to lose "Fop, " who was carried off into captivity by someprowling Camanches, who no doubt have long since sacrificed him to theGreat Spirit in celebrating the buffalo or wolf dance. 

PROTRUSION OF THE EYE

The eye may be forced from its orbit by wounds or the bites of otheranimals. 

If not materially injured, the ball should be cleaned with a littletepid water, or by wiping off with a fine silk or cambric handkerchief, and immediately replaced within its socket; otherwise the inflammationand swelling of the lids will soon prevent its easy admission. Whenhandling the protruded eye, the fingers should be dipped in olive oil orwarm water. 

When sufficient time has elapsed from the occurrence of the accident toprevent the ball being replaced, owing to the swelling and contractionof the lids, an incision may be made at the external angle of the eye, so as to divide the lids, which will then admit the eye into its naturalposition. If not, the lid itself can be raised up and slit far enough toallow its being drawn over the globe. As considerable inflammationgenerally follows this accident, it will be prudent to bleed the animaland confine him. 

We have seen eyes replaced, that have been out of their sockets forseveral hours, perfectly recover their strength and brilliancy. 

WEAK EYES. 

Some dogs, particularly several breeds of spaniels, have naturally weakeyes, attended by an over-secretion and constant flow of tears, moreparticularly when exposed to the sun. When there is no disease of thelachrymal duct, the secretion may be diminished and the eyesstrengthened by the daily application of some slightly tonic wash, asNo. 1, 2, 3, &c. 

FISTULA LACHRYMALIS. 

The lachrymal duct is a small canal, leading from the internal angle ofthe eye to the nostrils, and is the passage through which the tearsescape from the eye. This duct may become closed by inflammation of thelining membrane of the nose, caries of the bone, ulcers, fungousgrowths, or by the presence of some extraneous substance impacted in it. The tears, no longer having a natural outlet, are necessarily forcedover the lids, accompanied, not unfrequently, by a good deal of purulentmatter. 

This canal, when thus obstructed from some one of the above causes, often forms an ulcerous opening at its upper extremity, just below theinternal canthus, for the escape of the pus that usually collects in asac at that point. This perforation is called "Fistula Lachrymalis. " Thetears, entering the canal at its punctum, are carried along till theypass out at the fistulous opening. 

Treatment'. --This is a very troublesome affection, and has beenpronounced incurable by some writers. However, we would not hesitatemaking an attempt at relieving a favourite or valuable dog of thisdisagreeable deformity. We should first endeavour to clear out the nasalcanal, either by means of a minute flexible probe, or by directing astream of water from a suitable syringe through its course. A smallsilver or copper style may then be placed in the canal to keep it open, as also to direct the tears through the natural route. This being done, and the dog confined in such a way as not to be able to scratch or rubthe eye, the fistulous opening might close up in a short time. However, it might be necessary to wear the style for many months. In such a case, we see no reason why a wire muzzle, such as used by us after theoperation for Entropium, might not be worn for an indefinite period, without any inconvenience to the animal. 

CARUNCULA LACHRYMALIS AND PLICA SEMILUNARIS, OR HAW. 

The caruncula lachrymalis is a small glandular body situated at theinternal commissure of each eye. This little gland often becomes greatlyenlarged from inflammation or fungous growths--old dogs are much moresubject to the disease than young ones. 

'Treatment'. --The application of cooling collyria and a weak solution ofnitrate of silver, will generally suppress the further growth of thisgland. If, however, it continues much swollen and runs on tosuppuration, it may be punctured with a lancet and poultices applied. Ifthe affection be of a malignant character, the gland may be drawn out bypassing a ligature through its base, and then excised. 

The haw is most frequently concerned in the disease, and may also beremoved. 

Collyria:

No. I. 

[Symbol: Rx] Vinegar [Symbol: ounce] i. Laudanum [Symbol: scruple] i. Water [Symbol: ounce] vii. 

Mix. --The eyes to be frequently bathed with the mixture. 

No. 2. 

[Symbol: Rx] Sulphate of zinc (white vitriol) [Symbol: scruple] i. Water [Symbol: ounce] vi. 

M. --To be used as above. 

No. 3. 

[Symbol: Rx] Sulphate of copper (blue vitriol) [Symbol: scruple] i. Water [Symbol: ounce] vi. 

M. --To be used as above. 

No. 4. 

[Symbol: Rx] Acetate of lead (sugar of lead) [Symbol: scruple] ii. Water [Symbol: ounce] vi. 

M. --To be used as above. 

No. 5. 

[Symbol: Rx] Argenti nitrat. (nitrate of silver) [Symbol: scruple] i. Water [Symbol: ounce] vi. 

M. --To be dropped in the eye 2 or 3 times daily. 

No. 6. 

[Symbol: Rx] Sub-muriate of mercury (corrosive sublimate) grs. X. Water [Symbol: ounce] vi. 

M. --To be used as the preceding. 

No. 7. 

[Symbol: Rx] Argenti nitrat (nitrate of silver) grs. V. Fresh butter or lard [Symbol: ounce] i. 

No. 8. 

[Symbol: Rx] Powdered alum grs. Xv. Calomel grs. Vii. 

M. --Blown in the eye, will often have a most excellent effect, moreparticularly in old chronic ophthalmia. 

No. 9. 

Infusions of slippery elm bark, sassafras or elder pith, infusions ofgreen tea, flaxseed, &c. , are all excellent emollient applications--L. ]

 * * * * *

CHAPTER IX. 

THE EAR AND ITS DISEASES. 

'Canker in the Ear. '

All water-dogs, and some others, are subject to a disease designated bythis name, and which, in fact, is inflammation of the integumentallining of the inside of the ear. When the whole of the body, except thehead and ears, is surrounded by cold water, there will be an unusualdetermination of blood to those parts, and consequent distension of thevessels and a predisposition to inflammation. A Newfoundland dog, orsetter, or poodle, that has been subject to canker, is often freed froma return of the disease by being kept from the water. 

The earliest symptom of the approach of canker is frequent shaking ofthe head, or holding of the head on one side, or violent scratching ofone or both ears. Redness of the integument may then be observed, andparticularly of that portion of it which lines the annular cartilage. This is usually accompanied by some enlargement of the folds of theskin. As soon as any of these symptoms are observed, the ear should begently but well washed, two or three times in the day, with lukewarmwater, and after that a weak solution of the extract of lead should beapplied, and a dose or two of physic administered. 

If the case is neglected, the pain will rapidly increase; the ear willbecome of an intenser red; the folds of the integument will enlarge, andthere will be a deposition of red or black matter in the hollow of theear. The case is now more serious, and should be immediately attendedto. This black or bloody deposit should be gently but carefully washedaway with warm water and soap; and the extract of lead, in theproportion of a scruple to an ounce of water, should be frequentlyapplied, until the redness and heat are abated. A solution of alum, inabout the same quantity of alum and water as the foregoing lotion, should then be used. 

Some attention should be paid to the method of applying these lotions. Two persons will be required in order to accomplish the operation. Thesurgeon must hold the muzzle of the dog with one hand, and have the rootof the ear in the hollow of the other, and between the first finger andthe thumb. The assistant must then pour the liquid into the ear; half atea-spoonful will usually be sufficient. The surgeon, without quittingthe dog, will then close the ear, and mould it gently until the liquidhas insinuated itself as deeply as possible into the passages of theear. Should not the inflammation abate in the course of a few days, aseton should be inserted in the poll, between the integument and themuscles of the occiput, reaching from ear to ear. The excitement of anew inflammation, so near to the part previously diseased, willmaterially abate the original affection. Physic is now indispensable. From half a drachm to a drachm of aloes, with from one to two grains ofcalomel, should be given every third day. 

Should the complaint have been much neglected, or the inflammation sogreat as to bid defiance to these means, ulceration will too oftenspeedily follow. It will be found lodged deep in the passage, and canonly be detected by moulding the ear; the effused pus will occasionallyoccupy the inside of the ear to its very tip. However extensive andannoying the inflammation may be, and occasionally causing so muchthickening of the integument as perfectly to close the ear, it is alwayssuperficial. It will generally yield to proper treatment, and thecartilage of the ear may not be in the slightest degree affected. Still, however, the animal may suffer extreme pain; the discharge from theulcer may produce extensive excoriation of the cheek; and, in a fewcases, the system may sympathise with the excessive local application, and the animal may be lost. 

The treatment must vary with circumstances. If the ulceration is deep inthe ear, and there is not a very great degree of apparent inflammation, recourse may be had at once to a stimulating and astringent application, such as alum or the sulphate of zinc, and in the proportion of sixgrains of either to an ounce of water. If, however, the ulcerationoccupies the greater part of the hollow of the ear, and is accompaniedby much thickening of the integument, and apparent filling up of theentrance to the ear, some portion of the inflammation must be firstsubdued. 

The only chance of getting rid of the disease is to confine the ear. Apiece of strong calico must be procured, six or eight inches in width, and sufficiently long to reach round the head and meet under the jaw. Along each side of it must be a running piece of tape, and a shorterpiece sewed at the centre of each of the ends. By means of these the capmay be drawn tightly over the head, above the eyes, and likewise roundthe neck behind the ears, so as perfectly to confine them. 

After all, no mild ointment will dispose such an ulcer to heal, andrecourse must be had at once to a caustic application. A scruple of thenitrate of silver must be rubbed down with an ounce of lard, and alittle of it applied twice every day, and rubbed tolerably hard into thesore until it assumes a healthy appearance; it may then be dressed withthe common calamine ointment. 

If the discharge should return, the practitioner must again haverecourse to the caustic ointment. 

The cartilage will never close, but the integument will gradually coverthe exposed edges, and the wound will be healed. The ear will, however, long continue tender, and, if it should be much beaten, by the shakingof the head, the ulcer will reappear. This must be obviated byoccasionally confining the ears, and not overfeeding the dog. 

Some sportsmen are accustomed to 'round' the ears, that is to cut offthe diseased part. In very few instances, however, will a permanent curebe effected, while the dog is often sadly disfigured. A fresh ulcerfrequently appears on the new edge, and is more difficult to heal thanthe original one. Nine times out of ten the disease reappears. 

The Newfoundland dog is very subject to this disease, to remedy whichrecourse must be had to the nitrate of silver. 

Spaniels have often a mangy inflammation of the edges of the ear. Itseldom runs on to canker; but the hair comes off round the edges of theear, accompanied by much heat and scurfiness of the skin. The commonsulphur ointment, with an eighth part of mercurial ointment, willusually remove the disease. 

From the irritation produced by canker in or on the ear, and theconstant flapping and beating of the ear, there is sometimes aconsiderable effusion of fluid between the integument and the cartilageoccupying the whole of the inside of the flap of the ear. The onlyremedy is to open the enlarged part from end to end, carefully to takeout the gossamer lining of the cyst, and then to insert some bits oflint on each side of the incision, in order to prevent its closing toosoon. In a few days, the parietes of the cyst will begin to adhere, anda perfect cure will be accomplished

If the tumour is simply punctured, the incision will speedily close, andthe cyst will fill again in the space of four-and-twenty hours. A setonmay be used, but it is more painful to the dog, and slower in itsoperation. 

The ear should be frequently fomented with a decoction of white poppies, and to this should follow the Goulard lotion; and, after that, ifnecessary, a solution of alum should be applied. To the soreness orscabby eruption, which extends higher up the ear, olive oil orspermaceti ointment may be applied. In some cases, portions of thethickened skin, projecting and excoriated, and pressing on each other, unite, and the opening into the ear is then mechanically filled. I knownot of any remedy for this. It is useless to perforate the adventitioussubstance, for the orifice will soon close; and, more than once, when Ihave made a crucial incision, and cut out the unnatural mass that closedthe passage, I have found it impossible to keep down the fungousgranulations or to prevent total deafness. 

The following is a singular case of this disease:--1st July, 1820 a dogwas sent with a tumour, evidently containing a fluid, in the flap of theear. A seton had been introduced, but had been sadly neglected. The hairhad become matted round the seton, and the discharge had thus beenstopped. Inflammation and considerable pain had evidently followed, andthe dog had nearly torn the seton out. I removed it, washed the earwell, and applied the tincture of myrrh and aloes. The wound soonhealed. On the 14th the ear began again to fill. On the 17th the tumourwas ripe for the seton, which was again introduced, and worn until the9th of August, when the sides of the abscess appeared again to haveadhered, and it was withdrawn. Canker had continued in the ear duringthe whole time; and, in defiance of a cold lotion daily applied, the earwas perceived again to be disposed to fill. The seton was once moreinserted, and the cyst apparently closed. The seton was continued afortnight after the sinus was obliterated, and then removed. Six weeksafterwards the swelling had disappeared, and the canker was quiteremoved. This anecdote is an encouragement to persevere under the mostdisheartening circumstances. 

All dogs that are foolishly suffered to become gross and fat are subjectto canker. It seems to be a natural outlet for excess of nutriment orgross humour; and, when a dog has once laboured under the disease, he isvery subject to a return of it. The fatal power of habit is in few casesmore evident than in this disease. When a dog has symptoms of mange, theredness or eruption of the skin, generally, will not unfrequentlydisappear, and bad canker speedily follow. The habit, however, may besubdued, or at least may be kept at bay, by physic and the use ofGoulard lotion or alum. 

Sportsmen are often annoyed by another species of canker Pointers andhounds are particularly subject to it. 

This species of canker commences with a scurfy eruption and thickeningof the edges of the ear, apparently attended by considerable itching orpain. The dog is continually flapping his ear, and beating it violentlyagainst his head. The inflammation is thus increased, and the tip of theear becomes exceedingly sore. This causes him to shake his head stillmore violently, and the ulcer spreads and is indisposed to heal, and atlength a fissure or crack appears on the tip of the cartilage, andextends to a greater or less distance down the ear. 

The narration of one or two cases may be useful, as showing theinveteracy of the disease. 

8th Feb. 1832. --A Newfoundland dog, very fat, had dreadful canker inboth ears, and considerable discharge of purulent matter. He wascontinually shaking his ears, lying and moaning. Apply the cankerlotion, and give the alterative balls. 

13th. The discharge considerably lessened from one ear, but that fromthe other has increased. Continue the lotion and apply a seton. 

22d. The dog, probably neglected at home, was sent to me. Both earswere as bad as ever. 

25th. The dog is perfectly unmanageable when the lotion is poured intothe ear, but submits when an ointment is applied. Use ung. Sambuci, [Symbol: ounce] j. Cerus, acet. [Symbol: ounce] j. , mix well together. Continue the alteratives. 

30th. Slowly amending; the whining has ceased, and the animal seldomscratches. Continue the lotion, alteratives, and purgatives. 

10th Oct. --Slowly improving. Continue the treatment. 

17th. One ear well, the other nearly so. 

24th. Both ears were apparently well. Omit the lotion. 

28th. One ear was again ulcerated. Applied the aerugo aeris. 

31st. This has been too stimulating, and the ulceration is almost asgreat as at first. Return to the ung. Sambuci and cerusa acetata. 

From this time to the 24th February, 1833, we continued occasionallytaking out the seton, but returning to it every two or three days;applying the canker lotion until we were driven from it, mixing with itvariable quantities of tinctura opii, having recourse to mercurialointment, and trying a solution of the sulphate of copper. With two orthree applications we could keep the disease at bay; but with none couldwe fairly remove the evil. The sulphate of zinc, the acetate of lead, decoctions of oak bark, a very mild injection of the nitrate ofsilver, --all would do good at times; but at other times we were set atcomplete defiance. 

Another gentleman brought his dog about the same time. This was also aNewfoundland dog. He had always been subject to mangy eruptions, and hadnow mange in the feet, the inside of the ear covered with scalyeruptions, the skin red underneath, considerable thickening of the ear, and a slight discharge from its base. A seton was inserted and aphysic-ball given every second day. The canker lotion had little goodeffect. Some calamine ointment, with a small portion of calomel, wasthen had recourse to. 

In ten days the dog had ceased to scratch himself or shake his head, andthe ear was clean and cool. The seton was removed; but the animal beingconfined, a little redness again appeared in the ear, which the lotionsoon removed. 

At the expiration of a month he was dismissed apparently cured; but heafterwards had a return of his old mangy complaints, which bade defianceto every mode of treatment. 

Herr Maassen, V. S. , Wümemburg, has lately introduced, and with muchsuccess, the use of creosote for the cure of canker in the ear. 

The first experiment was on a setter with canker in his ear. The ownerof the dog had ordered it to be hanged, as all remedies had failed inproducing a cure. Herr Maassen prescribed creosoti 3ss. Et spirit, vinirectificat. 3ij. This mixture was applied once in every day to thediseased part. In a few weeks the dog was completely cured, and hassince had no return of the complaint. In a terrier, and also in threespaniels, the effect of this application was equally satisfactory. Insome cases, where the disease showed itself in a less degree, thecreosote was dissolved in water, instead of spirit of wine. It is alwaysnecessary to take away the collar while the dog is under treatment, inorder that the flap of the ear may not be injured by striking against it. 

VEGETATING EXCRESCENCES IN THE EAR. (By F. J. J. Rigot. )

Productions of this kind, which he had the opportunity of observing onlyonce, are sometimes united in masses, and completely close the auditivecanal. The surface is granulated and black, and there escapes from it anunctuous fetid discharge. On both sides the animal is exceedinglysusceptible of pain, and the excrescences bleed if the slightestpressure is brought to bear upon them. 

He thought it right to cut away these excrescences bodily, which hefound to be composed of a strong dense tissue, permitting much blood toescape through an innumerable quantity of vascular openings. They werereproduced with extreme promptitude after they had been cut off orcauterized. Some of them appeared no more after being destroyed by thenitrate of mercury. 

Sometimes, however, twenty-four hours after a simple incision, notfollowed by cauterization, these productions acquire an almostincredible size. It seemed, in M. Rigot's case, to be impossible toconquer the evil, and the patient was destroyed. 

ERUPTIONS IN THE EAR. 

A Newfoundland dog had long been subject to mangy eruptions on the backand in the feet. They had suddenly disappeared, and the whole of theinside of the ear became covered with scaly eruptions. The skin was red;there was considerable thickening of the ear, and a discharge from thebase of it. The canker-lotion was used, a physic-ball given every secondday, and a seton inserted in the poll reaching from ear to ear. Noapparent benefit resulted. A little calamine ointment, to which wasadded one-eighth part of mercurial ointment, was then tried, andconsiderable benefit immediately experienced. The dog no longercontinued to scratch himself or to shake his head, and the ear becameclean and cool. The seton was removed, and nothing remained but a littleoccasional redness, which the lotion very soon dispersed. 

The owner, however, became ultimately tired of all this doctoring, andthe animal was destroyed. 

A poodle had had exceedingly bad ears during several months. There wasconsiderable discharge, apparently giving much pain. The dog wascontinually shaking his head and crying. A seton was introduced, thecanker-lotion was resorted to, and alterative and purgative medicinesexhibited. On the 29th of December the discharge from the ear ceased;but, owing to the neglect of the servant, it soon broke out again, andthere was not only much excoriation under the ear, but, from the mattingof the hair, deep ulcers formed on either side, the edges of the woundwere ragged, and the skin was detached from the muscular parts beneath. Probes were introduced on each side, which passed down the neck andnearly met. The smell was intolerably offensive, and the dog was reducedalmost to a skeleton. I was, for the second time, sent for to see thecase. I immediately recommended that the animal should be destroyed; butthis was not permitted. I then ordered that it should daily be carefullywashed, and diluted tincture of myrrh be applied to the wounds. Theyshowed no disposition to heal, and the dog gradually sunk under thecontinued discharge and died. 

VIOLENT AFFECTION OF THE EAR. 

20th May, 1928. --A spaniel screamed violently, even when it was nottouched, and held its head permanently on one side, as if the muscleswere contracted. The glands beneath the ear were enlarged, but thebowels were regular; the nose was not hot; there was no cough. A warmbath was ordered, with aperient medicine. 

On the 22d she was no better. I examined the case more carefully. Theleft ear was exceedingly hot and tender: she would scarcely bear me totouch it. I continued the aperient medicine, and ordered a warm lotionto be applied, consisting of the liquor plumbi acetatis and infusion ofdigitalis. She improved from the first application of it, and in a fewdays was quite well. A fortnight afterwards the pain returned. Thelotion was employed, but not with the same success. A seton was thenapplied. She wore it only four days, when the pain completelydisappeared. 

I have an account in my records of the conduct of a coward, who, comingfrom such a breed, was not worthy of the trouble we took with him. Hewas a Newfoundland dog, two years old, with considerable enlargement, redness, and some discharge from both ears. He was sent to our hospitalfor treatment. When no one was near him, he shook his head and scratchedhis ears, and howled dreadfully. Many times in the course of the day hecried as if we were murdering him. We sent him home thoroughly well, andglad we were to get rid of him. 

CROPPING OF THE EARS. 

I had some doubt, whether I ought not to omit the mention of this cruelpractice. Mr. Blaine very properly says, that

 "it is one that does not honour the inventor, for nature gives nothing in vain. Beauty and utility appear in all when properly examined, but in unequal degrees. In some, beauty is pre-eminent; while, in others, utility appears to have been the principal consideration. That must, therefore, be a false taste, that has taught us to prefer a 'curtailed' organ to a perfect one, without gaining any convenience by the operation. " He adds, and it is my only excuse saying one word about the matter, that "custom being now fixed, directions are proper for its performance. "

The owner of the dog commences with maiming him while a puppy. He findsfault with the ears that nature has given him, and they are rounded orcut into various shapes, according to his whim or caprice. It is a crueloperation. A great deal of pain is inflicted by it, and it is often along time before the edge of the wound will heal: a fortnight or threeweeks at least will elapse ere the animal is free from pain. 

It has been pleaded, and I would be one of the last to oppose the plea, that the ears of many dogs are rounded on account of the ulcers whichattack and rend the conch; because animals with short ears defendthemselves most readily from the attacks of others: because, in theircombats with each other, they generally endeavour to lay hold of theneck or the ears; and, therefore, when their ears are shortened, theyhave considerable advantage over their adversary. There is some truth inthis plea; but, otherwise, the operation of cropping is dependent oncaprice or fashion. 

If the ears of dogs must be cropped, it should not be done too early. Four, five, or six weeks should first pass; otherwise, they will growagain, and the second cropping will not produce a good appearance. Thescissors are the proper instruments for accomplishing the removal of theear; the tearing of the cartilages out by main force is an act ofcruelty that none but a brute in human shape would practise; and, if heattempts it, it is ten to one that he does not obtain a good crop. Ifthe conch is torn out, there is nothing remaining to retain the skinround the auricular opening: it may be torn within the auditory canal, and as that is otherwise very extensible in the dog, it is prolongedabove the opening, which may then probably be closed by a cicatrix. Theanimal will in this case always remain deaf, at least in one ear. In themean time, the mucous membrane that lines the 'meatus auditorias'subsists, the secretion of the wax continues; it accumulates andacquires an irritating quality; the irritation which it causes producesan augmentation of the secretion, and soon the whole of the subcutaneouspassage becomes filled, and seems to assume the form of a cord; and itfinishes by the dog continuing to worry himself, shaking his head, andbecoming subject to fits. 

Mr. Blaine very naturally observes, that, "it is not a little surprisingthat this cruel custom is so frequently, or almost invariably, practisedon pug-dogs, whose ears, if left alone to nature, are particularlyhandsome and hang very gracefully. It is hardly to be conceived how thepug's head--which is not naturally beautiful except in the eye ofperverted taste--is improved by suffering his ears to remain. "

If the cropping is to be practised, the mother should have beenpreviously removed. It is quite erroneous, that her licking the woundededges will be serviceable. On the contrary, it only increases theirpain, and deprives the young ones of the best balsam that can beapplied--the blood that flows from their wounds. 

POLYPI IN THE EARS. 

Dr. Mercer, in The Veterinarian, of July, 1844, gives an interestingaccount of the production of polypi in the meatus of the ear. Heconsiders that there are two kinds of polypi--first, the soft, vascularand bleeding polypus, usually produced from the fibro-cartilaginousstructure of the outer half of the tube; and, secondly, the hard andcartilaginous polypus or excrescence produced from the lining membraneof its inner half. The first is termed the hæmatoid polypus, and theother the chondromatous. The dog suffering under either generally has adull, heavy, and rather watery eye. He moans or whines at intervals. Ifhis master is present he feels a relief in pressing and rubbing hisaching ear against him. At other times he presses and rubs his earagainst the ground, in order to obtain a slight relief, flapping hisears and shaking his head; the mouth being opened and the tongueprotruded, and the affected ear pointing to the ground. Then comes asudden, and often a profuse, discharge of fetid pus. The local dischargeof pus and blood becomes daily more and more fetid, and the poor animalbecomes an object of disgust. 

In the first variety of polypus, where it is practicable, the soft andvascular excrescence should be excised with a pair of scissors or asmall knife, or it may be noosed by a ligature of silk or of silverwire, or twisted off with a pair of forceps. Immediately after itsremoval, the base of the tumour should be carefully destroyed by thenitrate of silver, and this should be repeated as long as there is anyappearance of renewed growth. Any ulcer or carious condition of themeatus should be immediately removed. 

In order to protect the diseased parts, a soft cap should be used, andwithin the ear a little cotton wadding may defend the ear from injury. 

Dr. Mercer very properly remarks that, in the second or chondromatousvariety of polypus of the meatus, the treatment must depend upon theconcomitant circumstances. If the tumour is seated close to the membranatympani, and has a broad and sessile base, then it cannot be excised ornoosed with any degree of success. It must therefore be treated by thedaily application of the solid nitrate of silver, applied exactly to itssurface; and, in the intervals of application, the use of any collyriamay be had recourse to. If the substance of the growth be firm andsolid, and possess little sensibility, then a very speedy mode ofgetting rid of it is to divide its substance with a small knife; andafterwards, by applying the solid nitrate of silver, the tumour willsoon be sloughed away. 

The dog is liable to polypi in the nasal cavity, in the anus, and in thevagina, which it will not be out of place to mention here. 

The polypi of the nasal and of the anal cavities often show themselvesunder the form of rounded bodies, projecting from the nose or anus. Their size and consistence are variable--sometimes soft, tearing withthe greatest facility, and bleeding at the slightest touch; at othertimes, solid and covered with pituitary membrane. They are generally theresult of ulcerations, wounds, fractures, perforations of the turbinatedbones, sinuses, &c. These polypous productions obstruct the passage ofthe air, and more or less impede the breathing. They are best extirpatedby means of a ligature, or circular compression, on the pedicle of thepolypus, and tightened every second day. 

We may discover the presence of a tumour of this nature in one of thenasal passages, when, on putting our hand to the orifice of the nostril, there issues little or no air; or when we sound the nostril with thefinger or a probe, or examine it on a bright day. 

The methods of destroying polypi in the nasal cavity vary with thetexture, size, form, and position of these excrescences. Excision withthe bistoury, or with scissors, may be tried when the polypus is nearthe orifice of the nostril, and particularly when it is not large at thebase. Excision should be followed by cauterization with the red-hotiron, by which a portion of the base of the tumour is destroyed, andwhich could not be reached by a sharp instrument. To succeed in theseoperations, it is frequently necessary to cut through the false nostril. The edges of the wound may afterwards be united by a suture. 

The ligature, or circular compression, excised immediately on thepedicle of the polypus, by means of a wire or waxed string, and directedinto the nasal cavity by means of a proper instrument, may he tried whenthe polypus is deeply situated, and particularly when its base isnarrow. But, for this operation, which is difficult to perform, andwhich may be followed by a new polypous production, when the base is notperfectly destroyed, we may substitute the forcible detachment, especially when we have to act on vascular and soft excrescences. 

The Italian greyhound is strangely subject to these polypi in the matrixor vagina. The reason for it is difficult to explain. 

A bitch, ten years old, was brought to the author on the 20th December, 1843, with an oval substance, as large as a thrush's egg, occasionallyprotruding from the vagina. I advised that it should be removed by meansof a ligature; but the owner was afraid, and a fortnight was suffered topass before she was brought again. The tumour had rapidly increased; itwas as large as a pigeon's egg, considerably excoriated, and the pediclebeing almost as large as the tumour itself. The operation was nowconsented to. I passed a ligature as firmly round the pedicle and ashigh up as I could. The bitch scarcely seemed to suffer any pain. 

3d Jan. --The circulation is evidently cut off, and the tumour isassuming a thoroughly black hue, but it appears to cause noinconvenience to the dog. I tightened the ligature. 4th. The tumour isnow completely black, considerably protruded, and apparently destituteof feeling. I again tightened the ligature. 

5th. The tumour not appearing disposed to separate, and the uterusseeming to be drawn back by its weight, I cut off the tumour close tothe ligature. Not the slightest pain seemed to be given, and the tumourwas hard and black. There was, however, a very little oozing of bloodyfluid, which continuing to the 8th, I injected a slight solution of aluminto the vagina, and three days afterwards the discharge was perfectlystopped. 

[Although our author has given us several interesting and practicalpages upon the diseases of the ear and its appendages, it seems to usthat the arrangement of the matter is rather objectionable, and notsufficiently explicit to be easily comprehended by sportsmen, not beforefamiliar with the subject; we therefore add a concise resumé or epitomeof these troublesome affections, which we trust will be found ofpractical utility to the reader. 

SIMPLE OTORRHÆA, or running from the ear, produced by inflammation of the mucous membraneof the external auditory canal, is of frequent occurrence. The dogshould be purged with salts, and the ear washed with castile soap andtepid water. The following solution may be introduced several times aday:

[Symbol: Rx] Sulphate of zinc [Symbol: scruple] i. Water [Symbol: ounce] i. Mix. Or, [Symbol: Rx] Sugar of lead [Symbol: scruple] i. Water [Symbol: ounce] i. 

If the discharge be fetid, the following may be applied often:

[Symbol: Rx] Chloride of lime [Symbol: drachm] i. Water 1 pint. 

This affection in old dogs is very troublesome, and in most casesimpossible to cure. Alum, zinc, copper, lead, and other astringentapplications may be used in powder, as a local application in thesecases. A seton and blisters will also be serviceable. 

TUMORS OF THE FLAP. 

A tumour, particularly in old dogs, is often seen extending from the tipof the flap even to the base of the ear. It progresses slowly butsurely, if not interfered with in its career, and will become eventuallyenormously large and very painful. These tumours are most common in oldsetters, Newfoundlands, and hounds. 

Treatment'. --The tumour, at its commencement, may be discussed by theapplication of astringent washes, as warm vinegar, water, and laudanum, or sugar of lead. When, however, it has become more extensive, the onlyremedy is opening it through its whole extent, and pressing out itspurulent content. A poultice may then be applied, and tepid fomentationsused for several days. It is often extremely difficult to heal up theabscess, or arrest the fetid discharge that is constantly collecting: aseton placed in the poll, in connexion with washes of a stimulatingcharacter, will, however, effect a cure, if patiently persevered in. Either of the following will answer this purpose:

[Symbol: Rx] Chloride of lime [Symbol: drachm] i. Water [Symbol: ounce] vi. Mix. Or, [Symbol: Rx] Sulphate of zinc [Symbol: scruple] i. Water [Symbol: ounce] jii. Mix. 

We used on one occasion tincture of iodine with perfect successin an old and obstinate case. 

CANKER IN THE EAR. 

This is a rather indefinite term, as applied to the diseased ear of adog; in fact, any malignant corroding sore may be called a canker, nomatter where situated. Some writers describe, under the head of canker, a violent chronic otitis, attended by a purulent sanguinoid discharge. Others understand by canker a species of erysipelatous inflammation, that makes its appearance on the inside of the flap, and extends itselfto the interior of the ear. What we understand by canker, is an acuteinflammation of the lining membrane of the ear, destroying the tympanumor drum, and producing total deafness. The secretion is oftenconsiderable, and if not removed, will soon fill up the cavity of theear with a dark reddish deposit, which greatly increases the irritationand inflammation of the parts. Mr. Blaine states that he has seen thisdisease take a very malignant character, and extend its ravages over theface, destroying the soft parts, and even penetrating through the boneinto the interior of the head. 

'Causes'. --This disease may he excited by any of those causes thatproduce a general or local inflammatory action; exposure to cold, thepresence of malignant diseases on other portions of the body, highliving, heat, confinement, or extraneous substances lodged in the organitself. 

Water-dogs are most subject to this affection, owing, no doubt, to thefrequent afflux of blood to these parts, while the remainder of the bodyis immersed in the water. A tendency to this peculiar inflammation mayalso be produced in these animals by the action of the water upon thedelicate membranes of the ear, which occasions a violent shaking of thehead and beating of the flaps, which not unfrequently bruises themconsiderably. Dogs that seldom or never go into the water are not, however, by any means exempt from the disease; as we have often seen itdeveloped in terriers, mastiffs, and every species of mongrel. 

'Treatment'. --When the disease appears in its acute form, and withoutany apparent cause beyond luxurious living and confinement, bleeding, purging, low diet, and regular exercise, together with tepid andsoothing washes, will generally relieve the inflammatory action of theparts. The ear should be carefully and tenderly washed out with castilesoap, and a small quantity of the following solution poured into it twoor three times daily, and the ear worked about gently in the hand tosecure the percolation of the fluid through its structure. 

[Symbol: Rx] Goulard's extract [Symbol: ounce] sj. Water 1 pint. Mix. Or, [Symbol: Rx] Sugar of lead [Symbol: scruple] i. Water [Symbol: ounce] i. Mix. Or, [Symbol: Rx] Powdered alum [Symbol: scruple] i. Water [Symbol: ounce] i. Mix. 

The above mixtures should be warmed before using, otherwise the dog mayresist their introduction. 

When the disease from bad treatment or neglect has subsided into thechronic form, and ulceration and suppuration have commenced, it will benecessary to pursue a somewhat different treatment, and remain morepatient, awaiting the result. 

At this time the auditory passage is filled with a dark purulentsecretion, which forms a thick and irritating crust. 

This deposit should first be removed by washing with castile soap andtepid water, and the daily application of a hop poultice. If there bemuch inflammatory action of the parts, the dog may be bled, andalterative or purgative balls administered. The following wash must beused two or three times daily. 

[Symbol: Rx] Sugar of lead [Symbol: scruple] i. Laudanum gtt. --20 (drops. ) Water [Symbol: ounce] i. Mix. 

As the discharge is usually very offensive, the following solution willcorrect its fetor, and should be injected or poured in the ear. 

[Symbol: Rx] Chloride of lime [Symbol: drachm] i. Water [Symbol: ounce] vi. Mix. 

If granulations have sprung up, touch them with a camel's hair brush, dipped in the following mixture:

[Symbol: Rx] Sulphate of copper [Symbol: scruple] i. Water [Symbol: ounce] i. Mix. 

If, however, the excrescences continue to sprout from the cartilage, andthe discharge continues unabated and offensive, they may be excised andthe parts brushed over with nitrate of silver in substance. After thisoperation the flap often becomes extremely tender and much swollen;poultices of poppy-heads or hops will often afford much relief. 

Setons are of much value in the treatment of obstinate cases, and shouldbe placed in the poll, and kept open till a cure is effected, or thecase abandoned. 

All greasy applications to the parts should be discarded; the only onewe consider allowable would be a very nice preparation of fresh butter, alum, and laudanum, smeared over the surface of the ulcers when veryindolent and painful. 

The following wash will be found very soothing in the same case:

[Symbol: Rx] Opium gtt. 20. Gum arabic iss-- Lime water [Symbol: ounce] iv. 

If the disease has progressed far enough to destroy a considerableportion of the cartilages, and perforate the tympanum, more care isnecessary in using the above washes, as the fluid will enter theinternal ear through this opening, and cause much uneasiness to theanimal, if not fatal consequences. 

WOUNDS OF THE EAR. 

Wounds of the flap are often occasioned by the tearing of poisonousbriars, while hunting in close cover, or in conflict with other dogs. 

The former will generally heal up without much trouble, but the latter, when extensive, sometimes two or three inches in length, by requiringuniting by one or more sutures, to prevent deformity. 

WARTS. 

When these little excrescences appear on the external or internalportions of the flap, they may be taken off with the knife, and causticapplied to the wound, to induce them to heal, and keep down furthergranulations. 

CANKER OF THE EDGE OF THE FLAP. 

When a corroding sore of this nature attacks the edges of the ear, andrefuses to yield to the application of a few stimulating washes, such assulphate of copper, alum, borax, nitrate of silver, &c. , the diseasededges may be paired off, and the actual cautery applied to the parts. This will frequently arrest its further progress. 

POLYPUS OF THE EAR

Polypi often spring up from the interior of the ear; they may be cut offwith the scissors, or by the application of a fine wire, or horse-hairligature. The wound should be touched with caustic, tincture of iodine, or the actual cautery. 

DISEASES OF THE EAR--MANGY EDGES

This affection generally accompanies the same disease in other portionsof the body, but may occasionally make its appearance independent ofthis cause. The edges of the flap become rough, thickened, and furrowed, the itching intolerable; and the dog perpetually shaking and scratchingthe head, occasions a constant oozing of blood from the wound. Smooth-baited dogs are most subject to this disease, such as pointers, hounds, and terriers. 

'Treatment'--Slightly stimulating washes, such as castile soap, alum-water, or infusion of oak-bark, will, in the majority of cases, induce these sores to heal up. If these do not answer, it will benecessary to use the mange ointment, keeping the animal hobbled toprevent him from scratching. Old inveterate cases are best cured bytrimming off the affected parts. --L. ]

CHAPTER X--ANATOMY AND DISEASES OF THE NOSE AND MOUTH ETC. 

THE ETHMOID BONES. 

There is some difficulty in describing the ethmoid bones; but we shallnot, however, deviate far from the truth if we give the followingaccount:

A great number of small hollow pedicles proceed from and form around thecribriform plate; as they move downwards, they project into distinctvesicles or cavities, smaller and more numerous behind, fewer in numberand larger in front; and each of them not a simple cavity, but more orless convoluted, while the long walls of those cells are of gossamerthinness, and as porous as gauze. They even communicate, and are lined, and externally wrapped together, by the same membrane; the wholeassuming a pear-like form, attached by its base or greater extremity, and decreasing in size as it proceeds downwards; the cells becomingfewer, and terminating at length in a kind of apex, which passes underthe superior turbinated bone, and forms a valve between the nasal cavityand the maxillary sinuses. If to this is added, that the olfactory orfirst pair of nerves abut on these cribriform plates, and pass throughtheir minute openings, and spread themselves over every one of thesecells, we have a tolerably correct picture of this portion of theethmoid bones. This nerve has different degrees of development indifferent animals, in proportion to their acuteness of smell. There iscomparatively but little necessity for acuteness in the horse. The oxhas occasion for somewhat more, especially in the early part of thespring, when the plants are young, and have not acquired their peculiarscent. In the sheep it is larger, and fills the superior portion of thenasal cavity; but in the dog it seems to occupy that cavity almost tothe exclusion of the turbinated bones. It is also much more fragile inthe dog than in the ox, and the plates have a considerably thinnerstructure. 

The ethmoid bone of the horse or the ox may be removed from itssituation with little injury; but that of the dog can scarcely bemeddled with without fracture. Below it are the two turbinated bones;but they are reduced to insignificance by the bulk of the ethmoid bone. The inferior turbinated bone in the dog is very small, but it iscuriously complicated. 

The 'meatus' contains three distinct channels; and the air, loitering, as it were, in it, and being longer in contact with the sensitivemembrane by which it is lined, contributes to the acuter sense of smell. The larger cavity is along the floor of the nasal duct. It is the properair-passage; and because it has this important function to discharge, itis out of the way of violence or injury. 

The 'lachrymal duct' is the channel through which the superfluous tearsare conveyed to the lower parts of the nostril. A long canal herecommences, and runs down and along the maxillary bone. It is very small, and terminates in the cuticle, in order that the highly sensitivemembrane of the nose may not be excoriated by the tears occasionallyrendered acrimonious in inflammation of the eye. The oval termination ofthis duct is easily brought into view by lifting the nostril. 

From some occasional acrimony of the tears, the lining of this duct maybe inflamed and thickened, or some foreign body, or some unctuous matterfrom the ciliary glands, may insinuate itself into the duct, and thefluid accumulates in the sac and distends it, and it bursts; or theulcer eats through the integument, and there is a small fistulousopening beneath the inner canthus of the eye, or there is a constantdischarge from it. It is this constant discharge that prevents the woundfrom healing. In some cases the lachrymal bone is involved in theulcerative process and becomes carious. In the dog, and particularly inthe smaller spaniel, the watery eye, 'fistula lachrymalis', is of nounusual occurrence. The fistula will be recognised by a constant, although perhaps slight, discharge of pus. 

