562 GENITAL APPARATUS. 



Antiseptic precautions are necessar}^ in order to avoid the develop- 

 ment of secondary pj'o-metritis. The artificial orifice can afterwards be 

 gradually dilated to allow free exit to the discharges, but in practice, as 

 the animals cannot be used for breeding purposes, they are usually 

 fattened for slaughter. 



NYMPHO'MANIA. 



The term " nympho-mania " is employed to describe a special con- 

 dition in female animals which is manifested by continual sexual 

 excitement. The animals are almost always sterile. The disease is 

 most frequent in cows. 



Causation. This general condition may depend on one of many 

 causes, but is rarely due to a true neurosis, as was once believed. 

 Some morbid influence of genital origin is always responsible for the 

 appearance of the symptoms. 



Nympho-mania, therefore, often co-exists with lesions of the ovaries 

 (simple ovaritis, cystic ovaritis, tumours of the ovary), with lesions of 

 the Fallopian tubes and of the uterus (salpingitis, chronic metritis 

 and tumours of the uterus), with chronic vaginitis and lesions of the 

 clitoris (hypertrophy and tumour formation), and even with peri- 

 vaginal or peri-uterine lesions (cysts or tumours). 



In exceptional cases it may be found occurring as a simple nervous 

 disturbance without genital lesion, and it would then appear to be due 

 to some temporary genital affection having produced nervous irritation. 



In short, nympho-mania may be considered as almost invariably the 

 result of a genital lesion. 



Symptoms. The symptoms are very clearly marked. They consist 

 in persistence of the sexual appetite, which is quite abnormal in female 

 domestic animals. The patients lose flesh, feed badly and irregu- 

 larly, annoy their fellows, cause accidents, and sometimes become 

 dangerous. 



Diagnosis. The diagnosis of nympho-mania is so simple that the 

 condition is generally recognised by the owners or cow-herds. The 

 only difficult point lies in discovering the exact cause. Complete 

 examination of the genital organs per rectum and per vaginam is 

 absolutely necessary to settle this question. 



Prognosis. From an economic standpoint the prognosis is gene- 

 rally grave. 



Treatment. The treatment varies considerably, according to the 

 nature of the lesion. 



In mild cases where nympho-mania is due to some lesion of the 

 clitoris (balanitis, hypertrophy, or tumour formation), the radical 

 treatment consists in clitoridectomy. The operation is comparatively 



