smaller, umbilical hernias heal spontaneously; that is, nature effects a
cure. As the animal gets older the abdominal muscles get stronger and
possess more power of resistance to pressure, the bowels become larger and
do not pass so readily through a small opening, so that from a combination
of causes there is a gradual growing together or adhesion of the sides of
the navel. In cases of umbilical hernia in which there are no indications
that a spontaneous cure will take place, the calf should be laid on its
back; immediately on this being done the hernia will often disappear into
the abdomen. If it does not, its reduction may be brought about by gentle
handling, endeavoring, if need be, to empty the organs forming the hernia
before returning them into the abdomen. After the hernia has been returned,
the hair should be clipped from the skin covering it and a compress
composed of 10 or 12 folds of linen or cotton should be applied, first
smearing the skin with pitch and then a bandage about 3 inches wide should
be passed round the body so as to retain the compress in position. The
lower part of the compress should be smeared with pitch, and also those
portions of the bandage which pass over it, so as to keep it solid and
prevent it from shifting. In some cases it will be found that the contents
of the sac can not be returned into the abdomen, and this generally arises
from the fact that some part of the contents of the sac has grown to or
become adherent to the edges of the umbilical opening. In such a case the
skin must be carefully laid open in the long direction, the adhesions of
the protruding organs carefully separated from the umbilicus, and after the
protruding parts have been returned into the abdomen, the sides of the
umbilicus must be freshened if necessary by paring, and then the edges of
the opening brought together by catgut stitches; the wound in the skin must
then also be brought together by stitches. The wound must be carefully
dressed every day and a bandage passed round the body so as to cover and
protect the part operated on.
In small hernias nitric acid has been used successfully in the same manner
as has been described in the treatment of ventral hernia. Sulphuric acid
has also been used for a similar purpose, diluting it to the extent of 1
part of acid to 3 or 5 of water. In thin-skinned animals the weaker
preparations ought to be preferred, and caution must be exercised in using
such preparations so as not to destroy the tissues on which they are
applied.
Another method of treatment is, after the contents of the sac have been
returned into the abdomen, to tie a piece of strong waxed cord round the
pendulous portion which formed the outer covering of the hernia. The string
is apt to slacken after two or three days, when a new piece of cord should
be applied above the first one. The constriction of the skin sets up
inflammation, which generally extends to the umbilicus and causes the edges
to adhere together, and by the time the portion of skin below the ligature
has lost its vitality and dropped off, the umbilicus is closed and there is
no danger of the abdominal organs protruding through it. This is what takes
place when this method has a favorable result, though if the umbilicus does
not become adherent and the skin sloughs, the bowels will protrude through
the opening.
GUT-TIE (PERITONEAL HERNIA).--In peritoneal hernia of the ox a loop or
knuckle of intestine enters from the abdomen into a rent in that part of
the peritoneum which is situated at the margin of the hip bone or it passes
under the remains of the spermatic cord, the end of which may be grown fast
to the inner inguinal ring. The onward pressure of the bowel, as well as
the occasional turning of the latter round the spermatic cord, is the cause
of the cord exercising considerable pressure on the bowel, which occasions
irritation, obstructs the passage of excrement, and excites inflammation,
which terminates in gangrene and death.
The rent in the peritoneum is situated at the upper and front part of the
pelvis, nearer to the sacrum than the pubes.
_Causes._--Among the causes of peritoneal hernia considerable importance is
attached to a method of castration which is practiced in certain districts,
viz, the tearing or rupturing of the spermatic cord by main force instead
of dividing it at a proper distance above the testicle in a surgical
manner. After this violent and rough method of operating, the cord retracts
into the abdomen and its stump becomes adherent to some part of the
peritoneum, or it may wind around the bowel and then the stump becomes
adherent, so that strangulation of the bowel results. The rough dragging on
the cord may also cause a tear in the peritoneum, the result of which need
not be described. The severe exertion of ascending hills and mountains,
drawing heavy loads, or the straining which oxen undergo while fighting
each other may also give rise to peritoneal hernia.
