[157] 



CHAPTER XI. 



DISEASES OF SHEEP. 



The digestive system of the sheep is the most powerful 

 of all the domestic animals, the principal energy of the 

 nervous system being expended on that branch of the organ- 

 ism. The skeleton is nearer that of an ox than any other 

 animal, and both alike are ruminants, that is " cud chewers." 

 Perhaps there is a more universal ignorance of what is 

 " cud " than one would suppose. It is often thought that 

 when the sheep loses its cud it is in great and imminent 

 danger of its life, and many devices are resorted to to avert 

 so great a calamity. Now, practically, this is true so far as 

 the danger is concerned, but replacing it with an artificial 

 one is the veriest nonsense. It denotes a bad condition of 

 the digestive organs not to be able to regurgitate the cud, 

 and unless that condition is quickly altered the animal 

 will surely die. This will become apparent when the 

 anatomy of the sheep is understood. We do not, however, 

 deem it necessary in our limited space to give a detailed 

 account of the structure of the sheep any more than is 

 necessary to explain the modus operandi of digestion wherein 

 it is different from other domestic animals. There is but 

 little difference between this in sheep and cattle, both as be- 

 fore stated being ruminants. 



The stomach is a large pouch, with irregular sacs, that 

 however communicate with each other, but are designated 

 as separate stomachs. There are four of these sacs, called 

 the rumen or paunch ; reticulum or honeycomb ; omasum 

 ormanyplies; and the abomasium or rennet. The gullet 

 or swallow leads into the rumen or paunch, and the gut or 

 duodenum leads out from the rennet. The gullet enters the 



