medicine, and this allows time for a portion of the contents of the stomach
to pass into the bowel, and renders it safer to give medicine. In many
cases the walking exercise and the diarrhea bring about a spontaneous cure
of this disorder, but as in some instances the cramps and pains of the
stomachs persist, one may give 1 ounce of sulphuric ether and 1 ounce of
tincture of opium, shaken up with a pint of warm water, and repeat the dose
in half an hour if the animal is not relieved. In an emergency when the
medicine is not to be had, a tablespoonful of powdered ginger may be
administered in a pint of warm water.
INDIGESTION IN CALVES (GASTROINTESTINAL CATARRH, DIARRHEA, OR SCOUR).
Calves are subject to a form of diarrhea to which the foregoing
designations have been applied.
_Causes._--Calves that suck their dams are not frequently affected with
this disease, though it may be occasioned by their sucking at long
intervals and thus overloading the stomach and bringing on indigestion,
or from improper feeding of the dam on soft, watery, or damaged feeds.
Suckling the calf at irregular times may also cause it. Exposure to damp
and cold is a potent predisposing cause. Calves separated from their dams
and fed considerable quantities of cold milk at long intervals are liable
to contract this form of indigestion. Calves fed on artificial feed, used
as a substitute for milk, frequently contract it. Damaged feed, sour or
rotten milk, milk from dirty cans, skim milk from a dirty creamery
skim-milk vat, skim milk hauled warm, exposed to the sun and fed from
unclean buckets may all cause this disease.
_Symptoms._--The calf is depressed; appetite is poor; sometimes there is
fever; the extremities are cold. The dung becomes gradually softer and
lighter in color until it is cream colored and little thicker than milk. It
has a most offensive odor and may contain clumps of curd. Later it contains
mucus and gas bubbles. It sticks to the hair of the tail and buttocks,
causing the hair to drop off and the skin to become irritated. There may be
pain on passing dung and also abdominal or colicky pain. The calf stands
about with the back arched and belly contracted. There may be tympanites.
Great weakness ensues in severe cases, and without prompt and successful
treatment death soon follows.
_Treatment._--Remove the cause. Give appropriate feed of best quality in
small quantities. Make sure that the cow furnishing the milk is healthy and
is properly fed. Clean all milk vessels. Clean and disinfect the stalls.
For the diarrhea give two raw eggs or a cup of strong coffee. If the case
is severe, give 1 ounce of castor oil with a teaspoonful of creolin and 20
grains of subnitrate of bismuth. Repeat the bismuth and creolin with
flaxseed tea every four hours. Tannopin may be used in doses of 15 to 30
grains.
Calves artificially fed on whole or skim milk should receive only such milk
as is sweet and has been handled in a sanitary manner. Milk should always
be warmed to the temperature of the body before feeding. When calves
artificially milk-fed develop diarrhea, the use of the following treatment
has given excellent results in many cases: Immediately after milking, or
the separation of the skim milk from the cream, formalin in the proportion
of 1 to 4,000 should be added to the milk which is used for feeding; this
may be closely approximated by adding four drops of formalin to each quart
of milk. This medicated milk should be fed to the calf in the usual
quantity. When the diarrhea is not controlled in three or four days by this
treatment, the additional use of some of the agents recommended above may
assist in a recovery.
INFECTIOUS DIARRHEA; WHITE SCOUR.
[See chapter on Diseases of young calves, p. 247.]
GASTROENTERITIS.
This consists of an inflammation of the walls of the stomachs and of the
bowel.
Gastroenteritis, or inflammation of the walls of the stomachs and
intestines, follows upon irritations more severe or longer continued than
those that produce gastrointestinal catarrh.
_Causes._--Severe indigestion may be followed by gastroenteritis, or it may
be caused by swallowing irritant poisons, such as arsenic or corrosive
sublimate or irritant plants. Exposure to cold or inclement weather may
produce the disease, especially in debilitated animals or animals fed
improperly. It is asserted that if cattle feed on vegetation infested with
some kinds of caterpillars this disease may result.
