JAUNDICE is rather an unfrequent disorder in the horse. It is, however, occasionally seen, and therefore calls on us for some account. The yel low tinge the skin acquires, the mouth and eyes in particular, at once betrays its existence. The bowels become costive, the excrement voided is hard, buttony, and dark coloured, and sometimes besmeared with a yellow stringy matter, which ap pears to be bile imperfectly mingled with mucus. The animal is evidently much depressed. He hangs his head, his eye-lids droop; he mopes about and appears very stupid, and is heedless of what is going on; indeed, often he staggers in his walk, showing vertigo even to be present. The pulse is increased in frequency, hut the respiration con tinues undisordered.
In the treatment of jaundice, our chief reliance is to be placed in inducing a state of copious pur gation. No time should be lost in administering from ten to twelve drams of aloes, in combination with syrup of ginger; and should there be much stupor or any vertigo present, I would at the same time draw blood, but not to any very large amount —sav four or five quarts. As soon as the bowels
arc freely opened, apply a large blister to the off side, and keep it discharging by dressing it morn ing and evening with fresh blistering ointment. It may be necessary to recur to venesection. The purgation must be kept active.
Now and then jaundice proves fatal. Probably some time has elapsed heforc medical aid is called in; the bowels resist the first dose of medicine; the pulse continues to rise notwithstanding the use of the lancet; the skin and extremities become cold; the animal grows senseless and vertiginous, and in that state he drops down and expires.
Diseases of the Urinary Organs.
The practice grooms and farriers have of giving and repeating what they denominate "urine balls," whenever the animal shows any unusual efforts or difficulties in staling, may be said to lay the foun dation for most of these disorders; at least for such of them as are seated in the kidneys.