Cattle 1853 - Lewis Family Farm

ACUTE AND EPIDEMIC PNEUMONIA.' 267
The following medicines will also be found very useful, tartqrus
emeticus, sanguinarius canadensis, phosphorus, cannabis, cinchona,
rhus toxicodendron, &6,
ACUTE AND EPIDEMIC PNEUMONIA.
An acute species of pneumonia in cattle is sometimes met with,
and it occasionally appears as an epidemic. The beast hangs his
head—there is dryness of the muzzle—the mouth and breath are
hot—the flanks more or less agitated—there is a hard, dry, and fre-
quent cough—the • appetite is gone, but the thirst is excessive—the
excrement is solid and black, or liquid, black, and fetid—the coat
rough—the horns and ears hot-, or alternately hot and cold—there
is languor and apparent weakness, and sometimes direct lameness,
and most frequently of one of the hind legs.
To these rapidly succeed other symptoms—that tenderness along
the spine and the whole of the lumbar region which has been again
and again described as so characteristic of almost every inflammatory
disease of cattle ; the head is now stretched out—the eyes are
unnaturally bright, yet weeping—there is grinding of the teeth
the mouth and breath become hotter—a mucous, or sometimes purulent
discharge runs from the mouth and nostrils, at first clear, but
soon becoming brown, red, or bloody—the flanks heave more violently—the
cough is more urgent—it has become convulsive—the
nostrils dilate and contract with spasmodic violence—the animal no
longer lies down, or if he does, rises again immediately—sweats
break out on different parts of the body—the temperature of different
parts varies, and very curiously changes—the secretion of milk is
suspended, but the teats become hard and swelled—tumors appear
on various parts—a shivering, partial or total, succeeds, and the
tumors disappear, but they speedily rise again and are more permanent.
Possibly some of the most urgent of the symptoms remit
when the tumors begin to appear, but towards night an exacerbation
succeeds, which does not subside until the morning.
The prostration of strength increases—the belly is tucked up and
corded—the flanks heave with greater violence—the back and loins
become bowed—the limbs are drawn together towards the centre of
gravity—the stools are liquid and fetid, and accompanied by much
straining and tenesmus—the sensibility of the loins is now subsided
—the sensibility generally is almost gone—the flies collect about the
beast, and he makes no effort to drive them away—every irritant
ceases to act upon the skin—the respiration is quickened, and more
and more .laborious—it is accompanied by a gurgling, noise in the
chest, distinctly heard even without the application of the ear to the
side—the nostrils become yet more dilated, and the mucus flowing
from them varies in color, but exhales a cadaverous, infectious odor
—the breath is now become cold, and is as offensive as the discharge
—