_Symptoms._--The ox suddenly becomes very restless, stamps with his feet,
moves backward and forward, hurriedly lies down, rises, moves his tail
uneasily, and kicks at his belly with the foot of the affected side. The
pain evinced may diminish but soon returns again. In the early stage there
are frequent passages of dung, but after the lapse of 18 or 24 hours this
ceases, the bowel apparently being emptied to the point of strangulation,
and the passages now consist only of a little mucus mixed with blood. When
injections are given at this time the water passes out of the bowel without
even being colored. The animal lies down on the side where the hernia
exists and stretches out his hind feet in a backward direction. These two
particular symptoms serve to distinguish this affection from enteritis and
invagination of the bowel. As time passes the animal becomes quieter, but
this cessation of pain may indicate that gangrene of the bowel has set in,
and may, therefore, under certain circumstances, be considered a precursor
of death. Gangrene may take place in from four to six days, when
perforation of the bowel may occur and death result in a short time.
_Treatment._--In the first place the ox should be examined by passing the
oiled hand and arm into the rectum; the hand should be passed along the
margin of the pelvis, beginning at the sacrum and continuing downward
toward the inguinal ring, when a soft, painful swelling will be felt, which
may vary from the size of an apple to that of the two fists. This swelling
will be felt to be tightly compressed by the spermatic cord. It very rarely
happens that there is any similar swelling on the left side, though in such
cases it is best to make a thorough examination. The bowel has sometimes
been released from its position by driving the ox down a hill; by causing
him to jump from a height of 2 feet to the ground; the expedient of
trotting him also has been resorted to with the hope that the jolting
movement might bring about a release of the bowel. If the simple expedients
mentioned have been tried and failed, then the hand being passed into the
rectum should be pressed gently on the swelling in an upward and forward
direction, so as to endeavor to push the imprisoned portion of the bowel
back into the abdomen. While this is being done the ox's hind feet should
stand on higher ground than the front, so as to favor the slipping out of
the bowel by its own weight, and at the same time an assistant should
squeeze the animal's loins, so as to cause it to bend downward and so relax
the band formed by the spermatic cord. If the imprisoned portion of gut is
freed, which may be ascertained by the disappearance of the swelling, the
usual sounds produced by the bowels moving in the abdomen will be heard,
and in a few hours the feces and urine will be passed as usual. If the
means mentioned fail to release the imprisoned portion of the gut, then
an incision about 4 inches long must be made in the right flank in a
downward direction, the hand introduced into the abdomen, the situation
and condition of swelling exactly ascertained, and then a probe-pointed
knife inserted between the imprisoned bowel and band compressing it, and
turned outward against the band, the latter being then cautiously divided
and the imprisoned gut allowed to escape, or, if necessary, the bowel
should be drawn gently from its position into the abdomen. The wound in the
flank must be brought together in the same way as in the case of the wound
made in operating for impaction of the rumen.
WOUNDS OF THE ABDOMEN.
A wound of the abdomen may merely penetrate the skin; but as such cases are
not attended with much danger, nor their treatment with much difficulty, we
will consider here merely those wounds which penetrate the entire thickness
of the abdominal walls and expose to a greater or less extent the organs
contained in that cavity.
_Causes._--Such accidents may be occasioned by falling on fragments of
broken glass or other sharp objects. A blow from the horn of another animal
may penetrate the abdomen. Exposure and protrusion of some of the abdominal
organs may also be occasioned by the incautious use of caustics in the
treatment of umbilical or ventral hernia. The parts which generally escape
through an abdominal wound are the small intestine and floating colon.
_Symptoms._--When the abdominal wound is small, the bowel exposed presents
the appearance of a small round tumor, but in a few moments a loop of
intestine may emerge from the opening. The animal then shows symptoms of
severe pain by pawing with his feet, which has the effect of accelerating
the passage of new loops of intestine through the wound, so that the mass
which they form may even touch the ground. The pain becomes so great that
the ox now not only paws but lies down and rolls, thus tearing and crushing
his bowels. In such cases it is best to slaughter the animal at once; but
in the case of a valuable animal in which tearing and crushing of the
bowels has not taken place the bowels should be washed with freshly boiled
water reduced to the temperature of the body and returned and the wounds in
the muscle and skin brought together in a manner somewhat similar to that
described in speaking of ventral hernia.
DISEASES OF THE LIVER AND SPLEEN.
JAUNDICE (THE YELLOWS, OR CONGESTION OF THE LIVER).
