Below is the OCR text representation for this newspapers page.

432 tforasfs of 3,mods. COLIC. (1.) Spasmodic Goltc. — Symptoms. All at once Ihe liorse that a few moments ago was well, ap parently, shakes his head —leaves his feed, looks round at his flank, mostly at the right side, as if pointing out the seat of the disease, scrapes the ground with Ids front foot, and almost strikes his belly with one of the hind ones. The spasm continuing, the horse breaks out into a sweat, heavier at the flunks; great excitement, kicking, and rolling; intervals of ease from pain. ()tNine*. —Drinking cold water when heated, or colder water than commonly used, as a city horse is used to drinking water which is warmer in summer, and colder in winter, than water taken from a pump; washing the belly with cold wa ter ; driving horses into a pond of cold water. Treatment. Give something to heat the stom ach and bowels. Try a bottle of warm ale or porter, adding a little whiskey, or a tcaspoonful of ground ginger to it. If relief be not obtained in half an hour, give a drench, composed of tinc ture of aconite root, twenty-five drops; spirits of turpentine, one ounce ; one bottle of cold ale or porter. If necessary, give injections of warm water, (not hot,) and a handful of table salt. Oc casionally walk the horse about, to excite the bowels to action. (2.) Simeon al Colic. — Sipjiptoms. Similar to 11m above variety, but continues longer, and is not quite so severe or painful. Cavses. Impaction or constipation of the bow els. Treatment. Powdered aloes, one ounce; tinc ture of aconite root, twenty-five drops; chloro form, half an ounce. Mix in a bottle of ale or porter, and give in a drench out of a horn, or stout bottle. The aconite will have to be given every four horn’s, till the pain has given way.— Encourage the operations of the aloes by injec tions every hour. (3.) Flatulent Colic.— Symptoms. Pain is considerable at first, which in a few hours gives way to sleepiness, (see Coma.) This is caused by distention of the bowels with gas, commonly called wind, thereby paralyzing the par vagus and nerve centres, and ultimately the brain itself. This variety of colic is readily distinguished from the others by the swelling of the belly, particu larly at the flanks, called tympanitis, or drum belly. SOUTHERN CULTIVATOR. Causes. Indigestion of food in the stomach; fomentation is set up, and there is evolution (giving forth) of carbonic acid gas. This gas is not liberated per rectum from the body as speed ily ns generated. The horse and cow cannot belch or cruet wind from their stomachs as man and the dog can; hence the frequency of tympa nitis in horses and cows. Treatment.. Try injections first, as in many ca ses I have cured this variety by this means alone. If gas or wind come away with the injection, the case will soon end well. When no benefit is de rived from the injections, give, in a little cold water, aloes in powder, one ounce; sulphuric ether, one ounce; tincture of opium, tw T o ounces. If these measures fail iu giving ease from pain, pour two ounces of chloroform on a small moist sponge, and hold it to the nostrils, not too close ly, but admit a portion of air with the fumes of the chloroform, (see Medicines.) The sponge may be placed in a towel, and the ends carried up around the nose of the horse, to save "waste; or place the sponge in the bottom of a nose-bag, and put it on his head, but not too close upon the nose. Last Remedy. It must be confessed that tty 1 longer this disease is unrelieved, the more remote is the chance of recovery, as the bowel some times contracts upon itself, or nearly closes alto gether. To overcome this condition an opera tion is recommended, which I do not say will be a success, nor yet a failure. When it failed in my hands, it was not because the gas was not let out of the bowels, but because the blood had be come so disintegrated, and the nervous centres so paralyzed, that the sanative powers of the con stitution had received too great a shock to ever rally again. The Operation. Procure an instrument, (see In struments,) called a trocar. If this be not at hand, sharpen a breakfast knife, and measure an equal distance from the haunch bone and tlie short rib, and not too high upon the back; force the knife into the distended bowel, and turn the knife in the wound thus made, and hold it there until all the imprisoned gas has escaped; and as the gas sometimes still accumulates, keep the knife or instrument in the wound, if it be for half a day. When the knife or instrument is taken out, place a piece of sticking plaster over the wound. (See Medicines.) Stones, or hair calculi, are often found, after death, in the bowels of horses subject to colic.—