The structure and office of the 'velum palati', or veil of the palate, is in the horse a perfect interposed section between the cavity of themouth and the nose, and cutting off all communication between them. Inthe dog, who breathes almost entirely through the mouth, the velumpalati is smaller; the tensor muscle, so beautifully described by Mr. Percivall, is weak, but the circumflex one is stronger and moredeveloped. When 'coryza' in the dog runs on to catarrh, and the membraneof the pharynx partakes of the inflammation, the velum palati becomesinflamed and thickened, but will not act as a perfect communicationbetween the mouth and the nose. When there is a defluxion from the nose, tinged by the colour of the food, and particles of food mingle with it, we have one of the worst symptoms that can present itself, because itproves the extent and violence of the inflammation. 

In inflammatory affections of the membrane of the nose in the dog, weoften observe him snorting in a very peculiar way, with his headprotruding, and the inspiration as forcible as the expiration. An emeticwill usually afford relief, or grain doses of the sulphate of copper. 

THE NASAL BONES. 

The nasal bones of the dog (see fig. 2, in the head of the dog, page181) are very small, as they are in all carnivorous animals. Instead ofconstituting the roof, and part of the outer wall of the cavity, as inother animals, the nasal bones form only a portion, and a small one, ofthe roof. 

The 'superior maxillaries' here swell into importance, and constitutethe whole of the outer wall, and, sometimes, a part of the roof. Thejaws are the weapons of offence and defence; and as much space aspossible is devoted to the insertion of those muscles that will enablethe animal to seize and to hold his prey. One of the most powerful ofthem, the 'masseter', rises from the superior maxillary bone, andspreads over its whole extent: therefore, that bone is developed, whilethe nasal bone is compressed into a very small space. The substitutionof a portion of cartilage, instead of bone, at the posterior part of theorbital ring, in order to give more play for the coracoid process of theposterior maxillary, round which the temporal bone is wrapped, is acontrivance of the same nature. 

The scent of the dog is not sacrificed or impaired by the apparentdiminution of the nasals; for the cavity enlarges considerably upward, and is occupied chiefly by the 'ethmoid bone', which, having the greaterportion of nervous pulp spread on it, seems to have most to do with thesense of smell. 

The nasal bones of the dog are essentially different from those of thehorse, cattle, and sheep. They commence, indeed, as high up in the faceas those of the horse, their superior extremities being opposite to thelachrymal gland; but that commencement is an apex or point varyingmaterially in different breeds. They form, altogether, one sharpprojection, and are received within breeds these processes extend nearlyone-third of the length of the nasals. 

The superior maxillary (3. 3. ) takes the situation of the nasal (2. ), pushes the lachrymal bone (4. ) out of its place, and almost annihilatesit, reaches the frontal bone (7. ) and expands upon it, and forms with itthe same denticulated suture which is to be seen in the nasal. Theaction of the muscle between these bones, and for the development ofwhich all this sacrifice is made, is exceedingly powerful. The strengthof this muscle in a large dog is almost incredible: the sutures betweenthese bones must possess corresponding strength; and so strong is theunion between them, that, in many old dogs, the suture between thesuperior maxillary and frontal bones is nearly obliterated, and thatbetween the nasal and frontal maxillary quite effaced. 

As the nasal bones proceed downward they become somewhat wider. Theyunite with a long process of the anterior maxillary for the purpose ofstrength, and then terminate in a singular way. They have their apexesor points on the outer edge of the bone; and these apexes or points areso contrived, that, lying upon, and seemingly losing themselves, on theprocesses of the anterior maxillary, they complete, superiorly andposteriorly, that elliptical bony opening into the nose which wascommenced by the maxillary anteriorly and inferiorly. The nasal cavityof the dog, therefore, and of all carnivorous animals, terminates by asomewhat circular opening, more or less in the form of an ellipse. Thisbony aperture varies in size in different dogs, and, as we should expectfrom what we have seen of the adaptation of structure to the situationand wants of the animal, it is largest in those on whom we are mostdependent for speed and stoutness. 

The 'olfactory', or first pair of nerves, have a double origin, namely, from the 'corpus striatum' and the base of the 'corpus callosum'. Theyare prolongations of the medullary substance of the central portion ofthe brain. They are the largest of the cerebral nerves. Their course isexceedingly short; and they have not a single anastomosis, in order thatthe impression made on them may be conveyed undisturbed and perfect tothe brain. 

The olfactory nerve is a prolongation of the substance of the brain, andit abuts upon the cribriform bone, of which mention has been made. Iwill not speak of the singular cavities which it contains, nor of theirfunction; this belongs to the sensorial system: but its pulpy matter hasalready been traced to the base of the ethmoid bone, and the under partof the septum, and the superior turbinated bone. Although we soon loseit in the mucous membrane of the nose, there is little doubt that in amore filmy form it is spread over the whole of the cavity, and probablyover all the sinuses of the face and head. It is, however, so mingledwith the mucous membrane, that no power of the lens has enabled us tofollow it so far. It is like the 'portio mollis of the seventh pair, eluding the eye, but existing in sufficient substances for theperformance of its important functions. 

We have frequent cases of 'Ozæna' in old dogs, and sometimes in thosethat are younger. The discharge from the nostril is abundant andconstant, and sometimes fetid. The Schneiderian membrane, of more thanusual sensibility in this animal, is exposed to many causes ofirritation, and debilitated and worn out before its time. Pugs areparticularly subject to Ozæna. I scarcely ever knew a very old pug thathad it not to a greater or less degree. The peculiar depression betweenthe nasal and frontal bones in this breed of dogs, while it almosttotally obliterates the frontal sinuses, may narrow the air-passage atthat spot, and cause greater irritation there from the unusual rush ofthe air, and especially if the membrane becomes inflamed or any foreignbody insinuates itself. 

Little can be done in these cases, except to encourage cleanliness aboutthe face and nostrils. It is, in the majority of these cases, a diseaseof old age, and must take its course. 

A terrier uttered a continual loud stertorous sound in breathing, whichcould be plainly heard in our parlour when the dog was in the hospital. The animal was evidently much oppressed and in considerable pain. Hemade continual, and generally ineffectual, efforts to sneeze. When hedid succeed, a very small quantity of pus-like fluid was discharged; thedog was then considerably relieved, but a quarter of an hour afterwardshe was as bad as ever. I ordered a slight emetic every third day. Therewas some relief for seven or eight hours, and then he was as bad asever. I could neither feel nor see any cause of obstruction. The ownerbecame tired, and the dog was taken away; but we could not learn whatbecame of it. 

Another terrier was occasionally brought for consultation. The dogbreathed with considerable difficulty, and occasionally snorted with thegreatest violence, and bloody purulent matter was discharged; afterwhich he was somewhat relieved; but, in the course of a few days, theobstruction was as great as ever. I am not aware of a single instancesof this affection of the pug being completely removed. The dischargefrom the nostrils of the bull-dog is often considerable, and, once beingthoroughly established, is almost as obstinate as in the pug. 

OZÆNA. 

Ozæna, or fetid discharge from the nose, is, perhaps, the mosttroublesome and frequent affection that this organ is subject to; it isattended, at first, with slight fever, swelling of the parts, and afetid discharge from the nostrils, which, if not corrected in the earlystage of the disease, subsides into a chronic purulent secretion, thatnot only weakens the dog, but renders him peculiarly offensive. Cariesand destruction of the bones of the nose will ultimately take place. 

'Causes'. --Inflammation of the lining membrane of the nose, eitheridiopathic, or arising from distemper, or other morbid disturbance ofthe system. It may also be a symptom, or the produce, of polypi in thisorgan. 

'Treatment'. --In commencing the treatment of this disease, it will benecessary first to prescribe some alterative medicines, as balls ofaloes and rhubarb, and protect the animal from all severe atmosphericalvicissitudes. This precaution, in connexion with mild astringentinjections into the seat of the disorder, will generally effect a cure. 

'Injections for Ozæna'. 

No. 1. [Symbol: Rx] Sulphate of Zinc. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Grs. V to x. Water. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . [Symbol: ounce] i. Mix. 

No. 2. [Symbol: Rx] Alum. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . [Symbol: scruple] ii. Water. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . [Symbol: ounce] i. Mix

No. 3. [Symbol: Rx] Chloride of Soda. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Grs. V. To x. Water. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . [Symbol: ounce] i. Mix. 

No. 4. [Symbol: Rx] Teneriffe, Madeira or Sherry wine. . [Symbol: ounce] i. Extract of Tannin. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Grs. Iv. Mix. 

[Any of the above injections will answer a good purpose. No. 3 isparticularly useful to correct the fetidness of the discharge. When thedisease is an old chronic affection, it should not be arrested toosuddenly by astringent injections; in such cases it will be better toinsert a seton in the poll, and thus keep up a drain from the systemafter the suppression of the other. --L. ]

THE SENSE OF SMELL. 

In the dog we trace the triumph of 'olfactory power'. How indistinctmust be that scent which is communicated to, and lingers on, the groundby the momentary contact of the foot of the hare, the fox, or the deer;yet the hound, of various breeds, recognises it for hours, and somesportsmen have said for more than a day. He also can not onlydistinguish the scent of one species of animal from another, but that ofdifferent animals of the same species. The fox-hound, well broken-in, will rarely challenge at the scent of the hare, nor will he be imposedupon when the crafty animal that he pursues has taken refuge in theearth, and thrusts out a new victim before the pack. 

The sense of smelling is, to a certain degree, acute in all dogs. It isa provision wisely and kindly made, in order to guide them to theirproper food, or to fit them for our service. It may possibly be themedium through which much evil is communicated. Certain particles of adeleterious nature may be, and doubtless are, arrested by the mucousmembrane of the nose, and there absorbed, and the constitution, to aconsiderable degree, becomes affected. Hence appears the necessity forattention to ventilation, and especially to prevent the membrane of thenose from being habitually stimulated and debilitated by the effluviagenerated in a close and hot kennel. 

M. Majendie instituted some curious experiments on the sense ofsmelling, and he was led to believe that it depended more on the fifthpair of nerves than on the olfactory nerve. He divided the fifth pair, and from that moment no odour, no puncture, produced the slightestapparent impression on the membrane of the nose. In another dog hedestroyed the two olfactory nerves, and placed some strong odoursbeneath the nostrils of the animal. The dog conducted himself as hewould have done in his ordinary state. Hence he concluded it probablethat the olfactory nerve was not that of smelling. 

The simple fact, however, is, that there are two species of nerves hereconcerned--those of common and of peculiar sensation. The olfactorynerve is the nerve of smelling, the fifth pair is that of commonsensation. They are to a certain degree necessary to each other. 

'Scent'. --This leads us to the consideration of the term "scent. " Itexpresses the odour or effluvium which is constantly issuing from everyanimal, and especially when that animal is in more than usual exercise. In a state of heat or excitement, the pores of the skin appear relaxed, and a fluid or aqueous vapour is secreted, which escapes in small orlarge quantities, adheres to the persona or substances on which itfalls, and is, particularly, received on the olfactory organs. Thehound, at almost the earliest period, begins to comprehend the workwhich he has to perform. The peculiar scent which his nostrils imbibeurges him eagerly to pursue but the moment he ceases to be conscious ofthe presence of the effluvium, he is at a perfect loss. 

Mr. Daniel, in his work on the Chase, very properly observes, that "thescent most favourable to the hound is when the effluvium, constantlyperspired from the game as it runs, is kept by the gravity of the air atthe height of his breast. It is then neither above his reach nor does heneed to stoop for it. This is what is meant when the scent is said to bebreast-high. "

When the leaves begin to fall, the scent does not lie well in the cover. It frequently alters materially in the same day. This dependsprincipally on the condition of the ground and the temperature of theair, which should be moist but not wet. When the ground is hard and theair dry, there will seldom be much scent. The scent rarely lies with anorth or east wind. A southerly wind without rain is the best. Suddenstorms are sure to destroy the scent. A fine sunshiny day is not good;but a warm day without sun is always a good one. If, as the morningadvances, the drops begin to hang on the bushes, the scent will not lie. During a white frost the scent lies high, and also when the frost isquite gone; but at the time of its going off the scent never lies. In ahard rain, if the air is mild, the scent will sometimes be very good. Awet night often produces the best chases. In heathy countries, where thegame brushes the grass or the boughs as it goes along, the scent seldomfails. It lies best on the richest soils; but the countries that arefavourable to horses are not always so to hounds. The morning usuallyaffords the best scent, and the game is then least able to escape. Thewant of rest, added perhaps to a full belly, gives the hounds a decidedsuperiority over an early-found fox; and the condition of the ground andthe temperature of the air are circumstances of much importance. 

Such are the results of the best observations on scent; but, after all, we have much to learn concerning it. Many a day that predicated to be agood one for scent has turned out a very bad one, and 'vice versa'. Anold or experienced sportsman, knowing this, will never presume to makesure of his scent. 

We shall be forgiven if we pursue this subject a little at length. 

There is not only a constant appropriation of new matter to repair thelosses that animals are continually sustaining, but there is a constantelaboration of gaseous or fluid matter maintaining the balance of thedifferent systems, and essential to the continuance of life. Thiseffluvium, as the animal moves from place to place, is attracted anddetained for a while by the substances with which it comes into contact, or it remains floating in the atmosphere. 

There is a peculiar smell or scent belonging to each individual, eithergenerally or under peculiar circumstances. 

The sportsman takes advantage of this; and, as most species of dogspossess great acuteness of olfactory power, they can distinguish, orare readily taught to distinguish, not only the scent of the hare fromthat of the fox, but that of the hare or fox which they are pursuingfrom that of half a dozen others that may be started during the chase. 

The dogs that are selected for this purpose are those the conformationof whose face and head gives ample room for the development of theolfactory apparatus, and these are the different species of hounds; buta systematic education, and too often a great deal of unnecessarycruelty, is resorted to, in order to make them perfect in their work. The distinction between the scent of the fox and that of the hare issoon learned by the respective packs; and, when it is considered thatthe hunted hare is perspiring at every pore, and her strength beingalmost exhausted, she is straining every limb to escape from herpursuers, the increasing quantity of vapour which exudes from her willprevent every other newly started animal from being mistaken for her. 

It has been well observed that when the atmosphere is loaded withmoisture, and rain is at hand, the gas is speedily dissolved and mingleswith the surrounding air. A storm dissipates it at once, while thecessation of the rain is preceded by the return and increased power ofscent. A cold, dry easterly wind condenses and absorbs it, and this iseven more speedily and irretrievably done by superabundant moisture. Onfallows and beaten roads the scent rarely lies well, for there isnothing to detain it, and it is swept away in a moment; while over aluxuriant pasture, or by the hedge-row, or on the coppice, it lingers, clinging to the grass or the bushes. In a sunshiny day the scent isseldom strong; for too much of it is evaporated by the heat. The mostfavourable period is a soft southerly wind without rain, the scent beingof the same temperature and gravity with the atmosphere. Although itspreads over the level, it rises not far above the ground, and, being'breast high', enables the hound, keeping his muzzle in the midst of it, to run at his greatest speed. The different manners or attitudes inwhich the dog runs afford pleasing and satisfactory illustrations of thenature of the scent. Sometimes they will be seen galloping with theirnoses in the air, as if their game had flown away, and, an hour or twoafterwards, every one of them will have his muzzle on the ground. Thespecific gravity of the atmosphere has changed, and the scent has risenof fallen in proportion. 

A westerly wind stands next to a southerly one, for a hunting morning. This is all simple enough, and needs not the mystification with which ithas been surrounded. A valuable account of this may be found inJohnson's Shooting Companion, a work that is justly and highly approved. 

Mr. Delmé Radcliffe has also, in his splendid work on "the noblescience, " some interesting remarks on the scent of hounds. He says thatthere is an idiosyncracy, a peculiarity, in their several dispositions. Some young hounds seem to enter on their work instinctively. From theirfirst to their last appearance in the field they do no wrong. Others, equally good, will take no notice of anything; they will not stoop toany scent during the first season, and are still slack at entering evenat the second; but are ultimately distinguished at the head of the pack;and such usually last some seasons longer than the more precocious ofthe same litter. 

THE TONGUE. 

The manner of drinking is different in the different animals. The horse, the ox, and the sheep do not plunge their muzzles into the water, butbring their lips into contact with it and sip it gradually. The dog, whose tongue is longer, plunges it a little way into the fluid, and, curving its tip and its edges, laps, in the language of Johnson, with a"quick reciprocation of the tongue. " The horse sucks the water that isplaced before him, the dog laps it; and both of them are subject toinflammation of the tongue, to enlargement of that organ, and to aconsiderable or constant flow of saliva over it. 

Extending from the base to the tip of the tongue there is on either sidea succession of tendons, which help to retain the tongue in the mouth, and to curve the edge of it, so as to convey the food or the water tothe posterior part of the mouth. These all spring from one central cord, and ramify over the membrane of the tongue. On opening the mouth, andkeeping it open by means of two pieces of tape, one behind the uppercanine teeth, and the other behind the lower ones, and drawing thetongue from the mouth and exposing its under surface, a cuticular foldor ridge will present itself, occupying a middle line from the base ofthe tongue to its very point. If this is opened with a lancet, a minutefibrous cord will be exposed through its whole extent. It is the cordwhich governs the motions of the tongue. 

This cord is, sometimes, foolishly and uselessly detached from itsadhesions, so far as we can effect it, and drawn forward with atenaculum and divided. There is one abominable course pursued ineffecting this. The violence used in stripping down the tendon is sogreat, and the lacerated fibrous substance is put so much on the stress, and its natural elasticity is so considerable, that it recoils andassumes the appearance of a dying worm, and the dog is said to have beenwormed. For the sake of humanity, as well as to avoid the charge ofignorance, it is to be hoped that this practice will speedily cease. 

THE BLAIN. 

The blain is a vesicular enlargement on the lateral and under part ofthe tongue in horses, oxen, and dogs, which, although not of unfrequentoccurrence, or peculiarly fatal result, has not been sufficientlynoticed by veterinary authors. In the horse and the dog it is oftenunaccompanied by any previous indisposition, or by other disease; butsuddenly there is a copious discharge of saliva, at first limpid andwithout smell, but soon becoming purulent, bloody, and exceedinglyfetid. On examination, the tongue is found apparently enlarged. It iselevated from its base between the maxillary bones, and on the side andtowards the base of it are seen large vesicles, pellucid, red, livid, orpurple; and, if the discharge is fetid, having near their bases ulcers, irregular, unhealthy, and gangrenous. 

In the horse and the dog the progress of the disease is slow, and seldomextends beyond the sides of the tongue. The vesicles are not of suchmagnitude as to interfere with respiration, and the ulcers are neithermany nor foul. 

In cattle it is sadly different. The vesicles attain an enormous size. They quickly break and form deep ulcerations, which are immediatelysucceeded by other vesicles still larger. The whole membrane of themouth becomes affected; the inflammation and swelling extend to thecellular substance of the neighbouring parts, and the head and neck areconsiderably, and sometimes enormously, enlarged; the respiratorypassages are obstructed; the animal breathes with the greatestdifficulty, and is, in some cases, literally suffocated. 

The primary seat of blain, is the cellular substance beneath theintegument of the part. As the sublingual glands stretch along the underpart of the tongue, and their ducts open on the side of the frænum, itis possible that this disease may proceed from, or be connected with, obstruction or inflammation of these ducts. Dissection, however, has notproved this; and the seat of the disease, when the swellings are firstdiscovered, is chiefly the cellular tissue between the integument andthe lateral parts of the tongue, and also that between the membrane ofthe mouth and the sublingual glands. 

'Post-mortem' examination shows intense disease: the small intestinesare highly inflamed with red and black patches, which are also found inthe cŸcum, colon, and rectum. 

The blain is more frequent in spring and summer than at other seasons ofthe year. These are the times when the animal is debilitated by theprocess of moulting, and is then more than usually disposed toinflammatory complaints. It is usually an epidemic disease. Many casesof it occur about the same time in certain districts, and over a greatextent of country. When it appears in towns, the country is rarelyexempt from it. I am not prepared lo say that it is contagious either inthe horse or the dog. I have not seen any instance of it. At all events, it is not so virulent in these animals as it is in cattle. 

The vesicles should be freely lanced from end to end. There will not, perhaps, be much immediate discharge; for the vesicle will be distendedby a substance imperfectly organised, or of such a glassy or inspissatednature as not readily to escape. It will, however, soon disappear; andin four-and-twenty hours, in the majority of cases, the only vestige ofthe disease will be an incision, not, perhaps, looking very healthy, butthat will soon become so and heal. If there have been any previousulcerations, or the slightest fetor, the mouth should he frequentlywashed with a diluted solution of the chloride of lime; one part of thesaturated solution, and eleven of water. This will act as a powerful anduseful stimulus to the foul and indolent ulcer. When all unpleasantsmell is removed, the mouth should be bathed with a lotion composed ofequal parts of tincture of myrrh and water, or half an ounce of alumdissolved in a quart of water, and two ounces of the tincture of catechuadded to the solution. I do not recollect a case in the horse or dog, inwhich these medicines were not employed with advantage. In cattle, before there has been fetor attending the discharge, or the constitutionhas been materially affected, these simple means will perfectly succeed. 

If the practitioner is consulted somewhat too late, when theconstitution has become affected, and typhoid fever has ensued, heshould still lance the tumours, and apply the chloride of lime and thetincture of myrrh, and give a gentle aperient. He should endeavour torouse and support the system by tonic medicines, as gentian and colombawith ginger, adding to two drachms of the first two, and one drachm ofthe last, half an ounce of nitre; but he should place most dependence onnourishing food. Until the mouth is tolerably sound, it is probable thatthe animal will not be induced to eat; but it will occasionally sip alittle fluid, and, therefore, gruel should be always within its reach. More should occasionally be given, as thick as it will flow, with aspoon or small horn. 

[INFLAMMATION OF THE TONGUE. 

Glossitis or inflammation of the tongue is not an unfrequent disease, but is occasionally met with in its simple form or in connexion withinflammatory affections of the throat. Under all and any circumstancesthis affection must be considered a dangerous malady, as it notunfrequently proves fatal in the course of a few hours from suffocation, occasioned by the swelling of the organ itself and other portions of thethroat. The disease comes on suddenly with fever, heat, swelling andredness of the tongue. The tongue protrudes from the mouth and exhibitsa dry, hot, inflammatory appearance, the respiration is hurried, and theanimal expresses great uneasiness, and constant desire to lap water, which he can with difficulty accomplish. If not arrested, theinflammation may terminate in suppuration, by which process the swellingis relieved, and a cure often effected. 

'Causes'. --Independent of the natural agents before referred to in theproduction of inflammatory affections, there are some few causes towhich we can especially attribute this disease. Direct injuries done tothe member itself, either by wounds or stings of insects, the taking ofpoisonous or irritating substances into the mouth, want of water whilehunting in hot weather, &c. 

Several years ago we witnessed the death of a very valuable pointer, suffering from this disease produced by poison maliciously administered. He was affected so suddenly and violently with inflammation of thethroat and tongue that his owner, Mr. F--, was lead to believe that abone had lodged in the throat, which was the occasion of all thetrouble. After proper examination and considerable delay, he was forcedto abandon this erroneous idea, but not in time to save the poor animal, who soon died from strangulation or congestion of the lungs. Thisvaluable dog might have been saved if promptly and energetically treated. 

The stings of wasps or bees may also produce this affection. 

'Treatment'. --Nothing can be done with this malady without the use ofthe lancet, by which six or eight ounces of blood should be drawn at thecommencement of the disease. If the tongue is much swollen and verytender, longitudinal incisions should be made in it, extending as farback as possible, and their bleeding assisted by sponging the mouth outwith tepid water. Astringent applications may then be used as washes, such as alum water, strong vinegar, infusions of oak bark or solutionsof nitrate of silver, four or six grains to the ounce, to be appliedonce or twice a day. A large blister may also be placed under thethroat, and when the inflammation is sufficiently reduced to allow theintroduction of articles into the stomach, a powerful purge of aloesshould be given. Nothing, however, can be done without copiousbleeding. --L. ]

THE LIPS

of the dog discharge, with somewhat less efficiency, the same office asin the horse, cattle, and sheep; and are usefully employed in gatheringtogether the food, and conveying it to the mouth. The lips also secretethe saliva, a fluid that is indispensably necessary for the propercomminution of the food. 

Swellings on the inside of the cheek or upper lip, and extending nearlyto the angle of the lip, are of frequent occurrence. A superficial sorespreads over it, slightly covered by a yellowish, mattery pellicle; andon the teeth, and extending down the gums, there is a deposition ofhardened tartarous matter, which is scaled off with a greater or lessdegree of difficulty. It must be removed, or the sore will rapidlyspread over the cheek. A lotion of equal parts of tincture of myrrh andwater, with a few drops of the tincture of cantharides, will be usuallysufficient to cause the swelling to subside, and the pellicle to bedetached. The lip, however, will generally remain slightly thickened. Alittle soreness will sometimes return, but be easily reduced. 

THE TEETH

next claim attention. 

According to the dentition of the dog by M. Girard and Linnæus, thefollowing is the acknowledged formula:

Incisors, 5/6; Canines, (1-1)/(1-1); Molars, (6-6)/(7-7), =42. 

The following cuts exhibit the front teeth of the dog in variousstages of growth and decay:

[Seven illustrations, shown in full in the html version of this text. ]

The full-grown dog has usually 20 teeth in the upper, and 22 in thelower jaw, with two small supernumerary molars. All of them, with theexception of the tushes, are provided with a bony neck covered by thegums, and separating the body of the tooth from the root. The projectingportion of the teeth is more or less pointed, and disposed so as to tearand crush the food on which the dog lives. They are of a moderate sizewhen compared with those of other animals, and are subject to littleloss of substance compared with the teeth of the horse. In most of them, however, there is some alteration of form and substance, both in theincisors and the tushes; but this depends so much on the kind of food onwhich the animal lives, and the consequent use of the teeth, that theindication of the age, by the altered appearance of the mouth, is not tobe depended upon after the animal is four or five years old. The incisorteeth are six in number in each jaw, and are placed opposite to eachother. In the lower jaw, the pincers, or central teeth, are the largestand the strongest; the middle teeth are somewhat less; and the cornerteeth the smallest and the weakest. In the upper jaw, however, thecorner teeth are much larger than the middle ones; they are fartherapart from their neighbours, and they terminate in a conical pointcurved somewhat inwards and backwards. 

As long as the teeth of the full-grown dog are whole, and not injured byuse, they have a healthy appearance, and their colour is beautifullywhite. The surface of the incisors presents, as in the ruminants, aninterior and cutting edge, and a hollow or depression within. This edgeor border is divided into three lobes, the largest and most projectingforming the summit or point of the tooth. The two lateral lobes have theappearance of notches cut on either side of the principal lobe; and theunion of the three resembles the 'fleur de lis', which, however, is inthe process of time effaced by the wearing out of the teeth. (Figs. 3and 4. )

While the incisor teeth are young, they are flattened on their sides, and bent somewhat backwards, and there is a decided cavity, in which apulpy substance is enclosed. This, however, is gradually contracted asthe age of the dog increases. 

M. F. Cuvier speaks of certain supernumerary teeth occasionallydeveloped in each of the jaws. There is much irregularity accompanyingthem; and they have even been supposed to have extended to seven oreight in number. 

THE INDICATIONS OF AGE. 

The dog displays natural indications of age. The hair turns gray to acertain extent as in the human being. This commences about the eyes, andextends over the face, and weakens the sight; and, at ten years old, orearlier, in the majority of dogs, this can scarcely be mistaken. Atfifteen or sixteen years the animal is becoming a nuisance, yet he hasbeen known to linger on until he has reached his two-and-twentieth year. 

Among the diseases from which the dog suffers, there are few of morefrequent occurrence than decayed teeth, especially in towns, or in thehabitations of the higher classes of society: the carious teeth, inalmost every case, becoming insufferably fetid, or so loose as toprevent mastication; or an immense accumulation of tartar growing roundthem. 

The course which the veterinary surgeon pursues is an exceedingly simpleone. If any of the teeth are considerably loose, they must be removed. If there is any deposit of tartaric acid, it must be got rid of by meansof the proper instruments, not very different from those which the humansurgeon employs. The teeth must be perfectly cleaned, and every looseone taken away. Without this the dog will be an almost insufferablenuisance. The decayed and loose teeth being removed, chlorinated limediluted with 15 or 20 times its bulk of water should be applied to thegums. By the use of this the ulcers will quickly heal; the fetor will beremoved, and the deposition of the tartar prevented. Mr. Blaine firstintroduced the chlorinated lime for the accomplishment of thesepurposes. 

Two little histories out of a great number will sufficiently illustratethese cases. A terrier had scarcely eaten during more than a week. Hedropped his meat after attempting to chew it, and the breath was veryoffensive. Several of the teeth were loose, and the rest were thicklyencrusted with tartar. The gums had receded from the teeth, and werered, sore, and ulcerated. 

I removed all the loose teeth; for experience had taught me that theyrarely or never became again fixed. I next, with the forceps and knife, cleaned the others, and ordered the diluted chlorinated lime to bealternated with tincture of myrrh and water. The extraction of the looseteeth, and the removal of the tartar from those that were sound, occupied a full hour; for the dog resisted with all his might. He, however, soon began to eat; the lotions were continued; and five monthsafterwards, the mouth of the dog was not in the slightest degreeoffensive. 

An old dog should not be quite abandoned. A pug had only four teethremaining beside the canines. They were all thickly covered with tartar, and two of them were very loose. The gums and lips were in a dreadfullycankerous state, and the dog was unable to eat. All that he could do wasto lap a little milk or broth. 

I extracted the two loose teeth, cleaned the others, and ordered alotion of equal parts of tincture of myrrh and water to be applied. 

'13th August', 1842. --A very considerable discharge of pus was observed, with blood from the mouth, apparently proceeding from the cavity whenceone of the teeth had been extracted. The dog is exceedingly thirsty, andwalks round and round the water-dish, but is afraid to lap. He has noteaten for two days. Use the lotion as before, and force him with strongsoup. 

'15th. ' The dog has not voluntarily eaten, but is still forced withsoup. He is very costive. Give two grains of calomel and an equalquantity of antimonial powder. 

'18th. ' He has eaten a very little, but gets thinner and weaker. Continue the lotion. 

'27th. ' The ulcers are nearly healed, and the discharge of pus hasceased. 

'31st. ' The mouth is clean, the gums are healed, and there is no longeranything offensive about the dog. 

THE LARYNX

is placed at the top of the windpipe, the exit from the lungs, and isalso connected with the Schneiderian membrane. At its upper part is theepiglottis, the main guard against the passage of the food into therespiratory tubes, and, at the same time, of the instrument of thevoice. It consists of five cartilages united together by a ligamentoussubstance, and, by distinct and perfect articulations, adapting itselfto every change of the respiratory process and the production of thevoice. 

At the base is the 'cricoid cartilage, ' the support and bond of union ofthe rest. Above are the 'arytenoid cartilages, ' resting on the 'chordavocales' and influencing their action. The 'epiglottis' is placed at theextremity of the opening into the windpipe, with its back opposed to thepharynx, so that when a pellet of food passes from the pharynx in itsway to the oesophagus, the epiglottis is applied over the glottis, and bythis means closes the aperture of the larynx, and prevents any portionof the food from passing into it. The food having passed over theepiglottis, that cartilage, from its elastic power, again rises andresumes its former situation. 

The 'thyroid cartilage' envelopes and protects all the rest, andparticularly the lining membrane of the larynx, which vibrates from theimpulse of the air that passes. The vibrations spread in every directionuntil they reach the delicate membrane of the tympanum of the ear. Thatmembrane responds to the motion without, and the vibration is carried onto the pulp of the auditory nerve, deep in the recesses of the ear. Theloudness of the tone--its acuteness or graveness--depends on the forceof the expired air and the shortening or lengthening of the chord. Henceit is, that the tone of the bark of the dog, or the neighing of thehorse, depends so much on the age or size of the animal. Thus we comparethe shrill bark of the puppy with the hoarse one of the adult dog; thehigh-toned but sweet music of the beagle with the fuller and lower cryof the fox-hound, and the deep but melodious baying of the mastiff. Imay, perhaps, be permitted to add to these, the whinnying of the coltand the neighing of the horse. 

Each animal has his peculiar and intelligible language. He who has longlived among them will recognise the tone of delight at meeting, risinginto and terminating in a sharper sound; the strong and elevated tonewhen they are calling to or challenging each other at a distance; theshort expression of anger--the longer, deeper, hoarser tone of fear; themurmur almost as deep, but softer, of habitual attachment, and theelevated yet melodious token of sudden recognition. I could carry on aconversation with a dog that I once possessed for several minutes, andone perfectly intelligible to both. 

Inflammation of the larynx is a frequent and dangerous complaint. Itusually commences with, and can scarcely be distinguished from, catarrh, except that it is attended by cough more violent and painful, and thedog expectorates considerably. Acute laryngitis is not so frequent anoccurrence; but there is much danger attending it. Blood must beabstracted to as great an extent as the pulse will bear, or until itbecomes evidently affected. To this must follow digitalis, nitre, tartaremetic, and aloes, and to these must be added a powerful blister. Aconsiderable quantity is effused and organized, the membrane isthickened, perhaps permanently so, and the whole of the submucouscellular tissue becomes oedematous. 

The dog is subject to sudden attacks of 'angina'. It has been imagined, from the appearances that are manifested, that some strange body isarrested in the windpipe or the throat. There is no dread of water or ofthe usual fluids; the dog will lap once or twice from that fluid whichis placed before him, and turns slowly away from it; and thiscircumstance gives rise to what is called dumb madness. The dog barks ina particular manner, or rather howls like a rabid dog: he is out ofspirits, has a strange, anxious, altered countenance, and is alternatelycold and hot. Frequently added to this is redness of the buccal andnasal membranes. He refuses all solid food, and either will not drink orfinds it difficult to swallow anything. His mouth is generally open, andcontains a spumy matter exhaling an offensive smell. His tongue, chargedwith a great quantity of saliva, protrudes from his mouth, and thesubmaxillary glands are enlarged. To these appearances are added ayellow tint of the eyes, constipation, and a small quantity of urine, surcharged with a deep yellow colour. At this period the disease hasgenerally reached a considerable degree of virulence. Often theinflammation extends to the back part of the mouth and larynx; and inthis last case the respiration is attended by a hoarse, hissing kind ofsound. 

The progress of the disease is rapid, and, in a few days, it reaches itshighest degree of intensity. It is always fatal when it is intense; and, when its influence is widely spread, it is a very dangerous complaint. 

Somewhat rarely the subjects of it recover. After death we find greatredness and injection in all the affected nervous surfaces, andindications of abscesses in which suppuration was not fully established. 

FOREIGN ARTICLES IN THE THROAT

When a substance, such as a bone, has become impacted in the throat, thebetter plan is to attempt to push it downwards into the stomach, asthere is but little hope of extracting it. 

[A portion of sponge may be securely tied on the end of a piece ofratan, whalebone, or other flexible material, and inserted in the mouth, may be carried over the tongue down the throat against the foreignarticle, which may then be gently pushed before it. If this should notsucceed, and the substance appears firmly imbedded in the throat, anincision may be made in the oesophagus and the bone extracted. --L. ]

BRONCHOCELE OR GOITRE

in the dog is almost daily forced upon our notice. If a spaniel orpug-puppy is mangy, pot-bellied, rickety, or deformed, he seldom failsto have some enlargement of the thyroid gland. The spaniel and the pugare most subject to this disease. The jugular vein passes over thethyroid gland; and, as that substance increases, the vein is sometimesbrought into sight, and appears between the gland and the integuement, fearfully enlarged, varicose, and almost appearing as if it werebursting. The trachea is pressed upon on either side, and the oesophagusby the left gland, and there is difficulty of swallowing. The pooranimal pants distressingly after the least exertion, and I have knownabsolute suffocation ensue. In a few cases ulceration has followed, andthe sloughing has been dreadful, yet the gland has still preserved itscharacteristic structure. Although numerous abscesses have been formedin the lower part of it, and there has been considerable discharge, viscid or purulent, the upper part has remained as hard and almost asscirrhous as before. 

'Cause of Goitre'. --In many cases, this enlargement of the thyroidglands is plainly connected with a debilitated state of the constitutiongenerally, and more particularly with a disposition to rickets. I haverarely seen a puppy that had had mange badly, and especially if mangewas closely followed by distemper, that did not soon exhibit goitre. Puppies half-starved, and especially if dirtily kept, are thus affected;and it is generally found connected with a loose skin, flabby muscles, enlarged belly, and great stupidity. On the other hand, I have seenhundreds of dogs, to all appearance otherwise healthy, in whom theglands of the neck have suddenly and frightfully enlarged. I have neverbeen able to trace this disease to any particular food, whether solid orliquid; although it is certainly the frequent result of want ofnutriment. 

Some friends, of whom I particularly inquired, assured me, that it isnot to any great extent prevalent in those parts of Derbyshire wheregoitre is oftenest seen in the human being. 

It is periodical in the dog. I have seen it under medical treatment, andwithout medical treatment, perfectly disappear for a while, and soonafterwards, without any assignable cause, return. There is a breed ofthe Blenheim spaniel, in which this periodical goitre is veryremarkable; the slightest cold is accompanied by enlargement of thethyroid gland, but the swelling altogether disappears in the course of afortnight. I am quite assured that it is hereditary; no one that isaccustomed to dogs can doubt this for a moment. 

'Treatment'. --I am almost ashamed to confess how many inefficient andcruel methods of treatment I many years ago adopted. I used mercurialfriction, external stimulants, and blisters; I have been absurd enoughto pass setons through the tumours, and even to extirpate them with theknife. The mercury salivated without any advantage, the stimulants andthe blisters aggravated the evil; the setons did so in a tenfold degree, so that many dogs were lost in the irritative fever tint was produced;and, although the gland, when directed out, could not be reproduced, yetI have been puzzled with the complication of vessels around it, and inone case lost my patient by hemorrhage, which I could not arrest. 

When the power of iodine in the dispersion of glandular tumours wasfirst spoken of, I eagerly tried it for this disease, and was soonsatisfied that it was almost a specific. I scarcely recollect a case inwhich the glands have not very materially diminished; and, in thedecided majority of cases, they have been gradually reduced to theirnatural size. I first tried an ointment composed of the iodine ofpotassium and lard, with some, but not a satisfactory result. Next Iused the tincture of iodine, in doses of from five to ten drops, andwith or without any external local application; but I found, at length, that the simple iodine, made into pills with powdered gum and syrup, effected almost all that I could wish. It is best to commence with theeighth of a grain for a small dog, and rapidly increase it to half agrain, morning and night. A larger dog may take from a quarter of agrain to a grain. In a few instances, loss of appetite and slightemaciation have been produced; but then, the medicine being suspendedfor a few days, no permanent ill effect has ever followed the exhibitionof iodine. 

PHLEGMONOUS TUMOUR. 

A phlegmonous tumour under the throat, and accompanied by constitutionaldisturbance, with the exception of there being little or no cough, oftenappears in the dog. Comparing the size of the animals, these tumours aremuch larger than in either the horse or ox; but they are situated higherup the face, and do not press so much upon the windpipe, nor is thereany apparent danger of suffocation from them. The whole head, however, is sometimes enlarged to a frightful degree, and the eyes are completelyclosed. More than a pint of fluid has sometimes escaped from amiddle-sized dog at the first puncture of the tumour. 

The mode of treatment is, to stimulate the part, in order to expeditethe suppuration of the tumour, and to lance it freely and deeply, assoon as matter is evidently formed. The wound should be dressed withtincture of aloes, and a thick bandage placed round the neck, to preventthe dog from scratching the part, which often causes dreadfullaceration. 

These tumours in the throat of the dog are not always of a phlegmonouscharacter. They are cysts, sometimes rapidly formed, and of considerablesize, and filled with a serous or gelatinous fluid. 

 * * * * *

CHAPTER XI. 