_Symptoms._--Dullness; drooping of the ears; dryness of the muzzle; dry
skin; staring coat; loins morbidly sensitive to pressure; fullness of the
left flank, which is caused by the distention of the fourth stomach by gas.
The pulse is small, the gait is feeble and staggering; each step taken is
accompanied with a grunt, and this symptom is especially marked if the
animal walks in a downward direction. There is loss of appetite, and
rumination is suspended. The passages at first are few in number, hard, and
are sometimes coated with mucus or with blood. Later a severe diarrhea sets
in, when the passages contain mucus and blood and have an offensive odor.
There is evidence of colicky pain, and the abdomen is sensitive to
pressure. Pain may be continuous. There is fever and acceleration of pulse
rate and respirations. Mental depression and even insensibility occur
before death. The disease is always severe and often fatal.
_Post-mortem appearances._--The mucous membrane of the fourth stomach has a
well-marked red color and sometimes presents ulcerations. The wall is
thickened and softened, and similar conditions are found in the walls of
the intestines. The red discoloration extends in spots or large areas quite
through the wall, showing on the outside.
_Treatment._--Very small quantities of carefully selected feed must be
given and the appetite must not be forced. Protect the animal well from
cold and dampness. Internally, give linseed tea, boiled milk, boiled
oatmeal gruel, or rice water. These protectives may carry the medicine.
Tannopin in doses of 30 to 60 grains is good. Subnitrate of bismuth in
doses of 1 to 2 drams may be given. Pulverized opium may be used, if the
diarrhea is severe, in 1 to 2 dram doses. If the bowel movements are not
free, one may give from a pint to a quart of castor or raw linseed oil.
TRAUMATIC INFLAMMATION OF THE STOMACH.
This disease results from the presence of a foreign body. This condition is
not rare in cattle, because these animals have the habit of swallowing
their feed without careful chewing, and so nails, screws, hairpins, ends of
wire, and other metal objects may be swallowed unconsciously. Such objects
gravitate to the second stomach, where they may be caught in the folds of
the lining mucous membrane, and in some instances the wall of this organ is
perforated. From this accident, chronic indigestion results. The symptoms,
more or less characteristic, are pain when getting up or lying down;
grunting and pain upon sudden motion, especially downhill; coughing; pain
on pressure over the second stomach, which lies immediately above the
cartilaginous prolongation of the sternum. If the presence of such a
foreign body is recognized, it may be removed by a difficult surgical
operation, or, as is usually most economical, the animal may be killed for
beef, if there is no fever.
DISEASES OF THE BOWELS.
DIARRHEA AND DYSENTERY.
[See also Gastrointestinal catarrh, p. 32.]
The word "dysentery," as it is commonly used in relation to the diseases of
animals, signifies a severe form of diarrhea.
_Causes._--Diarrhea is a symptom of irritation of the intestines, resulting
in increased secretion or increased muscular contractions, or both. The
irritation is sometimes the result of chilling from exposure, improper
feeding, irritant feeds, indigestion, organic diseases of the intestines,
or parasites.
_Symptoms._--Passages from the bowels are frequent, at first consisting of
thin dung, but as the disease continues they become watery and offensive
smelling, and may be even streaked with blood. At first the animal shows no
constitutional disturbance, but later it becomes weak and may exhibit
evidence of abdominal pain by looking around to the side, drawing the feet
together, lying down, or moving restlessly. Sometimes this malady is
accompanied with fever, great depression, loss of strength, rapid loss of
flesh, and it may terminate in death.
_Treatment._--When the disease depends on irritating properties of the feed
which has been supplied to the animal, it is advisable to give a mild
purgative, such as a pint of castor or linseed oil. When the secretions of
the bowels are irritating, an ounce of carbonate of magnesia and half an
ounce of tincture of opium should be shaken up in a quart of linseed tea
and given to the animal three times a day until the passages present a
natural appearance. When there is debility, want of appetite, no fever, but
a continuance of the watery discharges from the bowels, then an astringent
may be given. For such cases the following is serviceable: Tannic acid, 1
ounce; powdered gentian, 2 ounces; mix and divide into 12 powders, one
powder to be given three times a day until the passages present a natural
appearance. Each powder may be mixed with a pint and a half of water.
