Part 8

Some writers have advised that when the obstruction is lodged in the cervical (neck) portion of the gullet it should be struck with a mallet, to crush it and thus alter its shape, so that it may easily slip down into the stomach. If the obstructing substance is hard, this will be a dangerous operation, but if soft--as in the case of a ripe pear, for example--this procedure may be safely adopted.

In all cases, if pressure applied on the neck fails to move the obstruction and the probang also fails to move it, it may be divided by a subcutaneous operation, or the gullet may be opened and the obstructing substance removed through the wound. In such cases the assistance of a veterinarian or a surgeon must be obtained.

WOUNDS AND INJURIES OF THE GULLET.

Sometimes the walls of the gullet may be more or less lacerated or abraded by the rash and too forcible use of the probang, and the animal consequently swallows with pain and difficulty. In such cases dry feed must be withheld for five or six days, so as to allow the injured parts to heal, and the diet must be limited to linseed tea, hay tea, and thin oatmeal gruel and molasses. The same kind of diet must be fed after the operation of cutting into the gullet has been performed.

Sometimes the gullet is ruptured and lacerated to such an extent that treatment of any kind is hopeless. This has been known to occur when the handle of a pitchfork or buggy whip has been pushed down a cow's throat to remove an obstruction. When such treatment has been applied it is best to slaughter the animal without delay, as the flesh may be utilized so long as there is no fever or general disease, and remedial treatment would be hopeless. In this connection it may be mentioned that whatever substitute may be used for a probang, which sometimes is not at hand, it should be flexible and should possess a smooth surface. A piece of new rope, with the end closely wrapped and waxed and then oiled, or a piece of thin garden hose, or a well-wrapped twisted wire may be used in emergencies.

DISEASES OF THE STOMACHS.

ACUTE TYMPANITES (HOVEN, OR BLOATING).

Tympanites is a distention of the rumen or paunch with gases of fermentation, and is manifested outwardly by swelling in the region of the left flank.

Causes.--Tympanites may be caused by any kind of feed which produces indigestion. When cattle are first turned into young clover they eat so greedily of it that tympanites frequently results. Turnips, potatoes, cabbage, or the discarded pulp from sugar-beet factories may also cause it. Middlings and corn meal also frequently give rise to it.

Care is necessary in turning animals into fields of clover or stubble fields in which there is a strong growth of volunteer grain. It is always better to keep them from such pasturage while it is wet with dew, and they should be taken out when they have eaten a moderate quantity. When cattle are fed upon pulp from sugar beets, germinated malt, etc., they should be fed in moderate amounts until they have become accustomed to it, as any of these feeds may give rise to severe bloating.

An excessive quantity of any of the before-mentioned feeds may bring on this disorder, or it may not be caused by excess, but to eating too hastily. Sometimes the quality of the feed is at fault. Grass or clover when wet by dew or rain frequently disorders digestion and brings on tympanites; frozen roots or pastures covered with hoar frost should also be regarded as dangerous. When feed has been eaten too hastily, or when it is cold and wet, the digestive process is imperfectly performed, and the feed contained in the paunch ferments, during which process large quantities of gas are formed. The same result may follow when a cow is choked, as the obstruction in the gullet prevents the eructation or passing up of gas from the stomach, so that the gas continues to accumulate until tympanites results.

Symptoms.--The swelling of the left flank is very characteristic, as in well-marked cases the flank at its upper part rises above the level of the backbone, and when struck with the tips of the fingers emits a drum-like sound. The animal has an anxious expression, moves uneasily, and is evidently distressed. If relief is not obtained in time, it breathes with difficulty, reels in walking or in standing, and in a short time falls and dies from suffocation. The distention of the stomach may become so great as to prevent the animal from breathing, and in some instances the case may be complicated by rupture of the stomach.

Treatment.--If the case is not extreme, it may be sufficient to drive the animal at a walk for a quarter or half an hour; or cold water by the bucketful may be thrown against the cow's sides. In some cases the following simple treatment is successful: A rope or a twisted straw band is coated with pine tar, wagon grease, or other unsavory substance and is placed in the cow's mouth as a bit, being secured by tying behind the horns. The efforts of the animal to dislodge this object result in movements of the tongue, jaws, and throat that stimulate the secretion of saliva and swallowing, thus opening the esophagus, which permits the exit of gas and at the same time peristalsis is stimulated reflexly.