ANATOMY AND DISEASES OF THE CHEST; THE DIAPHRAGM; THE PERICARDIUM; THEHEART; PLEURISY; PNEUMONIA; SPASMODIC COUGH

The chest is the superior, or in quadrupeds the anterior, cavity of thetrunk of the body: it is divided into two cavities by a membranouspartition, termed 'mediastinum;' and separated from the abdomen, orcavity which contains the liver, spleen, pancreas, and other abdominalviscera, by the 'diaphragm, ' which is of a musculo-membranous nature. This membrane may be described, as it is divided, into the main circularmuscle, with its central tendinous expansion forming the lower part, andtwo appendices, or 'crura, ' as they are termed from their peculiarshape, constituting its superior portion. We trace the fleshy origin ofthe grand muscle, laterally and inferiorly, commencing from thecartilage of the eighth rib anteriorly, and following somewhat closely, as we proceed backward, the union of the posterior ribs with theircartilages, excepting, however, the two last. The attachment ispeculiarly strong. It is denticulated: it encloses the whole of thelatter and inferior part of the chest as far as the sternum, where it isconnected with the ensiform cartilage. 

The diaphragm is the main agent, both in ordinary and extraordinaryrespiration. In its quiescent state it presents its convex surfacetowards the thorax, and its concave one towards the abdomen. Theanterior convexity abuts upon the lungs; the posterior concavity isoccupied by some of the abdominal viscera. 

Thus far we have described the diaphragm as found in the horse, ox, andsheep. There is some difference with regard to the dog. The muscularpart of the diaphragm is thick and strong in every species of dog, whilethe aponeurotic expansion is comparatively smaller. From the smallerexpanse of the thorax of the dog, and the consequent little expansion ofthe diaphragm, the action, although occasionally rapid and violent--forhe is an animal of speed--is not so extensive, and more muscle and lesstendon may be given to him, not only without detriment, but with evidentadvantage. Therefore, although we have occasional rupture of the heartof the dog, oftener perhaps than in the horse, there is no case ofrupture of the diaphragm on record. 

The cavity of the thorax is lined by a membrane, termed pleura, whichcovers the surface of the lungs. 

The lungs on either side are enclosed in a separate and perfect bag, anil each lung has a distinct pleura. The heart lies under the leftlung; and, more perfectly to cut off all injurious connexion orcommunication of disease between the lungs and the heart, the heart isenclosed in a distinct pleura or bag, termed the 'pericardium'. Thismembrane closely invests the heart, supports it in its situation, prevents too great dilatation when it is gorged with blood, and tooviolent action when it is sometimes unduly stimulated. Notwithstandingthe confinement of the pericardium, the heart, when under circumstancesof unusual excitation, beats violently against the ribs, and, were itnot thus tied down, would often bruise and injure itself, and causeinflammation in the neighbouring parts. 

The 'heart' is composed of four cavities; two above, called 'auricles', from their shape, and two below, termed 'ventricles', occupying the bulkof the heart. In point of fact, there are two hearts--the one on theleft side propelling the blood through the frame, and the other on theright side conveying it through the pulmonary system; but, united in themanner in which they are, their junction contributes to their mutualstrength, and both circulations are carried on at the same time. 

The beating of the heart in the dog is best examined behind the elbow onthe left side. The hand, applied flat against the ribs, will give thenumber and character of the pulsations. The pericardium, or outerinvesting membrane of the heart, is frequently liable to inflammation, milked by a quickened and irregular respiration, and an action of theheart, bounding at an early period of the disease, but becoming scarcelyrecognisable as the fluid increases. The patient is then beginninggradually to sink. A thickening of the substance of the heart isoccasionally suspected, and, on the other hand, an increased capacity ofthe cavities of the heart; the parietes being considerably thinner, andthe frame of the animal emaciated. 

The pulse of the greater part of our domestic animals has beencalculated by Mr. Vatel, in his excellent work on Veterinary Pathology, to be nearly as follows:

In the horse, from 32 to 38 pulsations in a minute. " ox or cow, " 35 " 49 " " ass, " 48 " 54 " " sheep, " 70 " 79 " " goat, from 72 to 76 pulsations in a minute. " dog, " 90 " 100 " " cat, " 110 " 120 " " rabbit, . . 120 " " guinea-pig, . . 140 " " crow, . . 136 " " duck, . . 136 " " hen, . . 140 " " heron, . . 200 "

The pulse of the dog may be easily ascertained by feeling at the heartor the inside of the knee, and it varies materially, according to thebreed, as well as the size of the animal. This is very strikingly thecase with some of the sporting dogs, with whom the force as well as therapidity of the pulse vary materially according to the character andbreed of the dog. 

There is, occasionally, in the dog as in the human being, an alterationof the quantity, as well as of the quality, of the blood. 'Anæmia' isthe term used to designate a deficiency in quantity; 'plethora' is theopposite state of it. M. D'Arbor relates a very curious account of theformer:

Two dogs were sent into the hospital of the veterinary school at Lyons. They did not appear to suffer any considerable pain. Their skin andmucous membranes that were visible had a peculiar appearance. They hadalso comparatively little power over their limbs; so little, indeed, that they rested continually on one side, without the ability to shifttheir posture. When they were placed on their feet, their limbs gaveway, and they fell the moment they were quitted. In despite of the carethat was taken of them, they died on the second day. 

Incisions were made through the skin, but in opening them no bloodflowed. The venæ cavæ themselves did not contain any--there were onlytwo clots of blood in the cavities of their hearts. One of them, of thesize of a small nutmeg, occupied the left ventricle; the other, whichwas still smaller, was found at the base of the right ventricle. Thechest of one of them enclosed a small quantity of serosity; a similarfluid was between the dura mater and the arachnoid membrane, and thesame was the case in the larger ventricles of the encephalon. The otherviscera did not offer anything remarkable, except the paleness andflaccidity of their tissue. The great fatigues of the chase, and theimmersion of these animals in water at the time that they were very muchheated, appeared to have been the causes of this singular disease. Inthe report of the labours of the School of Alfort, in the year 1825, thesame anæmia was remarked in two dogs that died there; one of them hadlately undergone a considerable hemorrhage, and in the other anæmia haddeveloped itself spontaneously. 

It is in fact among dogs that this extreme anæmia has been principallyobserved, and is ordinarily fatal. It has been remarked by M. Crusal ina bullock attacked with gastro-enteritis. 

This disease, according to M. Vatel, is generally the symptom of achronic malady, or the instantaneous effect of an excessive hemorrhage. It is rarely primary. The extreme discoloration of the tissues, and ofthe mucous membrane more particularly, the disappearance of thesubcutaneous blood-vessels, and the extreme feebleness of the animal, are the principal symptoms. There also often exists considerableswelling of the limbs. 

The following singular case of a wound penetrating into the chest andpericardium of a dog, is recorded by Professor Delafond:

A mastiff dog fighting with another was stabbed in the chest by themaster of his antagonist. Five hours after the accident, the Professorwas sent for. On the exterior of the sternum was a laceration an inchand a half in length, covered by a spumy fluid, from the centre of whichwas heard a gurgling noise, showing that a wound had penetrated into thesac of the pleura. The respiration was quick, and evidently painful; thebeating of the heart was also strong and precipitate. The finger beingintroduced into the wound, penetrated between the fourth and fifth ribon the left side. "Having arrived at the pleuritic sac, " says theProfessor, "I gently tapped the surface of the lung, in order to assuremyself that it was not injured; my finger penetrated into thepericardium, and the point of the heart beat against it. "

He bathed the wound with a little diluted wine, and brought the edges ofit as near together as he could, and confined them with a suture, administering a mild aperient. 

On the following day, the animal walked slowly about, seeking forsomething to eat; he gave him some milk. On changing the dressing, hetried whether he could again introduce any sound into the wound; but itwould only penetrate a very little way; indeed, re-union by adhesion hadalready taken place. 

On the fifth day, the animal was in good spirits; the wound had ahealthy red appearance, and all tended to a speedy cure. 

On the eighth day he was sent home to his master, a distance of twoleagues from his house. He saw the dog eighteen months afterwards, andhe was as eager as ever after his game. 

The following is a case of rupture of the heart:--A black pointer, ofthe Scotch breed, had every appearance of good health, except that shefrequently fell into a fit after having run a little way, and sometimeseven after playing in the yard. She was several times bled during andafter these fits. When I examined her, I could plainly perceiveconsiderable and violent spasmodic motion of the heart, and the soundsof the beating of the heart were irregular and convulsive. She was sentto the infirmary, in order to be cured of an attack of mange; but duringher stay in the hospital she had these fits several times: the attackalmost always followed after she had been playing with other dogs. Sheappeared as if struck by lightning, and remained motionless for severalminutes, her gums losing their natural appearance and assuming a bluishhue. After the lapse of a few minutes, she again arose as if nothing hadbeen the matter. She was bled twice in eight days, and several doses offoxglove were administered to her. The fits appeared to become lessfrequent; but, playing one day with another dog, she fell and expiredimmediately. 

The 'post mortem' examination was made two hours after death. The cavityof the pericardium contained a red clot of blood, which enveloped thewhole of the heart; it was thicker in the parts that corresponded withthe valve of the heart; and on the left ventricle, and near the base ofthe left valve of the heart, and on the external part of that viscus, was an irregular rent two inches long. It crossed the wall of the valveof the heart, which was very thin in this place. The size of the heartwas very small, considering the height and bulk of the dog. The walls ofthe ventricles, and particularly of the left ventricle, were very thick. The cavity of the left ventricle was very small; there was evidently aconcentric hypertrophy of these ventricles; the left valve of the heartwas of great size. 

The immediate cause of the rupture of the valve of the heart hadevidently been an increase of circulation, brought on by an increase ofexercise; but the remote cause consisted in the remarkable thinness ofthe walls of the valve of the heart. This case is remarkable in morethan one respect; first, because examples of rupture of the valve of theheart are very rare; and, secondly, because this rupture had its seat inthe left valve of the heart, while, usually, in both the human being andthe quadruped, it takes place in the right; and this, without doubt, because the walls and the valves of the right side are thinner. 

Diseases of the investing membrane of the lungs, and the pleura of thethoracic cavity, and of the substance of the lungs, are more frequentthan those of the heart. 

PLEURISY, or inflammation of the membrane of the chest and the lungs of the dog, is not unfrequent. There are few instances of inflammation of the lungs, or pneumonia, that do not ultimately become connected with or terminatein pleurisy. The tenderness of the sides, the curious twitching that isobserved, the obstinate sitting up, and the presence of a short, suppressed, painful cough, which the dog bears with strange impatience, are the symptoms that principally distinguish it from pneumonia. Theexploration of the chest by auscultation gives a true picture of it inpleurisy; and, by placing the dog alternately on his chest, his back, orhis side, we can readily ascertain the extent to which effusion existsin the thoracic cavity; and, if we think proper, we can get rid of thefluid. It is not a dangerous thing to attempt, although it is veryproblematical whether much advantage would accrue from the operation. With a favourite dog it may, however, be tried; and, to prevent allaccidents, a veterinary surgeon should be entrusted with the case. 

PNEUMONIA, or inflammation of the substance of the lungs, is a complaint offrequent occurrence in the dog, and is singularly marked. The extendedhead, the protruded tongue, the anxious, bloodshot eye, the painfulheaving of the hot breath, the obstinacy with which the animal sits uphour after hour until his feet slip from under him, and the eye closes, and the head droops, through extreme fatigue, yet in a moment beingroused again by the feeling of instant suffocation, are symptoms thatcannot be mistaken. 

Here, from the comparative thinness of the integument and the parietes, we have the progress of the disease brought completely under our view. The exploration of the chest of the dog by auscultation is a beautifulas well as wonderful thing. It at least exhibits to us the actual stateof the lungs, if it does not always enable us to arrest the impendingevil. 

Mr. Blaine and myself used cordially to agree with regard to thetreatment of pneumonia, materially different from the opinions of themajority of sportsmen. Epidemic pneumonia was generally fatal, if it wasnot speedily arrested in its course. The cure was commenced by bleeding, and that to a considerable extent, when not more than four-and-twenty orsix-and thirty hours had passed; for, after that, the progress of thedisease could seldom be arrested. Blistering the chest was sometimesresorted to with advantage; and the cantharides ointment and the oil ofturpentine formed one of the most convenient as well as one of the mostefficacious blisters. A purgative was administered, composed of muttonbroth with Epsom salts or castor oil; to which followed theadministration of the best sedatives that we have in those cases, namely, nitre, powdered foxglove, and antimonial powder, in theproportion of a scruple of the first, four grains of the second, and twograins of the third. 

Congestion of the lungs is a frequent termination of pneumonia; and inthat congestion the air-cells are easily ruptured and filled withblood. That blood assumes a black pulpy appearance, commonly indicatedby the term of 'rottenness', an indication or consequence of theviolence of the disease, and the hopelessness of the case. A differentconsequence of inflammation of the lungs is the formation of tubercles, and, after that, of suppuration and abscess, when, generally speaking, the case is hopeless. A full account of this is given in the work on theHorse. 

Two cases of pneumonia will be useful:

Oct. 22d, 1820. A black pointer bitch that had been used lo a warmkennel, was made to sleep on flat stones without straw. A violent coughfollowed, under which she had been getting worse and worse for afortnight. Yesterday I saw her. The breathing was laborious. The bitchwas constantly shifting her position, and, whether she lay down or satup, was endeavouring to elevate her head. Her usual posture was sitting, and she only lay down for a minute. The eyes were surrounded, and thenose nearly stopped with mucus. V. S. [Symbol: ounce] viij. Emet. Fever-ball twice in the day. 

23d. Breathing not quite so laborious. Will not eat. Medicine as before. Apply a blister on the chest. 

24th. Nearly the same. V. S. [Symbol: ounce] vj. Bol. Utheri. 

26th. Decided amendment. She breathes with much less difficulty. Lessdischarge both from eyes and nose. Bol. Utheri. 

Nov. 7th. Sent home well. 

A singular and not uninstructive case came before me. A lady in thecountry wrote to me to say, that her terrier was thin, dull, husking, and perpetually trying to get something from the throat; that her coatstared, and she frequently panted, I replied, that I apprehended she hadcaught cold; and recommended bleeding to the extent of four ounces, agrain each of calomel and emetic tartar to be given every fourthmorning, and a fever-ball, composed of digitalis, nitre, and tartrate ofantimony, on each intermediate day. 

A few days after this I received another letter from her, saying, thatthe dog was bled as ordered, and died on the following Thursday. Thatanother veterinary surgeon had been called in, who said that the firstone had punctured the 'vena cava' in the operation, and that the dog hadbled to death internally; and she wished to know my opinion. I replied, that the charge proceeded from ignorance or malice, or both. That in onesense he was right--the jugular, which the other had probably opened, runs into the vena cava, and may, with some latitude, be considered asuperior branch of it; therefore, thus far the first man had puncturedthe vena cava, which I had done many hundred times; but that the pointof union of the four principal veins that form the vena cava was toosecurely seated in the upper part of the thorax for any lancet to reachit. That the rupture of some small arterial vessel might have causedthis lingering death, but that the puncture of a vein would either havebeen speedily fatal, or of no consequence; and that, probably, theanimal died of the disease which she had described. 

SPASMODIC COUGH

is a troublesome disease to manage. Dogs, and especially thoseconsiderably petted, are subject to frequent cough, requiring a materialdifference in the treatment. Sometimes there is a husky cough, not to sogreat a degree as in distemper, but followed by the same apparent effortto get something from the throat, the same attempt to vomit, and theejection of mucus, frothy or adhesive, and occasionally discoloured withbile. It proceeds from irritability or obstruction in some of theair-passages, and oftenest of the superior ones. An emetic will clearthe fauces, or at least force out a portion of the adhesive matter whichis clogging the bronchial tubes. 

A cough of this kind, and attended in its early stages by little fever, seldom requires anything more for its cure than the exhibition of a fewgentle emetics, consisting of equal portions of calomel and emetictartar, given in doses varying from half a grain to one grain and a halfof each. 

A harsh hollow cough is attended by more inflammatory action. Thedepletive system must be adopted here. A loud and harsh cough will yieldonly to the lancet and to purgatives, assisted by sedative medicinescomposed of nitre, antimonial powder, and digitalis, or small doses ofsyrup of poppies, or more minute doses of the hydrocyanic acid; thislast medicine, however, should be carefully watched, and only givenunder surgical advice. 

28th October, 1842. A spaniel was apparently well yesterday, buttowards evening a violent cough suddenly came on. It was harsh andhollow, and terminated in retching. There was a discharge of water fromthe eyes; but the nose was cool and moist. Give an emetic, and then twograins of the James's powder. 

29th The animal coughed almost the whole of the night. There was morewatery discharge from the eyes, which appeared to be red and impatientof light; the nose continued cool, and the dog did not refuse his food. An aperient ball was given; and twice afterwards in the day, the nitre, antimonial powder, and digitalis. 

30th. The cough is as frequent, but not very loud. Give a mixture ofsyrup of poppies and prussic acid morning and night, and the ball asyesterday. 

31st. Nearly in the same state as yesterday, except that he is not sothirsty, and does not eat so well. Give the mixture three times daily. 

Nov. 1st. He had an emetic in the morning, which produced a largequantity of phlegm, but the cough is no better. No evacuation during thetwo last days. Give an aperient ball, and the mixture as before in theevening. 

The prussic acid has been fairly tried; it has not in the leastmitigated the cough, but begins to make the dog sick, and altogether todestroy his appetite. Give three times in the day a mixture consistingof two-thirds of a drachm of syrup of poppies, and one-third of syrup ofbuckthorn. The sickness ceased, and the cough remained as before, I thengave twice in the day half a grain of calomel, the same of opium, twoeach of pulvis antimonialis and digitalis, and four grains of nitre, morning and noon, with six grains of the Dover's powder at night. Thiswas continued on the 3d, 4th and 5th of November, when there were longerintervals of rest, and the dog did not cough so harshly when the fit wason him. 

On the 6th, however, no medicine was given; but towards evening the dogcoughed as much as ever, and a decided mucous discharge commenced fromthe nose and the eyes, with considerable snorting. An emetic was given, and the balls resorted to as before. 

'7th. ' He appeared to be much relieved by the emetic. The cough wasbetter, the dog ate well, and had regained his usual spirits. The ballas before. 

'9th'. Slight tenesmus now appeared. It quickly became frequent andviolent. The dog strained very much; but the discharge was small inquantity, and consisted of adhesive mucus. Give two drachms of castoroil, and the fever ball with opium. The cough is worse, and the dog stillcontinues to strain, no blood, however, appearing. 

'11th'. The opium and oil have had their desired effect, and the coughis better. 

'12th', Except the animal is kept under the influence of opium, thecough is dreadfully troublesome. I have, however, obtained one point. Ihave been permitted to subtract four ounces of blood; but blood had beenmingling with the expectorated mucus before I was permitted to haverecourse to the lancet. 

'13th'. The dog is better, and we again have recourse to the fevermixture, to which, on the '14th', I added a very small portion of thecarbonate of iron, for the dog was evidently getting weak. The sicknesshas returned, and the cough is decidedly worse. 

'16th'. Rub a small quantity of rheumatic embrocation, and tincture ofcantharides. 

'17th. ' The first application of the blister had not much effect; butthis morning it began to act. The dog ran about the house as cross as hecould be for more than an hour; there was considerable redness on thethroat and chest. The cough, however, was decidedly better. 

'18th'. The cough is better. Again apply the embrocation. 

'19th. ' The cough and huskiness have returned. Employ an emetic, andcontinue the embrocation. 

'20th'. The cough is decidedly worse. Continue the embrocation, and givethe fever mixture. 

'23d'. The embrocation and medicine have been daily used; but the coughis as bad as ever. Balls of assafoetida, squills, and opium were hadrecourse to. 

25th. The second ball produced the most distressing sickness, but thecough was evidently relieved. The assafoetida was discontinued. 

'28th'. The cough, during the last two days, has been gradually gettingworse. It is more laborious and longer, and the intervals between it areshorter. Give another emetic and continue the other medicine. 

30th'. The effect of the emetic was temporary, and the cough is againworse. 

'Dec'. 2d'. Very little change. 

5th'. The cough appears to be stationary. Again have recourse to theantimony, digitalis, and nitre. 

8th'. The cough is certainly better. Try once more the assafoetida. Itagain produced sickness, but of a very mild character. 

12th'. The assafoetida was again used used morning and night. The coughcontinues evidently to abate. 

14th'. The dog coughs very little, not more than half-a-dozen times inthe day. Notwithstanding the quantity of medicine that has been taken, the appetite is excellent, and the spirits good. 

16th'. The cough is still less frequent, but when it occurs it isattended with retching. 

19th'. The cough is daily getting better, and is not heard more thanthree or four times in the four-and-twenty hours, and then very slight. 

30th'. At length I can say that the cough has ceased. It is seldom thatso much trouble would have been taken with a dog. It is the neglect ofthe medical attendance which is often the cause of death. ProfessorDelafond, of Alfort, gives a most interesting and complete table of theusual diagnostic symptoms of pleurisy and pneumonia. 

PLEURISY. 

'Commencement of the Inflammation'. Shivering, usually accompanied by slight colicky pains, and followed bygeneral or partial sweating. Inspiration always short, unequal, andinterrupted; expiration full; air expired of the natural temperature. Cough unfrequent, faint, short, and without expectoration. Artery full. Pulse quick, small, and wiry. 

'Auscultation'. A respiratory murmur, feeble, or accompanied by a slight rubbing throughthe whole extent of the chest, or in some parts only. 

'Percussion'. Slight, dead, grating sound. Distinct resonance through the whole of thechest, and pain expressed when the sides are tapped or compressed. 

'Terminations'Delitescence. Cessation of pain; moderate temperature of the skin;sometimes profuse general perspiration. Respiration less accelerated;inspiration easier and deeper. Pulse fuller and softer. Breath of thenatural temperature. Return of the natural respiratory murmur andresonance. The walls of the chest cease to exhibit increasedsensibility. 

'Effusion, false Membranes'. Inspiration more and more full. 

'Auscultation and Percussion. Complete absence of the respiratory murmur, with the crepitatingwheezing always at the bottom of the chest; sometimes a gurgling noise. Vesicular respiration very strong in the upper region of the chest, orin the sac opposite to the effusion. 

'Continuance of the Effusion'. Absence of the respiratory murmur gains the middle region of the chest, following the level of the fluid. These symptoms may be found on onlyone side; a circumstance of frequent occurrence in the dog, but rare inother animals. The respiratory murmur increases in the superior regionof the chest, or on the side opposite to the effusion. Inspirationbecomes more and more prolonged. Breath always cold. Cough not existing, or rarely, and always suppressed and interrupted. Exercise producing muchdifficulty of respiration. 

'Resolution or Re-absorption of the effused fluid, and Organization offalse Membrane, the consequence of Pleurisy'. 

Slow but progressive reappearance of the respiratory murmur, anddisappearance of the sounds produced by the fluid. Diminution of theforce of the respiratory murmur in the superior part of the chest, or ofthe lung opposite to the sac in which the effusion exists. Gradualreturn of the respiratory murmur to the inferior part of the chest. Inspiration less deep, and returning to its natural state. 

'Chronic Pleurisy, with Hydrothorax'. Inspiration short. Cough dry, sometimes with expectoration; frequent orcapricious; always absence of complete respiratory murmur in theinferior portion of the chest. Sometimes the gurgling noise duringinspiration and expiration. Strong respiratory murmur in the superiorportion. In dogs these symptoms sometimes have existence only on oneside of the chest. The mucous membranes are infiltrated; serousinfiltration on the lower part of the chest and belly; sometimes of thescrotum or the inferior extremities; generally of the fore legs. Theanimal lies down frequently, and dies of suffocation. 

PNEUMONIA. 

'Commencement of the Inflammation'. General shivering, rarely accompanied by colicky pains, followed bypartial sweats at the flanks and the inside of the thighs. Inspirationfull, expiration short. Air expired hot. Cough frequently followed byslight discharge of red-coloured mucus. Artery full. Pulse accelerated, strong, full, and soft. 

'Auscultation'. Absence of respiratory murmur in places where the lung is congested;feebleness of that sound in the inflamed parts, with humid crepitatingwheezing. The respiratory murmur increased in the sound parts. 

'Percussion'. The dead grating sound confined to the inflamed parts. Distinctresonance at the sound parts; increased sensibility of the walls of thechest slight, or not existing at all. 

'Terminations'. Resolution. Temperature of the skin moderate. Sometimes profuse partialsweats. Laborious respiration subsiding; inspiration less deep. Arteryless full. Pulse yielding. Breath less hot. Gradual and progressivedisappearance of the crepitating 'râle'. Slow return of the resonance. 

'Red Hepatization'. Respiration irregular and interrupted. 

'Auscultation and Percussion. Circumscribed absence of the respiratory murmur, in one point, or inmany distinct parts of the lung. The respiratory murmur increased in oneor more of the sound parts of the lung, or in the sound lung if one isinflamed. 

'Passage to a State of Gray Induration'. The absence of respiratory murmur indicates extensive hepatization ofone lung; a circumstance, however, of rare occurrence. When theinduration is of both lungs, and equally so, the respiratory murmur andthe inspiration remain the same, except that they become irregular. Thecough dry or humid, frequent, and sometimes varying. Exerciseaccompanied by difficulty of respiration, without dyspnoea. 

'Resolution or Re-absorption of the Products of Inflammation of theParenchymatous Substance of the Lungs'. 

Diminution of the force of the respiratory murmur in the sound parts. Cessation of the crepitating wheezing. Slow return of the respiratorymurmur where it had ceased. Respiration ceases to be irregular orinterrupted, and returns slowly to its natural state, or it remainsinterrupted. This indicates the passage from red to gray induration. 

'Chronic Pneumonia--(Gray Induration. )'Inspiration or expiration interrupted, cough unfrequent; suppressed;rarely with expectoration; always interrupted. Complete absence ofrespiratory murmur. 

'Softening of the Induration, Ulcerations, Vomicæ, &c. 'Mucous and wheezing; mucous râle in the bronchia; discharge from thenostrils of purulent matter, white, gray, or black, and sometimes fetid. Paleness of the mucous membranes. The animal seldom lies down, and neverlong at a time. Death by suffocation, when the matter proceeding fromthe vomicæ, or abscesses, obstructs the bronchial passages, or by thedevelopment of an acute inflammation engrafted upon the chronic one. 

CHAPTER XII. 

ANATOMY OF THE GULLET, STOMACH, AND INTESTINES: TETANUS; ENTERITIS;PERITONITIS; COLIC; CALCULUS IN THE INTESTINES: INTUSSUSCEPTION;DIARRHOEA; DYSENTERY; COSTIVENESS; DROPSY; THE LIVER; JAUNDICE; THESPLEEN AND PANCREAS; INFLAMMATION OF THE KIDNEY; CALCULUS; INFLAMMATIONOF THE BLADDER; RUPTURE OF THE BLADDER; WORMS: FISTULA IN THE ANUS. 

The 'oesophagus', or gullet, of the dog, is constructed in nearly thesame manner as that of the horse. It consists of a similar muscular tubepassing down the neck and through the chest, and terminating in thestomach, in which the process of digestion is commenced. The orifice bywhich the gullet enters the stomach is termed the 'cardia', probably onaccount of its neighbourhood to the heart or its sympathy with it. It isconstantly closed, except when the food is passing through it into thestomach. 

The 'stomach' has three coats: the outermost, which is the commoncovering of all the intestines, called the peritoneum; the second ormuscular coat, consisting of two layers of fibres, by which a constantmotion is communicated to the stomach, mingling the food, and preparingit for digestion; and the mucous or villous, where the work of digestionproperly commences, the mouths of numerous little vessels opening uponit, which exude the gastric juice, to mix with the food alreadysoftened, and to convert it into a fluid called the chyme. It is asimpler apparatus than in the horse or in cattle. It is occasionally theprimary seat of inflammation: and it almost invariably sympathises withthe affections of the other intestines. 

The successive contractions of each portion of the stomach, expose byturns every portion of the alimentary mass to the influence of thegastric juice, and each is gradually discharged into the alimentarycanal. 

As the chyme is formed, it passes out of the other orifice of thestomach, and enters the first intestine or 'duodenum'. 

It may be naturally supposed that this process will occasionally beinterrupted by a variety of circumstances. Inflammation of the stomachof the dog is very difficult to deal with. It is produced by numerousdifferent causes. There is great and long-continued sickness; even themost harmless medicine is not retained on the stomach. The thirst isexcessive; there are evident indications of excessive pain, expressed bythe countenance and by groans: there is a singular disposition in theanimal to hide himself from all observation; an indication that shouldnever be neglected, nor the frequent change from heat to cold, and fromcold to heat. 

The mode of treatment is simple, although too often inefficient. Thelancet must be immediately resorted to, and the bleeding continued untilthe animal seems about to fall; and to this should quickly succeedrepeated injections. Two or three drops of the croton oil should beinjected twice or thrice in the day, until the bowels are thoroughlyopened. The animal will be considerably better, or the disease cured, inthe course of a couple of days. 

There is a singular aptitude in the stomach of the dog to eject aportion of its contents; but, almost immediately afterwards, the food, or a portion if not the whole of it, is swallowed again. This is amatter of daily occurrence. There is a coarse rough grass, the'cynosurus cristatus', or crested dog's-tail. It is inferior for thepurposes of hay, but is admirably suited for permanent pastures. Itremains green after most other grasses are burnt by a continuance of dryweather. The dog, if it be in his power, has frequent recourse to it, especially if he lives mostly in a town. The dry and stimulating food, which generally falls to his share, produces an irritation of hisstomach, from which lie is glad to free himself; and for this purpose hehas recourse to the sharp leaves of the cynosurus. They irritate thelining membrane of the stomach and intestines, and cause a portion ofthe food to be occasionally evacuated; acting either as an emetic or apurgative, or both. They seem to be designed by nature to be substitutedfor the calomel and tartar emetic, and other drugs, which are far toooften introduced. 

An interesting case of the retention of a sharp instrument in thestomach is related by Mr. Kent of Bristol. 

On the 23d of February, Mr. Harford, residing in Bristol, when feeding apointer-dog, happened to let the fork tumble with the flesh, and the dogswallowed them both. On the following morning, Mr. Kent was desired tosee the animal; and, although he could feel the projection of the forkoutwardly, which convinced him that the dog had in reality swallowed it, yet, as he appeared well, and exhibited no particular symptoms of painor fever, Mr. Kent gave it as his opinion that there was a possibilitythat he might survive the danger, and the animal was sent to him, inorder to be more immediately under his care. The treatment he adoptedwas, to feed him on cow's liver, with a view to keep the stomachdistended and the bowels open; and he gave him three times a day half apint of water, with sufficient sulphuric acid to make it rather stronglysour to the human tongue, with the intention of assisting the stomach indissolving the iron. 

On the following Sunday, the skin, at the projecting point, began toexhibit some indication of ulceration; and on Monday a prong of the forkmight be touched with the point of the finger, when pressed on theulcer. Mr. Kent then determined on making an effort to extract the forkon the following morning, which he accordingly did, and with but littledifficulty, assisted by a medical friend of the owner. The dog was stillfed on cow's liver; his appetite remained good, and with very littlemedical treatment the external wound healed. The animal improved rapidlyin flesh during the whole time. He left the infirmary in perfect health, and remained so, with one inconvenience only, a very bad cough, and hisbeing obliged to lie at length, being unable to coil himself up in hisusual way. 

The fork was a three-pronged one, six and a half inches long. Thehandle, which was of ivory, was digested: it was quite gone; and eitherthe gastric fluid or the acid, or both conjointly, had made a veryapparent impression on the iron. 

Dogs occasionally swallow various strange and unnatural substances. Considerable quantities of hair are sometimes accumulated in thestomach. Half-masticated pieces of straw are ejected. Straw mingled withdung is a too convincing proof of rabies. Dog-grass is found irritatingthe stomach, or in too great quantities to be ejected, while collectionsof earth and dung sometimes threaten suffocation. Pieces of money areoccasionally found, and lead, and sponge. Various species of polypusirritate the coats of the stomach. Portions of chalk, or stone, orcondensed matters, adhere to each other, and masses of strangeconsistence and form are collected. The size which they assume increasesmore and more. M. Galy relates an extraordinary account of a dog. It wasabout three years old when a tumour began to be perceived in the flank. Some sharp-pointed substance was felt; the veterinary surgeon cut downupon it, and a piece of iron, six inches in length, was drawn out. 

The following fact was more extraordinary: it is related by M. Noiret. Ahound swallowed a bone, which rested in the superior part of theoesophagus, behind the pharynx, and caused the most violent efforts toget rid of it. The only means by which it could be made to descend intothe stomach was by pushing it with the handle of a fork, which, escapingfrom the hand of the operator, followed the bone into the stomach. Twomonths afterwards, on examining the stomach, the fork was plainly feltlying in a longitudinal direction, parallel with the position of thebody; the owner of the dog wishing mechanically to accelerate theexpulsion of this body, endeavoured to push it backwards with his hands. When it was drawn as far back as possible, he inserted two fingers intothe anus, and succeeded in getting hold of the handle, which he drew outnearly an inch; but, in order to be enabled fully to effect his object, it was necessary to make an incision into the rectum, and free thesubstance from every obstacle that could retain it. This he did notventure to do, and he was therefore compelled to allow the fork to passback into its former position. 

About three months after the accident, M. Noiret made an incision, threeinches from above to below, and the same from the front backwards. Healso made an incision through the muscular tissue. Having arrived at theperitoneum, he made another incision, through which he drew from theabdomen a part of the floating portion of the large intestines, andintroduced his fingers into the abdominal cavity. He seized the handleof the fork, which was among the viscera, and free about half-way down, and drew it carefully towards the opening made in the flank. The otherhalf of the fork was found to be closely enveloped by the origin of themesocolon, which was red, hard, and inflamed. The operator freed it bycutting through the tissues which held the fork, and then drew it easilyout. The animal was submitted to a proper course of treatment, and inthree weeks afterwards was perfectly cured. 

The food, having been converted into chyme by the digestive power of thestomach, soon undergoes another and very important change. It, or aportion of it, is converted into chyle. It is mixed with the bile and asecretion from the pancreas in the duodenum. The white thick liquid isseparated, and contains the nutritive part of the food, and a yellowpulpy substance is gradually changed into excrement. As these substancespass on, the separation between them becomes more and more complete. Thechyle is gradually taken up by the lacteals, and the excrement aloneremains. 

The next of the small intestines is the 'jejunum', so called from itsbeing generally empty. It is smaller in bulk than the duodenum, and thechyme passes rapidly through it. 

Next in the list is the 'ileum'; but it is difficult to say where thejejunum terminates and the ileum commences, except that the latter isusually one-fifth longer than the former. 

At the termination of the ileum the 'cæcum' makes its appearance, witha kind of valvular opening into it, of such a nature that everythingthat passes along it having reached the blind or closed end, must returnin order to escape; or rather the office of the cæcum is to permitcertain alimentary matters and all fluids to pass from the ileum, but tooppose their return. 

The 'colon' is an intestine of very large size, being one of the mostcapacious, as well as one of the longest, of the large intestines. Itcommences at the cæsum caput coli, and soon expands into a cavity ofgreater dimensions than even that of the stomach itself. Having attainedthis singular bulk, it begins to contract, and continues to do so duringits course round the cæcum, until it has completed its second flexure, where it grows so small as scarcely to exceed in calibre one of thesmall intestines; and though, from about the middle of this turn, itagain swells out by degrees, it never afterwards acquires its formercapaciousness; indeed, previously to its junction with the rectum, itonce more materially differs in size. 

At the upper part of the margin of the pelvis the colon terminates inthe 'rectum', which differs from the cæcum and colon by possessing onlya partial peritoneal covering, and being destitute of bands and cells. It enlarges towards its posterior extremity, and is furnished with acircular muscle, the sphincter ani, adapted to preserve the anus closed, and to retain the fæculent matter until so much of it is accumulated inthe rectum as to excite a desire to discharge it. 

TETANUS, a disease of great fatality, often depends upon the condition of thestomach; but it is not frequent in dogs. 

Why the dog is so little subject to 'tetanus', or lock-jaw, I am unableto explain. Sportsmen say that it sometimes attacks him when, beingheated in the chase, he plunges into the water after the stag. TheFrench give it the name of 'mal de cerf', from stags being supposed tobe attacked in a similar way, and from the same cause. In the course ofnearly forty years' practice, I have seen but four cases of it. Thefirst arose from a wound in the foot. The cause of the second I couldnot learn. In both the spasmodic action was dreadful as well asuniversal. The dogs lay on their sides, the neck and legs stretched out, and the upper legs kept some inches from the ground by the intensity ofthe spasm. They might be taken up by either leg, and not a portion ofthe frame change its direction. At the same time, in their countenances, and by their hoarse cries, they indicated the torture which theyendured. 

In the third case, which occurred 12th June, 1822, the head was drawnpermanently on one side, and the whole body formed a kind of bow, thedog walking curiously sideways, often falling as it walked, andfrequently screaming violently. I ordered him to be well rubbed with anammoniacal liniment, and balls of tonic and purging medicine to be giventwice in the day. The dog gradually recovered, and was dismissed curedon the 20th. 

On the 16th November, in the same year, a bull-terrier had a similarcomplaint. He had been tried in the pit a fortnight before, and severelyinjured, and the pain and stiffness of his joints were increasing. Thehead was now permanently drawn on one side. The dog was unable to standeven for a moment, and the eyes were in a state of spasmodic motion. Hewas a most savage brute; but I attempted to manage him, and, by theassistance of the owner, contrived lo bleed him, and to give him aphysic-ball. At the same time I advised that he should be destroyed. 

His master would not consent to this; and, as the dog occasionally ate alittle, we contrived to give a grain each of calomel and opium everysixth hour. In the course of three days he was materially recovered. Hecould stand, but was exceedingly weak, I ordered the calomel lo beomitted, but the opium to be continued. Three days afterwards he wassent into the country, and, as I heard, perfectly recovered. 

The following is a very interesting case of tetanus, detailed by M. Debeaux, of the Royal French Chasseurs:

A favourite dog was missing. Four days had passed, and no intelligencecould be obtained with regard to him until he returned home, fatiguedand half-starved. He had probably been stolen. In the excess of theirjoy, the owners crammed him with meat until he became strangely ill. Histhroat was filled with froth, the pupils of his eyes were dilated, theconjunctiva was strongly injected, his neck was spasmodicallycontracted, and the spine of the back was bowed, and most highlysensible to the touch. M. Debeaux was sent for; it was an hour before hecould attend. The dog was lying on his belly; the four limbs wereextended and stiff. He uttered the most dreadful and prolonged howlingevery two or three minutes. The surgeon ordered the application of adozen leeches to the chest and belly; laxative medicines were given, andembrocations applied to the spine and back. 

Three days passed, and the symptoms evidently augmented. The excrementwas dark and fetid, and the conjunctiva had a strong yellow tint. Leeches were again employed; emollient lotions and aperient medicineswere resorted to. The sensibility of the spine and back was worse thanever; the animal lay on his belly, stretching out his four limbs, hisneck fixed, his jaws immovable, his voice hoarse, and he was utterlyunable to move. 

The bathings, lotions, and aperients were continued, with very fewintermissions, until the 14th day, when the muscles began to be a littlerelaxed; but he cried whenever he was touched. On the 15th, for thefirst time, he began to eat a little, and his natural voice returned;still, however, the spasms occasionally appeared, but very muchmitigated, and on the 20th the pain had entirely ceased. 

On the 5th of the next month he travelled two leagues with his master. It was cold, and the snow fell. On his reaching home, all the horriblespasms returned, and it was eleven days before he was completely cured. [1]

Mr. Blaine gives the following account of his experience of this disease:

 "It is remarkable, that although dogs are subject to various spasmodic affections, yet they are so little subject to lock-jaw that I never met with more than three cases of it among many thousands of diseased dogs. Two of these cases were 'idiopathic'; one being apparently occasioned by exposure to cold air all night; the other the cause was obscure. The third was of that kind called 'sympathetic', and arose from extreme injury done to one of the feet. In each of these cases the convulsive spasm was extreme, and the rigidity universal but not intense. In one case the jaw was only partially locked. Both warm and cold bathings were tried. Large doses of opium and camphor were given by the mouth, and also thrown up in clysters. The spine of one was blistered. Stimulating frictions were applied to all, but in neither case with any salutary effect. " [2]

ENTERITIS. 