When jaundice exists, there is a yellow appearance of the white of the eyes
and of the mucous membrane of the mouth. A similar aspect of the skin may
also be observed in animals which are either partly or altogether covered
with white hair. Jaundice is then merely a symptom of disease and ought to
direct attention to ascertaining, if possible, the cause or causes which
have given rise to it. A swollen condition of the mucous membrane of that
part of the bowel called the duodenum may produce jaundice, as that
mechanically closes the orifice of the biliary duct. In constipation there
is an inactive or torpid condition of the bowel, and the bile which passes
into the intestine may be absorbed and cause the yellow staining of
jaundice. Jaundice is one of the symptoms of Texas fever. It may also arise
from the presence of parasites or gallstones in the ducts, forming a
mechanical obstruction to the onward flow of bile. The conditions under
which jaundice most commonly calls for treatment are when cattle have been
highly fed and kept in a state of inactivity. At such time there is an
excess of nutritive elements carried into the blood, which is associated
with increased fullness of the portal vein and hepatic artery. When
continued high feeding has produced this congested state of the liver, the
functions of that organ become disordered, so that a considerable portion
of the bile, instead of being excreted and passing into the intestine, is
absorbed by the hepatic veins.
The structure of the liver is shown in Plate IV.
_Symptoms._--This disease, although rare, occurs most frequently among
stall-fed cattle. Pressure along the margin of the short ribs on the right
side produces pain; the appetite is poor and the animal shows hardly any
inclination to drink; the mucous membranes of the eye and mouth are yellow,
the urine has a yellow or brown appearance, the animal lies down much and
moves with reluctance, moans occasionally, and has a tottering gait. The
ears and horns are alternately hot and cold; in cows the secretion of milk
is much diminished, and that which is secreted has a bitter taste;
sometimes the animal has a dry, painful cough and presents a dull,
stupefied appearance.
_Treatment._--In such cases it is advisable to produce a free action of the
bowels, so as to remove the usually congested condition of the portal vein
and liver. For this purpose the administration of the following dose is
recommended: Sulphate of soda, 16 ounces; molasses, 1 pint; warm water, 1
quart. The sulphate of soda is dissolved by stirring it up in tepid water.
Following this the animal should have a heaping tablespoonful of artificial
Carlsbad salt in the feed three times daily. This treatment may be assisted
by giving occasional injections of warm water and soap. The diet should be
laxative and moderate in quantity and may consist of coarse bran mash,
pulped roots, grass in the season, and hay in moderate quantity.
HEPATITIS (INFLAMMATION OF THE LIVER).
Hepatitis is an inflammation of the liver and usually occurs as a
complication of some infectious disease. It may also occur as a
complication of gastrointestinal catarrh or in hot weather from overheating
or damaged (putrid or fermented) feeds.
_Symptoms._--The symptoms are sometimes obscure and their real significance
is frequently overlooked. The most prominent symptoms are yellowness of the
white of the eye and of the membrane lining the mouth; the appetite is
poor, the body presents an emaciated appearance, the feces are light
colored, while the urine is likely to be unusually dark; there is thirst,
and pain is caused by pressing over the liver. The gait is weak and the
animal lies down more than usual, and while doing so frequently rests its
head on the side of its chest.
_Treatment._--Give a purge of Glauber's salt and after it has operated give
artificial Carlsbad salts in each feed, as advised under "Jaundice." Give
green feed and plenty of water. Oil of turpentine should be rubbed in well
once a day over the region of the liver. The skin on which it should be
applied extends from the false ribs on the right side to 6 inches in front
of the last one, and from the backbone to 12 inches on the right side of
it.
FLUKE DISEASE.
[See chapter on "The animal parasites of cattle," p. 502.]
SPLENITIS (INFLAMMATION OF THE SPLEEN).
This disease occurs almost solely as a result of the existence of some
infectious disease, and the symptoms caused by it merge with the symptoms
of the accompanying causative disease. The spleen is seriously involved and
becomes enlarged and soft in Texas fever, anthrax, and blood poisoning.
DISEASES OF THE PERITONEUM.
PERITONITIS.
Peritonitis consists of an inflammation of the peritoneum, which is the
thin, delicate membrane that lines the abdomen and covers the abdominal
organs.