In urgent cases the gas must be allowed to escape without delay, and this is best accomplished by the use of the trocar. The trocar is a sharp-pointed instrument incased in a cannula or sheath, which leaves the sharp point of the trocar free. (See Pl. III, figs. 5a and 5b.) In selecting the point for using the trocar a spot on the left side equally distant from the last rib, the hip bone, and the transverse processes of the lumbar vertebrÊ must be chosen. Here an incision about three-fourths of an inch long should be made with a knife through the skin, and then the sharp point of the trocar, being directed downward, inward, and slightly forward, is thrust into the paunch. (Pl. I.) The cannula or sheath of the trocar should be left in the paunch so long as any gas continues to issue from it. If the cannula is removed while gas is still forming in the paunch and the left flank becomes considerably swollen, it may be necessary to insert it again. It is well, accordingly, to observe the cannula closely, and if gas is found to be issuing from it, it should not be removed. When gas issues from it in considerable quantities the sound accompanying its escape renders the exact condition obvious. It is occasionally necessary to keep the cannula in the stomach for several hours. When this is necessary a piece of stout cord should be passed round the neck of the cannula immediately below the projecting rim and then be passed round the animal's body and tied in a secure knot, and a careful attendant must remain with the cow during the entire period that the instrument is in place. The rim surrounding the mouth of the cannula should be in contact with the skin. Whenever the person in charge of the cow is convinced that gas has ceased to issue from the cannula the instrument should be removed.

The trocar is to be used only in extreme or urgent cases, though everyone who has had experience in treating indigestion in cattle realizes that he has saved the lives of many animals by its prompt application.

When the tympanitic animal is not distressed and the swelling of the flank is not great, or when the most distressing condition has been removed by the use of the trocar, it is best to use internal medicine. Two ounces of aromatic spirits of ammonia should be given every half hour in a quart of cold water; or half an ounce of chlorid of lime may be dissolved in a pint of tepid water and the dose repeated every half hour until the bloating has subsided; or 1 ounce of creolin in 2 quarts of tepid water may be given at one dose or carefully injected through the cannula directly into the paunch to stop fermentation and the consequent formation of gas. It is generally necessary to give a moderate dose of purgative medicine after bloating has subsided, as animals frequently show symptoms of constipation after attacks of indigestion. For this purpose 1 pound of Glauber's salt may be used.

The animal should be fed carefully upon easily digested food for several days after the bloating has subsided, so that all fermenting matter may pass out of the stomach.

CHRONIC TYMPANITES.

Cattle, especially those that have been kept in the stable all winter, are liable to suffer from chronic tympanites. In this form they bloat up after feeding, but seldom swell so much as to cause any alarm. The chronic form of indigestion may also follow an acute attack like that previously described. This is also a symptom of tuberculosis when the lymphatic glands lying between the lungs are so enlarged as to press upon and partly occlude the esophagus. It may develop in calves as a result of the formation of hair balls in the stomach.

Treatment.--Treatment should be preceded by a moderate dose of purgative medicine: 1 pound of sulphate of magnesia (Epsom salt) or sulphate of soda (Glauber's salt), half an ounce of powdered Barbados aloes, 1 ounce of powdered ginger, 1 pint of molasses. The salts and aloes should be dissolved by stirring for a few minutes in 2 quarts of lukewarm water, then the molasses should be added, and after all the ingredients have been stirred together for about 10 minutes the dose should be administered. After the operation of the purgative it is generally necessary to give some tonic and antacid preparation to promote digestion, which is imperfectly performed in such cases. The following may be used: Powdered gentian, 3 ounces; powdered bicarbonate of potash, 3 ounces; powdered ginger, 3 ounces; powdered capsicum, 1 ounce. Mix and divide into 12 powders, one of which should be given three times a day before feeding, shaken up with a pint and a half of water. It is also advantageous in such cases to give two heaped teaspoonsfuls of wood charcoal, mixed with the animal's feed three times a day. The animal should also go out during the day, as want of exercise favors the continuance of this form of indigestion. If the dung is hard, the constipation should be overcome by feeding a little flaxseed twice daily or by giving a handful of Glauber's salt in the feed once or twice daily, as may be necessary. Roots, silage, and other succulent feeds are useful in this connection. If tuberculosis is suspected as the cause of chronic bloating, a skilled veterinarian should make a diagnosis, using the tuberculin test if necessary. Until it is settled that the cow has not tuberculosis, she should be kept apart from the other members of the herd.

