242 MANUAL OF EQUINE MEDICINE. 



6. Deposits and new formations on the omentum or 

 mesentery. 



Symptoms. — Tiie symptoms are insidious when unasso- 

 ciated with some special disease. 



The animal is dull, listless, loses flesh, and becomes weak 

 and debilitated. 



The abdomen becomes gradually and uniformly dis- 

 tended, and if there is much fluid present, dulness is mani- 

 fested on percussion, and fluctuation may be felt. 



The animal loses his appetite, and the pulse is weak 

 and accelerated. 



The symptoms, however, will vary much with the con- 

 ditions on which the eff"usion depends, and in many in- 

 stances oedema of the limbs and lower parts of the body 

 follows. 



The urine is scanty, and if the kidneys are diseased, con- 

 tains albumen in greater or lesser amount. If the liver is 

 at fault, the urinary secretion may contain bile-salts and 

 bile-pigment. 



Morbid Anatomy. — In many instances there is more or 

 less thickening and structural change in the peritoneum. 

 These changes are especially marked in ascites, resulting in 

 chronic or sub-acute inflammation of the peritoneum. 



In some cases there is no detectable change found in this 

 membrane after death. In ascites depending on disease of 

 the heart, liver, or spleen, or on morbid growths in con- 

 nection with the peritoneum, lesions, varying with the 

 nature of the affections, are found in the organ at fault. 



The fluid varies much in amount. It is usually clear, 

 slightly viscid, alkaline, of a yellow or green tinge, and 

 contains a large quantity of albumen. When following 

 inflammation, it is turbid and flaky. 



Treatment. — The treatment of ascites chiefly depends 

 upon the disease with which it is associated. We have 