_Causes._--Wounds are the usual cause in cattle. The wound may be of the
abdominal wall or of the intestines, stomach, or uterus; or inflammation
may extend from one of the organs of the abdominal cavity to the
peritoneum; so this disease may complicate enteritis or inflamed womb. A
sharp metal body may perforate the second stomach and allow the gastric
contents to escape, irritating the peritoneum. This disease may follow
castration or operation for hernia.
_Symptoms._--A continuous or occasional shivering; the animal lies down,
but appears uneasy; it frequently turns its head toward its belly and lows
plaintively; pressure on the flanks produces pain; has no appetite; muzzle
is dry and no rumination; while standing, its legs are placed well under
its body; pulse small and hard. The evacuations from the bowels are dry and
hard. If this disease is complicated by the presence of inflammation of the
bowels, the pain is more severe and the animal is more restless. The skin
is cold and dry in the early stage of this disease, but in a more advanced
stage this condition may be succeeded by heat of the skin and quick
breathing. The fits of trembling, uneasiness, small and hard pulse, and
tension of the left flank are symptoms the presence of which would enable
one to reach the conclusion that peritonitis exists.
_Post-mortem appearance._--The membrane lining the abdomen and covering the
surface of the bowels is reddened to a greater or less extent, and there is
usually considerable serous, or watery, fluid collected in the abdomen.
_Treatment._--When we have to do with the form of peritonitis resulting
from an injury, as when the horn of another animal has been thrust through
the abdominal walls, this lesion must be treated in accordance with
directions before given, but the general treatment must be similar to that
which follows. Peritonitis resulting from castration or from parturient
fever must also be treated in connection with the special conditions which
give rise to it, as the general treatment of this disease must be modified
to some extent by the exciting cause.
The aim must be to discover and remove the cause. The cause must be treated
according to its nature. Harms strongly recommends borax in the treatment
of peritonitis. He gives 6 ounces in the first 24 hours, divided into three
doses, and afterwards he gives 6 drams three times daily. Opium in doses of
2 to 3 drams may be given. To bring on evacuations of the bowels it is
better to give rectal injections than to administer purges. The strength
may be sustained by coffee or camphor.
The body should be warmly clothed, and it is advisable, when practicable,
to have a blanket which has been wrung out of hot water placed over the
abdomen, then covered by several dry blankets, which are maintained in
position by straps or ropes passing round the body. The wet blanket must be
changed as it cools--the object of treatment being to warm the surface of
the body and to determine as much blood to the skin as possible. The diet
should consist of laxative food and drinks, such as linseed tea. If
peritonitis assumes chronic form the diet should be nutritious, such as
selected clover hay, linseed cake, grass, etc., and iodid of potassium
should be given three times a day in gram doses dissolved in a pint of
water.
DROPSY OF THE ABDOMEN (ASCITES).
In this disease there is a serous, or watery, effusion in the cavity of the
abdomen.
_Causes._--When old animals are fed on innutritious feed or when reduced by
disease, they become anemic; in other words, their blood becomes
impoverished and dropsy may follow. An innutritious and insufficient diet
produces the same effect in young animals. It is one of the results of
peritonitis, and may also arise from acute or chronic inflammation of the
liver, such as is of common occurrence when flukes are present in the liver
in large numbers. Heart disease and chronic lung disease may be followed by
ascites. It is sometimes, in calves, a symptom of infestation with worms.
_Symptoms._--A gradual increase in the size of the abdomen at its lower
part, while the flanks becomes hollow; pallor of the mucous membrane of the
mouth and eye; weak and sluggish gait; want of appetite, and irregularity
in ruminating. On percussion or tapping the surface of the abdomen with the
fingers, a dull sound is produced. If the hand and arm are oiled and passed
into the rectum as far as possible, on moving the hand from one side to the
other the fluctuation caused by the presence of fluid in the abdomen may be
felt.
