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(From *Bencao Shiyi* [Supplement to Materia Medica])

[Names] Mao Gou (Hairy Dog).

Li Shizhen states: The *Qinshu* [Book of Birds and Animals] records that the Lang wolf, when chasing food, can stand on its head, first divining the direction it will go; it is considered one of the superior beasts. Hence the character "Lang" contains the component "Liang" [good/virtuous]. The *Erya* records: The male is called Huan, the female is called Lang, and its offspring is called Jiao (pronounced like "jiao").

[Collected Explanations] Chen Zangqi states: The Lang wolf is as large as a dog, with grayish fur; when it howls, all its orifices appear to boil.

Li Shizhen states: The Lang wolf belongs to the genus *Cuon* [dhole/Asiatic wild dog]; it is found everywhere, especially abundant in the north. People like to eat it, and southerners call it Mao Gou [Hairy Dog], which refers to this animal. It dwells in burrows. Its body is as large as a dog but has a sharp head and pointed snout, white cheeks, parallel ribs, high front and broad rear, and legs that are not very tall. It eats chickens, ducks, rats, and other small animals. Its color is mixed yellow and black, or sometimes grayish-cyan. Its voice can be loud or soft, and it can mimic a baby's cry to bewitch people; rural folk particularly detest its winter howling. Its intestines are straight, so when it howls, its posterior orifice boils, and its feces rise like smoke from a beacon, straight up without tilting. Its nature is cautious yet gluttonous and destructive. In old age, its whiskers form pouch-like structures, leading to the idiom "ba hu zhi wei" [tangled by whiskers and tail], causing difficulty in both advancing and retreating. Its morphology corresponds to the Kui constellation.

Ying states: The Bei beast has short front legs and knows where food is located; the Lang wolf has short hind legs and carries the Bei upon its back, hence the term "Lang Bei" [wolf and bei-beast].

Lang Wolf Tendon

Chen Zangqi states: The Lang wolf tendon resembles a woven mesh bag or glue made from tendons, about the size of a duck egg. If burned when a thief has committed theft, the thief's legs will cramp and contract, thereby facilitating capture. Some say it is the tendon under the Lang wolf's genitals, others say it is produced by insects; it is unknown which is correct.

Li Shizhen states: According to Li Shi's *Xu Bowuzhi* [Continued Encyclopedia of All Things], during the Tang Dynasty, there was an item called Lang Jin [Lang Wolf Tendon/Cloth], also written as Lang Jin, shaped like a large snail, smooth at both ends, and yellowish in color. A person named Duan lost gold and silk, gathered his servants in the courtyard, and burned this substance; a maid showed facial marks, revealing she was the thief who had stolen the vessels. This is what Chen referred to as Lang Jin. I believe this incident was likely staged by practitioners of magic arts and may not reflect actual physiological properties. Luo Yuan's *Erya Yi* [Expanded Explanation of Erya] interprets it as the tendon inside the Lang wolf's genitals, larger than a chicken egg, which is erroneous.

Meat

[Properties and Flavor] Salty, hot, non-toxic. The flavor surpasses that of fox and dog meat.

[Indications] Tonifies the five Zang organs, thickens the stomach and intestines, fills the essence and marrow. Suitable for consumption by those with cold accumulation in the abdomen (Li Shizhen. From *Yinshan Zhengyao* [Correct Essentials for Diet Therapy]).

Fat/Ointment

[Indications] Tonifies the middle Jiao and boosts Qi, moistens dryness and smooths wrinkles, applied topically to treat various malignant sores (Li Shizhen).

[Elucidation] Li Shizhen states: Refine and store the fat cleanly in the twelfth lunar month. The *Liji* [Book of Rites] records: "Finely chop Lang wolf fat and mix it with rice to make yi [a thin porridge]." This refers to using the fat from the Lang wolf's chest and combining it with rice to make a gruel. Ancients often ate Lang wolf meat, cooking it with rendered fat. Thus, the *Neize* [Internal Regulations] mentions removing the intestines when eating Lang wolf, and the *Zhouli* [Rites of Zhou] notes that Beast Keepers presented Lang wolves in winter specifically to collect their fat. Various medical formulas occasionally use the Lang wolf's chin pad, teeth, skin, and feces, but Materia Medica texts do not record their functions, except for Chen Zangqi's ambiguous mention of the Lang wolf tendon. This is a significant omission. Now, based on *Yinshan Zhengyao* and other books, these are supplemented.

Teeth

[Indications] Wearing them wards off evil qi. Ground into powder and taken with water, it treats rabies from dog bites. Burned to ash and taken with water (one cun bi dose), it treats poisoning from eating beef (Li Shizhen. From *Duanju* and other formulas).

Throat Chin Pad

[Indications] Treats dysphagia [difficulty swallowing]. Dry, grind into powder, take half a qian mixed with rice; this is effective (*Taiping Shenghui Fang*).

Skin

[Indications] Warms the human body and wards off evil qi. The skin from the crop, rubbed into strips and tied around the head, expels wind and relieves pain (*Yinshan Zhengyao*. Huainanzi's *Wanbi Shu* records: "Hang Lang wolf skin facing the door, and sheep will dare not come out").

Tail

[Indications] Tied to the horse's chest to ward off evil qi and prevent the horse from being startled (*Yinshan Zhengyao*).

Feces

[Indications] For scrofula [tuberculous lymphadenitis], burn to ash and apply with oil. Also treats impacted bone in the throat; burn to ash and take with water (Li Shizhen. From *Waitai Miyao* [Essential Prescriptions Worth a Thousand Gold for Emergencies] and *Qianjin Fang* [Prescriptions Worth a Thousand Gold]).

Bone within Feces

[Indications] For infant night crying, burn to ash, take two grains-sized doses with water to stop crying. Also capable of breaking alcohol addiction.

[Attached Formulas] New Formula 1.

Traumatic Tetanus: Lang wolf and tiger intestinal bones, 4 qian (roasted until yellow); mulberry flowers and cicada slough, each 2 qian. Grind into powder. Take 1 qian per dose, mixed with rice soup. If the patient experiences dry mouth, the condition is incurable (*Jingyan Fang* [Experience Formula]).