'Enteritis', or inflammation of the intestine, is a disease to whichdogs are very liable. It may be produced by the action of severalcauses. The intestines of the dog are peculiarly irritable, and subjectto take on inflammatory action, and this tendency is often muchincreased by the artificial life which they lead. It is a very frequentcomplaint among those dogs that are much petted. A cold temperature isalso a common cause of disease in these dogs. 

I was consulted with regard to a dog who was hiding himself in a cold, dark corner, paved with stone. Every now and then he lifted his head anduttered a howl closely resembling that of a rabid dog. He fixed his gazeintently upon me, with a peculiarity of expression which many would havemistaken for rabid. They, however, who have had the opportunity ofseeing many of these cases, will readily perceive the difference. Theconjunctiva is not so red, the pupil is not so dilated, and the dogappears to implore pity and not to menace evil. 

In this state, if the dog is approached, he will not permit himself tobe touched until he he convinced that no harm is intended. A peculiarslowness attends each motion; his cries are frequent and piteous; hisbelly hot and tender; two cords, in many cases, seem to runlongitudinally from the chest to the pubis, and on these he cannot bearthe slightest pressure. He abhors all food; but his thirst for water, and particularly cold water, is extreme; he frequently looks round athis flanks, and the lingering gaze is terminated by a cry or groan. Inthe majority of cases there is considerable costiveness; but, in others, the bowels are freely opened from the beginning. 

The peritoneal inflammation is sometimes pure, but oftener involves themuscular coat of the intestines. Its prevailing cause is exposure tocold, especially after fatigue, of lying on the wet stones or grass. Nowand then it is the result of neglected rheumatism, especially in old andpetted dogs. 

The treatment is simple. Bleed until the pulse falters, put the animalin a warm bath, and let the belly be gently rubbed while the dog is inthe water, and well fomented afterwards; the drink should consist ofwarm broth, or warm milk and water. The bleeding should be repeated, iflittle or unsatisfactory relief is obtained; and the examination of therectum with the finger, and the removal of any hardened fæces that mayhave accumulated there, and the cautious use of enemata, neither toostimulating nor too forcibly injected, should be resorted to. Nomedicine should be employed until the most urgent symptoms are abated. Castor oil, the mildest of our purgatives--syrup of buckthorn assistingthe purgative property of the oil, and containing in its composition asmuch stimulating power as is safe--and the spirit of while poppies--themost convenient anodyne to mingle with the other medicines--willgenerally be successful in allaying the irritation already existing, andpreventing the development of more. Even this must not be given in toolarge quantities, and the effect must be assisted by a repetition of theenemata every fifth or sixth hour. On examination after death the natureof the disease is sufficiently evident: the peritoneum, or portions ofit, is highly injected with blood, the veins are turgid, the muscularmembrane corrugated and hardened, while often the mucous membranedisplays not a trace of disease. In violent cases, however, the whole ofthe intestines exhibit evidence of inflammation. 

I was much gratified a few years ago in witnessing the decided manner inwhich Professor Spooner expressed himself with regard to the treatmentof enteritis in the dog. 

 "I should deem it advisable, " said he, "to administer a purgative; but of what would that consist? Calomel? Certainly not. I was surprised to hear one gentleman assert that he should administer it to the extent of from five to ten grains, and another to say that he should not hesitate to exhibit a scruple of calomel to a dog, and to all carnivorous animals. I should never think of exhibiting it as a cathartic. I should only administer it in small doses, and for the purpose of producing its specific effect on the liver, which is the peculiar property of this drug. Given in larger doses it would not be retained, and if it got into the intestines it would act as a powerful drastic purgative. " [3]

In our treatment of the horse we have got rid of a great proportion ofthe destructive urine-balls and drastic purgatives of the farrier. Thecow is no longer drenched with half-a-dozen deleterious stimulants. Amost desirable change has been effected in the medical treatment ofthese animals. Let us not, with regard to the dog, continue to pursuethe destructive course of the keeper or the huntsman. 

The following case of enteritis, with rupture of the colon, may beuseful:

On March 15, 1840, I was requested to attend a large dog of the bullbreed, three years old, who had not appeared to be well during the lastfour or five days. 

I had scarcely arrived ere I recognised it to be a case of enteritis. Hehad a dreadful shivering fit, to which succeeded heat of the skin andrestlessness. The muzzle was dry and hot, as also was the tongue. Theeyes were sunken and redder than usual; the breathing was accelerated, but not very laborious; the extremities were cold, while the surface ofthe body was hot and painful to the touch. The bowels were constipated, and had been so during the last week; some dung however was evacuated, but it was hard and dry, and in small quantities. The pulse was quick, but full; and there was a slight pain and considerable irritation in therectum. I took from him [Symbol: ounce] x. Of blood before the desiredeffect was produced, and then gave him tinct. Opii gr. Xiv. , et spt. Ether, nit. Gutt. Viij. , cum ol. Ricini [Symbol: ounce] iij. , and anopiate enema to allay the irritation of the rectum. This was about 8o'clock, A. M. 

11 A. M. --The bowels have not been moved, and the pain is more intense;his countenance expresses great anxiety; he frequently lies on hisstomach, and the pulse is small but quick. I gave him a little broth, and ordered the abdomen to be fomented with hot flannels. 

2 P. M. --He has had distressing sickness, and is extremely anxious forwater. I introduced my finger into the rectum, but could not discoverany hardened fæces. Enemata, composed of mag. Sulphas and warm water, were frequently thrown into the intestines; as soon as one came awayanother was thrown up. 

4 P. M. --No better: gave him pulv. Aloes [Symbol: ounce] j. ; calomel, gr. Vj. Et pulv. Opii gr. Viij. The fomentations to be continued, and theabdomen rubbed with a lin. Terebinthinæ. 

5 P. M. --A great change has taken place within the last hour; the hindextremities are paralysed; the mouth and ears are cold; the pulse ismore hurried and irregular, and almost imperceptible; the respiration islaborious and irregular, as is the pulse; and the dog is frequentlysick. To be kept quiet. 

6 P. M. --Another change: he lies panting and groaning piteously; hislimbs are bathed in sweat, with convulsive struggles. At twenty minutespast six he died. 

A post-mortem examination presented general marks of inflammation; thesmall intestines were extremely red, while the large ones were in agangrenous state and most offensive, with a rupture of the colon. I didnot expect to meet with the rupture, and am at a loss to account for it. The liver was of a pale ashen colour, and very light. I put a piece ofit into some water, and it floated on the surface. The other contents ofthe abdomen did not show the slightest appearance of disease. 

September 2d, 1843. --A black pug-bitch, 18 months old, was yesterdaytaken violently sick; the vomiting continued at intervals the greaterpart of the day, and she had not eaten during the last 24 hours. I couldnot possibly get at her, on account of her ferocity: as she had not hadthe distemper, and as I was misled by her age and the watery dischargefrom her eyes, and as she had had several motions yesterday, I imaginedthat the attack might be the beginning of that disease. Learning thatshe was fond of sweet things, I prepared an emetic containing a grain ofcalomel and a grain of tartar emetic: she took it readily, and Ipromised to call on the following day. 

Sept. 3. --The weakness at the eyes had disappeared, but there had beenno motion. On getting at her by main force I found her belly very tenseand rather hot: she had again been sick, was very eager for water, andstill refused to eat. The disease was now evident. As she appeared toounmanageable for anything else, I produced a physic-ball, in givingwhich I was bitten. 

Six hours afterwards I again went: no fæces had passed: I administeredtwo enemas, the second of which was returned with a small quantity ofhardened fæces and an intolerable smell. I ordered the water to beremoved, and broth to be substituted. 

Sept. 4. --The dog is in good spirits, has eaten heartily, and had nomotion, probably because it was habitually cleanly, and had not beentaken out of doors. Her owner considered her as quite well, anddismissed me. Three days afterwards a servant came to say that all wasgoing on very well. 

PERITONITIS. 

Chronic inflammation of the 'peritoneal membrane' is a frequent diseaseamong dogs. The animal loses his appetite and spirits; he sometimes eatsa little and sometimes not; he becomes thin, his belly is tucked up, andwhen we closely examine him we find it contracted and hard, and thoselongitudinal columns of which I have already spoken are peculiarly denseand almost unyielding. He now and then utters a half-suppressed whine, and he occasionally seeks to hide himself. In the greater number ofcases he after a while recovers; but he too often pines away and dies. On examination after death the case is plain enough. There isinflammation of the peritoneal membrane, more indicated by unduecongestion of the bowels than by the general blush of the membrane. Theinflammation has now spread to the muscular coat, and the whole of theintestine is corrugated and thickened. 

There is another peritoneal affection, aggravated by combination with arheumatic tendency, to which the dog is more disposed than any otherdomesticated animal. It has its most frequent origin in cold, or beingtoo much fed on stimulating and acrid food, and probably from othercauses which have not yet been sufficiently developed. 

Here also no drastic purgative is to be admitted; it would be addingfuel to fire: not a grain of calomel should be used, if the life of theanimal is valued. The castor oil mixture will afford the most certainrelief, a drop or two of the oil of peppermint being added to it. 

COLIC. 

The dog is also subject to fits of 'colic', principally to be traced toimproper food, or a sudden change of food, or exposure to cold. This isparticularly the case with puppies. There is no redness of the eye, noheat of the mouth, no quickened respiration; but the animal laboursunder fits of pain. He is not quiet for a minute. He gets into onecorner and another, curling himself closely up, but he does not liethere more than a minute or two; another fit of pain comes on; he uttershis peculiar yelp, and seeks some new place in which he may possiblyfind rest. 

It is with considerable diffidence that I offer an opinion on thissubject contrary to that of Mr. Blaine. He states that the treatment ofthis species of colic is seldom successful, and that which has seemedthe most efficacious has been mercurial purgatives; namely, calomel onegrain, aloes a scruple, and opium a quarter of a grain, until the bowelsare opened. I have seldom found much difficulty in relieving the patientsuffering under this affection; and I gave no aloes nor calomel, but theoleaginous mixture to which I have so often referred. I should not somuch object to the aloes, for they constitute an excellent purgative forthe dog; nor to a dog that I was preparing for work, or that wassuffering from worms, should I object to two or three grains of calomelintimately mixed with the aloes: from the combined effect of the two, some good might be obtained. 

CALCULUS IN THE INTESTINES

Many persons have a very foolish custom of throwing stones, that theirdogs may dive or run after them, and bring them to their owner's feet:the consequence is, that their teeth are soon worn down, and there aretoo many cases on record in which the stone has been swallowed. It hasbeen impeded in its progress through the intestinal canal, inflammationhas ensued, and the animal has been lost, after having suffered the mostdreadful torture. 

Professor Simonds relates a case in which a dog was thus destroyed. Theanimal for some days previous to his admission into the hospital hadrefused his food, and there was obstinate constipation of the bowels, toremove which aperient medicine had been given. The pulse wasaccelerated, there was distension of the abdomen with evident tendernesson pressure, the extremities were cold, no fæces were voided, and heoccasionally vomited. Some aperient medicine was given, which wasretained on the stomach, and enemas and external stimulants wereresorted to, but two days afterwards he died. 

The intestines were examined, and the offending body was found to be acommon pebble. The dog had long been accustomed to fetch stones out ofthe water. One of these stones had passed through the stomach into theintestines, and, after proceeding some distance along them, had beenimpacted there. The inflammation was most intense so far as the stonehad gone; but in the part of the intestine to which it had not reachedthere was not any. This was an interesting and instructive case, andshould make its due impression. 

Another account of the strange contents of the intestines of a bitch maybe here introduced. 

A valuable pointer-bitch was sent to the infirmary of Mr. Godwin ofLitchfield. She presented a very emaciated appearance, and had done sofor four or five months. Her evacuations for a day or two were very thinand copious, and afterwards for several days nothing was passed. Whenpressing the abdomen with both hands, a hard substance was distinctlyfelt in the inferior part of the umbilical region. She was destroyed, and, upon 'post-mortem' examination, a calculus was discovered in theileum about the size and shape of a hen's egg, the nucleus of which wasa portion of hair. The coats of the intestines were considerablythickened and enlarged, so as to form a kind of sac for its retention. Anterior to this was another substance, consisting of a ball of hair, covered with a layer of earthy matter about the eighth of an inch thick, and next to this another ball of hair of less dimensions, intermixedwith a gritty substance. The stomach contained a large quantity of hair, and a portion of the omentum, about the size of n crown piece, wasthickly studded with small white calculi, the largest about the size ofa pea, and exceedingly hard. 

INTUSSUSCEPTION. 

If 'peritonitis'--inflammation--is neglected, or drastic purgatives aretoo often and too plentifully administered, a peculiar contraction ofthe muscular membrane of the intestine takes place, and one portion ofthe bowel is received within another--there is 'intussusception'. Inmost cases, a portion of the anterior intestine is received into thatwhich is posterior to it. Few of us have opened a dog that had beenlabouring under this peculiar affection without being struck with thecollapsed state of the canal in various parts, and in some much morethan in others. Immediately posterior to this collapsed portion, it iswidened to a considerable extent. The peristaltic motion of theintestine goes on, and the consequence is, that the constricted portionis received into that which is widened, the anterior portion isinvaginated in the posterior: obstruction of the intestinal passage isthe necessary consequence, and the animal dies, either from the generaldisturbance of the system which ensues, or the inflammation which is setup in the invaginated part. 

I will say nothing of medical treatment in this case; for I do not knowthe symptoms of intussusception, or how it is to be distinguished fromacute inflammation of the bowels. Acute inflammation will not long existwithout producing it; and, if its existence should be stronglysuspected, the treatment would be the same as for inflammation. 

The domesticated dog, from the nature of his food, more than from anyconstitutional tendency, is liable to constipation. This should never beneglected. If two or three days should pass without an evacuation, thecase should be taken in hand; otherwise inflammation will be very soonestablished. In order to procure an evacuation, the aloetic ball, withone or two grains of calomel, should be given. Beyond that, however, Ishould not dare to go; but, if the constipation continued, I should haverecourse to the castor-oil mixture. I should previously examine andempty the rectum, and have frequent recourse to the enema-syringe; and Ishould continue both. It would be my object to evacuate the intestinalcanal with as little increased action as possible. 

DIARRHOEA

is the discharge of fæces more frequently than usual, and thinner thantheir natural consistence, but otherwise not materially altered inquality; and the mucous coat of the intestines being somewhat congested, if not inflamed. It is the consequence of over-feeding, or the use ofimproper food. Sometimes it is of very short continuance, and disappearswithout any bad consequence; the health being unaffected, and thecharacter of the fæces not otherwise altered than by assuming a fluidcharacter. It may not be bad practice to wait a day, or possibly two, asit is desirable for the action of the intestines to be restored withoutthe aid of art. I should by no means give a physic-ball, or a grain ofcalomel, in simple diarrhoea. I should fear the establishment of thatspecies of purging which is next to be described. The castor-oil mixtureusually affords the best hope of success. 

Habitual diarrhoea is not an unfrequent disease in petted dogs: in someit is constitutional, in others it is the effect of neglectedconstipation. A state of chronic inflammation is induced, which hasbecome part of the constitution of the dog; and, if repressed in theintestines, it will appear under a more dangerous form in some otherplace. 

DYSENTERY

is a far more serious complaint. In most cases a considerable degree ofinflammation of the mucous coat exists, and the mucus is separated fromthe membrane beneath, and discharged per anum. The mucus thus separatedfrom the intestinal membrane assumes an acrid character. It not onlyproduces inflammation of the membrane, dangerous and difficult to treat, but it excoriates the anus and neighbouring parts, and produces pain andtenesmus. 

This disease has sometimes been fatally misunderstood. A great deal ofirritation exists in the intestinal membrane generally, and in the lowerpart of the rectum particularly. The fæces passing over this denudedsurface cause a considerable degree of pain, and there is muchstraining, and a very small bit or portion of faces is evacuated. Thishas often been seen by the careless observer; and, as he has taken it asan indication of costiveness, some drastic purgative has beenadministered, and the animal quickly killed. 

No one that had ascertained the real nature of the disease wouldadminister calomel in any form or combination; but the anodyne mixtureas an enema, and also administered by the mouth, is the only medicinefrom which benefit can be expected. 

COSTIVENESS

is a disease when it becomes habitual. It is connected with disease ofthe intestinal canal. Many dogs have a dry constipated habit, oftengreatly increased by the bones on which they are too frequently fed. This favours the disposition to mange and to many diseases depending onmorbid secretions. It produces indigestion, encourages worms, blackensthe teeth, and causes fetid breath. The food often accumulates in theintestines, and the consequence is inflammation of these organs. A dogshould never be suffered to remain costive more than a couple of days. An aloetic ball or some Epsom salts should then be administered; andthis failing to produce the desired effect, the castor-oil mixture, withspirits of buckthorn and white poppies, should be administered, and theuse of the clyster-pipe resorted to. It may be necessary to introducethe finger or the handle of a spoon when the fæcal matter is more thanusually hard, and it is with difficulty broken down; small doses ofcastor-oil should be afterwards resorted to, and recourse occasionallybe had to boiled liver, which the dog will rarely refuse. The bestmeans, however, of preventing costiveness in dogs, as well as in men, isregular exercise. A dog who is kept chained up in a kennel should betaken out and have a certain quantity of exercise once in thetwenty-four hours. When this cannot be done, the food should consistchiefly of well-boiled farinaceous matter. 

DROPSY

Another disease, which is not confined to the abdominal cavity, isdropsy: but, as in the dog it most commonly assumes that form which istermed ascites, or dropsy of the abdomen, it may be noticed in thisplace. It is seldom an idiopathic or primary affection, but isgenerally the consequence of some other disease, most commonly of aninflammatory kind. 

Dropsy is a collection of fluid in some part of the frame, either fromincreased exhalation, or from diminished absorption, the consequenceof inflammation. The divisions of dropsy are into active and passive, oracute and chronic. The causes are also very properly arranged aspredisposing and exciting. The diseases on which dropsy most frequentlysupervenes are fevers and visceral inflammations and obstructions. Thedog is peculiarly subject to 'ascites' or 'dropsy of the belly', and thequantity of fluid contained in the abdomen is sometimes almostincredible. It is usually accompanied or characterised by a weak, unequal, small, and frequent pulse--paleness of the lips, tongue, andgums--flaccidity of the muscles, hurried breathing on the leastexertion, feebleness of the joints, swellings of the lower limbs, effusion of fluid into the integuments or among the muscles, beforethere is any considerable effusion into the thorax or the abdomen, andan unhealthy appearance of the cutaneous surface. The urine seldomcoagulates. This form of dropsy is usually seated in the abdomen orcellular tissue. 

The treatment of ascites is seldom perfectly successful. The greatextent of the peritoneum, the number and importance of the viscera withwhich it is connected, and of the absorbent glands which it encloses, the number and weakness of the veins which transmit their blood to theportal vessels, and the absence of valves, in some measure account forthe frequent accumulation of fluid in this cavity. It appears in bothsexes from the usual causes of inflammatory disease. Unwholesome diet, the drastic operation of purgatives, external injuries, the suppressionof accustomed secretions and discharges, all are exciting causes ofdropsy. 

The animal has suffered materially from mange, which has been apparentlycured: the itchiness and eruption altogether disappear, but many weeksdo not elapse ere ascites begins to be seen, and the abdomen isgradually distended with fluid. When this appears in young and healthyanimals, it may be conquered; but when there has been previous diseaseof almost any kind, comparatively few patients permanently recover. Irritability of the stomach, and a small and accelerated pulse, areunfavourable. If the operation of tapping has taken place, at all timesthere is danger; but, if there is a thick, brown, albuminous or fetiddischarge, it is very unlikely that any permanent advantage will resultfrom the operation. 

We will introduce a few cases as they occur in our clinical records. 

'November 7th, 1821'. --A spaniel, nine years old, had been, during fourmonths, alternately asthmatic or mangy, or both. Within the last fewdays she had apparently increased in size. I was sent for. The firsttouch of the abdomen betrayed considerable fluctuation. She likewise hadpiles, sore and swelled. I ordered an alterative ball to be givenmorning and night. 

'8th'. One of the balls has been given, and two doses of castor oil; butno effect has been produced. An injection was administered. 

'9th'. A small evacuation of water has been produced, and the bowelshave been slightly opened. Give a dose of the castor-oil mixture. 

'10th'. The obstruction has been removed; the enlargement is somewhatdiminished; much water has passed. Give an alterative ball everymorning. 

'14th'. The alteratives have been continued, and there is a slow butevident decrease of the abdomen. 

'18th'. I cannot detect any effusion in the abdomen. Give a pill everyalternate day for a fortnight. At the expiration of this period the dogwas apparently well. 

'April 23d', 1822. --A terrier, ten years old, had cough and mange, whichceased. The belly for the first time began to enlarge, and on feelingthe dog considerable fluctuation was evident. He would not eat, but hedrank immoderately. Give daily a ball consisting of tonic and physicmist. , with powdered digitalis and tartrate of iron. 

'May 6th'. --He is in better spirits, feeds tolerably well, but is ratherincreased in size. Give daily a ball of tartrate of iron, digitalis, ginger, and a grain of calomel. 

22'd'. Much thinner, the belly very considerably diminished: a slightfluctuation is still to be perceived. Continue medicine, with ahalf-grain only of calomel. 

'July 17th'. --The medicine has been regularly given, and the water ofthe abdomen has rapidly disappeared, until a fortnight ago: since thattime it has been once more filling. The medicine was ordered to berepeated. 

'August 6th'. --The medicine has once more produced its proper effect, and the fluid has disappeared. 

On the '16th', however, the fluctuation was again too plainly felt, andthe owner determined to have nothing more to do with the case. Theanimal was never brought again, nor could I trace it. The dog might havebeen saved if the owner had done it justice. 

As soon as dropsy appears to be established, proper medicines must beresorted to. Foxglove, nitre, and ginger should be first tried in theproportional doses of one, ten, and eight grains, given morning andnight. If this does not succeed, iodine from half-a-grain to a grain maybe given morning and night, and a weak solution of iodine rubbed on thebelly. 

This being ineffectual, recourse may be had to tapping, taking care thatthe trocar is not plunged sufficiently deep to wound the intestines. Theplace for the operation is directly on the 'linea alba', or middle lineof the belly, and about midway between the pubis and the navel. Thewhole of the intestinal fluid may be suffered to escape. A bandageshould then be applied round the belly, and retained there a week ormore. 

Mr. Blaine very properly states, that the difference between fatness anddropsy is, that the belly hangs pendulous in dropsy, while the back bonestands up, and the hips are protruded through the skin; while the hairis rough, and the feeling of the coat is peculiarly harsh. It may bedistinguished from pregnancy by the teats enlarging, in the latter case, as gestation advances, and the young ones may occasionally be felt tomove. In addition to this it may be stated, that the presence of wateris readily and unerringly detected. If the right hand is laid on oneside of the belly, and the other side is gently struck with the lefthand, an undulating motion will be readily perceived. 

In old dogs, dropsy, under the title of "anasarca, " is an unfrequent butoccasional accompaniment of ascites. If pressure is made on anyparticular parts, they yield and continue depressed for a longer orshorter period of time, and slowly and by degrees regain their naturalform. The skin is dry and distended, and with no natural action; thecirculation is languid and small, the muscular powers are diminished, the animal is unquiet, the thirst is great, the tongue is pale, theappetite diminished, and the limbs are swelled. The best mode, oftreatment is the infliction of some very small punctures in thedistended skin, and the application of gentle friction. The majority ofcases of this kind are usually fatal, and so is almost every case ofencysted dropsy. 

A dog had cough in February, 1825. Various medicines were administered, and at length the cough almost suddenly ceased, and evident ascitesappeared. The thirst was insatiable, the dog would not touch food, andhe was unable to lie down more than two minutes at a time. 

Digitalis, cream of tartar, and hydrarg. Submur. Were given on the 9thApril. 

On the 13th he was much worse, and apparently dying. He had been unableto rise for the last twelve hours, and lay panting. I punctured theabdomen, and four quarts of fluid were evacuated. 

'14th'. The panting continues. The dog will not eat, but he can lie downin any posture. 

'15th'. The panting is diminished, the appetite is returning, and watercontinues to ooze from the wound, '17th'. The wound healed on the night of the 15th, and already the fluidbegins to collect. The medicine still continued. 

'20th'. The spirits good, and strength improving; but the belly isevidently filling, and matter is discharged from both the nose and eyes. 

'26th'. The swelling a little diminished, respiration easy, and the dogwalking comfortably about, and feeding well. 

'May 13th'. --The swelling, which for some days past diminished, is nowagain increasing; but the dog is strong and breathes easily. Medicine asbefore. 

'24th. '. The dog is thinner, weaker, filling fast, and the thirstexcessive. [Symbol: Rx]: Crem. Tart. , ferri tart. [Symbol: ounce] ij. , pulv. Flor. Anthemid. [Symbol: ounce] iiij. , conser. Ros. Q. S. : dividein bol. Xii. : cap. In dies. 

'27th'. During two days he has been unable to lie down more than aminute at a time. Again tapped: fully as much fluid was evacuated asbefore; but there is now blood mingling with it. 

30th. Much relieved by the tapping, and breathes with perfect ease;but, now that the enormous belly is reduced, the dog is very thin. Bol. Continued. 

June 8th. Within the last three days the animal has filled again withextraordinary rapidity. [Symbol: Rx;]: Ferr. Tart. [Symbol: scruple] j. , opii. Gr. 1/4, pulv. Gentianæ [Symbol: scruple] j. , cons. Ros. Q. S. : f. Bol. Capiend. In dies. 

13th. Is again strangely distended; I advised, or rather solicited, that it might be destroyed; but this not being granted, I once moretapped him. At least a gallon of dark-coloured fluid was evacuated. 

22d. Again rapidly filling, but not losing either flesh or strength. 

July 4th. --Once more punctured, and a gallon of dark-coloured fluidevacuated. 

12th. Again filling and rapidly losing flesh and strength. 

26th. Once more tapped: immediately after which he appeared to berevived, but almost immediately began again to fill. 

Aug. 2d. --He had eaten tolerably; appeared to have nothing more thanusual the matter with him, when, being missed for an hour, he was founddead. No examination was permitted. 

In 1824 a spaniel, six years old, was brought to the infirmary. It hadhad an asthmatic cough, which had left it. It was now hollow in theflanks, the belly pendulous, and an evident fluctuation of water. Theowner would not consent to any operation. An aloetic physic-ball, however, was given every fifth day, and a ball, composed of tartrate ofiron, digitalis, nitre, and antimonial powder, on every intermediatemorning and night. The water evidently accumulated; the dog was sentfor, and died in the course of a week. 

There are a few medicines that may be useful in arresting the effusionof the fluid; but they too often fail in producing any considerablebenefit. The fox-glove is, perhaps, possessed of the greatest power, combined with nitre, squills, and bitartrate of potash. At other timeschamomile, squills, and spirit of nitrous ether, may be tried. 

The following case, treated by the administration of iodine, byProfessor Dick, is important:--

A black and tan coloured retriever was sent to me labouring underascites. He was tapped, and two quarts of fluid abstracted. Tonics, combined with diuretics were given, but the fluid continued toaccumulate, and in three weeks he was again tapped, and another twoquarts drawn away. The disease still went on, and a fortnight afterwardsa similar quantity was withdrawn. Various remedies were tried in orderto check the power of the disease, but without effect, and the abdomenagain became as much distended with the effused serum as before. 

He was then put under a course of iodine, which soon began to show itsbeneficial influence by speedily allaying his excessive thirst; and inabout a month the whole of the effused fluid was absorbed, although fromthe size of the abdomen it must have amounted to a similar quantity tothat drawn off on the previous occasions. The dog's appetite soonreturned; he gained flesh rapidly, and has continued quite well, and, from being a perfect skeleton, soon became overloaded with fat. 

Induced by the great benefit derived in this case from the iodine, Itook the opportunity of trying it on a Newfoundland dog similarlyaffected. He was put on a course of iodine, and the quantity of the drugwas gradually increased. As absorption rapidly commenced, the fluid wascompletely taken up; but, partly in consequence of pushing the medicinetoo far, and partly from extensive disease in the liver, unfavourablesymptoms took place, and he sunk rather unexpectedly. Still, however, from the obvious and decided advantage derived from the medicine, I haveno doubt that iodine will be found one of the most efficient remedies indropsy in dogs. 

Iodine is a truly valuable drug. When first introduced into veterinarypractice it was observed that it readily accomplished the reduction ofthe enlarged glands that frequently remain after catarrh; but it waspresently evident that it reduced almost every kind of tumour, even thegrowth of tubercles in the lungs. Professor Morton, in his Manual ofPharmacy, has admirably described the different combinations of iodine. 

THE LIVER

of the dog seems to follow a law of comparative anatomy, that its bulkshall be in an inverse proportion of that of the lungs. The latter arenecessarily capacious; for they need a large supply of arterial blood, in order to answer to their rapid expenditure when the utmost exertionof strength and speed is required. The liver is, therefore, restrictedin its size and growth. Nevertheless, it has an important duty tofulfil, namely, to receive the blood that is returned from theintestines, to separate from the blood, or to secrete, by means of it, the bile; and then to transmit the remaining portion of it to the lungs, where it undergoes the usual process of purification, and is changed toarterial blood. In the performance of this office, the liver oftenundergoes a state of inflammation, and disease ensues, inveterate, andsetting at defiance every means of cure. Both the skin and the urinebecome tinged with a yellow effusion. The animal is dull, and graduallywastes away. 

In a few days the yellow hue becomes more intense, and particularly onthe cuticle, the conjunctiva, the iris, the gums, and the lips. A stateof fever becomes more and more perceptible, and there are alternationsof cold and heat. The pulse varies from 80 to 120; the dry tongue hangsfrom the mouth; the appetite ceases, but the animal is peculiarlydesirous of cold water. The dog becomes restless; he seeks to hidehimself; and he groans, if the parts in the neighbourhood of the liverare pressed upon. 

Frequent vomitings now appear, slimy, and evidently containing gall. Theanimal becomes visibly thinner, obstinately refuses all solid food, andonly manifests thirst. He begins to stagger as he walks; he withdrawshimself from observation; he anxiously seeks some dark place where hemay lay himself with his chest and belly resting on the cold ground, hisfore legs stretched out before him, and his hind legs almost as farbehind him. The fever increases, the skin becomes of a dark yellowcolour, the mucous membrane of the mouth and conjunctiva is of a dirtyred, the expired air is evidently hot, the gaze is anxious, the urine isof a saffron yellow, or even darker: in short, there now appears everysymptom of inflammation of the liver, with jaundice. 

As the disease proceeds the animal begins to vomit masses of a yellowishgreen substance, occasionally mixed with blood. He wastes away to askeleton, he totters in his walk, he is half unconscious, the pulsebecomes weak and interrupted, the temperature sinks, and death ensues. 

The duration and course of the disease are deceptive. It occasionallyproceeds so insidiously that several days are suffered to pass beforethe owner perceives any marks of disease, or seeks any aid. The durationof the disease is usually from ten to twelve days. It terminates incongestion of blood in the liver, or a gradual restoration to health. The latter can only take place in cases where the inflammation hasproceeded very slowly; where the commencement and progress of thedisease could be discovered by debility and slight yellowness of theskin, and especially where speedy recourse has been had to medical aid. 

The predisposing causes of this disease are often difficult to discover. The dog, in warm climates, seems to have a natural disposition to it. Asexciting causes, atmospheric influence may be reckoned, sultry days, cold nights, and damp weather. Other occasional causes may be found inviolent falls, bruises, and overfeeding. Fat petted dogs that are easilyoverheated by exertion are often attacked by this disease. The result ofthe disease depends on its duration, course, and complication. If it isattended to early, it can generally be cured. If it has existed forseveral days, and the fever has taken on a typhoid character--if theyellow hue is perceptible--the appetite failing, and vomiting ensuing, the cure is doubtful; and, if inflammation of the stomach has takenplace, with high fever, vomiting of blood, wasting away, and fitsoccurring, there is no chance of cure. 

When simple jaundice alone is visible, a moderate laxative of sulphateof magnesia and tartaric acid, in conjunction with some aromatic andmucilaginous fluid, or, quite in the beginning of the disease, anemetic, will be found of considerable service; but, when the yellowcolour has become more intense, and the animal will no longer eat, andthe fever and weakness are increased, it is necessary to give calomel, tartar-emetic, camphor, and opium, in the form of pills, and to rub somestrong liniment on the region of the liver: the doses of calomel, however, must be very small. If inflammation of the stomach appears, mucilaginous fluids only must be given. Bleeding may be of service inthe commencement of the disease, but afterward it is hurtful. 

This is an account of hepatitis as it occasionally appears, andparticularly on the Continent; but it does not often assume so virulenta character in our country. There is often restlessness, thirst, andsickness, accompanied by much prostration of strength; or general heatand tenderness. Occasionally there is purging; but much oftenerconstipation, that bids defiance to almost every medicine. The principalor almost only hope of cure consists in bleeding, physicking, andblistering on the right side. 

Of bilious disease, assuming the character of inflammation, we have toomany cases. It may be spontaneous or brought on by the agency of otheraffections. Long-continued and inveterate mange will produce it. It isoften connected with, or produced by, distemper, or a dull inflammatorydisease of the liver, and it is generally accompanied by pustulareruption on the belly. The skin is usually tinged of a yellow hue, andthe urine is almost invariably impregnated with bile. The suffusionwhich takes place is recognised among sportsmen by the term "yellows. "The remedy should be some mercurial, with gentian and aloes given twicein the day, and mercurial ointment well rubbed in once in the day. Ifthis treatment is steadily pursued, and a slight soreness induced in themouth, the treatment will usually be successful. Mr. Blaine observes, "A moderate soreness of the mouth is to be encouraged and kept up. I have never succeeded in removing the complaint without it. "

JAUNDICE. 

M. W. Leblanc, of Paris, has given an interesting account of the causesand treatment of 'jaundice' in the dog. 

The prevailing symptom of this disease in the dog is a yellowdiscoloration of the skin and the mucous membranes of greater or lessintensity. It generally announces the existence of very serious disease, as inflammation of the liver and its excretory ducts, or of thegall-bladder, or the stomach, or small intestines, or contraction or'obliteration' of the excretory ducts of the liver, in consequence ofinflammation of these vessels, or the presence of concrete substancesformed from the bile. The dogs in which he found the most decided tracesof this disease laboured under diarrhea, with stools of a reddish brownor black colour for one, two or three days. 

The causes of jaundice are chiefly over-fatigue (thus, greyhounds aremore subject to it than pointers), immersions in water, fighting, emetics or purgatives administered in over-doses, the repeated use ofpoisonous substances not sufficiently strong at once to destroy theanimal, the swallowing of great quantities of indigestible food, andcontusions of the abdominal viscera, especially about the region of theliver. The most serious, if not the most common cause, is cold afterviolent and long-continued exercise; and especially when the owners ofdogs, seeing them refuse their food after a long chase, give thempowerful purgatives or emetics. 

The treatment should have strict relation to the real or supposed causeof jaundice, and its most evident concomitant circumstances. Some ofthese symptoms are constant and others variable. Among the first, whatever be the cause of the disease, we reckon acceleration of thepulse; fever, with paroxysms of occasional intensity; and a yellow orreddish-yellow discoloration of the urine. Among the second areconstipation, diarrhoea, the absence or increase of colour in the faecalmatter, whether solid or fluid. When they are solid, they are usuallyvoid of much colour; when, on the contrary, there is diarrhea, the fæcesare generally mingled with blood more or less changed. Sometimes thedejections are nearly black, mixed with mucus. It is not unusual for achest affection to be complicated with the lesions of the digestiveorgans, which are the cause of jaundice. 

With these leading symptoms there are often others connected that arecommon to many diseases; such as dryness and heat of the mouth, a fetidsmell, a staggering gait, roughness of the hair, and particularly ofthat of the back; an insatiable thirst, accompanied by the refusal ofall food; loss of flesh, which occasionally proceeds with astonishingrapidity; a tucked-up flank, with hardness and tenderness of theanterior part of the belly. 

The jaundice which is not accompanied with fever, nor indeed with anymorbid change but the colour of the skin, will require very littletreatment. It will usually disappear in a reasonable time, and M. Leblanc has not found that any kind of treatment would hasten thatdisappearance. 

When any new symptom becomes superadded to jaundice, it must beimmediately combated. Fever, injection of the vessels of theconjunctiva, constipation, diarrhoea, or the discoloration of the urine, require one bleeding at least, with some mucilaginous drinks. Purgativesare always injurious at the commencement of the disease. 

 "I consider, " says M. Leblanc, "this fact to be of the utmost importance. Almost the whole of the dogs that have been brought to me seriously ill with jaundice, have been purged once or more; and either kitchen salt, or tobacco, or jalap, or syrup of buckthorn, or emetic tartar, or some unknown purgative powders, have been administered. 

 "Bleeding should be resorted to, and repeated if the fever continues, or the animal coughs, or the respiration be accelerated. When the pulse is subdued, and the number of pulsations are below the natural standard--if the excrements are still void of their natural colour--if the constipation continues, or the animal refuses to feed--an ounce of manna dissolved in warm water should be given, and the dog often drenched with linseed tea. If watery diarrhoea should supervene, and the belly is not hot nor tender, a drachm or more, according to the size of the dog, of the sulphate of magnesia or soda should be administered, and this medicine should be repeated if the purging continues; more especially should this aperient be had recourse to when the fæces are more or less bloody, there being no fever nor peculiar tenderness of the belly. 

 "When the liquid excrement contains much blood, and that blood is of a deep colour, all medicines given by the mouth should be suspended, and frequent injections should be thrown up, consisting of thin starch, with a few drops of laudanum. Too much cold water should not be allowed in this stage of the disease. Injections, and drinks composed of starch and opium, are the means most likely to succeed in the black diarrhoea, which is so frequent and so fatal, and which almost always precedes the fatal termination of all the diseases connected with jaundice. 

 "In simple cases of jaundice the neutral salts have seldom produced much good effect; but I have obtained considerable success from the diascordium, in doses of half a drachm to a drachm. 

 "Great care should be taken with regard to the diet of the dog that has had jaundice, with bloody or black diarrhoea; for the cases of relapse are frequent and serious and almost always caused by improper or too abundant food. A panada of bread, with a little butter, will constitute the best nourishment when the dog begins to recover his appetite. From this he may be gradually permitted to return to his former food. Most especially should the animal not be suffered to take cold, or to be left in a low or damp situation. This attention to the food of the convalescent dog may be thought to be pushed a little too far; but experience has taught me to consider it of the utmost importance, and it is neither expensive nor troublesome. "

THE SPLEEN AND PANCREAS. 

The spleen is generally regarded as an appendage to the absorbentsystem. Tiedemann and Gmelin consider that its specific function is tosecrete from the blood a fluid which possesses the property ofcoagulation, and which is carried to the thoracic duct, and then, beingunited with the chyle, converts it into blood, and causes an actualcommunication between the arterial and absorbent systems. According, however, to Dr. Bostock, there is a fatal objection to this, namely, that animals have been known to live an indefinite length of time afterthe removal of the spleen, without any obvious injury to theirfunctions, which could not have been the case if the spleen had beenessentially necessary for so important a process. 

A knowledge of the diseases of the spleen in the dog appears to be lessadvanced than in any other animal. In the cases that I have seen, theearliest indications were frequent vomiting, and the discharge of ayellow, frothy mucus. The animal appeared uneasy, shivering, the earscold, the eyes unnaturally protuberant, the nostrils dilated, the flanksagitated, the respiration accelerated, and the mucous membranes pale. The best treatment I know is the administration, twice in the day, of aball composed of a grain of calomel and the same quantity of aloes, andfive grains of ginger. The dog frequently cries out, both when he ismoved and when he lies on his bed. In the course of three days theyellow mucus is generally disappearing, and the expression of pain ismaterially diminished. 

If the bowels are much constipated after two days have passed, twoscruples of aloes may be given, and a grain of calomel; frequentinjections may also be administered. 

We are almost totally ignorant of the functions of the 'pancreas'. Itprobably is concerned in assimilating the food, and converting the chymeof the stomach into chyle. 