Tannopin is a new remedy that is most useful in such cases. The dose is
from 30 grains to 2 drams. Useful household remedies are raw eggs, strong
coffee, parched rye flour, or decoction of oak bark. In all cases the food
must be given sparingly, and it should be carefully selected to insure good
quality. Complete rest in a box stall is desirable. When diarrhea is a
symptom of a malady characterized by the presence of a blood poison, the
treatment appropriate to such disease must be applied.
SIMPLE ENTERITIS.
[See Gastroenteritis, p. 33.]
CROUPOUS ENTERITIS.
Under certain conditions, severe irritation of the digestive canal may, in
cattle, cause a form of inflammation of the intestines (enteritis) that is
characterized by the formation of a false membrane upon the surface of the
lining membrane of the intestines, particularly the large ones.
_Symptoms._--There is fever, depression, loss of appetite, diarrhea, and in
the fecal masses shreds of leathery false membrane may be found. These
shreds are sometimes mistaken for parasites or for portions of the wall of
the intestine.
_Treatment._--Give a pound of Glauber's salt, followed by bicarbonate of
soda in doses of 2 ounces four times daily.
ENTERITIS (OBSTRUCTION RESULTING FROM INVAGINATION, OR INTUSSUSCEPTION,
TWISTING, AND KNOTTING OF THE BOWELS).
Inflammation may arise from a knot forming on some part of the small
intestine from the portion of the bowel becoming twisted on itself, or from
one part of the bowel slipping into another, which is termed invagination.
This form of enteritis occurs occasionally in animals of the bovine
species.
_Causes._--The small intestine, which in the ox rests on the right side of
the rumen, is, from the position which it occupies, predisposed to this
accident. It has been ascertained that animals which have shown symptoms of
this malady have trotted, galloped, or made other violent exertions in
coming from drinking, or that they have been chased by dogs or by animals
of their own species while at pasture. The accident is most likely to occur
among cattle on very hilly pastures. The danger of jumping or running is
greatest when the rumen is distended with food.
_Symptoms._--This form of enteritis or obstruction is manifested by severe
colicky pains; the ox scrapes and strikes the ground with his front and
hind feet alternately; keeps lying down and getting up again; he keeps his
tail constantly raised and turns his nose frequently to his right flank; he
is frequently bloated, or tympanitic, on that side. He refuses feed and
does not ruminate, and for some hours suffers severe pains. At first he
frequently passes thin dung, and also urinates frequently, but passes only
a little urine at a time. On the second day the pains have become less
acute; the animal remains lying down; moans occasionally; his pulse is
small and quick; he still refuses feed and does not ruminate. At this stage
he does not pass any dung, though sometimes a small quantity of bloody
mucus may be passed. The animal passes very little urine. This condition
may continue for a considerable time, as cattle so affected may live for 15
or even 20 days.
_Post-mortem appearance._--At death the bowels are found to be misplaced or
obstructed, as mentioned above, and inflamed, the inflammation always
originating at the point where the intestine has been invaginated, twisted,
or knotted. Sometimes the part is gangrenous, the compression of the blood
vessels preventing circulation, and thus causing the death of the tissues.
_Treatment._--Purgatives, anodynes, and other remedies are of no service in
such cases, and bleeding also fails to produce any benefit. Indeed, it is
usually true that in such cases treatment is useless. Some cases are
recorded in which an incision has been made in the flank, so as to enable
the operator to restore the intestine to its normal position or to remove
the kink.
CONSTIPATION.
Constipation is to be regarded rather as a symptom of disease or of faults
in feeding than as a disease in itself. It occurs in almost all general
fevers unless the bowels are involved in local disease, in obstructions of
all kinds, from feeding on dry, bulky feed, etc. In order to remove the
constipation the treatment must be applied to remove the causes which give
rise to it. Calves sometimes suffer from constipation immediately after
birth when the meconium that accumulates in the bowels before birth is not
passed. In such cases, give a rectal injection of warm water and an ounce
of castor oil shaken up with an ounce of new milk. The mother's milk is the
best food to prevent constipation in the new-born calf, as it contains a
large amount of fatty matter which renders it laxative in its effects.
