Wichita eagle., 1889-09-25
WHEN THE DOG STAR SHINES.
Tle Only Way in Which Hydrophobia Can
Be Wholly Stamped Out.

As soon as that very bright star, which
adorns the sky like miniature moon begins
to shine with unusual brilliancy, the hue and
cry against the mad dog begins. The dog
star is raging, and every dog which happens
to be out of breath or which wears hungry
look, is regarded with suspicious alarm. Hy-
drophobia is in every ones mind. The small
boy is seen daily dragging ours through the
streets in the direction Of the pound. The
policeman's revolver is ever ready for the
cry of mad dog People who own dogs are
looked upon by their dogless neighbors as
little less than public calamities
The causes for all this alarm are to be
found in the fearful nature of the disease,
which is inoculated with the virus Of a rabid
dog, and in the vague and uncertain ideas Of
this disease which exist in the minds of even
the most learned physicians. Some doctors
say there is no such thing as hydrophobia
Others insist that there is actually such a
disease and that it is absolutely incurable.
However this may be, all agree that many
persons bitten by dog which reveals the
symptoms of what is called rabies, die deaths
of horrible agony-deaths which begin with
a vague fear of al movements and sounds,
which continue in the appearance of spaslns
full agonies Whether it is only fear of a
myth which kills, or whether it be an actual
dream, the result is there
There is one great fallacy in connection
with the disease-ore which is prevalent
among all classes of people. 1t is thought
that dogs only 20 mad in the hot months
This is untrue. Rabies is common among the
wild dogs which course the bleak and steppe
II l. L
are brought under the influence of great heat.
Madness is liable TO appear among dogs at
any season Of the year and in any place.
Another faIlacy is that hydrophobia can
be cured NJ Pasteur, the now admittedly
greatest student Of the disease states positive
ly that it cannot be cured. Prevention is the
only thing which he attempts. he tries to
check the disease before IL has fairly gripped
the victim-whiie the poison yet lies latent,
and not after it has strongly and vigorously
manifested itself.
Prevention then is the thing to be dis
cussed and the only thing. This is a broad
subject and involves arresting the disease in
its inc:piency or preventing rabid dogs from
getting chance at human beings
From what has been said then it is clearly
folly to rnuzzle dog for few weeks during
hot weather and allow him to go free during
the rest of the year. Shutting them up ia
pounds during the summer season is equally
absurd. Neither Of these methods reach the
root of the matter.
In European countries there is and has
been far more trouble with rabies and its re-
suits than in the United States. But now
scarcely municipality in the United States
neglects to take precautions of q more or less
effective kind.
In Europe, however, the thing has been re-
duced to system There the endeavor is to
prevent rabid dogs from having a chance to
bite. In the grand duchy of Baden special
attention is paid to the symptoms Of mad
ness in dogs. All dogs are required to wear
a collar bearing their owners name and adj
dress. Owners must make known to the au-
thorities any appearance OF the peculiar
symptoms Of madness, SO that veterinary
surgeon may examine at once. So well have
these precautions ruled there that rabies is
almost unknown.
The authorities at Vienna publish the
symptoms of rabies and require owners to re-
port the appearance of any Of the symptoms
in their dogs under penalty of heavy fine. A
dog must wear the name and address of the
owner, and if found without it he must pay a
fine. During the prevalence of an epidemic
of rabies, as in 1887, dogs were only allowed
IN the streets muzZled and led. While cures
of rabies are not unknownin Vienna, cures Of
hydrophobia are rare indeed.
Sweden was formerly affiliated with hy-
drophobia, lSS deaths from it being reported
in one year. Now all dogs are muzzled, and
rabies thing Of the past
Prussia has found it impossible to prevent
rabies because of the influx of rabid dogs
from Russia and Poland. These foreign dogs
bite the home animals and infect them. But
hydrophobia is almost entirely prevented by
the order requiring the muzzling of all dogs.
To cure a bitten man is beginning too late
in the case The thing is to prevent dogs
from biting. That this can be done is shown
by the experience of the countries above
mentioned That it is better to do this than
to attempt to prevent the disease after the
bite has been inflicted appeals to the common
sense.
As soon as rabies assumes a threatening
form all dogs should be isolated as far as pos
sible. Owners who wish to take their dogs
into the streets should be required to muzzle
them. The wandering cur nuisance should
be stamped upon and crushed out of exist
ence Stray and ownerleSS dogs should be
killed as rapidly as possible.
Furthermore. at any time of the year, any
animal bitten by a -abid dog should be de-
stroyed at once. To wait to see whether the
disease is there or not is an endless task 1t
often does not manifest itself for years-long
after the wound has healed up. The only
safe way is to put the suspected animal out
of the way.
BY the passage of few proper police regl-
latOns all the scare and actual danger could
be avoided. This done, there will be time
enough left for doctors to decide upon the ma
ture of hvdrophobia if there is such disease,
or upon the causes of the unknown disease
which is too singular to be classed merely I'M
der the head of nervousneSs.-Cincinnst
Commercial Gazette