INFLAMMATION OF THE KIDNEY

is a serious and dangerous malady. This organ is essentially vascular inits texture; and although it is small in volume, yet, on account of thequantity of blood which it contains, and the rapidity with which itssecretions are performed, it is disposed to frequent and dangerousinflammation. The immediate causes of inflammatory action in this viscusare blows and contusions in the lumbar region; hard work long continued, and the imprudent use of stimulating substances employed asaphrodisiacs; the presence of calculi in the kidney, and the arrest ofthe urine in the bladder. The whole of the kidney may be affected withanæmia or defect of blood, or this may be confined to the corticalsubstance, or even to the tubular. The kidneys are occasionally muchlarger than usual, without any other change of structure; or simplehypertrophy may affect but one of them. They are subject to atrophy, which may be either general or partial; or one of the kidneys may becompletely wanting, and this evidently the consequence of violence ordisease. 

Hydatids, though seldom met with in the human kidney, are notunfrequently found in that of the dog. All these are circumstances thathave not received sufficient attention. 

CALCULOUS CONCRETIONS

are of more frequent occurrence than is generally imagined, but they arenot confined to the kidneys; there is scarcely a portion of the frame inwhich they have not been found, particularly in the brain, the glandularsubstance, and the coats of the intestines. 

I cannot say with Mr. Blaine that I have seen not less than 40 or 50calculi in my museum; but I have seen too many fearful examples of thecomplaint. There has been usually great difficulty in the urinaryevacuation; and at length one of the calculi enters the urethra, and soblocks up the flow of the urine that mortification ensues. 

M. Lautour relates a case of renal calculus in a dog. He hadoccasionally voided his urine with some difficulty, and had walkedslowly and with evident pain. August 30, 1827, a sudden exacerbationcame on, and the dog was dreadfully agitated. He barked and rolledhimself on the ground almost every minute; be made frequent attempts tovoid his urine, which came from him drop by drop. When compelled towalk, his hind and fore legs seemed to mingle together, and his loinswere bent into a perfect curve; his flanks were drawn in; he couldscarcely be induced to eat; and he evidently suffered much in voidinghis fæces. Mild and demulcent liquids were his only food. Warm baths andinjections were applied almost unceasingly, and in eight days he seemedto have perfectly gained his health. 

In March, in the following year, the symptoms returned with greaterintensity. His hind limbs were dragged after him; he rapidly lost flesh, and his howlings were fearful and continuous. The same mode of treatmentwas adopted without any good effect, and, his cries continuing, he wasdestroyed. 

The stomach and intestines were healthy. The bladder was enlarged fromthe thickness and induration of its parietes; the mucous membrane of itwas covered with ecchymoses; the kidneys were three or four times theirnatural size; and the pelvis contained a calculus weighing 126 grains, composed of 58 grains of uric acid and 58 of ammonia, with 10 grains ofphosphate of lime. 

Of the nature and causes of urinary calculi in the bladder we know verylittle. We only know that some solid body finds its way or is formedthere, gradually increases in size, and at length partially or entirelyoccupies the bladder. Boerhaave has given a singular and undeniableproof of this. He introduced a small round pebble into the bladder of adog. The wound perfectly healed. A few months afterwards the animal waskilled, and there was found a calculus of considerable size, of whichthe pebble was the nucleus. 

Occasionally the pressure of the bladder on the calculus which itcontains is exceedingly great, so much so, indeed, as to crush thecalculus. A small calculus may sometimes be forcibly extracted, or cutdown upon and removed; but when the calculus is large, a catheter orbougie must be passed up the penis as far as the curve in the urethra, and then somewhat firmly held with the left hand, and pressing againstthe urethra. A scalpel should be taken, and an incision made into theurethra. The catheter being now withdrawn, and the finger or a pair offorceps introduced into the bladder, the calculus may be grasped andextracted. 

There are some instances in which as many as 20 or 30 small calculi havebeen taken from the bladder of a dog. Twice I have seen calculiabsolutely crushed in the bladder of a dog; and Mr. Blaine says that hefound no fewer than 40 or 50 in the bladder of a Newfoundland dog. Oneof them had passed out into the urethra, and had so blocked up thepassage that the flow of urine was prevented, and the animal died ofmortification. 

With much pleasure I refer to the details of Mr. Blaine with regard tothe management of 'vesical calculi'. 

 "When a small calculus, " says he, "obstructs the urethra, and can be felt, it may be attempted to be forced forward through the urethra to the point of the penis, whence it may be extracted by a pair of forceps. If it cannot be so moved, it may be cut down upon and removed with safety; but when one or more stones are within the bladder, we must attempt lithotomy, after having fully satisfied ourselves of their existence there by the introduction of the sound; to do which it must be remembered that the urethra of the dog in passing the bladder proceeds nearly in a direct line backwards, and then, making an acute angle, it passes again forwards to the bladder. It must be therefore evident, that when it becomes necessary to introduce a catheter, sound, or bougie, it must first be passed up the penis to the extremity of this angle; the point of the instrument must then be cut down upon, and from this opening the instrument may be readily passed forward into the bladder. The examination made, and a stone detected, it may, if a very small one, be attempted to be pushed forward by means of a finger passed up the anus into the urethra; but, as this could be practicable only where the dog happened to be a large one, it is most probable that nothing short of the operation of lithotomy would succeed. To this end, the sound being introduced, pass a very small gorget, or otherwise a bistoury, along its groove into the bladder, to effect an opening sufficient to admit of the introduction of a fine pair of forceps, by which the stone may be laid up and extracted. " 'Blaine's Canine Pathology', p. 180. 

INFLAMMATION OF THE BLADDER

is of frequent occurrence in the dog; it is also occasionally observedin the horse and the ox. It sometimes appears as an epizootic. It isgenerally announced by anxiety, agitation, trembling of the hinderlimbs, frequent attempts to urine, vain efforts to accomplish it, theevacuation small in quantity, sometimes clear and aqueous, and at othertimes mucous, laden with sediment, thick and bloody, escaping by jets, painfully and with great difficulty, and then suddenly rushing out ingreat quantity. To this list of symptoms colic may often be added. Theanimal drinks with avidity, but seldom eats much, unless at thecommencement of the complaint. The skin is hard and dry, he looks at hisflanks, and his back and flanks are tender when pressed upon. 

During the latter portion of my connexion with Mr. Blaine, this diseaseassumed an epidemic character. There was a great drought through almostevery part of the country. The disease was characterised by generaluneasiness; continual shifting of the posture; a tucked-up appearance;an anxious countenance; a quick and noisy pulse; continued panting; theurine voided in small quantities, sometimes discharged drop by drop, orcomplete stoppage of it. The belly hot, swelled, and tender to thetouch; the dog becoming strangely irritable, and ready to bite even hismaster. 

'1st May', 1824. --Two dogs had been making ineffectual attempts to voidtheir urine for nearly two days. The first was a terrier, and the othera Newfoundland. The terrier was bled, placed in a warm bath, and analoetic ball, with calomel, administered. He was bled a second time inthe evening, and a few drops of water were discharged. On the followingday, the urine slowly passed involuntarily from him; but when heattempted to void any, his efforts were totally ineffectual. Ballscomposed of camphor, pulv. Uva ursi, tinct. Ferri mur. , mass purg. , andpulv. Lini. Et gum. Arab. , were administered morning, noon, and night. 

On the 5th the urine still passed involuntarily. Cold lotions wereemployed, and tonic and astringent medicines administered, with castoroil. He gradually got well, and no trace of the disease remained untilJune the 6th, when he again became thin and weak, and discharged muchbloody urine, but apparently without pain. The uva ursi, oak bark, andpowdered gum-arabic were employed. 

On the 12th he had become much better, and so continued until the 1st ofJuly, when he again exhibited the same complaint more violently thanbefore. He was exceedingly tender on the loins, and screamed when hewas touched. He was bled, returned to his uva ursi and powdered gum, andrecovered. I saw him two years afterwards apparently well. 

The Newfoundland dog exhibited a similar complaint, with nearly the sameaccompaniments. 

'May' 1. --He was disinclined to move; his belly was hard and hot, and hewas supposed to be costive. Gave an aloetic ball with iron. 

2d. He has endeavoured, in vain, several times to void his urine. Hewalks stiffly with his back bound. Subtract eight ounces of blood; giveanother physic-ball, and apply cold affusion to the loins. 

3d. He frequently attempts to stale, and passes a little urine at eachtime; he still walks and stands with his back bound. Syr. Papav. Etrhamni, with tinct. Ferr. Mur. , a large spoonful being given morning andnight. 

4th. He again tries, ineffectually, to void his urine. Mist. Et pulv. 

5th. Unable to void a drop of urine; nose hot; tongue hangs down; pantsconsiderably; will not eat; the countenance has an anxious character. Bleed to twelve ounces; apply cold affusion. Medicine as before, withcold affusion. 

6th. Appears to be in very great pain; not a drop of water has passedfrom him. Medicine and other treatment as before. In the evening he laydown quietly. On the next morning he was found dead. All the viscerawere sound except the bladder, which was ruptured; the abdomen containedtwo quarts of bloody fluid. The mucous membrane of the bladder appearedto be in the highest state of inflammation. It was almost black withextravasated blood. On the neck of the bladder was an enlargement of thesize of a goose's egg, and almost filling the cavity of the pelvis. Oncutting into it, more than two ounces of pus escaped. 

On June 29, 1833, a poodle was brought to me. He had not been observedto pass any urine for two days. He made frequent attempts to void it, and cried dreadfully. The bladder could be felt distended in theabdomen. I put him into a warm bath, and took from him a pound of blood. He seemed to be a little relieved. I did not leave him until aftermidnight, but was soon roused by his loud screams, and the dog was alsoretching violently. The cries and retching gradually abated, and hedied. The bladder had burst, and the parietes were in a dreadful stateof inflammation. 

A dog had laboured under incontinence of urine more than two months. Thewater was continually dropping from him. The servant told me that, threemonths before, he had been shut into a room two days, and, being acleanly animal, would not stale until he was liberated. Soon after thatthe incontinence of urine was observed. I gave the usual tonic balls, with a small portion of opium, night and morning, and ordered cold waterto be frequently dashed on the perinæum. A month afterwards he was quitewell. 

Comparatively speaking, 'profuse staling' is not a common disease, except when it is the consequence of bad food, or strong diuretics, oractual inflammation. The cause and the result of the treatment are oftenobscure. Bleeding, purging, and counter irritation, would be indicatedto a certain extent, but the lowering system must not be carried toofar. The medicine would probably be catechu, uva ursi, and opium. 

At times blood mingles with the urine, with or without coagulation. Thecause and the source of it may or may not be determined. Generallyspeaking it is the result of some strain or blow. 

A terrier bitch, in January, 1820, had incontinence of urine. Noswelling or injury could be detected. I used with her the simple tonicballs. 

10th January'. --She is now considerably better, and only a few dropsare observed. 

2d February'. --The disease which had seemingly been conquered beganagain to reappear; the medicine had been neglected. Again have recourseto it. 

4'th March'. --The disease now appears to be quite checked by the coldlotion and the balls. 

A CASE OF RUPTURE OF THE BLADDER

This is a singular account, and stands almost alone. 

The patient was a valuable spaniel belonging to that breed known as "TheDuke of Norfolk's, " and now possessed in its full perfection by the Earlof Albemarle. Professor Simonds shall give his own account:

I was informed that almost from a puppy to the time when he was twoyears old, the dog had always been delicate in his appearance, and wasobserved to void his urine with difficulty; but there were notsufficient indications of disease for the owner to suppose that medicalattendance was necessary until within a few days of his death, and then, finding that the act of staling was effected with increased difficulty, and accompanied with extreme pain; that the dog refused his food, wasfeverish; that at length there were frequent or ineffective efforts toexpel the urine, the dog crying out from extremity of pain, and it wassufficiently evident that great mischief was going on, he was placedunder my care; and even then he was walked a mile and a half to myinfirmary. 

My attention was immediately directed to him; the man who brought himinforming me that he seemed much easier since he left home. Onexamination, I at once pronounced that he could not recover; in fact, that he was rapidly sinking; but, from his then state, I could give noopinion with regard to the precise nature or extent of his disease. Hewas placed upon a bed in an appropriate apartment, with directions notto be disturbed, and in a few hours he died. 

The 'post-mortem' appearances were the abdomen containing from four tofive pints of fluid, having much the character of, but more bloody than, that found in cases of ascites. The peritoneum seemed to be dyed fromits immersion in this fluid, as it showed a general red hue, notapparently deeper in some parts than in others. There was an absence, toa great extent, of that beautiful appearance and well-marked course ofthe minute blood-vessels which accompany many cases of originalperitonitis. Extending the examination, I found the bladder to beruptured, and that the fluid of which I have spoken was to a largeextent composed of urine, mingled with some other secretion from theperitoneal investure of the abdomen and its viscera, probably producedfrom the presence of an irritant, the urine being brought into directcontact with the membrane. Farther research showed that this rupture ofthe bladder was caused in the manner which I have stated. The'post-mortem' examination displayed a chronic enlargement of theprostate gland of a considerable size, causing by its pressure amechanical obstruction to the passage of the urine. Death in thisinstance was not immediately brought about by the abnormal state of theoriginal organ affected; but the prostate gland, having early in thelife of the animal become diseased, and, being gradually increased insize, became a cause of still more serious disease, attacking moreimportant organs. 

WORMS. 

There are various kinds of worms to which the dog is subject; they haveoccasionally been confounded with each other; but they are essentiallydifferent in the situations which they occupy, and the effects whichthey produce. 

The 'ascarides' are small thread-like worms, generally not more than sixor ten lines in length, of a white colour, the head obtuse, and the tailterminating in a transparent prolongation. They are principally found inthe rectum. They seem to possess considerable agility; and the itchingwhich they set up is sometimes absolutely intolerable. To relieve this, the dog often drags the fundament along the ground. 

All the domesticated animals are subject to the annoyance which theseworms occasion. They roll themselves into balls as large as a nut, andbecome entangled so much with each other that it is difficult toseparate them. Sometimes they appear in the stomach, and in such largemasses that it is almost impossible to remove them by the act ofvomiting. It has been said that packets of ascarides have been collectedin the stomach containing more than one hundred worms. These collectionsare rarely or never got entirely rid of. Enormous doses of medicine maybe given, and the worms may not be seen again for several weeks; but, atlength, they reappear as numerous as ever. 

Young dogs are exceedingly subject to them, and are with greatdifficulty perfectly freed from their attacks. Another species of wormis the 'teres'. It would resemble the earth-worm in its appearance, wereit not white instead of a red colour. They are very common among dogs, especially young dogs, in whom they are often attended by fits. Occasionally they crawl into the stomach, and there produce a great dealof irritation. 

Another, and the most injurious of the intestinal worms, is the'taenia', or 'tape-worm'. It is many inches in length, almost flat inthe greater part of its extent, and its two extremities are nearly orquite equal. Tape-worms associate in groups like the others, but theyare not so numerous; they chiefly frequent the small intestines. Theyare sometimes apt to coil themselves, and form a mechanical obstructionwhich is fatal to the dog. 

The presence of all these worms is readily detected. There is generallya dry, short cough, a staring coat, a hot and fetid breath, a voraciousappetite, and a peculiar state of the bowels; alternately constipated toa great degree, or peculiarly loose and griping. In young dogs theemaciated appearance, stinted growth, fetid breath, and frequent fits, are indications not to be mistaken. 

At other times, however, the dog is filled with worms with scarcely anyindication of their presence. Mr. Blaine very properly remarks that itdocs not follow, because no worms are seen to pass away, that there arenone: neither when they are not seen does it follow even that none pass;for, if they remain long in the intestines after they are dead, theybecome digested like other animal matter. 

The means of expelling or destroying worms in the intestines of the dogare twofold: the first and apparently the most natural mode ofproceeding, is the administration of purgatives, and usually of drasticones; but there is much danger connected with this; not merely the fæceswill be expelled, but a greater or less portion of the mucus that linesthe intestinal canal. The consequence of this will be griping andinflammation to a very dangerous extent. Frequent doses of Epsom saltshave been given; but not always with success, and frequently withgriping. Mercurial medicines have been tried; but they have not alwayssucceeded, and have often produced salivation. One method of expellingthe worm has been adopted which has rarely failed, without the slightestmischief--the administration of glass finely powdered. Not a particle ofit penetrates through the mucus that lines the bowels, while it destroysevery intestinal worm. The powdered glass is made into a ball with lardand ginger. 

The following account of the symptoms caused by taenia may beinteresting. A dog used to be cheerful, and particularly fond of hismaster; but gradually his countenance became haggard, his eyes were red, his throat was continually filled with a frothy spume, and he stalkedabout with an expression of constant inquietude and suffering. Thesecircumstances naturally excited considerable fear with regard to thenature of his disease, and he was shut up in a court, with the intentionof his being destroyed. Thus shut up, he furiously threw himself uponevery surrounding object, and tore them with his teeth whenever he couldseize them. He retired into one of the corners of the court, and therehe was continually rubbing his nose, as it were to extract some foreignbody; sometimes he bit and tore up the earth, barking and howlingviolently; his hair stood on end, and his flanks were hollow. 

During the whole of his disease he continued to recognise his master. Heran to him at the slightest word. He refused nothing to drink; but hewould not eat. He was killed on account of the fear excited among theneighbours. 

The veterinary surgeon who attended him suspected that there was someaffection of the head, on account of the strange manner in which he hadrubbed and beaten it. The superior part of the nose was opened, and twotæniæ; lanceolatæ were found: it was plain enough that they were thecause of all the mischief. 

The proprietor of the dog nevertheless believed that it was a case ofrabies; he had the caustic applied to his hands, and could not persuadehimself that he was safe until he had been at the baths of Bourbonne. [4]

There is a worm inhabiting the stomach of young dogs, the 'AscarisMarginata', a frequent source of sickness and occasionally of spasmodiccolic, by rolling itself into knots. It seems occasionally to take adislike to its assigned residence, and wanders into the oesophagus, butrarely into the larger intestines. A dog had a severe cough, which couldnot be subdued by bleeding or physic, or sedative or opiate medicines. He was destroyed, and one of these ascarides was found in the trachea. Others find their way into the nasal cavity; and a dreadful source ofirritation they are when they are endeavouring to escape, in order toundergo one of the changes of form to which they are destined, or whenthey have been forced into the nostril in the act of vomiting. 

I once had a dog as a patient, whose case, I confess, I did notunderstand. He would sneeze and snort, and rub his head and nose alongthe carpet. I happened to say that the symptoms in some respectsresembled those of rabies, and yet, that I could not satisfy myself thatthe dog was rabid. The mention of rabies was sufficient, and in defianceof my remonstrances the animal was destroyed. 

The previous symptoms led me to examine the nasal cavity, and I foundtwo of these ascarides, one concealed in the middle and the other in theupper meatus, through neither of which could any strong current of airbe forced, and from which the ascarides could not be dislodged. 

Worms may be the cause of sudden death in a dog. The following case, communicated by Professor Dick, illustrates this fact:

I lately had the body of a dog sent to me: his owner sent the followingletter by the same conveyance. 

 "My keeper went out shooting yesterday morning with the dog which I now send to you. He was quite lively, and apparently well, during the former part of the day; but towards evening he was seized with violent vomiting. When he came home he refused to eat, and this morning about eight o'clock he died. As I have lost all my best dogs rather suddenly, I will thank you to have him examined, and the contents of his stomach analyzed; and have the kindness to inform me whether he has been poisoned, or what was the cause of his death. "

On opening the abdomen, the viscera appeared quite healthy: the stomachwas removed, and the contents were found to be more decidedly acid thanusual. The acids were the muriatic and acetic: the finding of anincreased quantity of these is far from being unusual. There was not atrace of arsenical, mercurial, nor any other metallic poison present. Ofthe vegetable poisons, I can only say there was not the slightest traceof the morbid effects of any of them. The pericardium and the left sideof the thorax contained a small quantity of bloody serous fluid, and theheart was full of black blood. The left lung was a little inflamed. Thetrachea contained some frothy yellow mucous matter, similar to thecontents of the stomach. In the larynx was found one of those wormsoccasionally inhabiting the cavities of the nose, and which had probablyescaped from the nose while the dog had been hunting; and, lodging inthe larynx, had destroyed the animal by producing spasms of the larynx. The worm was about one inch and a half in length, and had partlypenetrated through the rima glottidis. Another worm about the same sizewas found in the left bronchia, and a still smaller one among the mucusof the trachea: there were also four others in the nose. 

Some years ago I found some worms of the filacia species in the rightventricle of the heart of a dog, which had produced sudden death byinterrupting the action of the valves. 

The following is a curious case of tape-worm, by Mr. Reynold:

On an estate where a great quantity of rabbits are annually destroyed inthe month of November, we have observed that several dogs that werepreviously in good health and condition soon became weak, listless, andexcessively emaciated, frequently passing large portions of thetape-worm. This induced us to examine the intestines of several haresand rabbits; and, with, very few exceptions, we found each to contain aperfect tape-worm three to four feet in length. We then caused two ofthe dogs whose cases appeared the worst to be separated from the others, feeding them on potatoes, &c. ; and, in eight or ten days, after voidingseveral feet of the worms, they were perfectly restored to their formerstrength and appearance. The worm disease, hitherto so formidable to thespaniel and pointer, may in a great measure be fairly attributed to thecustom of giving them the intestines of their game, under the technicalappellation of "the paunch. " The facts above stated, in explaining thecause of the disease, at the same time suggest the remedy. 

'A worm in the urethra of a dog'. M. Séon, veterinary surgeon of the Lancers of the Body Guard, wasrequested to examine a dog who strained in vain to void his urine, oftenuttering dreadful cries, and then eagerly licking his penis. M. Séon, after having tried in vain to abate the irritation, endeavoured to passan elastic bougie. He perceived a conical body half an inch longprotruding from the urethra with each effort of the dog to void hisurine, and immediately afterwards returning into the urethra. He crushedit with a pair of forceps, and drew it out. It proved to be a wormresembling a strongylus, four and a half inches long. It was living, andmoving about. M. Séon could not ascertain its species. The worm beingextracted, the urine flowed, and the dog soon recovered. [5]

FISTULA IN THE ANUS. 

This is a too frequent consequence of piles. It is often the result ofthe stagnation of hardened fæces in the rectum, which producesinflammation and ulceration, and frequently leaves a fistulous opening. If we may judge what the quadruped suffers by the sufferings of humanbeings, it is a sadly painful affair, whether the fistula is external orinternal. Whether it may be cured by a mild stimulant daily inserted tothe bottom of the abscess, or whether there is a communication with theopening of the rectum which buries itself in the cellular tissues aroundit, and requires an operation for its cure, it will require theassistance of a skilful surgeon to effect a cure in this case. 

[Footnote 1: Tetanus observed on a Dog, by M. Debeaux. --'Pract. Med. Vet. ' 1829, p. 543]

[Footnote 2: 'Blaine's Canine Pathology', p. 151. ]

[Footnote 3: 'Proceedings of the Veterinary Medical Association', 1839-40]

[Footnote 4: 'Prat. Méd. Vét. ' 1824, p. 14. ]

[Footnote 5: 'Prat. Méd. Vét. ', Fév. 1828. ]

 * * * * *

CHAPTER XIII. 

BLEEDING; TORSION; CASTRATION, PARTURITION; AND SOME DISEASESCONNECTED WITH THE ORGANS OF GENERATION. 

BLEEDING. 

This operation is exceedingly useful in many accidents and diseases. Itis, in fact, as in the horse, the sheet-anchor of the practitioner inthe majority of cases of an inflammatory character. There is somedifference, however, in the instrument to be used. The lancet is thepreferable instrument in the performance of this operation. The fleamshould be banished from among the instruments of the veterinary surgeon. 

A ligature being passed round the lower part of the neck, and the headbeing held up a little on one side, the vein will protrude on eitherside of the windpipe. It will usually be advisable to cut away a littleof the hair over the spot designed to be punctured. When a sufficientquantity of blood is abstracted, it will generally be necessary, andespecially if the dog is large, to pass a pin through both edges of theorifice, and secure it with a little tow. 

When no lancet is at hand, the inside of the flap of the ear may bepunctured with a pen-knife, the course of a vein being selected for thispurpose. In somewhat desperate cases a small portion of the tail may beamputated. 

The 'superficial brachial vein', the 'cephalic' vein of the humansubject, and the 'plat' vein of the farrier, may be resorted to in alllamenesses of the fore limb, and especially in all shoulder-wrenches, strains of the loins, and of the thigh and the leg, and muscular andligamentous extensions of any part of the hind limbs; the 'vena saphenamajor', and the 'anterior tibial' vein may be punctured in such cases. 

The quantity of blood to be abstracted must be regulated according tothe size and strength of the dog and the degree of inflammation. 

One or two ounces may be sufficient for a very small dog, and seven oreight for a large one. 

TORSION

To M. Amusat, of Paris, we are indebted for the introduction of theartery-forceps for the arresting of hemorrhage. I shall do but justiceto him by describing his mode of proceeding. He seizes the dividedvessel with a pair of torsion-forceps in such a manner as to hold andclose the mouth of the vessel in its teeth. The slide of the forcepsthen shuts its blade, and the artery is held fast. The artery is thendrawn from out of the tissues surrounding it, to the extent of a fewlines, and freed, with another forceps, from its cellular envelope, soas to lay bare its external coat. The index and thumb of the left handare then applied above the forceps, in order to press back the blood inthe vessel. He then begins to twist the artery. One of the methodsconsists in continuing the torsion until the part held in the forceps isdetached. When, however, the operator does not intend to produce thateffect, he ceases, after from four to six revolutions of the vessel onits axis for the small arteries, and from eight to twelve for the largeones. The hemorrhage instantly stops. The vessel which had been drawnout is then replaced, as the surrounding parts give support to the knotwhich has been formed at its extremities. The knot becomes furtherconcealed by the retraction of the artery, and this retraction will beproportionate to the shortening which takes place by the effect of thetwisting, so that it will be scarcely visible on the surface of thestump. It is of the utmost importance to seize the artery perfectly, andto make the stated number of twists, as otherwise the security againstthe danger of consecutive hemorrhage will not be perfect. 

Mr. W. B. Costello, of London, was present when the operation wasperformed at Paris. He brought back a full account of it as performedthere, and availed himself of an early opportunity of putting it to thetest before some of our metropolitan surgeons. A dog was placed on thetable, the forceps were applied, and the operation perfectly succeeded. 

A few days afterwards a pointer bitch was brought to my infirmary, witha large scirrhous tumour near the anterior teat on the left side. It hadbeen gradually increasing during the last five months. It was becomingmore irregular in its form, and on one of its tuberculous prominenceswas a reddish spot, soft and somewhat tender, indicating that theprocess of suppuration was about to commence. 

I had often, or almost uniformly, experienced the power of iodine indispersing glandular enlargements in the neck of the dog, and also thoseindurated tumours of various kinds which form about the joints of somedomesticated animals, particularly of cattle; but frequentdisappointment had convinced me that it was, if not inert, yet veryuncertain in its effect in causing absorption of tumours about the mammæof the bitch. Having also been taught that the ultimate success of theexcision of these enlargements depended on their removal beforesuppuration had taken place, and the neighbouring parts had beeninoculated by the virus which so plentifully flowed from the ulcer, Idetermined on an immediate operation; and, as the tumour was large, andshe was in high condition, I thought it a good case for 'the first trialof torsion'. She was well physicked, and on the third day was producedbefore my class and properly secured. I had not provided myself with the'torsion forceps', but relied on the hold I should have on the vessel bymeans of a pair of common artery forceps; and the effect of imperfectinstruments beautifully established the power of torsion in arrestinghemorrhage. 

Two elliptical incisions were made on the face of the tumour, andprolonged anteriorly and posteriorly about an inch from it. The portionof integument that could be spared was thus enclosed, while the opposededges of the wound could be neatly and effectually brought togetherafter the operation. The dissection of the integument from the remainingpart of the face of the tumour was somewhat slow and difficult, for itwas in a manner identified with the hardened mass beneath; but theoperation soon proceeded more quickly, and we very soon had the scirrhusexposed, and adhering to the thorax by its base. About two ounces ofvenous blood had now been lost. 

I was convinced that I should find the principal artery, by which theexcrescence was fed, at its anterior extremity, and not far from thespot where the suppuration seemed to be preparing: therefore, beginningposteriorly, I very rapidly cut through the cellular texture, elevatingthe tumour and turning it back, until I arrived at the inner andanterior point, and there was the only source of supply; the artery wasplainly to be seen. In order to give the experiment a fair chance, Iwould not enclose it in the forceps, but I cut through it. A jet ofblood spirted out. I then seized the vessel as quickly as I could, andbegan to turn the forceps, but before I could effect more than a turnand a half I lost my hold on the artery. I was vexed, and paused, waiting for the renewed gush of blood that I might seize the vesselagain; but to my surprise not a drop more blood came from the arterialtrunk. That turn and a half, considerable pressure having been used, hadcompletely arrested the hemorrhage. I can safely say that not more thanfour drachms of arterial blood were lost. 

The wound was sponged clean: there remained only a very slight oozingfrom two or three points; the flaps were brought together, secured bythe ordinary sutures, and the proper bandages applied. The weight of thetumour was twenty-two ounces; there was no after-bleeding, no unpleasantoccurrences; but the wound, which had been nearly six inches in length, was closed in little more than three weeks. 

He will essentially promote the cause of science, and the cause ofhumanity, who will avail himself of the opportunity which countrypractice affords of putting the effect of torsion to the test: and fewthings will be more gratifying than the consciousness of rescuing ourpatients from the unnecessary infliction of torture. 

In docking, it will be found perfectly practicable: our patients willescape much torture, and tetanus will often be avoided. The principaldanger from castration has arisen from the severity with which the ironhas been employed. The colt, the sheep, and the dog will be fairsubjects for experiment. The cautery, as it regards the first, and thebrutal violence too frequently resorted to in operating upon the others, have destroyed thousands of animals. 

CASTRATION. 

This operation is performed on a great portion of our domestic animals. It renders them more docile, and gives them a disposition to fatten. Itis followed by fewest serious accidents when it is performed on younganimals. The autumn or spring should, if possible, be chosen for theoperation, for the temperature of the atmosphere is then generallyuniform and moderate. It should be previously ascertained that theanimal is in perfect health; and he should be prepared by a mash dietand bleeding, if he is in a plethoric state, or possessed ofconsiderable determination. If it is a young animal that is to beoperated upon, an incision may be made into the scrotum, the testiclemay be protruded, and the cord cut without much precaution, for theblood will soon be stayed; but for older animals it will be advisable touse a ligature, applied moderately tightly round the spermatic cord alittle more than an inch beyond its insertion into the testicle; thescalpel is then used, and a separation effected between the ligature andthe testis. The vas derens needs not to be included; a great deal ofpain will then be spared to the animal. 

The ordinary consequences of castration are pain, inflammation, engorgement, and suppuration. The pain and suppuration are inevitable, but generally yield to emollient applications. The engorgement is oftenconsiderable at first, but soon subsides, and the suppuration usuallyabates in the course of a few days. It has been said that the castrateddog is more attached and faithful to his master than he who has not beendeprived of his genital powers: this, however, is to be much doubted. Hehas, generally speaking, lost a considerable portion of his courage, hisenergy, and his strength. He is apt to become idle, and is disposed toaccumulate fat more rapidly. His power of scent is also veryconsiderably diminished and he is less qualified for the sports of thefield. Of this there can be no doubt. It has been said that he is moresubmissive: I very much doubt the accuracy of that opinion. He may notbe so savage as in his perfect state; he may not be so eager in hisfeeding; but there is not the devotion to his master, and the quicknessof comprehension which belongs to the perfect dog. 

The removal of the ovaries, or spaying of the female, used to be oftenpractised, and packs of spayed bitches were, and still are, occasionallykept. In performing this operation, an opening is made into the flank onone side, and the finger introduced--one of the ovaries is laid hold ofand drawn a little out of the belly; a ligature is then applied roundit, just above the bifurcation of the womb, and it is cut through, theend of the ligature being left hanging out of the wound. The other ovaryis then felt for and drawn out, and excised and secured by a ligature. The wound is then sewed up, and a bandage is placed over the incision. Some farriers do not apply any ligature, but simply sew up the wound, and in the majority of cases the edges adhere, and no harm comes of theoperation, except that the general character of the animal isessentially changed. She accumulates a vast quantity of fat, becomeslistless and idle, and is almost invariably short-lived. 

The female dog, therefore, should always be allowed to breed. Breedingis a necessary process; and the female prevented from it is sure to beaffected with disease sooner or later; enormous collections andindurations will form, that will inevitably terminate in scirrhus orulceration. 

A troublesome process often occurs when the female is not permitted tohave young ones; namely, the accumulation of milk in the teats, especially if at any previous time, however distant, she may have hadpuppies once. The foundation is laid for many unpleasant andunmanageable complaints. If she is suffered to bring up one litter afteranother, she will have better health than those that are debarred fromintercourse with the male. 

The temporary union which takes placed between the male and female atthe period at which they are brought together is a very singular one. The corpora cavernosa of the male and the clitoris of the female beingsuddenly distended with blood, it is impossible to withdraw either ofthem until the turgescence of the parts has entirely ceased. 

PARTURITION

The pupping usually takes place from the sixty-second to thesixty-fourth day; and the process having commenced, from a quarter tothree quarters of an hour generally takes place between the productionof each puppy. 

Great numbers of bitches are lost every year in the act of parturition:there seems to be a propensity in the females to associate with dogslarger than themselves, and they pay for it with their lives. The mostneglected circumstance during the period of pregnancy is the littleexercise which the mother is permitted to take, while, in point of fact, nothing tends more to safe and easy parturition than her being permittedor compelled to take a fair quantity of exercise. 

When the time of parturition has arrived, and there is evidentdifficulty in producing the foetus, recourse should be had to the ergotof rye, which should be given every hour or half hour, according tocircumstances. If after a certain time some, although little, progresshas been made, the ergot must be continued in smaller doses, or perhapssuspended for a while; but, if all progress is evidently suspended, recourse must be had to the hook or the forceps. By gentle but continuedmanipulation much may be done, especially when the muzzle of the puppycan be brought into the passage. As little force as possible must beused, and especially the foetus little broken. Many a valuable animal isdestroyed by the undue application of force. 

If the animal seems to be losing strength, a small quantity of laudanumand ether may be administered. 

 "The patience of bitches in labour is extreme, " says Mr. Blaine; "and their distress, if not removed, is most striking and affecting. Their look is at such time particularly expressive and apparently imploring. "

When the pupping is protracted, and the young ones are evidently dead, the mother may be saved, if none of the puppies have been broken. Inprocess of time the different puppies may, one after another, beextracted; but when violence has been used at the commencement, oralmost at any part of the process, death will assuredly follow. 

'June' 15, 1832. --A spaniel bitch was brought to my infirmary to-day, who has been in great and constant pain since yesterday, making repeatedbut fruitless efforts to expel her puppies. She is in a very plethorichabit of body; her bowels are much confined, and she exhibits somegeneral symptoms of febrile derangement, arising, doubtless, from herprotracted labour. This is her first litter. Upon examination, no youngcould be distinctly felt. 

Place her in a warm bath, and give her a dose of castor oil, morning andevening. 

'June' 16. --The bitch appears in the same state as yesterday, exceptthat the medicine has operated freely upon the bowels, and the febrilesymptoms have somewhat decreased. Her strainings are as frequent anddistressing as ever. Take two scruples of the ergot of rye, and divideinto six doses, of which let one be given every half hour. 

In about ten minutes after the exhibition of the last dose of thismedicine, she brought forth, with great difficulty, one dead puppy, upontaking which away from her, she became so uneasy that I was induced toreturn it to her. In about a quarter of an hour after this I paid heranother visit: the puppy could not now be found; but a suspiciousappearance in the mother's eye betrayed at once that she had devouredit. I immediately administered an emetic; and in a very short time thewhole foetus was returned in five distinct parts, viz. , the fourquarters and the head. After this, the bitch began to amend very fast;she produced no other puppy; and as her supply of milk was small, shewas soon convalescent. 

Twelve months afterwards she was again taken in labour, about eleveno'clock in the morning, and after very great difficulty, one puppy wasproduced. After this the bitch appeared in great pain, but did notsucceed in expelling another foetus, in consequence of which I was sentfor about three o'clock, P. M. I found her very uneasy breathinglaboriously; the mouth hot, and the bowels costive; but I could notdiscover any trace of another foetus. She was put into a warm bath, anda dose of opening medicine was administered. 

About five o'clock she got rid of one dead and two living puppies. 

'2d'. She is still very ill; she evinces great pain when pressed uponthe abdomen; and it is manifest that she has another foetus within her. I ordered a dose of the ergot, and in about twenty minutes a large puppywas produced, nearly dying. She survived with due care. 

I cannot refrain from inserting the following case at considerablelength. 

'Sept. ' 4, 1820. --A very diminutive terrier, weighing not 5 lbs. Wassent to my hospital in order to lie in. She was already restless andpanting. About eight o'clock at night the labour pains commenced; butuntil eleven scarcely any progress was made. The 'os uteri' would notadmit my finger, although I frequently attempted it. 

At half-past eleven, the membranes began to protrude; at one the headhad descended into the pelvis and the puppy was dead. In a previouslabour she had been unable to produce her young, although the ergot ofrye had been freely used. I was obliged to use considerable force, andshe fought terribly with me throughout the whole process. At half-pastone, and after applying considerable force, I brought away a largefoetus, compared with her own size. On passing my finger as high aspossible, I felt another foetus living, but the night passed and thewhole of the following day, and she ate and drank, and did not appear tobe much injured. 

Several times in the day I gave her some strong soup and the ergot. Someslight pains now returned, and by pressing on the belly the nose of thefoetus was brought to the superior edge of the pelvis. The pains againceased, the pudenda began to swell from frequent examination, the bitchbegan to stagger, and made frequent attempts to void her urine, withextreme difficulty in accomplishing it. I now resorted to the crotchet;and after many unsuccessful attempts, in which the superior part of thevagina must have been considerably bruised, I fixed it sufficientlyfirmly to draw the head into the cavity of the pelvis. Here for a whilethe shoulder resisted every attempt which I could make without thedanger of detruncating the foetus. At length by working at the side ofthe head until my nails were soft and my fingers sore, I extracted onefore leg. The other was soon brought down; another large puppy wasproduced, but destroyed by the means necessary for its production. Thiswas the fruit of two hours' hard work. 

She was completely exhausted, and scarcely able to stand. When placed onthe ground she staggered and fell at almost every step. Her efforts tovoid her urine were frequent and ineffectual. 

At four o'clock I again examined her; the external pudenda were sore andswelled, and beginning to assume a black hue. It was with considerabledifficulty that I could introduce my finger. A third foetus irregularlypresented was detected. I could just feel one of the hind legs. No timewas to be lost. I introduced a small pair of forceps by the side of myfinger, and succeeded in laying hold of the leg without much difficulty, and, with two or three weak efforts from the mother, --I could scarcelycall them pains, --I brought the leg down until it was in the cavity ofthe pelvis. I solicited it forward with my finger, and, by forciblypressing back the 'labia pudendi', I could just grasp it with the fingerand thumb of the right hand. Holding it there, I introduced the fingerof the right hand, and continued to get down the other leg, and thenfound little difficulty until the head was brought to the superior edgeof the pelvis. After a long interval, and with considerable force, thiswas brought into the pelvis, and another puppy extracted. This fullyoccupied two hours. 

The bitch now appeared almost lifeless. As she was unable to stand, andseemed unconscious of every thing around her, I concluded that she waslost: I gave her one or two drops of warm brandy and water, covered herup closely, and put her to bed. 

To my surprise, on the following morning, she was curled round in herbasket; she licked my hands, and ate a bit of bread and butter; but whenput on her legs staggered and fell. The pudendum was dreadfully swollen, and literally black. In the afternoon she again took a little food: shecame voluntarily from her basket, wagged her tail when spoken to, and onthe following day she was taken in her basket a journey of 70 miles, andafterwards did well; no one could be more rejoiced than was her master, who was present at, and superintended the greater part of theproceedings. 

'The beneficial effect of Ergot of Rye in difficult Parturition'. --Thefollowing case is from the pen of Professor Dick:

On the 10th instant, a pointer bitch produced two puppies; and it wasthought by the person having her in charge that she had no more. She wasput into a comfortable box, and with a little care was expected to dowell. On the next morning, however, she was sick and breathed heavily, and continued rather uneasy all the day. 

On the forenoon of the following day I was requested to see her. I foundher with her nose dry, breath hot, respiration frequent, mouth hot andparched, coat staring, back roached, pulse 120, and a black fetiddischarge from the vagina. Pressure on the abdomen gave pain. A pupcould be obscurely felt; the secretion of milk was suppressed, and theskin had lost its natural elasticity. 

