Almost all young dogs are liable to the _distemper_, and it kills many. When seized with it before they are eighteen months old they generally die, but after that age it is much less likely to prove fatal. Most dog-doctors give a dose of tartar emetic and calomel, like that I have mentioned above, if they are called in while the disease is in its first stage; but, when it is attended with a kind of dysentery, they give balls made of prepared chalk, gum arabic, and conserve of roses, and the dog is fed on rice-milk. The best cure however is, I believe, a powder sold in the chemists' shops compounded especially for this disease; and you must observe, whatever means of cure may be adopted, it is essential during the whole progress of the complaint that the dog should be kept warm and well fed. When dogs have _fits_ they may generally be cured by throwing cold water over them, and _inflammation of the lungs_ requires bleeding. _Inflammation of the bowels_ is generally incurable, as is likewise _canine madness_; and in the latter case, of course, the dog should be killed as soon as possible. Should, however, any human being or any animal be bitten, the following remedy has been recommended to me by a highly valued friend, who had it from an eminent French surgeon. It is simply to mix two table-spoonfuls of fresh chloride of lime, in powder, with half a pint of water, and with this keep continually washing the wound. The chlorine evolved by this process is said to possess the power of decomposing the virus; but I hope and trust you may never have occasion to try its efficacy. Chloride of lime is, you know, wonderfully efficacious in preventing infection, and in dispelling noxious gases. As I am partial to _cats_, I cannot resist saying a few words respecting them. Though originally the natives of warm climates, they are generally much more hardy than dogs. They like warmth, however, and are very powerfully affected by changes in the weather. You are, perhaps, not aware that there are four distinct races of cats; viz., the tabby, which includes the black cats, and which is nearest allied to the wild kinds; the tortoise-shell cat, which came originally from Spain, and the males of which are buff, with stripes of a darker hue; the white and light-coloured cats, which have reddish eyes and a greyish tint in their fur, and are descended from the Chartreuse breed; and the Angora cats, which are quite distinct from all the others, and are known by their long fur. The tailless cats of Cornwall and the Isle of Man belong to the Chartreuse breed, and they are the ugliest of their kind, as the Angora cats are the handsomest. Cats are seldom ill, except from cold, which generally gets well without any particular care being taken of it; but when they have any serious disease it generally proves fatal. LETTER XIV. QUADRUPEDS KEPT FOR SUPPLYING FOOD.--COWS, CALVES, GOATS, PIGS, RABBITS, AND DEER.