170 I'LIULIKV DISKASKS AM) TlIlvlK TKl.AT M l-NT. 



Dia(/)tosis. Salmon (k-scribcs tlu- foil' i\\ ini,^ syniptonis: 

 "When fowls are ej^g hound they at first go freqiuntly to the 

 nest, niakin}^ efi'orts to lay l)ut are unahle to accomplish this 

 f miction. Thev are restless ami evidently in more or less dis- 

 tress. Later they become dull, with rou^h i)lumage and are 

 in<lisposed to move. < >n examining the bird ])y ])ressure of the 

 linger about the vent, the egg can be distinguished as a hard 

 bodv in the posterior part of the abdominal cavity. In case of 

 prolapsus, the everted oviduct may lie ca>ily seen." 



hi iliis connection, however, it sh(»uld be noted tliat these gen- 

 eral symptoms which Salmon describes are observed in mild 

 form in a great many cases witli birds whicli subsequently lay 

 the egg without trouble. In many instances the extrusion of 

 an egg which is fnially successfully laid is attenderl with a good 

 deal of difficulty. There are all degrees of gradation between 

 this somewhat difficult but still normal laying and the condition 

 of complete obstruction of the oviduct where the egg cannot be 

 passed at all. The practical: consideration to which this leads 

 is that one should not be too hasty in applying treatment for the 

 egg-bound condition. A diagnosis of the trouble, in other 

 words, should not be finally settled upon until there remains no 

 doubt that the hen is not going to pass the egg without help from 

 the outside. 



It must also be remembered that in many cases of obstruction 

 of the oviduct, the ol)struction is so far up that it cannot be felt 

 from the outside. In such cases the diagnosis must be made 

 upon the general behavior of the hen, and in particular in regard 

 to going frequently on the nest without laying. 



Etiology. In considering the causes of obstruction of the ovi- 

 duct it is necessarv to distinijuish between several difTcrent sorts 

 f>r categories. This may lie done as follows: 



I. Simple "egg bound" condition, in which a normal egg is 

 lodged in the uterus or vagina and cannot be expelled. This 

 inability to expel the egg may be due to any one or a combinatii^n 

 of the following causes acting together: 



a. Egg of too large size, so that it is meclianically difficult 

 or impossible to force it through the natural passage. Robinson 

 regards this as the most common cause. 



b. Exhaustion (true ])hysiological fatigue) of the muscu- 

 lar walls of the oviduct. This condition results after long con- 

 tinued and unsuccessful attempts to expe Ithe egg. It leads to 