Tepid water with a little soap dissolved in it was immediately injectedinto the uterus, which in a considerable degree excited its action; andthis injection was repeated two or three times with the same effect. 

After waiting for half an hour, the foetus was not discharged norbrought forward; therefore a scruple of the ergot of rye was then madeinto an infusion with two ounces of water, and one-third of it given asa dose; in half an hour, another one-third of it; the injections of warmwater and soap being also continued. Soon after the second dose of theinfusion, a dead puppy was expelled; the bitch rapidly recovered, and, with the exception of deficiency of milk, is now quite well. 

This case would seem to prove the great power of the ergot of rye overthe uterus; but, until more experiments are made, it is necessary to becautious in ascribing powers to medicines which have not been much triedin our practice. It is not improbable that the warm water and soap mighthave roused the uterus into action without the aid of the ergot; and itis therefore necessary that those who repeat this experiment should trythe effects of the medicine unaided by the auxiliary. 

The Professor adds, that the great power which this drug is said to haveon the human being, and the apparent effect in the case just given, suggest the propriety of instituting a further trial of it, and of ourextending our observations to cattle, amongst which difficult cases ofcalving so frequently occur. 

Mr. Simpson thus concludes some remarks on ergot in difficultparturition. This medicine possesses a very great power over the uterus, rousing its dormant or debilitated contractility, and stimulating it toan extra performance of this necessary function after its natural energyhas been in some measure destroyed by forcible but useless action. Thedirect utility of the ergot was manifested in cases where the uterusappeared quite exhausted by its repeated efforts; and certainly it isbut fair to ascribe the decidedly augmented power of the organ to thestimulus of the ergot, for no other means were resorted to in order toprocure the desired effect. Its action, too, is prompt. Within tenminutes of the administration of a second or third dose, when nature hasbeen nearly exhausted, the parturition has been safely effected. 

'Puerperal Fits'. Nature, proportions the power and resources of the mother to the wantsof her offspring. In her wild undomesticated state she is able to suckleher progeny to the full time; but, in the artificial state in which wehave placed her, we shorten the interval between each period ofparturition, we increase the number of her young ones at each birth, wediminish her natural powers of affording them nutriment, and we give hera degree of irritability which renders her whole system liable to beexcited and deranged by causes that would otherwise be harmless:therefore it happens that, when the petted bitch is permitted to sucklethe whole of her litter, her supply of nutriment soon becomes exhausted, and the continued drain upon her produces a great degree ofirritability. She gets rapidly thin; she staggers, is half unconscious, neglects her puppies, and suddenly falls into a fit of a very peculiarcharacter. It begins with, and is sometimes confined to, the respiratoryapparatus: she lies on her side and pants violently, and the sound ofher laboured breathing may be heard at the distance of twenty yards. Sometimes spasms steal over her limbs; at other times the diaphragm andrespiratory muscles alone are convulsed. In a few hours she is certainlylost; or, if there are moments of remission, they are speedily succeededby increased heavings. 

The practitioner unaccustomed to this fearful state of excitation, andforgetful or unaware of its cause, proceeds to bleed her, and he sealsher fate. Although one system is thus convulsively labouring, it isbecause others are suddenly and perfectly exhausted; and by abstractionof the vital current he reduces this last hold of life to the helplesscondition of the rest. There is not a more common or fatal error thanthis. 

The veterinary practitioner is unable to apply the tepid bath to hislarger patients, in order to quiet the erythism of certain parts of thesystem, and produce an equable diffusion of nervous influence andaction; and he often forgets it when he has it in his power to save thesmaller ones. Let the bitch in a fit be put into a bath, temperature 96°Fahrenheit, and covered with the water, her head excepted. It will hesurprising to see how soon the simple application of this equabletemperament will quiet down the erythism of the excited system. In tenminutes, or a quarter of an hour, she may be taken out of the bathevidently relieved, and then, a hasty and not very accurate dryinghaving taken place, she is wrapped in a blanket and placed in some warmsituation, a good dose of physic having been previously administered. She soon breaks out in a profuse perspiration. Everything becomesgradually quiet, and she falls into a deep and long sleep, and at lengthawakes somewhat weak, but to a certain degree restored. 

If, then, all her puppies except one or two are taken from her, and herfood is, for a day or two, somewhat restricted, and after that givenagain of its usual quantity and kind, she will live and do well; but ableeding at the time of her fit, or suffering all her puppies to returnto her, will inevitably destroy her. 

A bitch that was often brought to my house was suckling a litter ofpuppies. She was foolishly taken up and thrown into the Serpentine inthe month of April. The suppression of milk was immediate and complete. There was also a determination to the head, and attacks resemblingepilepsy. The puppies that were suffered to remain with the mother, werevery soon as epileptic as she was, and were destroyed. A seton wasinserted on each side of her neck. Ipecacuanha was administered; andthat having sufficiently worked, a small quantity of diluted sulphuricacid was given. A fortnight afterwards she was perfectly well. 

'Inversion of the Uterus in a Bull Bitch after Pupping. Extirpationand Cure. '

By M. Cross, M. V. , Milan. --In July, 1829, I was desired to attend asmall bull bitch six years old, and who had had puppies four times. Theuterus was completely inverted, and rested all its weight on the vaginalorifice of the urethra, preventing the discharge of the urine, and thusbeing the cause of great pain when the animal endeavoured to void it, orthe faecal matter. The uterus was become of almost a black colour, swelled, softened, and exhaling an insupportable odour. Judging fromthis that the preservation of the uterus was impossible, and reckoningmuch on the good constitution of the patient, I warned the proprietor ofthe danger of its reduction, even supposing that it was practicable, andproposed to him the complete extirpation of the uterus as the only meansthat remained of saving the bitch. 

Armed with his consent, I passed a ligature round the neck of theuterus, at the bottom of the vagina, and drew it as tight as I possiblycould. On the following day I again tightened the ligature, in order tocomplete the mortification of the part, and the separation of the womb. On the third day I extirpated the womb entirely, close to the haunch. There was very slight loss of blood, but there ran from the walls of thevagina a small quantity of ichorous fluid, with a strong fetid smell. The operation was scarcely completed ere she voided a considerablequantity of urine, and then searched about for something to eat and todrink. 

The portion of the uterus that was removed weighed fourteen ounces. Themucous membrane by which it was lined was in a highly disorganizedstate. From time to time injections of a slight infusion of aromaticplants were introduced into the vagina, and the animal was nourishedwith liquid food of easy digestion. 

The first day passed without the animal being in the slightest degreeaffected; but, on the following day, in despite of all our care, anichorous fluid was discharged, which the dog would lick notwithstandingall our efforts to prevent it. The general health of the animal did notseem to be in the slightest degree affected. 

On the fourth day after the operation, the cords that had served as aligature fell off, and all suppuration from the part gradually ceased. 

'October 20th'. --Three months have passed since the operation, and sheis perfectly well. 

 * * * * *

CHAPTER XIV. 

THE DISTEMPER. 

By this singular name is distinguished a prevalent disease now about tocome under our consideration, which was first observed on the continent. The rapidity with which it spread, the strange protean appearances whichit assumed, and its too frequent fatal termination, surprised andpuzzled the veterinary surgeons; and they called it "la maladie deschiens, " the disease or distemper in dogs. 

It is comparatively a new disease. It was imported from France about onehundred years since, although some French authors have strangelyaffirmed that it is of British origin. Having once gained footing amongus, it has established itself in our country, to the vexation and lossof the sportsman, and the annoyance of the veterinary surgeon. Howeverkeepers, or even men of education, may boast of their specifics, it is asadly fatal disease, and destroys fully one-third of the canine race. 

Dogs of all ages are subject to its attack. Many, nine and ten yearsold, have died of pure distemper; and I have seen puppies of only threeweeks fall victims to it; but it oftenest appears between the sixth andtwelfth month of the animal's life. If it occurs at an early period, itproves fatal in the great majority of cases; and, if the dog is morethan four years old, it generally goes hard with him. It is undeniablyhighly contagious, yet it is frequently generated. In this it bears ananalogy to mange, and to farcy and glanders in the horse. 

One attack of the disease, and even a severe one, is no absolutesecurity against its return; although the dog that has once labouredunder distemper possesses a certain degree of immunity; or, if he isattacked a second time, the malady usually assumes a milder type. Ihave, however, known it occur three times in the same animal, and atlast destroy him. 

Violent catarrh will often terminate in distemper; and low andinsufficient feeding will produce it. It frequently follows mange, andespecially if mercury has been used in the cure of the malady. When wesee a puppy with mange, and that peculiar disease in which the skinbecomes corrugated, and more especially if it is a spaniel, andpot-bellied or rickety, we generally say that we can cure the mange, butit will not be long before the animal dies of distemper; and so ithappens in three cases out of four. Whatever debilitates theconstitution predisposes it for the reception or the generation ofdistemper. It, however, frequently occurs without any apparent excitingcause. 

That it is highly contagious cannot admit of doubt. A healthy dog canseldom, for many days, be kept with another that labours under distemperwithout becoming affected; and the disease is communicated by theslightest momentary contact. There is, however, a great deal of capriceabout this. I have more than once kept a dog in the foul-yard of myhospital for several successive weeks, and he has not become diseased. Inoculation with the matter that flows from the nose, either limpid orpurulent, and in an early or advanced stage of the distemper, will, withfew exceptions, produce the disease; yet I have failed to communicate iteven by this method. Inoculation used to be recommended as producing amilder and less fatal disease. So far as my experience goes, thecontrary has been the result. 

Distemper is also epidemic. It occurs more frequently in the spring andautumn than in the winter and summer. If one or two dogs in a certaindistrict are affected, we may be assured that it will soon extensivelyprevail there; and where the disease could not possibly be communicatedby contagion. Sometimes it rages all over the country. At other times itis endemic, and confined to some particular district. 

Not only is the disease epidemic or endemic, but the form which itassumes is so. In one season, almost every dog with distemper hasviolent fits; at another, in the majority of cases, there will beconsiderable chest affection, running on to pneumonia; a few monthsafterwards, a great proportion of the distempered dogs will be worn downby diarrhoea, which no medicine will arrest; and presently it will bescarcely distinguishable from mild catarrh. 

It varies much with different breeds. The shepherd's dog, generallyspeaking, cares little about it; he is scarcely ill a day. The cur isnot often seriously affected. The terrier has it more severely, especially the white terrier. The hound comes next in the order ofseverity; and after him the setter. With the small spaniel it is moredangerous; and still more so with the pointer, especially if he has thedisease early. Next in the order of fatality comes the pug; and it ismost fatal of all with the Newfoundland dog. Should a foreign dog beaffected, he almost certainly dies. The greater part of the northerndogs brought by Captain Parry did not survive a twelvemonth; and thedelicate Italian greyhound has little chance, when imported from abroad. 

Not only does it thus differ in different species of dogs, but indifferent breeds of the same species. I have known several gentlemen whohave laboured in vain for many years, to rear particular and valuablebreeds of pointers and greyhounds. The distemper would uniformly carryoff five out of six. Other sportsmen laugh at the supposed danger ofdistemper, and declare that they seldom lose a dog. This hereditarypredisposition to certain kinds of disease cannot be denied, and is notsufficiently attended to. When a peculiar fatality has often followed acertain breed, the owner should cross it from another kennel, andespecially from the kennel of one who boasts of his success in thetreatment of distemper. This has occasionally succeeded far beyondexpectation. 

It is time to proceed to the symptoms of this disease; but here there isvery considerable difficulty, for it is a truly protean malady, and itis impossible to fix on any symptom that will invariably characteriseit. 

An early and frequent symptom is a gradual loss of appetite, spirits, and condition: the dog is less obedient to his master, and takes lessnotice of him. The eyes appear weak and watery; and there will be a veryslight limpid discharge from the nose. In the morning there will, perhaps, be a little indurated mucus at the inner corner of the eye. This may continue two or three weeks without serious or scarcelyrecognizable illness. Then a peculiar husky cough is heard, altogetherdifferent from the sonorous cough of catarrh, or the wheezing of asthma. It is an apparent attempt to get something from the fauces or throat. Bydegrees the discharge from the eyes and nose, and particularly theformer, will increase. More mucus will collect in the corners of theeye; and the eye will sometimes be closed in the morning. Theconjunctiva and particularly that portion which covers the sclerotica, will be considerably injected, but there will not be the usual intenseredness of inflammation. The vessels will be large and turgid ratherthan numerous, and frequently of a darkish hue. 

Occasionally, however, the inflammation of the conjunctiva will beexceedingly intense, the membrane vividly red, and the eye impatient oflight. An opacity spreads over the cornea, and this is quickly succeededby ulceration. The first spot of ulceration is generally found preciselyin the centre of the cornea, and is perfectly circular; this willdistinguish it from a scratch or other injury. The ulcer widens anddeepens, and sometimes eats through the cornea, and the aqueous humourescapes. Fungous granulations spring from it, protrude through the lids, and the animal evidently suffers extreme torture. 

A remarkable peculiarity attends this affection of the eye. Howeverviolent may be the inflammation, and by whatever disorganization it maybe accompanied, if we can cure the distemper, the granulations willdisappear, the ulcer will heal, the opacity will clear away, and the eyewill not eventually suffer in the slightest degree. One-fourth part ofthe mischief in other cases, unconnected with distemper, wouldinevitably terminate in blindness; but permanent blindness is rarely theconsequence of distemper. 

It may not be improper here shortly to revert to the differentappearance of the eye in rabies. In the early stage of this malady thereis an unnatural and often terrific brightness of the eye; but the corneain distemper is from the first rather clouded. In rabies there isfrequent strabismus, with the axis of the eye distorted outwards. Theapparent squinting of the eye in distemper is caused by the probablyunequal protrusion of the membrana nictitans over a portion of the eyeat the inner canthus, in order to protect it from the light. In rabies, the white cloudiness which I have described, and the occasionalulceration with very little cloudiness, and the ulceration, are confinedto the cornea; but a dense green opacity comes on, speedily followed byulceration and disorganization of every part of the eye. 

The dog will, at this stage of distemper, be evidently feverish, andwill shiver and creep to the fire. He will more evidently and rapidlylose flesh. The huskiness will be more frequent and troublesome, and thedischarge from the nose will have greater consistence. It will be oftenand violently sneezed out, and will gradually become more or lesspurulent. It will stick about the nostrils and plug them up, and thusafford a considerable mechanical obstruction to the breathing. 

The progress of the disease is now uncertain. Sometimes fits come on, speedily following intense inflammation of the eye; or the inflammationof the nasal cavity appears to be communicated, by proximity, to themembrane of the brain. One fit is a serious thing. If it is followed bya second within a day or two, the chances of cure are diminished; and ifthey rapidly succeed each other, the dog is almost always lost. Thesefits seldom appear without warning; and, if their approach is carefullywatched, they may possibly be prevented. 

However indisposed to eat the dog may previously have been, the appetitereturns when the fits are at hand, and the animal becomes absolutelyvoracious. Nature seems to be providing for the great expenditure ofpower which epilepsy will soon occasion. The mucus almost entirelydisappears from the eyes, although the discharge from the nose maycontinue unabated; and for an hour or more before the fit there will bea champing of the lower jaw, frothing at the mouth, and discharge ofsaliva. The champing of the lower jaw will be seen at least twelve hoursbefore the first fit, and will a little while precede every other. Therewill also be twitchings of some part of the frame, and usually of themouth, cheek, or eyelid. It is of some consequence to attend to these, as enabling us to distinguish between fits of distemper and those ofteething, worms, or unusual excitement. The latter come on suddenly. Thedog is apparently well, and racing about full of spirits, and without amoment's warning he falls into violent convulsions. 

We may here, likewise, be enabled to distinguish between rabies anddistemper. When a person, unacquainted with dogs, sees a dog strugglingin a fit, or running along unconscious of every surrounding object, orsnapping at everything in his way, whether it be a human being or astone, he raises the cry of "mad dog, " and the poor brute is oftensacrificed. The very existence of a fit is proof positive that the dogis not mad. No epilepsy accompanies rabies in any stage of that disease. 

The inflammation of the membrane of the nose and fauces is sometimespropagated along that of the windpipe, and the dog exhibits unequivocalproofs of chest affection, or decided pneumonia. 

At other times the bowels become affected, and a violent purging comeson. The fæces vary from white with a slight tinge of gray, to a darkslate or olive colour. By degrees mucus begins to mingle with the fæcaldischarge, and then streaks of blood. The fæcal matter rapidly lessens, and the whole seems to consist of mingled mucus and blood; and, fromfirst to last, the stools are insufferably offensive. When the mingledblood and mucus appear, so much inflammation exists in the intestinalcanal that the case is almost hopeless. 

The discharge from the nose becomes decidedly purulent. While it iswhite and without smell, and the dog is not too much emaciated, thetermination may be favourable; but when it becomes of a darker colour, and mingled with blood, and offensive, the ethmoid or turbinated bonesare becoming carious, and death supervenes. This will particularly bethe case if the mouth and lips swell, and ulcers begin to appear onthem, and the gums ulcerate, and a sanious and highly offensivedischarge proceeds from the mouth. A singular, half-fetid smell arisingfrom the dog, is the almost invariable precursor of death. 

When the disease first visited the continent, it was regarded as ahumoral disease. Duhamel, who was one of the earliest to study thecharacter of the malady, contended that the biliary sac contained thecause of the complaint; the bile assumed a concrete form, and itssuperabundance was the cause of disease. Barrier, one of the earliestwriters on the subject, described it as a violent irregular biliousfever. Others regarded it as a mucous discharge, or a depurative; andothers, as a salutary crisis, removing from the constitution that whichoppressed the different organs. Others had recourse to inoculation, inorder to give it a more benign character; and others, and among themChabert, considered that it possessed a character of peculiar malignity, and he gave it a name expressive of its nature and situation--'nasalcatarrh'. It exhibited the ordinary symptoms of coryza: it was acatarrhal affection in its early stage; but it afterwards degeneratedinto a species of palsy. The causes were unknown. By some, they wereattributed to the natural voracity of the dog; by others, to hisoccasional lasciviousness; by others, to his frequent feeding oncarrion, or the refuse of fat and soups. 

There is no doubt that nasal catarrh is, to a very considerable degree, contagious on the continent. It often spreads over a wide extent ofcountry, and includes numerous animals of various descriptions. It iscomplicated with various diseases; and particularly, at an early stage, with ophthalmia. It may be interesting to the reader to trace theprogress of the disease among our continental neighbours. It commenceswith a certain depression of spirits; a diminution of appetite; aheaviness of the head; a heat of the mouth; an attempt to get somethingfrom the throat; an insatiable thirst; an elevated temperature of thebody; a dry and painful suffocating cough; and all these circumstancescontinue twenty to thirty days, until at length the dog droops and dies. 

The duration of distemper is uncertain. It sometimes runs its course infive or six days; or it may linger on two or three months. In some casesthe emaciation is rapid and extreme: danger is then to be apprehended. When the muscles of the loins are much attenuated, or almost wasted, there is little hope; and, although other symptoms may remit, and thedog may be apparently recovering, yet, if he continues to lose flesh, wemay be perfectly assured that he will not live. On the other hand, letthe discharge from the nose be copious, and the purging violent, andevery other symptom threatening, yet if the animal gains a little flesh, we may confidently predict his recovery. 

When the dog is much reduced in strength and flesh, a spasmodicaffection or twitching of the muscles will sometimes be observed. It isusually confined at first to one limb; but the most decisive treatmentis required, or these spasms will spread until the animal is altogetherunable to stand; and while he lies every limb will be in motion, travelling, as it were, at the rate of twenty miles an hour, until theanimal is worn out, and dies of absolute exhaustion. When these spasmsbecome universal and violent, they are accompanied by constant anddreadful moans and cries. 

In the pointer and the hound, and particularly when there is littledischarge from the eyes or nose, an intense yellowness often suddenlyappears all over the dog. He falls away more in twenty-four hours thanit would be thought possible; his bowels are obstinately constipated; hewill neither eat nor move; and in two or three days he is dead. 

In the pointer, hound, and greyhound, there sometimes appears on thewhole of the chest and belly a pustular eruption, which peels off inlarge scales. The result is usually unfavourable. A more generaleruption, however, either wearing the usual form of mange, oraccompanied by minute pustules, may be regarded as a favourable symptom. The disease is leaving the vital parts, and expending its last energy onthe integument. 

The 'post-mortem' appearances are exceedingly unsatisfactory: they donot correspond with the original character of the disease, but with itsstrangely varying symptoms. If the dog has died in fits, we haveinflammation of the brain or its membranes, and particularly at the baseof the brain, with considerable effusion of a serous or bloody fluid. Ifthe prevailing symptoms have led our attention to the lungs, we findinflammation of the bronchial passages, or, in a few instances, of thesubstance of the lungs, or the submucous tissue of the cells. We rarelyhave inflammation of the pulmonary pleura, and never to any extent ofthe intercostal pleura. In a few lingering cases, tubercles and vomicæof the lungs have been found. 

If the bowels have been chiefly attacked, we have intense inflammationof the mucous membrane, and, generally speaking, the small intestinesare almost filled with worms. If the dog has gradually wasted away, which is often the case when purging to any considerable extent has beenencouraged or produced, we have contraction of the whole canal, including even the stomach, and sometimes considerable enlargement ofthe mesenteric glands [1]. 

The membrane of the nose will always exhibit marks of inflammation, andparticularly in the frontal sinuses and ethmoidal cells; and I haveobserved the portion of membrane on the septum, or cartilaginousdivision of the nostrils, between the frontal sinuses and ethmoidalcells, to be studded with small miliary tubercles. In advanced stages ofthe disease, attended with much defluxion from the nose, the cells ofthe ethmoidal bone and the frontal sinuses are filled with pus. 

Ulceration is sometimes found on the membrane of the nose, oftenest onthe spot to which I have referred--occasionally confined to that; andnow and then spreading over the whole of the septum, and even corrodingand eating through it; generally equal on both sides of the septum; in afew instances extending into the fauces; seldom found in the larynx, butoccasionally seen in the bronchial passages. The other viscera rarelypresent any remarkable morbid appearance. 

The distemper is clearly a disease of the mucous membranes, usuallycommencing in the membrane of the nose, and resembling nasal catarrh. Inthe early stage it is 'coryza', or nasal catarrh; but the affectionrapidly extends, and seems to attack the mucous membranes generally, determined to some particular one, either by atmospheric influence oraccidental causes, or constitutional predisposition. The fits arise fromgeneral disturbance of the system, or from the proximity of the brain tothe early seat of inflammation. 

This account of the nature and treatment of distemper will, perhaps, beunsatisfactory to some readers. One thing, however, is clear, that for adisease which assumes such a variety of forms, there can be no specific;yet there is not a keeper who is not in possession of some supposedinfallible nostrum. Nothing can be more absurd. A disease attacking somany organs, and presenting so many and such different symptoms, mustrequire a mode of treatment varying with the organ attacked and thesymptom prevailing. The faith in these boasted specifics is principallyfounded on two circumstances--atmospheric influence and peculiarity ofbreed. There are some seasons when we can scarcely save a dog; there areothers when we must almost wilfully destroy him in order to lose him. There are some breeds in which, generation after generation, five out ofsix die of distemper, while there are others in which not one out of adozen dies. When the season is favourable, and the animal, by hereditaryinfluence, is not disposed to assume the virulent type of the disease, these two important agents are overlooked, and the immunity from anyfatal result is attributed to medicine. The circumstances most conduciveto success will be the recollection that it is a disease of the mucoussurfaces, and that we must not carry the depleting and lowering systemtoo far. Keeping this in view, we must accommodate ourselves to thesymptoms as they arise. 

The natural medicine of the dog seems to be an emetic. The act ofvomiting is very easily excited in him, and, feeling the slightestailment, he flies to the dog-grass, unloads his stomach, and is at oncewell. In distemper, whatever be the form which it assumes, an emetic isthe first thing to be given. Common salt will do when nothing else is athand; but the best emetic, and particularly in distemper, consists ofequal parts of calomel and tartar emetic. From half a grain to a grainand a half of each will constitute the dose. 

This will act first as an emetic, and afterwards as a gentle purgative. Then, if the cough is urgent, and there is heaving at the flanks, andthe nose is hot, a moderate quantity of blood may be taken--from threeto twelve ounces--and this, if there has been previous constipation, maybe followed by a dose of sulphate of magnesia, from two to six drachms. 

In slight cases this will often be sufficient to effect a cure: but, ifthe dog still droops, and particularly if there is much huskiness, theantimonial or James's powder, nitre and digitalis, in the proportion offrom half a grain to a grain of digitalis, from two to five grains ofthe James's powder, and from a scruple to a drachm of nitre, should beadministered twice or thrice in a day. If on the third or fourth day thehuskiness is not quite removed, the emetic should be repeated. 

In these affections of the mucous membranes, it is absolutely necessaryto avoid or to get rid of every source of irritation, and worms willgenerally be found a very considerable one in young dogs. If we canspeedily get rid of them, distemper will often rapidly disappear; but, if they are suffered to remain, diarrhoea or fits are apt to supervene:therefore some worm medicine should be administered. 

I have said that vomiting is very easily excited in the dog; and thatfor this reason we are precluded from the use of a great many medicinesin our treatment of him. Calomel, aloes, jalap, scammony, and gambogewill generally produce sickness. We are, therefore, driven to somemechanical vermifuge; and a very effectual one, and that will rarelyfail of expelling even the tape-worm, is tin filings or powdered glass. From half a drachm to a drachm of either may be advantageously giventwice in the day. There may generally be added to them digitalis, James's powder, and nitre, made into balls with palm oil and a littlelinseed meal. This course should be pursued in usual cases until two orthree emetics have been given, and a ball morning and night on theintermediate days. Should the huskiness not diminish after the first twoor three days, if the dog has not rapidly lost flesh, I should bedisposed to take a little more blood, and to put a seton in the poll. Itshould be inserted between the ears, and reaching from ear to ear. 

When there is fever and huskiness, and the dog is not much emaciated, aseton is an excellent remedy; but, if it is used indiscriminately, andwhen the animal is already losing ground, and is violently purging, weshall only hasten his doom, or rather make it more sure. 

It is now, if ever, that pneumonia will be perceived. The symptoms ofinflammation in the lungs of the dog can scarcely be mistaken. The quickand laborious breathing, the disinclination or inability to lie down, the elevated position of the head, and the projection of the muzzle, will clearly mark it. More blood must be subtracted, a seton inserted, the bowels opened with Epsom salts, and the digitalis, nitre, andJames's powder given more frequently and in larger doses than before. 

Little aid is to be derived from observation of the pulse of the dog; itdiffers materially in the breed, and size, and age of the animal. Manyyears' practice have failed in enabling me to draw any certainconclusion from it. The best place to feel the pulse of the dog is atthe side. We may possibly learn from it whether digitalis is producingan intermittent pulse, which it frequently will do, and which we wishthat it should do: it should then be given a little more cautiously, andin smaller quantities. 

If the pneumonia is evidently conquered, or we have proceeded thus farwithout any considerable inflammatory affection of the chest, we mustbegin to change our plan of treatment. If the huskiness continues, andthe discharge from the nose is increased and thicker, and the animal islosing flesh and becoming weak, we must give only half the quantity ofthe sedative and diuretic medicine, and add some mild tonic, as gentian, chamomile, and ginger, with occasional emetics, taking care to keep thebowels in a laxative but not purging state. The dog should likewise beurged to eat; and, if he obstinately refuses ail food, he should beforced with strong beef jelly, for a very great degree of debility willnow ensue

We have thus far considered the treatment of distemper from itscommencement; but it may have existed several days before we wereconsulted, and the dog may be thin and husky, and refusing to eat. Insuch case we should give an emetic, and then a dose of salts, and afterthat proceed to the tonic and fever balls. 

Should the strength of the animal continue to decline, and the dischargefrom the nose become purulent and offensive, the fever medicine must beomitted, and the tonic balls, with carbonate of iron, administered. Someveterinary surgeons are very fond of gum resins and balsams. Mr. Blaine, in his excellent treatise on the distemper in his Canine Pathology, recommends myrrh and benjamin, and balsam of Peru and camphor. I muchdoubt the efficacy of these drugs. They are beginning to get intodisrepute in the practice of human medicine; and I believe that if theywere all banished from the veterinary Materia Medica we shouldexperience no loss. When the dog begins to recover, although not sorapidly as we could wish, the tonic balls, without the iron, may beadvantageously given, with now and then an emetic, if huskiness shouldthreaten to return; but mild and wholesome food, and country or goodair, will be the best tonics. 

If the discharge from the nose become very offensive, the lips swelledand ulcerated, and the breath fetid, half an ounce of yeast may beadministered every noon, and the tonics morning and night; and the mouthshould be frequently washed with a solution of chloride of lime. 

At this period of the disease the sub-maxillary glands are sometimesvery much enlarged, and a tumour or abscess is formed, which, if nottimely opened, breaks, and a ragged, ill-conditioned ulcer is formed, very liable to spread, and very difficult to heal. It is prudent topuncture this tumour as soon as it begins to point, for it will neverdisperse. After the opening, a poultice should be applied to cleanse theulcer; after which it should be daily washed with the compound tinctureof benjamin, and dressed with calamine ointment. Some balls should begiven, and the animal liberally fed. 

Should the fits appear in an early stage, give a strong emetic; thenbleed, and open the bowels with five or six grains of calomel and aquarter grain of opium: after this insert a seton, and then commence thetonic balls. 

The progress of fits in the early stages of the disease may thus bearrested. The occurrence of two or three should not make us despair;but, if they occur at a later period, and when the dog is much reduced, there is little hope. This additional expenditure of animal power willprobably soon carry him off. All that is to be done, is to administer astrong emetic, obviate costiveness by castor oil, and give the tonicballs with opium. 

Of the treatment of the yellow disease little can be said; we shall notsucceed in one case in twenty. When good effect has been produced, ithas been by one large bleeding, opening the bowels well with Epsomsalts, and then giving grain doses of calomel twice a day in a tonicball. 

While it is prudent to obviate costiveness, we should recollect thatthere is nothing more to be dreaded, in every stage of distemper, thandiarrhoea. The purging of distemper will often bid defiance to the mostpowerful astringents. This shows the folly of giving violent catharticsin distemper; and, when I have heard of the ten, and twenty, and thirtygrains of calomel that are sometimes given, I have thought it fortunatethat the stomach of the dog is so irritable. The greater part of thesekill-or-cure doses is ejected, otherwise the patient would soon becarried off by super-purgation. There is an irritability about the wholeof the mucous membrane that may be easily excited, but cannot be soreadily allayed; and, therefore, except in the earliest stage ofdistemper, or in fits, or limiting ourselves to the small portion ofcalomel which enters into our emetic, I would never give a strongerpurgative than castor-oil or Epsom salts. It is of the utmostconsequence that the purging of distemper should be checked as soon aspossible. 

In some diseases a sudden purging, and even one of considerableviolence, constitutes what is called the crisis. It is hailed as afavourable symptom, and from that moment the animal begins to recover;but this is never the case in distemper: it is a morbid action which isthen going on, and which produces a dangerous degree of debility. 

The proper treatment of purging in cases of distemper, is first to givea good dose of Epsom salts, in order to carry away anything that mayoffend, and then to ply the animal with mingled absorbents andastringents. A scruple of powdered chalk, ten grains of catechu, andfive of ginger, with a quarter of a grain of opium, made into a ballwith palm oil, may be given to a middle-sized dog twice or thrice everyday. To this may be added injections of gruel, with the compound chalkmixture and opium. 

When the twitchings which I have described begin to appear, a seton isnecessary, whatever may be the degree to which the animal is reduced. Some stimulating embrocation, such as tincture of cantharides, may berubbed along the whole course of the spine; and the medicine which hasoftenest, but not always, succeeded, is castor-oil, syrup of buckthorn, and syrup of white poppies, given morning and night, and a tonic ball atnoon. If the dog will not now feed, he should be forced with strongsoup. As soon, however, as the spasms spread over him, accompanied by amoaning that increases to a cry, humanity demands that we put an end tothat which we cannot cure. Until this happens I would not despair; formany dogs have been saved that have lain several days perfectlyhelpless. 

As to the chorea which I have mentioned as an occasional sequel ofdistemper, if the dog is in tolerable condition, and especially if he isgaining flesh, and the spring or summer is approaching, there is achance of his doing well. A seton is the first thing; the bowels shouldbe preserved from constipation; and the nitrate of silver, in doses ofone-eighth of a grain, made into a pill with linseed meal, and increasedto a quarter of a grain, should be given morning and night. 

We should never make too sure of the recovery of a distempered dog, norcommit ourselves by too early a prognosis. It is a treacherous disease;the medicines should be continued until every symptom has fairlydisappeared; and for a month at least. 

It may be interesting to add the following account of the distemper indogs, by Dr. Jenner. Several of our modern writers have copied veryclosely from him. 

 "That disease among dogs which has familiarly been called the 'distemper, ' has not hitherto, I believe, been, much noticed by medical men. My situation in the country favouring my wishes to make some observations on this singular malady, I availed myself of it, during several successive years, among a large number of foxhounds belonging to the Earl of Berkeley; and, from observing how frequently it has been confounded with hydrophobia, I am induced to lay the result of my inquiries before the Medical and Chirurgical Society. It may be difficult, perhaps, precisely to ascertain the period of its first appearance in Britain. In this and the neighbouring counties, I have not been able to trace it back beyond the middle of the last century; but it has since spread universally. I knew a gentleman who, about forty-five years ago, destroyed the greater part of his hounds, from supposing them mad, when the distemper first broke out among them; so little was it then known by those most conversant with dogs. On the continent I find it has been known for a much longer period; it is as contagious among dogs as the small-pox, measles, or scarlet fever among the human species; and the contagious miasmata, like those arising from the diseases just mentioned, retain their infectious properties a long time after separation from the distempered animal. Young hounds, for example, brought in a state of health into a kennel, where others have gone through the distemper, seldom escape it. I have endeavoured to destroy the contagion by ordering every part of a kennel to be carefully washed with water, then whitewashed, and finally to be repeatedly fumigated with the vapour of marine acid, but without any good result. 

 "The dogs generally sicken early in the second week after exposure to the contagion; it is more commonly a violent disease than otherwise, and cuts off at least one in three that are attacked by it. It commences with inflammation of the substance of the lungs, and generally of the mucous membrane of the bronchi. The inflammation at the same time seizes on the membranes of the nostrils, and those lining the bones of the nose, particularly the nasal portion of the ethmoid bone. These membranes are often inflamed to such a degree as to occasion extravasation of blood, which I have observed coagulated on their surface. The breathing is short and quick, and the breath is often fetid; the teeth are covered with a dark mucus. There is frequently a vomiting of a glairy fluid. The dog commonly refuses food, but his thirst seems insatiable, and nothing cheers him like the sight of water. The bowels, although generally constipated as the disease advances, are frequently affected with diarrhoea at its commencement. The eyes are inflamed, and the sight is often obscured by mucus secreted from the eyelids, or by opacity of the cornea. The brain is often affected as early as the second day after the attack; the animal becomes stupid, and his general habits are changed. In this state, if not prevented by loss of strength, he sometimes wanders from his home. He is frequently endeavouring to expel by forcible expirations the mucus from the trachea and fauces, with a peculiar rattling noise. His jaws are generally smeared with it, and it sometimes flows out in a frothy state, from his frequent champing. 

 "During the progress of the disease, especially in its advanced stages, he is disposed to bite and gnaw anything within his reach; he has sometimes epileptic fits, and a quick succession of general though slight convulsive spasms of the muscles. If the dog survive, this affection of the muscles continues through life. He is often attacked with fits of a different description; he first staggers, then tumbles, rolls, cries as if whipped, and tears up the ground with his teeth and fore feet: he then lies down senseless and exhausted. On recovering, he gets up, moves his tail, looks placid, comes to a whistle, and appears in every respect much better than before the attack. The eyes, during this paroxysm, look bright, and, unless previously rendered dim by mucus, or opacity of the cornea, seem as if they were starting from their sockets. He becomes emaciated, and totters from feebleness in attempting to walk, or from a partial paralysis of the hind legs. In this state he sometimes lingers on till the third or fourth week, and then either begins to show signs of returning health (which seldom happens when the symptoms have continued with this degree of violence), or expires. During convalescence, he has sometimes, though rarely, profuse hæmorrhage from the nose. 

 "When the inflammation of the lungs is very severe, he frequently dies on the third day. I know one instance of a dog dying within twenty-four hours after the seizure; and in that short space of time the greater portion of the lungs was, from exudation, converted into a substance nearly as solid as the liver of a sound animal. In this case the liver itself was considerably inflamed, and the eyes and flesh universally were tinged with yellow, though I did not observe anything obstructing the biliary ducts. In other instances I have also observed the eyes looking yellow. 

 "The above is a description of the disease in its several forms; but in this, as in the diseases of the human body, there is every gradation in its violence. 

 "There is also another affinity to some human diseases, viz. , that the animal which has once gone through it very rarely meets with a second attack. Fortunately this distemper is not communicable to man. Neither the effluvia from the diseased dog nor the bite have proved in any instance infectious; but, as it has often been confounded with canine madness, as I have before observed, it is to be wished that it were more generally understood; for those who are bitten by a dog in this state are sometimes thrown into such perturbation that hydrophobia symptoms have actually arisen from the workings of the imagination. Mr. John Hunter used to speak of a case somewhat of this description in his lectures. 

 "A gentleman who received a severe bite from a dog, soon after fancied the animal was mad. He felt a horror at the sight of liquids, and was actually convulsed on attempting to swallow them. So uncontrollable were his prepossessions, that Mr. Hunter conceived he would have died had not the dog which inflicted the wound been found and brought into his room in perfect health. This soon restored his mind to a state of tranquillity. The sight of water no longer afflicted him, and he quickly recovered. " [2]

Palsy, more or less complete, is sometimes the termination of thedistemper in dogs. 

It is usually accompanied by chorea, and it is then, in the majority ofcases, hopeless. Setons should be inserted in the poll, being then, asnearly as possible, at the commencement of the spinal cord. They shouldbe well stimulated and worn a considerable time. If they fail, a plastercomposed of common pitch, with a very small quantity of yellow wax andsome powdered cantharides, spread on sheep's-skin, should be placed overthe whole of the lumbar and sacral regions, extending half-way down thethigh on either side. The bowels should be kept open by mild aperients, in order that every source of irritation may be removed from theintestinal canal. Some mild and general tonic will likewise be useful, such as gentian and ginger. 

[Footnote 1: The following is a very frequent and unexaggerated historyof distemper, when calomel has been given in too powerful doses:

'August 30, 1828'. --A spaniel, six months old, has been ailing afortnight, and three doses of calomel have been given by the owner. Hehas violent purging, with tenesmus and blood. Half an ounce ofcaster-oil administered. 

'31st. ' Astringents, morning, noon, and night. 

'Sept. 6. ' The astringents have little effect, or, if the purging isrestrained one day, it returns with increased violence on the followingday. Getting rapidly thin. Begins to husk. Astringents continued. 

'10th'. The purging is at last overcome, but the huskiness has rapidlyincreased, accompanied by laborious and hurried respiration. --Bleed tothe extent of three ounces. 

'11th'. The breathing relieved, but he obstinately refuses to eat, andis forced several times in the day with arrow-root or strong soup. 

'18th'. He had become much thinner and weaker, and died in the evening. No appearance of inflammation on the thoracic viscera, nor in any partof the alimentary canal. The intestines are contracted through the wholeextent. 

'Veterinarian', ii. 290. ]

[Footnote 2: 'Medico-Chirurgical Transitions', 31st March, 1809. ]

 * * * * *

CHAPTER XV. 

SMALL-POX; MANGE; WARTS; CANCER; FUNGUS HÆMATODES; SORE FEET. 

SMALL-POX. 

In 1809, there was observed, at the Royal Veterinary School at Lyons, aneruptive malady among the dogs, to which they gave the name of'small-pox'. It appeared to be propagated from dog to dog by contagion. It was not difficult of cure; and it quickly disappeared when no otherremedies were employed than mild aperients and diaphoretics. A sheep wasinoculated from one of these dogs. There was a slight eruption ofpustules formed on the place of inoculation, but nowhere else; nor wasthere the least fever. 

