PARTURITION, OR CALVING 509 



a small hand, which has been anointed with hogs' 

 lard, should be introduced into the vagina, so that 

 it may easily be effected, and it may then be ascer- 

 tained whether this horning of the lye has taken 

 place ; and if it should be found to be the case, 

 recourse must be had to the following operation, 

 which, however, we would recommend to be per- 

 formed by a veterinary surgeon, if one can be had ; 

 but if not, there will be no alternative but to proceed 

 with the operation : Procure a small, very sharp 

 knife, with a blade of about an inch and a half in 

 length, and with a hollow on the back part, near 

 the point, on which the extremity of the fore-finger 

 must rest, to guide the knife in cutting, and let the 

 point and edge of the knife be covered as much as 

 possible, to prevent it cutting the vagina. It must 

 have a short handle, so that the fore-finger of the 

 operator may always be kept forward, as far as the 

 extremity of the blade, to prevent any danger from 

 its edge cutting the sides of the vagina. With the 

 point of the knife cut the lower side of the passage 

 to the womb, and when the horny obstruction is com- 

 pletely divided, the animal will feel immediate relief, 

 and the natural pains will be resumed, and v/ith 

 a little assistance the calf may easily be extracted, 

 and in many instances by the efforts of the cow 

 alone. 



When this horny obstruction exists, it will be 

 observed that those necessary alterations preparatory 

 to calving do not take place, and when this is noticed, 

 particular attention must be paid in examining into 

 the cause, why due preparation has not been made by 

 nature for the change about to take place. 



As a rule in the cow, the placental membranes are 

 expelled by the contractions of the muscular fibres of 



