564 



Journal of Agricultural Research 



Vol. V, No. 13 



An attempt was made to accentuate the effect of the diuretic on the 

 milk flow by keeping the water intake at a level which under normal 

 conditions would be entirely sufficient for the animal, but with the addi- 

 tional requirements during diuresis draw heavily upon the body fluids. 

 Goat I was used as the experimental animal. See Table III. 



Table III. — Effect of urea with constant level of water intake on milk flow of goat I 



a Animal very restless; beets not all consumed. 



As seen in Table III, renal activity after the effects of the first day 

 was not sufficient to draw noticeably on the mammary secretion for 

 fluids. At no time when urea was given, even in the aboye experiment, 

 did the animal show any abnormal desire for water; in fact, the water 

 supply when replenished in the morning was usually left untouched for 

 some time. Yet it is hardly to be questioned that the animal was in 

 great need of water. On the morning of February 2, after the previous 

 day's collection had been made, 25 gm. of urea were given in one dose 

 to determine whether larger quantities of urea were necessary to produce 

 the desired results. This amount of urea, while large, would not furnish 

 any more urea for excretion through the kidneys than 70 gm. of protein, 

 and no untoward effects were expected. Yet five minutes after the urea 

 was given the animal lay down and soon passed into violent convulsions, 

 which terminated fatally in i hour and 15 minutes. A morphine hypo- 

 dermic was of no avail in preventing death. A post-mortem examination 

 gave no clue to the cause of death. Apparently the maximum quantity 

 of urea which could possibly be retained with safety in the circulation 

 had accumulated during the previous period of urea administration. 

 With the sudden flooding of the system with the additional 25 gm. of 

 urea the safety limits were exceeded and death resulted. Immediately 

 previous to the administration of the final dose of urea the animal was 

 ruminating and apparently normal in all respects. The urea used was a 

 Kahlbaum preparation and undoubtedly was free from such other toxic 

 compounds as cyanid or cyanate, as no untoward results followed the 

 subsequent use of urea from the same reagent bottle. It was barely 