DISTENTION OF RUMEN OR PAUNCH WITH FEED.

This form of indigestion is caused by the animal gorging itself with feed, and arises more from the animal's voracious appetite than from any defect in the quality of the feed supplied to it. The condition is, however, more severe if the feed consumed is especially concentrated or difficult of digestion. In cases of this kind there is comparatively no great formation of gas, and the gas which is formed is diffused through the stomach instead of accumulating in a layer in its upper part. On pressing the flank with the closed fist the indent of the hand remains for a short time in the flank, as if the rumen were filled with a soft, doughy mass.

This form of indigestion should be treated by stimulants, such as aromatic spirits of ammonia.

If the formation of gas is not great and the distention with solid material is somewhat limited, the animal may be drenched through a piece of ordinary garden hose, one end inserted in the mouth, and the other end fitted with a funnel, giving 1-1/2 pounds of Epsom salt or Glauber's salt dissolved in 2 gallons of water, at a single dose. Immediately after this treatment the left side of the animal, extending below the median line of the abdomen, should be powerfully kneaded with the fist, so that the impacted food mass will be broken, allowing the water to separate it into small portions which can be carried downward for the process of digestion. But if the treatment fails and the impacted or overloaded condition of the rumen continues, it may become necessary to make an incision with a sharp, long-bladed knife in the left flank, commencing at the point where it is usual to puncture the stomach of an ox, and prolong the incision in a downward direction until it is long enough to admit the hand. When the point of the knife is thrust into the flank and the blade cuts downward, the wall of the stomach, the muscle, and the skin should all be cut through at the same time. Two assistants should hold the edges of the wound together so as to prevent any food from slipping between the flank and the wall of the stomach, and then the operator should remove two-third of the contents of the rumen. This having been done, the edges of the wound should be sponged with a little carbolized warm water, and, the lips of the wound in the rumen being turned inward, they should be brought together with catgut stitches. The wound penetrating the muscle and the skin may then be brought together by silk stitches, which should pass through the entire thickness of the muscle and should be about 1 inch apart. The wound should afterwards be dressed once a day with a lotion and the animal covered with a tight linen sheet, to protect the wound from insects and dirt. The lotion to be used in such case is made up as follows: Sulphate of zinc, 1 dram; carbolic acid, 2 drams; glycerin, 2 ounces; water, 14 ounces; mix. It is clear that this operation requires special skill and it should be attempted only by those who are competent.

IMAGINARY DISEASES (HOLLOW HORN; LOSS OF CUD; WOLF IN THE TAIL).

It would appear quite in place here, in connection with the diseases of the stomach and bowels of cattle, to consider the three old fallacies or superstitions known by the above names, since these names, whenever and wherever used, seem to be invariably applied to some form of digestive derangement or disease having its origin in the stomach and bowels.

HOLLOW HORN.--In the first place it should be noted that the horns of all animals of the ox tribe are hollow. The horn cores are elongations of the frontal bones of the skull, and the frontal sinuses, which are the larger of the air spaces of the head, are prolonged into the horn cores. When a cow is sick, if the horns are hot it is an evidence of fever; if they are cold it indicates impaired circulation of the blood; but these manifestations of sickness are to be regarded as symptoms of some constitutional disorder and do not in themselves require treatment. The treatment should be applied to the disease which causes the abnormal temperature of the horns. The usual treatment for the supposed hollow horn, which consists in boring the horns with a gimlet and pouring turpentine into the openings thus made, is not only useless and cruel, but is liable to set up an acute inflammation and result in an abscess of the sinus.

LOSS OF CUD.--The so-called loss of cud is simply a cessation of rumination, frequently one of the first indications of some form of disease, since ruminants stop chewing the cud when they feel sick. Loss of cud is a symptom of a great many diseases, and when it is detected it should lead the observer to try to discover other symptoms upon which to base a correct opinion as to the nature of the disease from which the animal suffers. No local treatment is required.