DISEASES OF ORGANS OF REPRODUCTION. 61 



Treatment: The cloaca should be cleared of all 

 fecal matter. If it is full of a hard mass this must be 

 softened with warm water; then, if the egg has not 

 been retained too long, lubricating the parts by inject- 

 ing a little olive oil is sufficient treatment. In more 

 obstinate cases good results are often obtained by hold- 

 ing the fowl with the vent in a pan of warm water for 

 twenty or thirty minutes. Where all other measures 

 fail, the egg should be punctured, the pieces carefully 

 removed and the patient fed sparmgly for a few days. 



VENT GLEET. 



Vent Gleet or Cloacitis is a catarrhal affection of the 

 mucous membrane lining of the vent and cloaca and in 

 very bad cases the inflammation may extend to the ovi- 

 duct or bowel. 



Cause: It is due to germs and is therefore conta- 

 gious; the disease is usually communicated from one 

 hen to the other, by the male, during coition. 



Symptoms: The first symptoms noticeable are 

 straining, and frequent attempts to evacuate the 

 bowels, but, since these symptoms are also common to 

 other diseases, further investigation should be made. 



In vent gleet the disease spreads rapidly through the 

 flock. The mucous membranes will be found hot, red, 

 and swollen, and in a few days a discharge will take 

 place which irritates the parts and soils the feathers 

 about the vent, annoying the bird so that it will be 

 seen picking the parts. 



Treatment: The part* must first be thoroughly 



cleansed, by bathing carefully with warm water, in 