At another time, also, at the school at Lyons, a sheep died of theregular sheep-pox. A part of the skin was fastened, duringfour-and-twenty hours, on a healthy sheep, and the other part of it on adog, both of them being in apparent good health. No effect was producedon the dog, but the sheep died of confluent sheep-pox. 

The essential symptoms of small-pox in dogs succeed each other in thefollowing order: the skin of the belly, the groin, and the inside of thefore arm, becomes of a redder colour than in its natural state, andsprinkled with small red spots irregularly rounded. They are sometimesisolated, sometimes clustered together. The near approach of thiseruption is announced by an increase of fever. 

On the second day the spots are larger, and the integument is slightlytumefied at the centre of each. 

On the third day the spots are generally enlarged, and the skin is stillmore prominent at the centre. 

On the fourth day the summit of the tumour is yet more prominent. Towards the end of that day, the redness of the centre begins to assumea somewhat gray colour. On the following days, the pustules take ontheir peculiar characteristic appearance, and cannot be confounded withany other eruption, On the summit is a white circular point, corresponding with a certain quantity of nearly transparent fluid whichit contains, and covered by a thin and transparent pellicle. This fluidbecomes less and less transparent, until it acquires the colour andconsistence of pus. The pustule, during its serous state, is of arounded form. It is flattened when the fluid acquires a purulentcharacter, and even slightly depressed towards the close of the periodof suppuration, and when that of desiccation is about to commence, whichordinarily happens towards the ninth or tenth day of the eruption. Thedesiccation and the desquamation occupy an exceedingly variable lengthof time; and so, indeed, do all the different periods of the disease. What is the least inconstant, is the duration of the serous eruption, which is about four days, if it has been distinctly produced and guardedfrom all friction. If the general character of the pustules isconsidered, it will be observed, that, while some of them are in a stateof serous secretion, others will only have begun to appear. 

The eruption terminates when desiccation commences in the firstpustules; and, if some red spots show themselves at that period of themalady, they disappear without being followed by the development ofpustules. They are a species of abortive pustules. After thedesiccation, the skin remains covered by brown spots, which, by degrees, die away. There remains no trace of the disease, except a fewsuperficial cicatrices on which the hair does not grow. 

The causes which produce the greatest variation in the periods of theeruption are, the age of the dog, and the temperature of the situationand of the season. The eruption runs through its different stages withmuch more rapidity in dogs from one to five months old than in those ofgreater age. I have never seen it in dogs more than eighteen months old. An elevated temperature singularly favours the eruption, and alsorenders it confluent and of a serous character. A cold atmosphere isunfavourable to the eruption, or even prevents it altogether. Death isalmost constantly the result of the exposure of dogs having small-pox toany considerable degree of cold. A moderate temperature is mostfavourable to the recovery of the animal. A frequent renewal or changeof air, the temperature remaining nearly the same, is highly favourableto the patient; consequently close boxes or kennels should be altogetheravoided. 

I have often observed, that the perspiration or breath of dogs labouringunder variola emits a very unpleasant odour. This smell is particularlyobserved at the commencement of the desiccation of the pustules, andwhen the animals are lying upon dry straw; for the friction of the bedagainst the pustules destroys their pellicles, and permits the purulentmatter to escape; and the influence of this purulent matter is mostpernicious. The fever is increased, and also the unpleasant smell fromthe mouth, and that of the fæces. In this state there is a dispositionwhich is rapidly developed in the lungs to assume the character ofpneumonia. This last complication is a most serious one, and almostalways terminates fatally. It has a peculiar character. It shows itselfsuddenly, and with all its alarming symptoms. It is almost immediatelyaccompanied by a purulent secretion from the bronchi, and the second daydoes not pass without the characters of pneumonia being completelydeveloped. The respiration is accompanied by a mucous 'râle' which oftenbecomes sibilant. The nasal cavities are filled with a purulent fluid. The dog that coughs violently at the commencement of the disease, employs himself, probably, on the following day, in ejecting, by aforcible expulsion from the nostrils, the purulent secretion which issoon and plentifully developed. When he is lying quiet, and even when heseems to be asleep, there is a loud, stertorous, guttural breathing. 

MANGE. 

The existence of certain insects found burrowing under the skin of thehuman being, and of various tribes of animals, has been acknowledgedfrom the 12th century. In the 17th century, correct engravings of theseinsects were produced. On the other hand many doubted their existence, because it had not been their lot to see them. In 1812, Galés, a pupilin the hospital of St. Louis, pretended to have found some of them. Theywere put into the hands of M. Raspail, of Paris, who proved that theywere nothing more than the common cheese-mites; and substituted by Galésfor those seen by Bonomo. 

Professor Hertwig, of Berlin, has given a graphic sketch of theseinsects (Veterinarian, vol. Xi. Pp. 373, 489). 

Mr. Holthouse states that, "placed on the skin of a healthy individual, they excite a disease in the part to which they were confined, havingall the characters of scabies; that insects taken from mangy sheep, horses, and dogs, and transplanted to healthy individuals of the samespecies, produce in them a disease analogous to that in the animals fromwhich they were taken; and that there are too many well-attested caseson record to permit us to doubt of scabies having been communicated fromanimals to man. "

Mange may in some degree be considered as an hereditary disease. A mangydog is liable to produce mangy puppies, and the progeny of a mangy bitchwill certainly become affected sooner or later. In many cases apropensity to the disease will be speedily produced. If the puppies arenumerous, and confined in close situations, the effluvia of theirtranspiration and fæcal discharges will often be productive of mangevery difficult to be removed. Close confinement, salted food, and littleexercise, are frequent causes of mange. 

'The Scabby Mange' is a frequent form which this disease assumes. Itassumes a pustular and scabby form in the red mange, particularly inwhite-haired dogs, when there is much and painful inflammation. Apeculiar eruption, termed surfeit, which resembles mange, is sometimesthe consequence of exposure to cold after a hot sultry day. Largeblotches appear, from which the hair falls and leaves the skin bare andrough. Acute mange sometimes takes on the character of erysipelas; atother times there is considerable inflammation. The animal exhibits heatand restlessness, and ulcerations of different kinds appear in variousparts, superficial but extensive. Bleeding, aperient and coolingmedicines are indicated, and also applications of the subacetate oflead, or spermaceti ointment. A weak infusion of tobacco may be resortedto when other things fail, but it must be used with much caution. Thesame may be said of all mercurial preparations. The tanner's pit haslittle efficacy, except in slight cases. Slight bleedings may beserviceable, and especially in full habits; setons may be resorted to inobstinate cases. A change in the mode of feeding will often be useful. Mild purgatives, and especially Epsom salts, are often beneficial, andalso mercurial alternatives, as Æthiop's mineral with cream of tartarand nitre. The external applications require considerable caution. Ifmercury is used, care must be taken that the dog does not lick it. Thediarrhoea produced by mercury often has a fatal effect. 

Unguents are useful, but considerable care must be taken in theirapplication. They must be applied to the actual skin, not over the hair. In old and bad cases much time and patience will be requisite. Mr. Blaine had a favourite setter who had virulent mange five years. He wasordered to be dressed every day, or every second day, before the diseasewas complete conquered. 

Cutaneous affections have lately been prevalent to an extent altogetherunprecedented on this and on the other side of the channel. In thelatter part of 1843 the disease assumed a character which had not beenknown among us for many years. The common mange, which we used to thinkwe could easily grapple with, was now little seen: even the usual redmange with the fox-coloured stain was not of more frequent occurrencethan usual, but an intolerable itchiness with comparatively littleredness of skin, and rarely sufficient to account for the torture whichthe animal seemed to endure, and often with not the slightestdiscoloration of the integument, came before us almost every day, andunder its influence the dog became ill-tempered, dispirited, andemaciated, until he sunk under its influence. All unguents were thrownaway here. Lotions of corrosive sublimate, decoction of bark, infusionof digitalis or tobacco, effected some little good; but the perseveringuse of the iodine of potassium, purgatives, and the abstraction of bloodvery generally succeeded. 

The sudden appearance of redness of the skin, and exudation from it, andactual sores attending the falling off of the hair, and itching, thatseemed to be intolerable, have also been prevalent to an unprecedentedextent. This mange, however, is to a certain degree manageable. A doseor two of physic should he given, with an application of a calaminepowder, and the administration of the iodide of potassium. 

Mr. Blaine gives a most valuable account of mange in the dog, part ofwhich I shall quote somewhat at length. Mange exerts a morbidconstitutional action on the skin; it is infectious from variousmiasmata, and it is contagious from personal communication. In someanimals it may be produced by momentary contact; it descends to otheranimals of various descriptions; there is no doubt that it isoccasionally hereditary: it is generated by effluvia of many variouskinds; almost every kind of rancid or stimulating food is the parent ofit. High living with little exercise is a frequent cause of it, and thenear approach of starvation is not unfavorable to it. The scabby mangeis the common form under which it generally appears. In red mange thewhole integument is in a state of acute inflammation; surfeit, orblotches, a kind of cuticular eruption breaks out on particular parts ofthe body without the slightest notice, and, worse than all, a directfebrile attack, with swelling and ulceration, occurs, under which thedog evidently suffers peculiar heat and pain. Last of all comes localmange. Almost every eruptive disease, whether arising from the eye, theear, the scrotum, or the feet, is injurious to the quality as well asthe health of every sporting dog: the scent invariably becomes diseased, and the general powers are impaired. 

There are several accounts of persons who, having handled mangy dogs, have been affected with an eruption very similar to the mange. Agentleman and his wife who had been in the habit of fondling a mangy pugdog, were almost covered with an eruption resembling mange. Several ofmy servants in the dog-hospital have experienced a similar attack; andthe disease was once communicated to a horse by a cat that wasaccustomed to lie on his back as he stood in the stall. 

WARTS. 

These are often unpleasant things to have to do with. A Newfoundland doghad the whole of the inside of his mouth lined with warts. I applied thefollowing caustic:--Hyd. Suc-corrosivi [Symbol: ounce] j. , acidi mur. [Symbol: ounce], alcoholis [Symbol: ounce] iiij. , aquæ [Symbol: ounce]ij. The warts were touched twice every day, and in less than a fortnightthey had all disappeared. 

Another dog had its mouth filled with warts, and the above solution wasapplied. In four days considerable salivation came on, and lasted aweek, but at the expiration of that time the warts had vanished. Theowner of the dog had applied the solution with the tip of her finger;she experienced some salivation, which she attributed to this cause. 

The skin of the dog, from the feebleness of its perspiratory functions, is little sensible to the influence of diaphoretics: therefore we trustso much to external applications for the cure of diseases of the skin ofthat animal. 

CANCER

This is a disease too frequent among females of the dog tribe, andoccasionally seen in the male. Its symptoms, local and general, arevarious. They are usually very obscure in their commencement; theyincrease without any limit; they are exasperated by irritants of anykind; and in the majority of cases their reproduction is almostconstant, and perfectly incurable. 

With regard to the female, it is mostly connected with the secretion ofmilk. Two or three years may pass, and at almost every return of theperiod of oestrum, there will be some degree of enlargement orinflammation of the teats. Some degree of fever also appears; but, aftera few weeks have passed away, and one or two physic balls have beenadministered, everything goes on well. In process of time, however, theperiod of oestrum is attended by a greater degree of fever andenlargement of the teats, and at length some diminutive hardened nuclei, not exceeding in size the tip of a finger, are felt within one of theteats. By degrees they increase in size; they become hard, hot, andtender. A considerable degree of redness begins to appear. Some smallenlargements are visible. The animal evidently exhibits considerablepain when these enlargements are pressed upon. They rapidly increase, they become more hot and red, various shining protuberances appear aboutthe projection, and at length the tumour ulcerates. A considerabledegree of sanious matter flows from the aperture. 

The tumours, however, after a while diminish in size; the heat andredness diminish; the ulcer partly or entirely closes, but, after awhile, and especially when the next period of oestrum arrives, thetumour again increases, and with far greater rapidity than before, andthen comes the necessity of the removal of the tumour, or if not, thedestruction of the animal. In the great majority of cases, the removalof the cancer does not destroy the dog, but lessens its torture. Theknife and the forceps must usually be resorted to, and in the hands of askilful surgeon the life of the animal will be saved. 

When the cancer is attached to the neighbouring parts by cellularsubstance alone, no difficulty will be experienced in detaching thewhole of it. The operation will be speedily performed, and there will bean end of the matter; but, if the tumour has been neglected, and themuscular, the cellular, or even the superficial parts have beenattacked, the utmost caution is requisite that every diseased portionshall be removed. Mr. Blaine adds to this that

 "it must also be taken into the account, that, although in the canine cancer ulceration does not often reappear in the intermediate part, when the operation has been judiciously performed, yet, when the constitution has been long affected with this ulcerative action, it is very apt to show itself in some neighbouring part soon after. "

FUNGUS HÆMATODES. 

In the month of March, 1836, a valuable pointer dog was sent to Mr. Adamof Beaufort, quite emaciated, with total loss of appetite and with alarge fungus hæmatodes about the middle of the right side of his neck. It had begun to appear about five months before, and was not at firstlarger than a pea. Mr. Adam gave him a purgative of Barbadoes aloes, which caused the discharge of much fetid matter from the intestines. Atthe expiration of three days he removed the tumour with the knife. Therewas a full discharge of healthy matter from the wound. During the periodof its healing the animal was well fed, and ferruginous tonics weregiven. In a little more than three weeks the wound had completely filledup with healthy granulations, and the dog was sent home to allappearance quite well. 

At the expiration of three months another tumour made its appearancenear the situation of the former one, growing fast; it had attainednearly the size of the other. Mr. Adam removed it immediately, orderinga system of nutritive feeding and tonics. It appeared at first to go onfavourable; but, five days after the removal of the second one, a thirdmade its appearance. 

This was removed at the expiration of another five days; but the animalwas totally unable to walk, with very laborious breathing and coldextremities. A cathartic was given and the legs bandaged; but the woundsmade no progress towards healing, and at the end of three days he died. On exposing the cavity of the thorax it was almost covered withvariously formed tumours, from the size of a pigeon's egg to that of asmall pea. The intercostal muscles had many of these adhering to them, and a few small ones were developed on the heart. There were three onthe diaphragm, in the centre of which matter was formed. Theblood-vessels, kidneys, &c. , were free from disease. These tumours werewhite, or nearly so, rather hard, and of a glandular substance. Theexternal ones were soft, red, and almost destitute of blood-vessels, except the first, which bled considerably. There was dropsy of theabdomen. 

SORE FEET

Sore feet constitute a frequent and troublesome complaint. It consistsof inflammation of the vascular substance, between the epidermis and theparts beneath. It is the result of numerous slight contusions, producedby long travelling in dry weather, or hunting over a hard and roughcountry, or one covered with frost and snow. The irritation with whichit commences continues to increase and a certain portion of fluid isdetermined to the feet, and tubercles are formed, hard, hot, and tender, until the whole foot is in a diseased state, considerably enlarged. Theanimal sadly suffers, and is scarcely able to stand up for a minute. Sometimes the ardour of the chase will make him for a while forget allthis; but on his return, and when he endeavours to repose himself, it iswith difficulty that he can be got up again. The toes become enlarged, the skin red and tender, and the horny sole becomes detached and drops. Local fever, and that to a considerable extent, becomes established; itreacts on the general economy of the animal, who scarcely moves from hisbed, and at length refuses all food. At other times a separation takesplace between the dermis and the epidermis, which is a perfect mass ofserosity. 

Still, however, it is only when all this has much increased, or has beenneglected, that any permanently dangerous consequences take place. Whenviolent inflammation has set in, the feet must be carefully attended to, or the dog may be lamed for life. One or two physic-balls may be given;all salted meat should be removed, and the animal supplied with foodwithout being compelled to move from his bed. The feet should be bathedwith warm water, and a poultice of linseed meal applied to them twice inthe day. If, as is too often the case, he should tear this off, the feetshould be often fomented. It is bad practice in any master of dogs tosuffer them to be at all neglected when there are any tokens ofinflammation of the feet. The neglect of even a few days may render adog a cripple for life. If there are evident appearances of puscollecting about the claws, or any part of the feet, the abscess shouldbe opened, well bathed with warm water, and friar's balsam applied tothe feet. 

When the feet have been neglected, the nail is apt to grow very rapidly, and curve round and penetrate into the foot. The forceps should heapplied, and the claws reduced to their proper size. 

If there are any indications of fever, or if the dog should becontinually lying down, or he should hold up his feet, and keep themapart as much as he can, scarifications or poultices, or both, should beresorted to. 

When the feet of a dog become sore in travelling, the foolish habit ofwashing them with brine should never be permitted, although it is verycommonly resorted to. Warm fomentations, or warm pot-liquor, orpoultices of linseed meal should be applied, or, if matter is apparentlyforming, the lancet may be resorted to. 

Dogs are frequently sent to the hospital with considerable rednessbetween the toes, and ichorous discharge, and the toes thickened roundthe base of the nails, as if they were inclined to drop off. The commonalterative medicine should be given, and a lotion composed of hydrarg. Oxym. Gr. Vi. , alcohol [Symbol: ounce] j. , et aq. Calcis [Symbol: ounce]iiij. , should he applied to the feet three times every day. Leatherngloves should be sewn on them. These cases are often very obstinate. 

Generally speaking, the dog has five toes on the fore feet, and four onthe hind feet, with a mere rudiment of a fifth metatarsal bone in somefeet; but, in others, the fifth bone is long and well proportioned, andadvances as far as the origin of the first phalanx of the neighbouringtoe. 

[The editor begs leave to add a more detailed and systematic treatise ofthe affections generally attacking the feet and limbs of our dogs. 

DISEASES OF THE FEET. 

SORE FEET. 

Inflammation of the feet, a disease somewhat analogous to founder inhorses, and often attended with equally bad results, particularly in theEnglish kennels, is comparatively rare with us, although there are fewsportsmen but have met with some cases among their dogs. The feet becometender, swollen, and hot, violent inflammatory action sets in, the toesbecome sore, the claws diseased, and the balls very painful, and oftensuppurate. 

The animal is thus speedily rendered useless; not being able to supporthis body, owing to the intense pain, he remains in his house, andemploys the most of his time in temporarily assuaging his sufferings byconstantly licking the diseased members. 

'Causes'. --Running long distances over frozen or stony grounds, huntingover a rough and ill-cleaned country, over-feeding, confinement, andlazy habits, are all conducive in some measure to this affection. 

This form of disease is not uncommon among those dogs used in tolingducks on the Chesapeake bay, these animals being obliged to runincessantly to and fro over the gravel shores, in their efforts toattract the canvass-back. We have seen many dogs that have been madecripples by this arduous work, and rendered prematurely old while yet intheir prime. It would certainly be wise and humane on the part of thosewho pursue this sport either for pleasure or gain, to provide suitableboots for these sagacious animals, who in return would repay suchkindness by increased ardour and length of service. These articles mightbe made of leather, or some other durable substance, in such a mannerthat they could be laced on every morning before commencing theirlabours. 

The claws should be allowed to project through openings in the boot, asthis arrangement will give much more freedom to the feet, and the bootitself will not be destroyed so soon by the penetration of the toesthrough its substance. Boots thus neatly made will neither interferewith his locomotive nor swimming powers, but add greatly to the comfortof the animal, and secure his services for many years. 

'Treatment'. --No stimulating applications to the feet are to be used, such as salt water, ley, fish brine, or urine, but rather emollientpoultices and cooling washes. These last-mentioned remedies should becarefully applied, and the dog confined to his house as much aspossible: in fact, there is little difficulty in restraining him in thisrespect, as he has but little inclination or ability to move about. 

Purging balls should be administered every night, and blood abstractedif there be much fever, as indicated in the heat, swelling, and pain ofthe limbs. 

If the balls continue to swell, and there is a collection of pus withinthem, they may be opened by the lancet, and the contents evacuated, after which apply a linseed poultice. When the inflammation hassubsided, simple dressings of melted butter or fresh lard will generallyeffect a cure. 

PUSTULAR AFFECTION OF THE FEET. 

Dogs frequently have a pustular eruption between the toes, eitheraccompanying mange or some other skin disease, or entirely independentof any other affection. 

'Causes'. --Want of cleanliness, bad housing, improper food, vermin, anddepraved constitution. 

'Treatment'. --Frequent washing with castile soap and water will correctthis disease; the feet and legs after washing should be rubbed dry, particularly between the toes. When the pustules are large, they may beopened with the lancet and a poultice applied. If the disease appearscomplicated with mange, or dependent upon other general causes, theprimary affection must be removed by the proper remedies, whichgenerally carries off with the secondary disease. 

SPRAINS

It is not an uncommon occurrence for dogs, while running, climbingfences, or jumping ditches, to sprain themselves very severely in theknee, or more frequently in the shoulder-joint; and if not properlyattended to, will remain cripples for life, owing to enlargement of thetendon and deposition of matter. 

We once had a fine, large, powerful bull-dog, that sprained himself inthe shoulder while running very violently in the street after anotherdog, and in some way, owing to the great eagerness to overtake theother, tripped up when at the top of his speed, fell on his chest, andwhen he arose commenced limping, and evidently suffered fromconsiderable pain. On taking him home, we examined his feet, limbs, andchest very particularly, expecting to find a luxation or fracture ofsome of the bones of the leg or feet, or perhaps the presence of a pieceof glass or other article deeply imbedded in the ball. None of the aboveaccidents, however, being brought to light by our examination, or thatof a medical friend who expressed a wish to see our patient, weconcluded that a simple sprain of some of the tendons had taken place. 

On the following day there was slight swelling and tenderness of theshoulder-joint, accompanied by great unwillingness to put the foot tothe ground, owing to the pain that seemed to be produced by theextension of the leg. The limb was fomented, and the dog confined forseveral days, till the swelling and tenderness disappeared; but, greatlyto our astonishment and that of others, he still remained lame asbefore. 

This lameness continued for several months, when we parted with him, sending him to a relative in the country, who informed us that he neverrecovered the use of his limb, but that it became shrivelled anddeformed for want of use. 

The cause of lameness in this dog is as unaccountable as some cases oflameness we see in horses. We are convinced that there was neitherfracture nor luxation, nor any other unnatural displacement of theparts, and can attribute it to nothing but enlargement of one of thetendons of the shoulder-joint resulting from inflammation. If it hadbeen in our power, we should have liked to have examined this animalafter death. 

'Treatment'. --Hot fomentations to the part affected, together withpurging balls and bleeding, if there be great tenderness and swelling ofthe limb. When the inflammation and tumefaction have disappeared, rubthe parts with opodeldoc, or other stimulating mixtures. 

WOUNDS OF THE FEET. 

Dogs are apt to cut their feet by stepping upon sharp tools, bits ofoyster-shell, old iron, &c. , or by the introduction of thorns, burrs, nails, bits of glass, and other articles, into their balls. 

'Treatment'. --If the cut be very deep, or divides the ball, the footmust be washed in tepid water, and the edges of the wound drawn togetherand retained in their position by a couple of sutures or a strap or twoof adhesive plaster, and the animal confined. 

Where thorns or sand-burrs have pierced the foot, diligent search shouldbe made to extract them, or the wound will suppurate, and the dogcontinue lame for a long time. This caution is particularly necessarywhen minute particles of glass have entered the foot. A poultice in suchcases should be applied, after removing every particle within our reach, and the, foot be wrapped up, or, what is better, enclosed in a boot ofsome kind, sufficiently strong to protect it from the dirt or othersmall particles which otherwise would enter the wound and prevent itshealing. In a case of great emergency, one of our friends hunted asetter dog three successive days in a leather boot, which we instructeda country cobbler to put on him to protect his foot from a recent anddeep cut, that he had received from treading upon some farming utensils. The boot was taken off every night, the foot nicely cleaned, the leatheroiled and replaced ready for the following day. The wound afterwardshealed up, and no trace of the incision now remains. The boot should bemade of stout, flexible leather, and extend beyond the first joint; theseam must be in front, so as not to interfere with the dog's tread. There should be openings for the claws, and the sole large enough toallow the expansion of the ball pads when in motion: a small layer oftow had better be laid on the bottom of the foot before putting on theboot. 

It is often very difficult to tell the exact spot where a briar or thornhas entered the foot, owing to its penetrating so far into the substanceof the ball as to be entirely concealed under the skin, or by theswelling of the parts surrounding it. In all such cases the bottom ofthe foot should he gently pressed by the thumb, and the point where thedog exhibits symptoms of must pain should be, particularly examined, and, if necessary, cut down upon to extract the extraneous substance, nomatter what it may be. 

LONG NAILS OR CLAWS. 

The nails of some dogs require occasional cutting, otherwise they growso long and fast that they turn in and penetrate the ball of the foot. If we cut them, a strong, sharp knife is necessary for the purpose;filing them off we consider far preferable. 

LAMENESS

Dogs, as well as horses, become lame from stiff joints, splints, andsprains. Stiff joints are occasioned by anchylosis, or the deposit ofcalcareous or osseous matter within the ligament or around the head ofthe bone, which latter defect is known as ring-bone in the horse. 

'Treatment'. --Stimulating friction to the parts, such as spirits ofcamphor, or camphorated liniment, mercurial ointment, tincture ofiodine, opodeldoc, blistering, c. --L. ]

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CHAPTER XVI. 

FRACTURES

These are of not unfrequent occurrence in the dog; and I once had fivecases in my hospital at the same time. 

In the human subject, fractures are more frequent in adults, and, perhaps, in old men, than in infants; but this is not the case with thesmaller animals generally, and particularly with dogs. Five-sixths ofthe fractures occur between the time of weaning and the animal being sixmonths old; not, perhaps, because of their chemical composition, thatthe bones are more fragile at this age; but because young dogs are moreexposed to fall from the hands of the persons who carry them, and fromthe places to which they climb; and the extremities of the bones, thenbeing in the state of epiphysis, are easily separated from the body ofthe bone. When the fracture takes place in the body of the bone, it istransverse or somewhat oblique, but there is scarcely any displacement. 

A simple bandage will be sufficient for the reduction of thesefractures, which may be removed in ten or twelve days, when thepreparatory callus has acquired some consistence. One only out of twentydogs that were brought to me with fractures of the extremities, in theyear 1834, died. Two dogs had their jaws fractured by kicks from horses, and lost several of their teeth. In one of them the anterior part of thejaw was fractured perpendicularly; in the other, both branches werefractured. Plenty of good soup was injected into their mouths. Ten ortwelve days afterwards, they were suffered to lap it; and in a littlewhile they were dismissed cured. 

It will be desirable, perhaps, to describe our usual method of reducingthe greater part of the fractures which come under our notice. 

I. --The 'humerus' was fractured just above the elbow and close to thejoint. The limb was enclosed in adhesive plaster, and supported by afirm bandage. The bones were beginning to unite, when, by some meansconcerning which I could never satisfy myself, the 'tibia' was broken alittle above the hock. Nothing could well be done with this secondfracture; but great care was taken with regard to the former. The lowerhead of the humerus remained somewhat enlarged; but the lameness becamevery slight, and in three weeks had nearly or quite disappeared. Nothingwas done to the second fracture; in fact, nothing more than a slight, annular enlargement, surrounding the part, remained--a proof of therenovating power of nature. 

II. --A spaniel was run over by a light carriage. It was unable to putthe left hind leg to the ground, and at the upper tuberosity of theileum some crepitus could be distinguished. I subtracted six ounces ofblood, administered a physic-ball, and ordered the patient to be wellfomented with warm water several times during the night. On thefollowing day no wound could be discovered, but there was greattenderness. I continued the fomentation. Two or three days afterwardsshe was evidently easier. I then had the hair cut close, and covered theloins and back with a pitch-plaster. At the expiration of six days theplaster was getting somewhat loose, and was replaced by another withwhich a very small quantity of powdered cantharides was mingled. At theexpiration of the fifth week she was quite well. 

III. --The 'thigh-bone' had been broken a fortnight. It was a compoundfracture: the divided edges of the bone protruded through theinteguments, and there was no disposition to unite. It is not in onecase in a hundred that an animal thus situated can be saved. We failedin our efforts, and the dog was ultimately destroyed. 

IV. --The 'femur' was broken near the hip. I saw it on the third day, when much heat and swelling had taken place. I ordered the parts to befrequently bathed with warm water. The heat and tenderness to aconsiderable degree subsided, and the pitch-plaster was carefullyapplied. At the expiration of a week the plaster began to be loosened. Asecond one was applied, and when a fortnight longer had passed, a slightdegree of tenderness alone remained. 

V. --The following account is characteristic of the bull terrier. The'radius' had been broken, and was set, and the bones were decidedlyunited, when the dog, in a moment of frantic rage, seized his own legand crushed some of the bones. They were once more united, but his wristbent under him in the form of a concave semicircle, as if some of theligaments of the joint had been ruptured in the moment of rage. It wasevident on the following day that it was impossible to control him, andhe was destroyed. 

VI. --A spaniel, three months old, became fractured half-way between thewrist and the 'elbow'. A surgeon bound it up, and it became swollen toan enormous size, from the adhesive plaster that had been applied andthe manner of placing the splints. I removed the splints. On thefollowing morning I had the arm frequently fomented: a very indistinctcrepitus could be perceived at the point of the humerus: I appliedanother plaster higher up, and including the elbow. The hair not havingbeen cut sufficiently close, the plaster was removed, applied much moreneatly and closely, and the original fracture was firmly bound together. No crepitus was now to be perceived. 

I saw no more of our patient for four days, when I found that he hadfallen, and that the elbow on the other side was fractured within thecapsular ligament. A very distinct crepitus could be felt, and the dogcried sadly when the joint was moved. I would have destroyed him, but hewas a favourite with his master, and we tried what a few days more wouldproduce. I enclosed the whole of the limb in a plaster of pitch, andbound it up without splints. Both the bandages remained on nearly afortnight, when the fractures were found to be perfectly united, and thelameness in both legs gradually disappeared. 

VII. --July 22, 1843. A spaniel was frightened with something on the bed, and fell from it, and cried very much. The instep, or wrist, of theright leg, before was evidently bowed, and there was considerable heatand tenderness. It was well fomented on the two following days, and thenset, and adhesive plaster was tightly applied, and a splint bound overthat. 

24th. The foot began to swell, and was evidently painful. The outerbandage was loosened a little, but the inner bandage was not touched. 

Aug. 4. The bandage, that had not been meddled with for eleven days, nowappeared to give him some pain. For the last two days he has been gentlylicking and gnawing it. The splints were removed; but the adhesiveplaster appearing even and firm, was suffered to remain. 

26th. Everything appeared to be going on well, when he again leaped fromhis bed. The wrist was much more bowed, and was tender and hot. Simplelint and a firm calico bandage were had recourse to. 

27th. He is unable to put his foot to the ground, and the joint iscertainly enlarging. An adhesive plaster, made by a Frenchman, wasapplied at the owners request, over which was placed a splint. The dogsoon began to gnaw the plaster, which formed a sticky but not veryadhesive mass. Before night the pain appeared to be very great, and thedog cried excessively. I was sent for. We well fomented the leg, andthen returned to our former treatment. There was evidently a great dealof pain, but it gradually passed over, and a slight degree of lamenessalone remained. 

I have great pleasure in adding the following accounts of the successfultreatment of fractures in dogs by Mr. Percivall:

 "Hopeless as cases of fracture in horses generally are, from the difficulty experienced in managing the patient, they are by no means to be so regarded in dogs. I have in several instances seen dogs recover, and with very good use of the parts, if not perfect restoration of them, when the accidents have been considered, at the time they took place, of a nature so irremediable as to render it advisable to destroy the animals. 

 "May 4, 1839. A valuable Irish spaniel fell from a high wall, and fractured his 'off shoulder'. On examination, I found the 'os humeri' fractured about an inch above its radial extremity, causing the limb to drop pendulously from the side, and depriving the animal of all use of it. The arm, by which I mean the fore arm, was movable in any direction upon the shoulder, and there was distinct crepitus: in a word, the nature of the accident was too plain to admit of doubt; nor was there any splinter or loose piece of bone discoverable. I directed that the animal might be laid flat upon his sound side in a hamper, or covered basket or box, of sufficient dimensions, but not large enough to admit of his moving about; to have his hind legs fettered, his mouth muzzled, and his injured parts covered with a linen cloth wetted with a spirit lotion. 

 'May' 5. The parts are tumefied, but not more, nor even so much as one night have expected. Continue the lotion. 

 '6th'. At my request, Mr. Youatt was called in to give his opinion as to the probability of effecting a cure. He thought from the inconvenient situation of the fracture, that the chances of success were doubtful; and recommended that a plaster, composed of thick sheep-skin and pitch, cut to the shape of the parts, should be applied, extending from the upper part of the shoulder down upon the arm, and reaching to the knee; and that the whole should be enveloped in well-applied bandages, one of them being carried over the shoulders and brought round between the fore legs, to support the limb, and aid in retaining the fractured ends in apposition. Prior to the application of the pitch plaster the hair was closely shorn off. Thus bound up, the dog was replaced in his hamper, and had some aperient medicine given to him. 

 '8th'. The medicine has operated; and he appears going on well, his appetite continuing unimpaired. 

 '10th'. He growls when I open the basket to look at him. On examining him (while his keeper had hold of him), I found the plaster loosening from its adhesion; I took it off altogether, and applied a fresh one, composed of the stopping composition I use for horses' feet. 

 June 7. Up to this time everything appears to have been going on properly. The fracture feels as if it were completely united, and, as the plaster continues to adhere firmly, I thought the bandages enveloping it, as they were often getting loose, might now he dispensed with, and that the dog might with benefit be chained to a kennel, instead of being so closely confined as he has been. In moving, he does not attempt to use the fractured limb, but hops along upon the three other legs. 

 July. He has acquired pretty good use of the limb. Being now at liberty, he runs about a good deal; halting, from there being some shortness of the limb, but not so much as to prevent him being serviceable, as a 'slow' hunter, in the sporting-field. 

 "About a twelvemonth ago, " continues Mr. Percivall, "I was consulted concerning a blood-hound of great size and beauty, and of the cost of £50, that had been a cripple in one of his hind limbs for some considerable time past, owing, it was said or thought, to having received some injury. After a very careful handling, and examination of the parts about the hips, the places where he expressed pain, I came to the conclusion that there had been, and still existed, some fracture of 'the ischial portion of the pelvis', but precisely where, or of what nature, I could not determine; and all the treatment I could recommend was, that the animal should be shut up within a basket or box of some, sort, of dimensions only sufficient to enable him to lie at ease, and that he be kept there for at least six months, without being taken out, save for the purpose of having his bed cleansed or renewed. His owner had previously made up his mind to have him destroyed; understanding, however, from me, that there still remained a chance of his recovery, he ordered his groom to procure a proper basket, and see that the dog's confinement was such as I had prescribed. The man asked me to allow him to have his kennel, which, being no larger than was requisite for him, I did not object to; and to this he had an iron lattice-door made, converting it into a sort of wild beast cage. After two months' confinement, I had him let out for a short run, and perceived evident amendment. I believe altogether that he was imprisoned five months, and then was found so much improved that I had him chained to his kennel for the remaining month, and this, I believe, was continued for another month. The issue was the complete recovery of the animal, very much to the gratification and joy of his master, by whom he is regarded as a kind of unique or unobtainable production. 

 "The fractures of dogs and other animals must, of course, be treated in accordance with all the circumstances of their cases; but I have always considered it a most essential part of their treatment that such portable patients as dogs and cats, &c. , should be placed and kept in a state of confinement, where they either could not, or were not likely to, use or move the fractured parts; and, moreover, I have thought that failure, where it has resulted after such treatment, has arisen from its not having been sufficiently long persisted in. "

In the opinion of Professor Simonds, when there is fracture of the bonesof the extremities, a starch bandage is the best that can be employed. If applied wet, it adapts itself to the irregularities of the limbs; andif allowed to remain on twelve hours undisturbed, it forms a completecase for the part, and affords more equal support than anything elsethat can possibly be used. 

The following case was one of considerable interest. It came under thecare of Professor Simonds. Two gentlemen were playing at quoits, and thedog of one of them was struck on the head by a quoit, and supposed to bekilled. His owner took him up, and found that he was not dead, althoughdreadfully injured. It being near the Thames, his owner took him to theedge of the river, and dashed some water over him, and he rallied alittle. Professor Simonds detected a fracture of the skull, withpressure on the brain, arising from a portion of depressed bone. The dogwas perfectly unconscious, frequently moaning, quite incapable ofstanding, and continually turning round upon his belly, his straw, orhis bed. It was a case of coma; he took no food, and the pulsation atthe heart was very indistinct. 

 "I told the proprietor that there was no chance of recovery except by an operation; and, even then, I thought it exceedingly doubtful. I was desired to operate, and I took him home. 

 "The head was now almost twice as large as when the accident occurred, proceeding from a quantity of coagulated blood that had been effused under the skin covering the skull. I gave him a dose of aperient medicine, and on the following morning commenced my operation. 

 "The hair was clipped from the head, and an incision carried immediately from between the eye-brows to the back part of the skull, in the direction of the sagittal suture. Another incision was made from this towards the root of the ear. This triangular flap was then turned back, in order to remove the coagulated blood and make a thorough exposure of the skull. I was provided with a trephine, thinking that only a portion of the bone had been depressed on the brain, and it would be necessary, with that instrument, to separate it from its attachment, and then with an elevator remove it; but I found that the greater part of the parietal bone was depressed, and that the fracture extended along the sagittal suture from the coronal and lamdoidal sutures. At three-fourths of the width of the bone, the fracture ran parallel with the sagittal suture, and this large portion was depressed upon the tunics of the brain, the dura mater being considerably lacerated. The depressed bone was raised with an elevator, and I found, from its lacerated edges and the extent of the mischief done, that it was far wiser to remove it entirely, than to allow it to remain and take the chance of its uniting. 

 "In a few days, the dog began to experience relief from the operation, and to be somewhat conscious of what was taking place around him. He still requires care and attention, and proper medicinal agents to be administered from time to time; but with the exception of occasionally turning round when on the floor, he takes his food well, and obeys his master's call. "[1]

[Footnote 1: Trans. Vet. Med. Assoc. , i. 51. ]

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CHAPTER XVII. 

MEDICINES USED IN THE TREATMENT OF THE DISEASES OF THE DOG. 

These are far more numerous and complicated than would, on the firstconsideration of them, be imagined. The Veterinary Surgeon has a longlist of them, suited to the wants and dangers, imaginary or real, of hispatients; and he who is not scientifically acquainted with them, willoccasionally blunder in the choice of remedies, or the application ofthe means of cure which he adopts. Little attention may, perhaps, bepaid to the medical treatment of the dog; yet it requires not a littlestudy and experience. I will endeavour to give a short account of thedrugs, and mode of using them, generally employed. 

The administering of medicines to dogs is, generally speaking, simpleand safe, if a little care is taken about the matter, and especially iftwo persons are employed in the operation. The one should be sittingwith the dog between his knees, and the hinder part of the animalresting on the floor. The mouth is forced open by the pressure of thefore-finger and thumb upon the lips of the upper jaw, and the medicinecan be conveniently introduced with the other hand, and passedsufficiently far into the throat to insure its not being returned. Themouth should be closed and kept so, until the bolus has been seen topass down. Mr. Blaine thus describes the difference between theadministration of liquid and solid medicines:

 "A little attention will prevent all danger. A ball or bolus should be passed completely over the root of the tongue, and pushed some way backward and forward. When a liquid is given, if the quantity is more than can be swallowed at one effort, it should be removed from the mouth at each deglutition, or the dog may be strangled. Balls of a soft consistence, and those composed of nauseous ingredients, should be wrapped in thin paper, or they may disgust the dog and produce sickness. "

Dogs labouring under disease should be carefully nursed: more depends onthis than many persons seem to be aware. A warm and comfortable bed isof a great deal more consequence than many persons who are fond of theirdogs imagine. Cleanliness is also an essential point. Harshness ofmanner and unkind treatment will evidently aggravate many of theircomplaints. I have sometimes witnessed an angry word spoken to a healthydog produce instant convulsions in a distempered one that happened to benear; and the fits that come on spontaneously in distemper, almostinstantly leave the dog by soothing notice of him. 

'Acidum Acetum (Vinegar)'. --This is useful for sprains, bruises, andfomentations. 