_Treatment._--If possible the cause must be discovered and removed. The
diet should be nutritious, and in those cases in which we have merely to
deal with anemia (the bloodless state) arising from insufficient diet, the
use of tonics and diuretics, at the same time keeping the skin warm, may
bring about a gradual absorption of the fluid contained in the abdomen. One
of the following powders may be mixed with the animal's feed three times a
day; or, if there is any uncertainty as to its being taken in that way, it
should be mixed with sirup, so as to form a paste, and smeared well back on
the animal's tongue with a flat wooden spoon: Carbonate of iron, 3 ounces;
powdered gentian, 3 ounces; powdered nitrate of potassium, 3 ounces; mix
and divide into 12 powders. The administration of purgatives which promote
a watery discharge from the mucous surface of the bowels also tends, by
diminishing the serum of the blood, to bring about absorption and a gradual
removal of the fluid contained in the abdomen. Large doses should not be
given, but moderate ones should be administered morning and night, so as to
produce a laxative effect on the bowels for several days. To attain this
end the following may be used: Sulphate of soda, 8 ounces; powdered ginger,
half an ounce; to be mixed in 2 quarts of tepid water and given at one
dose.
* * * * *
DISEASES OF THE DIGESTIVE ORGANS.
DESCRIPTION OF PLATES.
PLATE I. Position of the first stomach (rumen or paunch) on the left side.
The area inclosed by heavy dotted lines represents the rumen; the
elongated, shaded organ is the spleen resting upon it. The skin and muscles
have been removed from the ribs to show the position of the lungs and their
relation to the paunch.
PLATE II. Stomach of ruminants.
Fig. 1. Stomach of a full-grown sheep, 1/5 natural size (after Thanhoffer,
from R. Meade Smith's Physiology of Domestic Animals): _a_, rumen, or first
stomach; _b_, reticulum, or second stomach; _c_, omasum, or third stomach;
_d_, abomasum, or fourth stomach; _e_, esophagus, or gullet, opening into
the first and second stomachs; _f_, opening of fourth stomach into small
intestine; _g_, opening of second stomach into third; _h_, opening of third
stomach into fourth.
The lines indicate the course of the food in the stomachs. The incompletely
masticated food passes down the esophagus, or gullet, into the first and
second stomachs, in which a churning motion is kept up, carrying the food
from side to side and from stomach to stomach. From the first stomach
regurgitation takes place; that is, the food is returned through the gullet
to the mouth to be more thoroughly chewed, and this constitutes what is
known as "chewing the cud." From the second stomach the food passes into
the third, and from the third into the fourth, or true, stomach, and from
there into the intestines.
Fig. 2. Stomach of ox (after Colin, from R. Meade Smith's Physiology of
Domestic Animals): _a_, rumen; _b_, reticulum; _c_, omasum; _d_, abomasum;
_e_, esophagus; _f_, opening of fourth stomach into small intestine.
F¸rstenberg calculated that in an ox of 1,400 pounds weight the capacity of
the stomach is as follows:
Per cent.
Rumen, 149.25 quarts, liquid measure 62.4
Reticulum, 23.77 quarts 10
Omasum, 36.98 quarts 15
Abomasum, 29.05 quarts 12.6
According to Colon-- Quarts.
The capacity of a beef's stomach is 266.81
Small intestine 69.74
Cecum 9.51
Colon and rectum 25.58
Fig. 1. Clinical thermometer, 4/5 natural size. This is used to determine
the temperature of the animal body. The thermometer is passed into the
rectum after having been moistened with a little saliva from the mouth, or
after having had a little oil or lard rubbed upon it to facilitate its
passage. There it is allowed to remain two or three minutes, then
withdrawn, and the temperature read as in any ordinary thermometer. The
clinical thermometer is made self-registering; that is, the mercury in the
stem remains at the height to which it was forced by the heat of the body
until it is shaken back into the bulb by taking hold of the upper portion
of the instrument and giving it a short, sharp swing. The normal
temperature of cattle varies from 100∞ to 103∞ F. In young animals it is
somewhat higher than in old. The thermometer is a very useful instrument
and frequently is the means by which disease is detected before the
appearance of any external sign.
[Illustration: PLATE I. SHOWING THE POSITION OF THE RUMEN.]
[Illustration: PLATE II. STOMACH OF RUMINANTS.]
[Illustration: PLATE III. INSTRUMENTS USED IN TREATING DISEASES OF
DIGESTIVE ORGANS.]
[Illustration: PLATE IV. MICROSCOPIC ANATOMY OF THE LIVER.]
[Illustration: PLATE V. ERGOT IN HAY.]
[Illustration: PLATE VI. ERGOTISM.]
Fig. 2. Simple probang, used to dislodge foreign bodies, like apples,
potatoes, eggs, etc., which have become fastened or stuck in the esophagus
or gullet.