422 Kansas State Board of Agriculture. 



time permits, the operative area should be washed with soap and water 

 and then rinsed off with a two per cent watery solution of carbolic acid, 

 but this may be dispensed with in urgent cases. The operator should 

 stand on the animal's right side, reach over the back, place the instrument 

 in position, directing it downward and forward, or toward the point of 

 the elbow of the right front limb, and with a sharp blow of the open hand, 

 cause it to pass into the paunch. The trocar is removed, the canula or 

 tube remaining in position until all the gas has been evacuated. The 

 operator, by standing on the animal's right side, avoids the danger of be- 

 ing kicked by the left hind limb, which is always lifted. 



Sometimes instead of gas issuing from the canula, a greenish, frothy 

 substance oozes out of the wound, which indicates that the gas is inti- 

 mately mixed with the food. In these cases the tube should be withdrawn 

 and a large incision made into the paunch. The incision should be about 

 three and one-half inches long, and should pass completely through the 

 wall of the abdomen and paunch. As soon as this has been done the 

 gaseous food will issue forth more or less forcibly. It is advisable to 

 grasp the edges of the incision in the paunch and attach them to the edges 

 of the incision through the wall of the abdomen by means of a strong 

 needle and a piece of string, because otherwise as soon as the greatest 

 distention has been relieved the paunch will fall away from the abdominal 

 wall, after which food will pass from the paunch into the abdominal 

 cavity, unless it is prevented by sewing the incision in the paunch to the 

 incision in the abdominal wall. The string may be removed in a week or 

 ten days, as permanent adhesions will have formed by this time. If the 

 food is too coarse to escape through such an incision without assistance, 

 then a long spoon or the operator's hand and arm may be introduced into 

 the paunch, removing the food in this way. It is not advisable to remove 

 all of the food, but to permit one-third of the contents of the paunch to 

 remain, as otherwise an attack of fainting with a fatal termination will 

 result. As much as five to eight pailfuls may frequently be removed. If 

 an experienced operator is at hand, and the operation has been carefully 

 performed, it is probably best to close the opening in the paunch and 

 abdominal wall after sufficient feed has been removed, but when per- 

 formed as an emergency measure by an inexperienced person it is prob- 

 ably best to leave the wound open, washing it daily with an antiseptic 

 solution. The animal should be kept warmly blanketed for some time 

 after the operation. 



When cases of gaseous indigestion are detected in their beginning the 

 formation of gas may frequently be stopped by administering a drench 

 consisting of the following ingredients : 



Turpentine 2 oz. 



Raw linseed oil 1 pint. 



If raw linseed oil is not at hand, six tablespoonfuls of turpentine may 

 be mixed with a pint of milk. This medicine will not affect the gas which 

 is already present, but will stop the fermentation, so that no more gas 

 is formed. It is a good plan for owners of cattle to have this mixture 

 constantly on hand, so that it may be used in cases of emergency. Mild 