'Acidum Nitricum (Nitric Acid; Aqua Fortis)'. --This may be used withadvantage to destroy warts or fungous excrescences. A little of the acidshould be dropped on the part and bound tightly down. The protuberancewill slough off and healthy granulations will spring up. A surerapplication, however, is the nitrate of silver. 

'Acidum Hydrocyanicum (Prussic Acid)'. --This is an excellent applicationfor the purpose of allaying irritation of the skin in dogs; but it mustbe very carefully watched. I have seen a drachm of it diluted with apint of distilled water, rapidly allay cuticular inflammation. Thedreadful degree of itching which had been observed during the last twoor three years yielded to this application alone; and to that it hasalmost invariably yielded, a little patience being used. 

'Acupuncturation' is a practice lately introduced into veterinarysurgery. It denotes the insertion of a needle into the skin or flesh ofa person or animal suffering severely from some neuralgic affection. Theneedle is small and sharp: it is introduced by a slight pressure andsemi-rotating motion between the thumb and forefinger, and afterwardswithdrawn with the same motion. This should always employ a quarter ofan hour at least, and in cases of very great pain it should continue twohours; but when the object is to afford an exit to the fluid collected, mere puncture is sufficient. It is attended with very little pain; andtherefore it may be employed at least with safety if not with advantage. The operation was known and practised in Japan, many years ago; but itwas only in the seventeenth century that its singular value wasascertained. In 1810 some trials of it were made in Paris, and M. Chenellook the lead. He had a young dog that he had cured of distemper, exceptthat a spasmodic affection of the left hind leg remained. He applied aneedle, and with fair success. He failed with another dog; but M. Prevost, of Geneva, relieved two mares from rheumatism, and an entirehorse that had been lame sixteen months. In the Veterinary School atLyons acupuncturation was tried on two dogs. One had chorea, and theother chronic paralysis of the muscles of the neck. The operation had noeffect on the first; the other came out of the hospital completelycured. In the following year acupuncturation was tried without successin the same school. Four horses and two dogs were operated upon in vain. 

'Adeps (Hog's Lard)' forms the basis of all our ointments. It istasteless, inodorous and free from every stimulating quality. 

'Alcohol (Rectified Spirit)'. --This is principally used in tinctures, and seldom or never administered to the dog in a pure state. 

'Aloes, Barbadoes'. --From these are formed the safest and best aperientsfor the dog--consisting of powdered aloes, eight parts; antimonialpowder, one part; ginger, one part; and palm oil, five parts; beatenwell together, and the size of the ball varying from half a drachm totwo drachms, and a ball administered every fourth or fifth hour. Mr. Blaine considers it to be the safest general purgative. He says thatsuch is the peculiarity of the bowels of the dog, that while a man cantake with impunity as much calomel as would kill two large dogs, amoderate-sized dog will take a quantity of aloes sufficient to destroytwo stout men. The smallest dog can take 15 or 20 grains; half a drachmis seldom too much; but the smaller dose had better be tried first, forhundreds of dogs are every year destroyed by temerity in thisparticular. Medium-sized dogs usually require a drachm; and some largedogs have taken two or even three drachms. 

'Alteratives' are medicines that effect some slow change in the diseasedaction of certain parts, without interfering with the food or work. Themost useful consist of five parts of sublimed sulphur, one of nitre, oneof linseed meal, and two of lard or palm oil. 

'Alum' is a powerful astringent, whether employed externally orinternally. It is occasionally administered in doses of from 10 to 15grains in obstinate diarrhoea. In some obstinate cases, alum whey hasbeen employed in the form of a clyster. 

'Oxide of Antimony', in the form of a compound powder, and under thename of James's powder, is employed as a sudorific, or to cause adetermination to the skin. 

The 'Antimonii Potassio Tartras (Tartar Emetic)', besides its effect onthe skin, is a useful nauseant, and invaluable in inflammation of thelungs and catarrhal affections of every kind. The 'Black Sesquisulphuretof Antimony' is a compound of sulphur and antimony, and an excellentalterative. 

'Argenti Nitras--Nitrate of Silver (Lunar Caustic)'. --I have alreadystrongly advocated the employment of this caustic for empoisoned woundsand bites of rabid animals. In my opinion it supersedes the use of everyother caustic, and generally of the knife. I have also given itinternally as a tonic to the dog, in cases of chorea, in doses from aneighth to a quarter of a grain. A dilute solution may be employed as anexcitant to wounds, in which the healing process has become sluggish. For this purpose, ten grains or more may be dissolved in a fluid ounceof distilled water. A few fibres of tow dipped in this solution, beingdrawn through the channel which is left on the removal of a seton, quickly excite the healing action. Occasionally one or two drops of thissolution may be introduced into the eye for the purpose of removingopalescence of the cornea. In cases of fungoid matter being thrown outon the cornea, the fungus may be touched with a rod of nitrate ofsilver, and little pain will follow. 

The 'Peruvian Bark', or its active principle the disulphate of quina, isa valuable tonic in distemper, especially when combined with the iodideof iron; the iron increasing with the general tone of the system, andthe iodine acting as a stimulant to the absorbents. 

'Blisters' are occasionally useful or indispensable in some of thecasualties and diseases to which the dog is liable. They are mostly ofthe same description, and act upon the same principles as in the horse, whether in the form of plaster, or ointment, or stimulating fluid. Blisters can be kept on the dog with difficulty: nothing short of a wiremuzzle will suffice; Mr. Blaine says, that for very large dogs, he usedto be compelled to make use of a perforated tin one. The judgment of thepractitioner will determine in these cases, as well as with regard tothe horse, whether the desired effect should be produced by severemeasures or by those of a milder character, by active blisters or bymilder stimulants; the difficulty of the measures to be adopted, and thedegree of punishment that may be inflicted, being never forgotten by theoperator. 

We have stated in our work on the Horse, that "the art of blisteringconsists in cutting or rather shaving the hair perfectly close; thenwell rubbing in the ointment, and afterwards, and, what is the greatestconsequence of all, plastering a little more of the ointment lightlyover the part, and leaving it. As soon as the vesicles have perfectlyrisen, which will be in twenty or twenty-four hours, the torture of theanimal may be somewhat relieved by the application of olive orneat's-foot oil, or any emollient ointment. 

"An infusion of two ounces of the cantharides in a pint of oil ofturpentine, for several days, is occasionally used as a languid blister;and when sufficiently lowered with common oil, it is called a 'sweating'oil, for it maintains a certain degree of irritation and inflammation onthe skin, yet not sufficient to blister; and thus gradually abates orremoves some old or deep inflammation, or cause of lameness. " [1]

Iodine in various cases is now rapidly superseding the cantharides andthe turpentine. 

'Calomel'--Sufficient has been said of this dangerous medicine in thecourse of the present work. I should rarely think of exhibiting it, except in small doses for the purpose of producing that specificinfluence on the liver, which we know to be the peculiar property ofthis drug. In large doses it will to a certain extent produce vomiting;and, if it finds its way into the intestines, it acts as a powerfuldrastic purgative. 

'Castor Oil (Oleum Ricini)'. --This is a most valuable medicine. It isusually combined with the syrup of buckthorn and white poppies, in theproportions of three parts of the oil to two of the buckthorn and one ofthe poppy-syrup; which form a combination of ingredients in which theoleaginous, stimulant, and narcotic ingredients happily blend. 

'Catechu. '--This is an extract from the wood of an acacia-tree '(Acaciacatechu)', and possesses a powerful astringent property. It is given incases of superpurgation, united with opium, chalk, and powdered gum. Atincture of it is very useful for the purpose of hastening the healingprinciple of wounds. Professor Morton says, that he considers it as themost valuable of the vegetable astringents. 

'Clysters. '--Professor Morton gives an account of the use of clysters. The objects, he says, for which they are administered, are--1. To emptythe bowels of fæces: thus they act as an aperient. Also, to induce acathartic to commence its operations, when, from want of exercise or duepreparation, it is tardy in producing the desired effect. Clystersoperate in a twofold way: first, by softening the contents of theintestines; and, secondly, by exciting an irritation in one portion ofthe canal which is communicated throughout the whole; hence they becomevaluable when the nature and progress of the disease require a quickevacuation of the bowels. The usual enema is warm water, but this may berendered more stimulating by the addition of salt, oil, or aloes. 2. Forthe purpose of killing worms that are found in the rectum and largeintestines: in this case it is usually of an oleaginous nature. 3. Forrestraining diarrhoea: sedatives and astringents being then employed. 4. For nourishing the body when food cannot be received by the mouth. Gruelis generally the aliment thus given. 5. For allaying spasms in thestomach and bowels. 

'Copper'--Both the verdigris, or subacetate, and the blue vitriol ofsulphate of copper, are now comparatively rarely used. They are employedeither in the form of a fine powder, or mixed with an equal quantity ofthe acetate of lead in order to destroy proud flesh or stimulate oldulcers. They also form a part of the ægyptiacum of the farrier. Thereare many better drugs to accomplish the same purpose. 

'Creosote' is seldom used for the dog. We have applications quite asgood and less dangerous. It may be employed as a very gentle excitantand antiseptic. 

'Creta Preparata (Chalk)', in combination with ginger, catechu, andopium, is exceedingly useful; indeed, it is our most valuable medicinein all cases of purging, and particularly the purging of distemper. 

'Digitalis' is an exceedingly valuable drug. It is a direct and powerfulsedative, a mild diuretic, and useful in every inflammatory and febrilecomplaint. 

'Gentian' and 'Ginger' are both valuable; the first as a stomachic andtonic, and the last as a cordial and tonic. It is occasionallynecessary, or at least desirable, to draw this distinction between them. 

'Chloride of Lime' is a useful application for ill-conditioned woundsand for the frequent cleansing of the kennel. 

'Epsom Salts', or 'Sulphate of Magnesia', are mild yet effective intheir action: with regard to cattle and sheep, they supersede everyother aperient; for the dog, however, they must yield to the castor-oilmixture. 

'Mercury'--The common mercurial ointment is now comparatively littleused. It has given way to the different preparations of iodine. Indirect and virulent mange, it is yet, however, employed under the formof calomel, and combined with aloes, but in very small doses, neverexceeding three grains. It is also useful in farcy and jaundice. Thecorrosive sublimate is occasionally used for mange in the dog, and todestroy vermin; but it is a very uncertain and dangerous medicine. 

'Palm Oil' would be an excellent emollient, if it were not so frequentlyadulterated with turmeric root in powder. It is far milder than thecommon lard. 

'Nitrate of Potash' is a valuable cooling and mild diuretic, in doses ofeight or ten grains. 

'Sulphur' is the basis of the most effectual applications for mange. Itis a good alterative, combined usually with antimonials and nitre, andparticularly useful in mange, surfeit, grease, hide-bound, and want ofcondition. 

'Turpentine' is an excellent diuretic and antispasmodic; it is also amost effectual sweating blister and highly useful in strains. 

'The Sulphate of Zinc' is valuable as an excitant to wounds, andpromotes adhesion between divided surfaces and the 'radix'. 

[Footnote 1: The Horse, p. 501. ]

 * * * * *

APPENDIX. 

THE NEW LAWS OF COURSING, 'As Revised and Enlarged at a Meeting of Noblemen and Gentlemen, held atthe Thatched House Tavern, St. James's Street, June 1, 1839'. 

I. Two stewards shall be appointed by the members at dinner each day, toact in the field the following day, and to preside at dinner. They shallregulate the plan of beating the ground, under the sanction of the owneror occupier of the soil. 

II. Three or five members, including the secretary for the time being, shall form a Committee of Management, and shall name a person, for theapprobation of the members, to judge all courses--all doubtful casesshall be referred to them. 

III. All courses shall be from slips, by a brace of greyhounds only. 

IV. The time of putting the first brace of dogs in the slips shall bedeclared at dinner on the day preceding. If a prize is to be run for, and only one dog is ready, he shall run a by, and his owner shallreceive forfeit: should neither be ready, the course shall be run whenthe Committee shall think fit. In a match, if only one dog be ready, hisowner shall receive forfeit; if neither be present, the match shall beplaced the last in the list. 

V. If any person shall enter a greyhound by a name different from thatin which he last appeared in public, without giving notice of suchalteration, he shall be disqualified from winning, and shall forfeit hismatch. 

VI. No greyhounds shall be entered as puppies unless born on or afterthe 1st of January of the year preceding the day of running. 

VII. Any member, or other person, running a greyhound at the meeting, having a dog at large which shall join in the course then running, shallforfeit one sovereign; and, if belonging to either of the partiesrunning, the course shall be decided against him. 

VIII. The judge ought to be in a position where he can see the dogsleave the slips, and to decide by the colour of the dogs to a personappointed for that purpose: his decision shall be final. 

IX. If, in running for prizes, the judge shall be of opinion that thecourse has not been of sufficient length to enable him to decide as tothe merits of the dogs, he shall inquire of the Committee whether he isto decide the course or not; if in the negative, the dogs shall beimmediately put again into the slips. 

X. The judge shall not answer any questions put to him regarding acourse, unless such questions are asked by the Committee. 

XI. If any member make any observation in the hearing of the judgerespecting a course, during the time of running, or before he shall havedelivered his judgment, he shall forfeit one sovereign to the fund; and, if either dog be his own, he shall lose the course. If he impugn thedecision of the judge, he shall forfeit two sovereigns. 

XII. When a course of an average length is so equally divided that thejudge shall be unable to decide it, the owners of the dogs may toss forit; but, if either refuse, the dogs shall be again put in the slips, atsuch time as the Committee may think fit; but, if either dog be drawn, the winning dog shall not be obliged to run again. 

XIII. In running a match the judge may declare the course to beundecided. 

XIV. If a member shall enter more than one greyhound, 'bonâ fide' hisown property, for a prize, his dogs shall not run together, if it bepossible to avoid it; and, if two greyhounds, the property of the samemember, remain to the last tie, he may run it out or draw either, as heshall think fit. 

XV. When dogs engaged are of the same colour, the last drawn shall weara collar. 

XVI. If a greyhound stand still in a course when a hare is in his or hersight, the owner shall lose the course; but, if a greyhound drops fromexhaustion, and it shall be the opinion of the judge that the merit upto the time of falling was greatly in his or her favour, then the judgeshall have power to award the course to the greyhound so falling, if hethink fit. 

XVII. Should two hares be on foot, and the dogs separate before reachingthe hare slipped at, the course shall be undecided, and shall be runover again at such time as the Committee shall think fit, unless theowners of the dogs agree to toss for it, or to draw one dog; and if thedogs separate after running some time, it shall be at the discretion ofthe Committee whether the course shall be decided up to the point ofseparation. 

XVIII. A course shall end if either dog be so unsighted as to cause animpediment in the course. 

XIX. If any member or his servant ride over his opponent's dog whenrunning, so as to injure him in the course, the dog so ridden over shallbe deemed to win the course. 

XX. It is recommended to all union meetings to appoint a committee offive, consisting of members of different clubs, to determine alldifficulties and cases of doubt. 

'The following general rules are recommended to judges for theirguidance:'

The features of merit are:

The race from slips, and the first turn or wrench of the hare (providedit be a fair slip), and a straight run-up. 

Where one dog gives the other a go-by when both are in their full speed, and turns or wrenches the hare. (N. B. If one dog be in the stretch, andthe other only turning at the time he passes, it is not a fair go-by. )

Where one dog turns the hare when she is leading homewards, and keepsthe lead so as to serve himself, and makes a second turn of the harewithout losing the lead. 

A catch or kill of the hare, when she is running straight and leadinghomewards, is fully equal to a turn of the hare when running in the samedirection, or perhaps more, if he show the speed over the other dog indoing it. If a dog draws the fleck from the hare, and causes her towrench or rick only, it is equal to a turn of the hare when leadinghomewards. 

When a dog wrenches or ricks a hare twice following, without losing thelead, it is equal to a turn. 

N. B. It often happens when a hare has been turned, and she is runningfrom home, that she turns of her own accord to gain ground homeward, when both dogs are on the stretch after her; in such a case the judgeshould not give the leading dog a turn. 

There are often other minor advantages in a course, such as one dogshowing occasional superiority of speed, turning on less ground, andrunning the whole course with more fire than his opponent, which must beled to the discretion of the judge, who is to decide on the merits. 

LOCAL RULES. 

I. The number of members shall be regulated by the letters in theAlphabet, and the two junior members shall take the letters X and Z, ifrequired. 

II. The members shall be elected by ballot, seven to constitute aballot, and two black balls to exclude. 

III. The name of every person proposed to be balloted for as a member, shall be placed over the chimney-piece one day before the ballot cantake place. 

IV. No proposition shall be balloted for unless put up over thechimney-piece, with the names of the proposer and seconder, at or beforedinner preceding the day of the ballot, and read to the members at suchdinner. 

V. Every member shall, at each meeting, run a greyhound his ownproperty, or forfeit a sovereign to the Club. 

VI. No member shall be allowed to match more than two greyhounds in thefirst class, under a penalty of two sovereigns to the fund, unless suchmember has been drawn or run out for the prizes, in which case he shallbe allowed to run three dogs in the first class. 

VII. If any member shall absent himself two seasons without sending hissubscription, he shall be deemed out of the Society, and another chosenin his place. 

VIII. No greyhound shall be allowed to start if any arrears are due tothis Society from the owner. 

IX. Any member lending another a greyhound for the purpose of saving hisforfeit (excepting by consent of the members present) shall forfeit fivesovereigns. 

X. Any member running the dog of a stranger in a match shall cause thename of the owner to be inserted after his own name in the list, under apenalty of one sovereign. 

XI. No stranger shall be admitted into the Society's room, unlessintroduced by a member, who shall place the name of his friend over thechimney-piece, with his own attached to it; and no member shallintroduce more than one friend. 

XII. The members of the [erased] Clubs shall be honorary members of thisSociety, and when present shall be allowed to run their greyhounds onpayment of the annual subscription. 

XIII. This Society to meet on the [erased] in [erased], and course onthe [erased] following days. 

 * * * * *

INDEX. 

Acupuncturation, used in neuralgic affections mode of performingAdam, Mr. , on fungus hæmatodesAdeps, the basis of all ointmentsAfrican wild dog, description of theAgasæi, British hunting dogs, description ofAge, the indications ofAlbanian dog, description of theAlcohol, only used in tincturesAlicant dog, description of theAloes, Barbadoes, the best purgativeAlpine spaniel, description ofAlteratives, the most usefulAlum, a powerful astringentAmaurosis, symptoms ofAmerican wild dogs, description of theAnæmia, description of causes of 'post-mortem' appearancesAnasarca, nature ofAndalusian dog, description of theAngina, nature ofAntimony, the oxide of, a sudorific the black sesquisulphuret of, an alterativeAnubis, an Egyptian deity with the head of a dogAnus, polypus in the fistula in theAquafortis, a causticArgus, the dog of UlyssesArrian on huntingArtois dog, description of theAscarides, a species of wormsAscites, 'see' DropsyAttention, an important facultyAuscultation, use ofAustralasian dog, description of the

Barbary dog, description of theBarbet, description of theBark, Peruvian, a valuable tonicBarry, a celebrated Bernardine dog, anecdote ofBath, use of in puerperal fitsBeagle, description of theBell, Professor, opinion on the origin of the dogBernardine dog, description of theBilly, a celebrated terrierBladder, inflammation of the rupture of theBlain, nature, causes, treatment, and 'post-mortem' appearances ofBlaine, Mr. , opinion on kennel lameness on tetanus on dropsy on calculus on distemper on mangeBleeding, best place for directions for useful in epilepsy useful in distemperBlenheim spaniel, description of theBlisters, uses of composition mode of applying and guardingBloodhound, description of theBrain, comparative bulk of in different animals description of theBreaking-in of hounds cruelty disadvantageousBreeding of greyhounds should always be permittedBritish hunting-dogs, Agasæi, description ofBronchocele, nature of causes and treatment ofBúánsú, or Nepâl dog, description ofBuffon, opinion as to the origin of the dogBull-dog, description of the crossed with the greyhoundBull terrier, description of the

Cæcum, description of theCalculus, nature, causes, and treatment of, in the intestines, causes of, cases, Calomel, a dangerous medicine should not be used in enteritisCancer, symptoms of treatment ofCanis, genusCanker in the ear, causes, symptoms and treatment of cases ofCanute, laws concerning greyhounds byCardia, description of theCastor oil, a valuable purgativeCastration, proper time for mode of performing not recommendedCatechu, an astringentCaustic, lunar, the bestCayotte, description of theChabert, anecdote of the dog ofChalk, an astringentCharles I, anecdote of the dog ofCharles II's spaniel, description ofChest, anatomy and diseases of the proper form of, in the greyhound in the fox-houndChest-founder, nature, causes, and treatment ofChloride of lime, uses ofChorea, nature of, causes, treatment cases in distemperChryseus scylex, or dhole, description of theClaret, a celebrated greyhoundClassification, zoologicalClimate, effect ofClysters, uses ofCoach-dog, description of theCocker, description of theColic, causes, symptoms, and treatment ofColon, the rupture of theColour of the greyhound of the pointerConstipation, causes and treatment ofCopper, preparations of, and their usesCoryza, the early stage of distemperCostiveness, causes and treatment of means of preventingCough, spasmodic, nature and treatment ofCoursing, Ovid's description of anecdotes of laws of general rules for the guidance of judges local rulesCreosote, a dangerous medicine useful in cankerCreta, an astringentCropping of the ears deafness frequently caused by disapproved of proper method of

Cross-breeding, effect ofCuba, mastiff ofCur, description of theCyprus, greyhounds of, describedCynosaurus cristatus, an useful emeticCzarina, a celebrated greyhound

Dakhun wild dog, description of theDalmatian dog, description of theDanish sacrifices of dogs, description of dog, description of theDeab, description of theDeafness frequently caused by croppingDeer-hound, description of theDelafond, Professor, his table of the diagnostic symptoms of pleurisy and pneumoniaDentition, formula ofDew-claws their removal unnecessaryDhole, description of theDiaphragm, description of theDiarrhoea, causes, nature, and treatment of habitualDick, Professor, on rabies on the use of ergot of ryeDigestion, the process ofDigitalis, the uses ofDigitigrade, an order of animalsDingo, description of theDistemper, origin of the name is a new disease causes of is contagious is epidemic effects on different breeds symptoms nature of duration 'post-mortem' appearances treatment a cause of epilepsy sometimes terminates in palsyDog, early history of the used as a beast of draught for food uses of the skin of the origin of mention of, in the Old and New Testaments anecdotes of the sagacity and fidelity of changes produced in, by breeding and climate zoological description of natural divisions of sacrificed by the Greeks and Romans by the Danes and Swedes African wild Albanian Alicant Alpine spaniel American wild Andalusian Artois Australasian Barbary barbet beagle black and tan spaniel Blenheim spaniel blood-hound British bull bull terrier coach cocker cur Dakhun Dalmatian Danish drover's Egyptian Esquimaux fox-hound French matin French pointer gasehound Grecian Grecian greyhound greyhound Hare Indian harrier Highland greyhound Hyrcanian Iceland Irish greyhound Italian greyhound Italian wolf Javanese King Charles's spaniel Lapland lion Locrian lurcher Mahratta Maltese mastiff Molossian Nepal Newfoundland New Zealand otter Pannonian pariah Persian greyhound pointer Polugar poodle Portuguese pointer Russian greyhound Russian pointer Scotch greyhound Scotch terrier setter sheep shock southern hound spaniel Spanish pointer springer stag-hound Sumatran wild terrier Thibet Turkish Turkish greyhound water-spaniel wild wolf

Dog-carts, prohibition of, disapproved should be licensedDog-pitsDog-stealingDog's-tail grass, the use ofDogs, Isle of, origin of the nameDropsy, causes of cases of treatment ofDrover's dog, description of theDuodenum, theDupuy, M. , on diseases of the spinal marrowDysentery, nature of treatment of

Ear, diseases of the vegetating excrescences in the eruptions in the cropping of the polypi in the, nature and treatment of pain of, an early symptom of rabiesEgyptian worship of the dog dog, description of theElfric, King of Mercia, possessed greyhoundsEmetic tartar, uses ofEnteritis, causes, symptoms, and treatment ofEpiglottis, description of theEpilepsy, causes of treatment of cases puerperal in distemperEpsom salts, a purgativeErgot of rye, use of, in parturitionEsquimaux dog, description of theEthiopia, a dog elected king ofEthmoid bones, description of theExtremities, bones of theEye, distinctive form of the diseases of the construction of the cases of disease of the congenital blindness ophthalmia cataract amaurosis appearance of in rabies appearance of in distemper

Familiaris, sub-genusFeet, soreFemur, fracture of theFighting-pitsFirst division of varietiesFistula in the anus, causes and treatment ofFits, symptoms of treatment of distemper puerperalFitzhardinge, Lord, his management of houndsFlogging hounds, disapproved ofFood, the dog used for of the greyhound of the foxhound insufficient, a cause of distemperFore-arm, fracture of theFoxhound, description of the size and proper conformation of pupping treatment of whelps breaking in management in the field general management and food of Lord Fitzhardinge's managementFractures, most frequent in young dogs of the humerus of the thigh of the femur of the radius of the fore-arm of the shoulder of the pelvis of the skullFrench pointer, description of theFungus hæmatodes, a case of 'post-mortem' appearances

Gasehound, description ofGêlert, the dog of Llewellyn, poem on the death ofGentian, a stomachic and tonicGhoo-khan, or wild ass, hunted by Persian greyhoundsGiddiness, nature and treatment ofGinger, a cordial and tonicGlass, powdered, the best vermifugeGoître, nature of cause and treatment ofGood qualities of the dogGoodwood kennel, description of plan ofGrecian dogs, description of sacrifices of dogs greyhound, description of theGreyhound, description of the puppies, out of origin of known in England in the Anglo-Saxon period old verses describing the cross with the bull-dog proper conformation of colour of breeding rules for age food training laws for coursing with English Grecian Highland Irish Italian Persian Russian Scotch TurkishGrognier, Professor, description of the French sheep-dogGullet, description of the

Hare Indian dog, description of theHarrier, description of theHead, bones of the form of in the foxhoundHeart, description of the action of the rupture of theHecate, dogs sacrificed toHepatitis, causes, symptoms, and treatment ofHertwich, Professor, on rabiesHighland greyhound, description of theHindoos regard the dog uncleanHogg, James, anecdotes of his dogHog's lard, the basis of all ointmentsHound, the various kinds of blood fox otter southern stagHumerus, fracture of theHunting with dogs first mentioned by OppianHunting-kennelsHuntsman, the requisites of aHydatids in the kidneyHydrocyanic acid, useful in cases of irritation of the skinHydrophobia, 'see' RabiesHyrcanian dog, description of the

Iceland dog, description of theIleum, description of theIncontinence of urineIndia, degeneration of dogs inInflammation of the lungs of the stomach of the intestines of the peritoneal membrane of the liver of the kidney of the bladder of the feetIntelligence of the dog anecdotes illustrative of theIntestines, description of the inflammation of theIntussusception, nature and causes of treatmentIodine, a valuable medicine in goître in dropsyIrish greyhound, description of the wolf-dog setterItalian greyhound, description of the wolf-dog

James's powder, a sudorificJaundice, causes, symptoms, and treatment ofJavanese dog, description of theJejunum, description of theJenner, Dr. , on distemperJews regard the dog with abhorrenceJohn, kept many dogs received greyhounds in lieu of fines

Kamtschatka, uses of the dog as a beast of draught inKaráráhé or New Zealand dog, description of theKennel, description of Goodwood Plan of Goodwood for watch-dog construction of hare, use of lameness, nature of causes of means of preventionKidney, inflammation of the hydatids in theKing Charles's spaniel, description of

Lachrymal duct, description of theLapland dog, description of theLard, the basis of all ointmentsLarynx, description of the inflammation of theLaws of coursingLeblanc, M. , on jaundiceLéonard, M. , his exhibition of dogsLime, chloride of, the uses ofLion dog, description of theLips, functions of the swellings of theLiver, description of the functions of the inflammation of theLlewellyn, poem on the dog ofLocrian dog, description of theLunar caustic, the best recommended for bites of rabid dogsLungs, inflammation of the congestion of theLurcher, description of the

Madness, canine, 'see' RabiesMagnesia, sulphate of, a purgativeMahratta dog description of theMajendie, his experiments on the olfactory nervesMajor, a celebrated greyhoundMaltese dog, description of theMammalia, a class of animalsManagement of the packMange, nature of is hereditary the scabby treatment causes of frequently causes goîtreMastiff, description of the used in Cuba to hunt the IndiansMâtin, description of theMaxillary bones, description of theMeatus, description of theMedicines, a list of the most useful mode of administeringMedullary substance of the brainMemory of the dogMercury, preparations of uses ofMilk, accumulation of, in the teats secretion of, connected with cancerMohammedan abhorrence of dogsMolossian dog, description of theMoral qualities of the dogNasal bones, description of the catarrh, nature of cavity, polypus in theNeck, should be long in the greyhoundNepal dog, description of theNerves, description of theNervous system, diseases ofNewfoundland dog, description of theNew Holland dog, description of theNew Zealand dog, description of theNimrod, opinion on kennel lamenessNitrate of potash, a useful diureticNitrate of silver, a caustic recommended for the bites of rabid dogs useful in chorea in cankerNitric acid, a causticNorfolk spaniel, description of theNose, anatomy of the diseases of the discharge from the, in distemper

Olfactory nerves, size of, in different animals development of the description of theOphthalmia, symptoms of causes of treatment ofOppian, the first who mentions hunting with dogs description of British dogs byOrbit of the eye, form of theOrford, Lord, first crossed greyhounds with the bull-dog death ofOtter-hound, description of theOvaries, removal of theOvid, description of coursing byOzæna, nature and treatment of

Palate, veil of the inflammation of thePalsy, causes of treatment of a consequence of chorea consequence of distemperPalm oil, an emollientPancreas, functions of thePannonian dog, description of thePariah, description of theParry, Captain, description of the Esquimaux dogParturition, time of management during use of the ergot of of rye inversion of the uterus afterPelvis, fracture of thePercival, Mr. , on fracturesPericardium, description of the case of a wound in thePeritonitis, symptoms and treatment ofPersian greyhound, description of thePeruvian bark, a valuable tonicPhlegmonous tumour, nature and treatment ofPleurisy, nature of diagnostic symptoms ofPneumonia, nature and treatment of diagnostic symptoms of in distemper a consequence of small-pox

Pointer, compared with the setter, 136; early training of, 144; breaking-in, 149; English, 140; French, 142; Spanish, 142Pollux, the introduction of hunting with dogs attributed toPolugar dog, description of thePolypus in the ear in the nasal and anal cavities in the vaginaPomeranian wolf-dog, description ofPoodle, description of thePortuguese pointer, description of thePotash, the nitrate of, a useful diureticPrussic acid, useful in cases of irritation of the skinPuerperal fits, causes, nature, and treatment ofPulse of various animalsPupping, 'see' ParturitionPurging in distemper should be avoidedPythagoras, his high opinion of the virtues of the dogRabies, cases early symptoms progress 'post-mortem' appearances causes period of incubation duration nature of the virus nature of the disease treatment of persons bitten in the horse in the rabbit in the guinea-pig in the cat in the fowl in the badger in the wolf trials concerning the death of persons byRadius, fracture of theRadcliffe, D. , on scentRectum, theRetriever, Newfoundland dog used asRheumatism, nature, causes, and treatment ofRichard II, anecdote of the dog ofRichmond, the third Duke of, built Goodwood kennelRoman sacrifices of dogs, description ofRottenness of the lungsRupture of the heart, case of 'post-mortem' appearances of the colon of the bladderRussian greyhound, description of the pointer, description of the

Saliva, state of in rabiesSalts, a purgativeScabby mange, nature and treatment ofScent, the term description of influence of the atmosphere uponScotch greyhound, description of the terrier, description of the

Scott, Sir Walter, anecdote of the dog of verses on the dogs ofSecond division of varietiesSeton, useful in epilepsySetter, description of the early training of compared with the pointer

Sheep-dog, description of the anecdotes of the supposed by Buffon to be the original type French, description of theShock-dog, description of theShoulder, fracture of the proper form of the, in the greyhoundSiberian dog, description of theSimonds, Professor, on fracturesSimpson, Mr. , on the use of the ergot of ryeSkeleton, description of theSkin, uses of theSkull, form of, adopted as the arrangement of the varieties of the dog fracture of theSmall-pox, symptoms of causes of treatmentSmell, the sense ofSnowball, a celebrated greyhoundSore feet, causes of treatmentSouthern hound, description of theSpaniel, origin of the description of the Blenheim King Charles's Norfolk waterSpanish pointer, description of theSpasmodic cough, nature and treatment ofSpaying, mode of performingSpleen, functions of the diseases of theSpringer, description of the

Staghound, description of the anecdotes of theStaling, profuseStarch, bandage, useful in fracturesStealing of dogsStomach, anatomy and diseases of the case of the retention of a sharp instrument in theStrychnia, a valuable medicine in palsySulphur, the basis of applications for mange a good alterativeSumatra, description of the wild dog ofSurfeit, an eruption resembling mangeSwedish sacrifices of dogs, description ofSympathetic nerves

Tænia, a species of wormTailingTape-worm, theTapping in cases of dropsyTartar emetic, a useful medicineTeeth, distinctive arrangement of the description of the cuts showing various signs of growth and decay supernumerary diseases of the very early lost by the Turkish dogTeres, a species of wormTerrier, description of the training of the anecdotes of the Scotch, description of theTetanus, causes of symptoms and treatment ofThibet dog, description of theThigh, fracture of theThird division of varietiesThyroid cartilage, description of theToes, sore number ofTongue, description of the mode of drinking worming blainTorsion, mode of performing forcepsTraining of the greyhound of the foxhound of the pointer or setterTrimmer. Mr. , description of the Spanish sheep-dogTrunk, bones of theTumour, phlegmonous, nature and treatment ofTurkish dog, description of the greyhound, description of theTurnside, nature and treatment ofTurnspit, description of theTurpentine, uses of

Unguents, use of, in mangeUnguiculata, a tribe of animalsUterus, case of inversion of the extirpation and cure

Vagina, polyps in theVan Diemen Land, ravages of wild dogs inVarieties, three divisions of first division of second division of third division ofVatel, his observations on the pulse of different animalsVegetating excrescences in the ear, nature and treatment ofVermifuge, glass the most effectualVertebrated animals, whatVinegar, useful for fomentationsVoice, change of in rabiesVyner. Mr. , opinion on kennel lameness

Warts, treatment ofWashing of hounds disapproved ofWatch-dog, frequent ill-usage of theWater-spaniel, description of the anecdotes of theWild dog, description of the of Africa of Australia of Van Diemen Land

Williamson, Captain, account of the wild dogs of Nepâl on the degeneration of dogs in India description of the dholeWolf, supposed to be the origin of the dog anecdotes of theWolf-dog, Irish ItalianWorms, varieties of symptoms of means of expelling cases of a cause of sudden death causes of a cause of epilepsy a cause of distemper

Yellow distemper, nature of treatment ofYellows, the

Zinc, sulphate of, a valuable excitant

Zoological classification of the dog

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APPENDIX

INDEX TO THE EDITOR'S ADDITIONS. 

Affection of dogsAge of the pointerAlexander the Great, dog sent toAloes, effects ofAmaurosis, causes and treatment ofAmerican greyhoundAnecdotes of rabid dogsArctic fox

Bengal, le braque deBlindness, congenitalBrazen dog of JupiterByron, Lord, his opinion of the dog's memory

Canes CeteresCanine fidelity, anecdote ofCanine pathology, Introduction toCanis LagopusCanis LatransCanker of the ear of the flapCaptain Lyon's account of the Esquimaux dogCatlin's remarks on the Indian dogChesapeake bay, ducks of theChorea, accidental cure ofChronic opthalmia, causes and treatment ofCirculation, state of theClaims of dogs upon usCocker, method of breaking the his style of huntingColonel Hawker's account of dog-stealingColonel Thornton's Spanish pointerCollyriaCongenital blindnessCornea, ulceration of the spots on theCoursing, ancient mode of Gay's poems descriptive ofCropping, a barbarous fancy recommended by Mr. SkinnerCross of dog with fox between the wolf and, opinions of the Cynegetical writers respecting opinions of the modernsCure of diseases, remedial means for of chorea, accidental

Daniel Lambert's dogs, their price &c. Dead bodies, dogs kept to devourDew-claws, removal of, Mr. Blaine's opinion in reference toDiana, spotted dogs given by Pan toDisease, symptoms of of the eye of the ear of the tongue of the feetDisposition of the dog to hunt by scentDog, considered as an animal of draught length of intestines in the Molossian fidelity of the of Santa Fé and the Chihuahuas of the Mexicans, worthless prophylactic properties of the crossed with the fox with the wolf Indian social invitations extended to self-broken claim of, upon man hospitals for rabid, anecdotes of, 234; Esquimaux, 95

Duck of the Chesapeake bay, manner of toling the discovery of this method

Duke of Norfolk's breed of King Charles' spaniel

Ear, canker of the, causes and treatment of wounds of the warts on the polypus of the mangy edges in the

Editor's remarks on rabies his preventive treatment for

English pointer, size and appearance ofEntropiumEpilepsy, treatment of mistaken for rabiesEsquimaux dog, Captain Lyons' account ofExtirpation of the eye

Eye and its diseases simple inflammation of extirpation of the protrusion of the weak washes for theEyelids, ulceration of the inversion of the, operation forEye-washes, various

Feet, diseases of theFidelity of the dogFistula lachrymalisFlap, tumours of theFouilloux, Jacques du, his recipes for rabiesFox, Arctic cross of dog with the

Glossitis, causes and treatment ofGay's poems descriptive of coursingGreeks, ancient, domestic manners of the, respecting their dogs greyhound ofGreek sportsman's care of his dogsGreyhound of America, 55; of ancient Greece, 56Gutta serena

Hawker, Colonel, his account of dog-stealingHembel, Mr. , his anecdotes of rabid dogsHerds of the Mexicans, immense, 48Hippocrates, prophylactic properties of the dog recommended byHorse doctorsHospitals for dogsHydrophthalmia, treatment of

Indian dogIntroduction to Canine PathologyIrish setter, inductive reasoning in an

Jacques du Fouilloux, his recipes for rabies

Keyworth, Mr. , springer belonging to

Lambert, Daniel, the price of his dogsLord Byron's opinion of the dog's memoryLouisiana marmotLyon, Captain, his account of the Esquimaux dog, 95

Mangy edges, treatment ofMarmot, the LouisianaMexicans, immense herds of the, 48Mexico, shepherd dogs of their introduction into this countryMolossian dogs, 26Newfoundland dog, as a retriever two varieties of account of two imported into this countryNictitating membrane of the eyeNorfolk, Duke of, his breed of King Charles' spanielsNux vomica, effects of

Ophthalmia chronic treatment of traumatic sympatheticOtorrhoea, simple, treatment ofOzæna, injection for

Pathology, Canine, Introduction toPointer, English, his size and appearance; merits of, compared with those of the setter; age of; origin of; his disposition to hunt by scent; tailing of thePolypus in the earPredisposition to disease in dogsPreventative treatment for rabiesProphylactic properties of the dog, as recommended by Pliny, Hippocrates, Aristotle, and othersProtrusion of the eyePustular affection of the feet

Rabid dogs, anecdotes ofRabies, epilepsy taken For; remarks on; recipes for the cure of; preventive treatment forRemedial means for the cure of diseasesRheumatism, causes and varieties of

Scent, disposition of the dog to hunt bySelf-broken dogsSetter, old document respecting the training of; merits of, compared with those of the pointer; Irish, inductive reasoning inShepherd's dog, importance of the, to our agriculturists; of Mexico; their introduction into this countryShepherds of MexicoSkinner. Mr. , cropping recommended bySocial invitations extended to dogsSow, account of one finding and standing gameSpaniel, King Charles', breed ofSpanish pointer, Colonel Thornton'sSpirits of turpentine, effects ofSportsman, Greek, his care of his dogsSpots on the corneaSpotted dogs given by Pan to DianaSprainsSpringerStealing dogs, Colonel Hawke's account ofSymptoms of disease

Tailing, objections to of pointersThornton, Colonel, his Spanish pointerThroat, foreign articles in theToling ducksTongue, appearance of the, in diseaseTraumatic ophthalmia, treatment ofTurnside, uncommon in the country

Ulceration of the cornea; of the eyelids

Youatt, Mr. , his opinion approved

Warts of the earWeak eyesWounds of the ear

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