It is usually better to treat habitual constipation by a change of diet
than by medicine. Flaxseed is a good feed laxative. If the constipation has
lasted long, repeated small doses of purgatives are better than a single
large dose.
INTESTINAL WORMS.
[See chapter on "The animal parasites of cattle," p. 502.]
RUPTURES (VENTRAL HERNIA).
Ventral hernia, or rupture, is an escape of some one of the abdominal
organs through a rupture in the abdominal muscles, the skin remaining
intact. The rumen, the small intestine, or part of the large intestine, and
the fourth stomach are the parts which usually form a ventral hernia in
bovine animals.
_Causes._--Hernia is frequently produced by blows of the horns, kicks, and
falls. In old cows hernia may sometimes occur without any direct injury.
HERNIA OF THE RUMEN.--Hernia of the rumen is generally situated on the left
side of the abdomen, on account of the situation of the rumen. In
exceptional cases it may take place on the right side, and in such cases it
also generally happens that some folds of the intestine pass into the
hernial sac. Hernias have been classified into simple or complicated,
recent or old, traumatic (from mechanical injury) or spontaneous.
In recent traumatic hernia there is swelling on the left side of the lower
part of the abdomen. The swelling is greatest in the cases of hernia which
are situated on the lower part of the abdomen. Unless an examination is
made immediately after the injury has been inflicted it is difficult, and
sometimes impossible, to ascertain the exact extent of the rupture, owing
to the swelling which subsequently takes place. Frequently there is no loss
of appetite, fever, or other general symptoms attending the injury. From
the twelfth to the fifteenth day the swelling has generally subsided to
such an extent that it is possible by an examination to determine the
extent of the rupture.
In old cows what is termed spontaneous hernia may sometimes take place
without any direct injury. The occurrence of this form of hernia is
explained by the increase in the size of the abdomen, which takes place in
an advanced stage of pregnancy, causing a thinning and stretching of the
muscular fibers, which at last may rupture, or give way. Such hernias
frequently occur about the end of the period of gestation, and in some
instances have contained the right sac of the rumen, the omentum, the small
and large intestines, a portion of the liver, and the pregnant uterus.
In old hernias the swelling is soft and elastic, and if they have not
contracted adhesions to the sides of the laceration, they can be made to
disappear by pressure carefully applied. Sometimes this accident is
complicated by a rupture of the rumen, constituting a complicated hernia.
If a portion of the contents of the rumen escape into the abdomen, the case
will be aggravated by the occurrence of peritonitis.
HERNIA OF THE BOWEL.--When the intestines (Pl. III, fig. 6) form the
contents of the hernia, it will be situated at the right side of the
abdomen. In an intestinal hernia the swelling is usually not painful, of a
doughy consistence or elastic, according as the intestine does or does not
contain alimentary matter. This swelling can generally be made to disappear
by pressure, and when it has been reduced one can easily recognize the
direction and extent of the hernial opening. Hernias of the bowel which are
situated at the upper and right side of the abdomen are usually formed by
the small intestine. They are less easily reduced than a hernia in a lower
situation, but when reduction has been effected they are less readily
reproduced than those occurring lower. In hernias of the small intestine,
adhesion of the protruding parts to the walls of the opening, or
strangulation, are complications which sometimes take place. If adhesion
has taken place the hernia can not be reduced by pressure, and when
strangulation has occurred the animal shows symptoms of pain--is restless,
turns its nose to the painful part, and shows those symptoms which are
usually collectively designated under the term colic. If relief is not
afforded, the animal will die.
HERNIA OF THE RENNET, OR FOURTH STOMACH.--This disease occasionally occurs
in calves and is usually caused by a blow from a cow's horn on the right
flank of the calf. After such an accident a swelling forms on the right
flank near the last rib. This swelling may be neither hot nor painful, even
at first, and is soft to the touch. It can be made to disappear by careful
pressure, when the sides of the aperture through which it has passed can be
felt. The application of pressure so as to cause the disappearance of the
hernia is best made immediately after the occurrence of the accident, or
when the edema which accompanies the swelling has disappeared.
