198 DISEASES OF CATTLE, SHEEP, GOATS, ETC. 



the injection of potassium iodide. Soap and water should be applied 

 to the teats and udder, after which they should be carefully disin- 

 fected with a 5 per cent solution of carbolic acid (3 tablespoonfuls of 

 pure carbolic acid to 1 quart of water). A clean towel should then 

 be placed under the udder to prevent the teats from coming in con- 

 tact with dirt or filth of any kind. The milking tube, before it is 

 placed in the teat, should have been perfectly sterilized by boiling 

 for fifteen minutes, with the lower hose and cap of the cylinder at- 

 tached, and the apparatus should be wrapped in a clean towel, with- 

 out touching the milking tube ; to prevent contamination before use. 

 If the apparatus has been subjected to this treatment shortly before 

 and it is desired to disinfect only the milking tube, the latter may 

 be placed in a 5 per cent solution of carbolic acid for five minutes. 

 It is then carefully inserted into the milk duct of the teat without 

 emptying the udder of milk. Air is now pumped from the bulb 

 into the reservoir, consequently a continuous flow of air is forced 

 through the filtering chamber and into the udder. Slight massage 

 or kneading of the udder will cause the innermost recesses of the milk 

 tubules to become distended with the injected air. After one-quar- 

 ter of the udder is well distended the milking tube is removed, care 

 being taken to prevent the outflow of air by having an assistant tie a 

 broad piece of tape about the teat at the time the milking tube is 

 withdrawn. The same treatment is repeated with the other three 

 teats until the udder is satisfactorily distended. In case the air be- 

 comes absorbed and no improvement is noted within five hours, a 

 repetition of this treatment should be made under the same antisep- 

 tic precautions as at first. The tape should be removed from the 

 teats two or three hours after the cow gets on her feet, the constrict- 

 ing muscles at the tip of the teats being now depended on for retain- 

 ing the air. In this manner the air may be left in the udder for 

 twenty-four hours, and when recovery is assured, it should be gradu- 

 ally milked out. It is needless to say that the calf should not be per- 

 mitted to suck during this period. 



Inflammation of the udder (caked bag) is avoided if the milk- 

 ing tube is thoroughly disinfected before each application, and if 

 the cow's teats and bag and the hands of the operator have been 

 properly cleansed. If the apparatus is kept in its case free from dust 

 and dirt, the absorbent or medicated cotton in the metal cylinder 

 will efficiently filter enough air to distend the udders of six cows. 

 After this number has been treated it is advisable to replace the old 

 cotton with a fresh sterile supply, which should be placed loosely in 

 the cylinder. 



While this method of treating milk fever is a comparatively 

 easy one for a farmer or dairyman to adopt, he can not expect to 

 have the same successful results as those obtained by a skilled veter- 

 inarian, and it is therefore advisable that the services of such a vet- 

 erinarian should always be obtained in those districts where it is 

 possible. In many cases it will be found that the injection of air into 

 the udder will be sufficient to combat the disease without any other 

 treatment, but it is always advisable to study the symptoms of each 



