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Show k. DISEASES Note: Only the most common diseases which the dog leader will encounter are listed here. Characteristics of a disease. The first and most frequent symptoms of a disease are: Apathy ( lacking cheerfulness), unwillingness to play, symptoms of fatigue, lack of desire for food. Note: a) Lack of desire for food while cheerful and without fever does not indicate sickness. If the dog is cheerful, but does not eat, he does not require nourishment and there is no need to worry about sickness. b) The most definite indication is apathy, unwillingness to play. o) A cold or warm nose also does not offer a clue as to sickness. Immediate Measures. If the dog leader notices one of the signs of sickness, he should immediately take the dog's temperature. A thermometer is covered at the tip with vaseline, introduced into the rectum and left there for 3 minutes. Be careful of injuries! A relaxed dog has a normal temperature of from 38° to 38.4° C. Temperatures above this point are fever temperatures. If the dog has fever, an immediate consultation with the veterinary is necessary. If possible, a specialist should be consulted. Arbitrary treatment with household remedies is not to be given. It might be exactly the wrong treatment. The most frequent diseases: Stomach or intestinal distemper: vomiting, diarrhea, fever, clouded eyes, red inflamed eyes. Lung distemper: fever, running nose and eyes, eyes mostly yellow, coughing, short rattling breath. Nervous distemper: fever, lameness of the hind- foot, nervous twitching and hackling. Hard pad distemper: fever., the skin of the foot pads peels and hardens, the ( tip of the) nose cracks and hardens. Renal disease: great thirst, vomiting of a yellow mass, foul- smelling fangs. Liver disease: vomiting of a yellow mucus, often mixed with blood, - 11 - |