_Treatment._--When a hernia is reducible--that is, can be pushed back into
the abdomen--then, if it is of recent occurrence, it is advisable to
maintain the natural position of the parts by bandaging and to allow the
walls of the laceration to grow together. The bowels should be kept
reasonably empty by avoiding the use of bulky feed, and the animal must be
kept quiet.
The following method of bandaging is recommended by Bouley:
First prepare a bandage (must be of strong material), about 10 yards long
and between 3 and 4 inches broad, and a flexible and solid piece of
pasteboard adapted in size to the surface of the hernia. The protruding
organ must then be replaced in the abdomen and maintained in that position
during the application of the bandage. This being done, a layer of melted
pitch and turpentine is quickly spread on the skin covering the seat of the
hernia, so as to extend somewhat beyond that space. This adhesive layer is
then covered with a layer of fine tow, then a new layer of pitch and
turpentine is spread on the tow, and the piece of pasteboard is applied on
the layer of pitch, its outer surface being covered with the same
preparation. Lastly, the bandage, adhering to the piece of pasteboard, to
the skin, and to the different turns which it makes around the body, is
carefully applied so as to form an immovable, rigid, and solid bandage,
which will retain the hernia long enough for the wound in the abdominal
walls to heal permanently.
If the hernia is old and small it may be treated by injecting a strong
solution of common salt about the edges of the tear. This causes swelling
and inflammation, which, respectively, forces the protruded organ back and
closes the opening. There is some risk attached to this method of
treatment.
In small, old, ventral hernias the method of compressing and sloughing off
the skin has been used successfully. If the hernia is large a radical
operation will be necessary, and this is also true when the symptoms
indicate that a hernia is strangulated. This operation is performed by
cutting down on the hernia, restoring the organ to the abdominal cavity,
and then closing the wound with two sets of stitches; the inner stitches,
in the muscular wall, should be made with catgut and the outer stitches, in
the skin, may be made with silk or silver wire. The strictest surgical
cleanliness must be observed. Bleeding vessels should be tied. Then a
compress composed of ten or twelve folds of cloth must be placed smoothly
over the seat of injury and a bandage applied around the body, the two ends
being fastened at the back. In the smaller kinds of hernia, nitric acid may
sometimes be applied with success. This treatment should not be applied
until the swelling and inflammation attending the appearance of the hernia
have subsided; then, the contents of the hernia having been returned, the
surface of skin corresponding to it is sponged over with a solution
composed of 1 part of nitric acid to 2 of water. This treatment acts by
exciting considerable inflammation, which has the effect of causing
swelling, and thus frequently closing the hernial opening and preventing
the contents of the sac from returning. A second application should not be
made until the inflammation excited by the first has subsided. In what is
termed spontaneous hernia it is useless to apply any kind of treatment.
UMBILICAL HERNIA.--The umbilicus, or navel, is the aperture through which
the blood vessels pass from the mother to the fetus, and naturally the
sides of this aperture ought to adhere or unite after birth. In very young
animals, and sometimes in newborn calves, this aperture in the abdominal
muscles remains open and a part of the bowel or a portion of the mesentery
may slip through the opening, constituting what is called umbilical hernia.
The wall of the sac is formed by the skin, which is covered on the inner
surface by a layer of cellular tissue, and within this there is sometimes,
but not always, a layer of peritoneum. The contents of the hernia may be
formed by a part of the bowel, by a portion of the peritoneum, or may
contain portions of both peritoneum and bowel. When the sac contains only
the peritoneum it has a doughy feel, but when it is formed by a portion of
the bowel it is more elastic on pressure.
_Causes._--In the new-born animal the opening of the navel is generally
large, and may sometimes give way to the pressure of the bowel on account
of the weak and relaxed condition of the abdominal muscles. This defective
and abnormal condition of the umbilicus is frequently hereditary. It may be
occasioned by roughly pulling away the umbilical cord; through kicks or
blows on the belly; through any severe straining by which the sides of the
navel are stretched apart. We may mention in this connection that it is
best in new-born calves to tie the umbilical cord tightly about 2 inches
from the navel, and then to leave it alone, when in most cases it will drop
off in a few days, leaving the navel closed.