Читать книгу The Dog's Medical Dictionary - Alfred Joseph Sewell - Страница 60

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Symptoms: Irregular contraction of the muscles. Almost any part of the body may be affected, and even the tongue, the dog poking it out of the mouth constantly. But the disease more often affects the limbs, perhaps one fore leg and one hind leg, or the muscles of the shoulder and neck; occasionally the muscles of the abdomen, the dog always appearing to be suffering from hiccough. The temporal muscle is a common seat of chorea, and in such cases the dog is constantly snapping his teeth together. It is almost invariably the result of distemper.

Treatment: In bad cases the disease is incurable, though often with time—in the course of months—the twitching becomes less, but never entirely disappears. There is no specific for chorea; what appears to do one case good seems to do harm in another. Small doses of arsenic with bromide is sometimes a useful remedy, as the following mixture:—

Recipe:

Bromide of Strontia,	1 drachm.
Fowler’s Solution of Arsenic,	48 minims.
Water to	3 ounces.

Dose: From half a teaspoonful to a tablespoonful[1] three times a day after food.

In other cases Easton’s syrup answers better.

Dose: From three or four drops to half a drachm,[1] in a little water, three times a day after food. Later, especially if there is much wasting, cod-liver oil should be given.