420 Kansas State Board of Agriculture. 



a symptom of tuberculosis. In this condition a lymph gland located just 

 above the gullet becomes very much enlarged, and pressing upon the 

 gullet prevents the normal belching of gas. This form of bloating can 

 be positively diagnosed by applying the tuberculin test. Occasionally the 

 condition is caused by a sudden change from dry feed to green feed or 

 to feed that is unusually succulent. 



SYMPTOMS. Usually these appear very suddenly. There is an in- 

 creased rotundity of the abdomen and symptoms of uneasiness in the 

 animal. The most characteristic symptom is the rapid increase in size of 

 the left upper flank, which will protrude so greatly that its apex reaches 

 the level or may often be higher than the back. The abdominal walls are 

 very tense and can be pressed in only with difficulty, and at once protrude 

 again after removal of the pressure. Striking the enlarged region with 

 the hand produces a hollow, resonant sound. The animal no longer chews 

 its cud, but stands with back arched and feet drawn together. In the 

 early stages, kicking at the abdomen, stamping, and switching of the tail 

 are observed. 



As the distention of the paunch increases, the latter organ exerts in- 

 creasing pressure against other organs in the chest cavity, such as the 

 lungs and heart. This causes an interference with the normal heart 

 action and with the breathing, so that the latter becomes labored, the 

 animal moans and pants in pain, the nostrils are widely dilated, the 

 mouth is held open, the tongue protrudes, and saliva dribbles out of the 

 mouth. In a short time the lining membrane of the nostril, mouth, etc., 

 assumes a bluish-red color, which indicates that suffocation is imminent. 



The heart action is interfered with to a considerable extent, so that 

 the pulse is rapid, gradually becoming uncountable and imperceptible. 

 The animal soon exhibits symptoms of dizziness, the eyes become blood- 

 shot, and finally the victim reels and staggers, and eventually falls 

 insensible. 



CAUSE OF DEATH. Death occurs as the result of suffocation, impaired 

 heart action, or absorption of the poisonous gases contained in the 

 paunch, or it may be due to a combination of these agents. If the body 

 is opened immediately after death we may find that the paunch has been 

 partially ruptured, and in some -cases the diaphragm is ruptured. In 

 some instances rupture of the heart has been recorded, and we always 

 find all the lesions of suffocation, such as redness of the lungs, frothy 

 fluid in the lungs, black, tarry blood, and redness under the peritoneum 

 and pleura, or the membranes lining the abdominal cavity and chest. If 

 the paunch is opened it may contain either a large amount of free gas, or 

 the gas may be intimately mixed with the feed, so that the latter is of 

 a frothy character. 



COURSE OF THE DISEASE. If relief is not offered the animal may die in 

 thirty minutes in those cases in which the formation of gas is very rapid. 

 In other cases the development of gas is slower, there is frequent belch- 

 ing and some vomiting, and the animal frequently recovers without 

 treatment. 



