234 



Abortion in Cows. 



Vol. VIL 



Mr. Lindsay, "is a prominent cause of abor- 

 tion, is strongly indicated by the following 

 facts. A friend of mine, a respectable graz- 

 ing farmer, kept a dairy of 22 cows, 10 of 

 which slipped calf at different periods of 

 gestation. The summer had been very 

 unfavourable in every respect, both as re- 

 garded the ground where the cows were 

 pastured, and in getting in the hay crop. 

 He had little or no hay of the last year's 

 growth, and the hay of that year when cut 

 into, was in a very bad state ; but as he had 

 no other, he was obliged to give it to his 

 cattle. The consequence was as mentioned 

 above ; and besides, many of his stock died 

 of various disorders; and many of those 

 which recovered, remained long weakly." 



" The most common cause of abortion in 

 cows," says White, " is improper feeding 

 during winter and spring, before they are 

 turned to pasture. The filthy pond-water 

 they are often compelled to drink, and feed- 

 ing on the rank fog-grass of October and 

 November, especially when covered with 

 hoar-frost, are likewise frequent causes of 

 miscarriage. I remember a farm near 

 Berkeley, in Gloucestershire, which afforded 

 a striking proof of the injuries of stagnant 

 pond-water, impregnated with dung and 

 urine. This farm had been given up by 

 three farmers successively, in consequence 

 of the losses they sustained through abortion 

 in their cattle, their not being in season 

 (that is, not conceiving,) red water, and 

 other diseases. At length, a Mr. Dimmery, 

 after suffering considerably in his live stock 

 for the first five years, suspected that the 

 water of his ponds, which was extremely 

 filthy, might be the cause of the mischief. 

 He therefore dug three wells on his farm, 

 and having fenced round the ponds to pre- 

 vent his cattle from drinking there, caused 

 them to be supplied with well-water, in 

 stone troughs erected for the purpose; and 

 from this moment his live stock began to 

 thrive, became uncommonly healthy, and 

 the quality of the butter and cheese made 

 on his farm was greatly improved. It should 

 be observed, that on this farm the cattle 

 were regularly fed with good hay during 

 the winter, and kept in good pasture in sum- 

 mer; so that there cannot exist a doubt that 

 the losses sustained by Mr. Dimmery, were 

 entirely attributable to the unwholesome 

 water the animals were compelled to drink." 



"In order," adds Mr. White, "to show 

 that the accident of warping may arise from 

 a vitiated state of the digestive organs, I 

 shall here notice a few circumstances tend- 

 ing to corroborate this opinion. In January, 

 1782, all the cows in the possession of farmer 



D'Euruse, near Grandvilliers, in Picardy, 

 miscarried. The period at which they 

 warped, was about the fourth or fifth month. 

 The accident was attributed to the excessive 

 heat of the preceding summer ; but as the 

 water they were in the habit of drinking 

 was extremely bad, and they had been kept 

 upon oat, wheat, and rye straw, it appears 

 to me more probable that the great quantity 

 of straw they were obliged to eat, in order 

 to obtain sufficient nourishment, and the in- 

 jury sustained by the third stomach, in ex- 

 pressing the fluid parts of the masticated 

 mass, together with the large quantity of 

 water they probably drank, while kept upon 

 this dry food, was the real cause of their 

 miscarrying. A farmer at Charentin, out 

 of a dairy of 28 cows, had 16 slip calf, at 

 different periods of gestation. The sum- 

 mer had been very dry, and during the 

 whole of this season, they had been pastured 

 in a muddy place, which was flooded by the 

 Seine. Here the cows were generally up 

 to their knees in mud and water, and feed- 

 ing on crowfoot, rushes, and the like. Part 

 of the stock had recently been brought from 

 Lower Normandy, where they had all been 

 affected with indigestion, by feeding upon 

 lucerne, from the effects of which they had 

 been relieved by the operation of paunching. 

 In one, the opening made, was large enough 

 to admit the hand for the purpose of drawing 

 out the food ; the rest were operated on with 

 a trocar. In 1789, all the cows in the pa- 

 rish of Beaulieu, near Mantes, miscarried. 

 All the land in this parish was so stiff* as to 

 hold water for a considerable time; and as 

 a vast quantity of rain fell that year, the 

 pastures were for a long time, and at seve- 

 ral periods, completely inundated, on which 

 the grass became sour and rank. These, 

 and several other circumstances which have 

 fallen under my own observation, plainly 

 show that keeping cows on food that is defi- 

 cient in nutrition and difficult of digestion, 

 is one, if not the principal, cause of their 

 miscarrying. It is stated by Mr. Handwin, 

 that feeding in pastures, when covered with 

 white frost, has been observed to occasion 

 abortion in these animals." 



If there be any probability of a cow mis- 

 carrying, from exposure to any of the com- 

 mon causes already enumerated, let her by 

 all means, be put apart from the others; and 

 let a skilful person attend to the evil from 

 which she is expected to suffer. If the ap- 

 proach of abortion be evident, bleeding may 

 be had recourse to ; for if it do not check 

 abortion, it will yet do no harm though it 

 take place. When there arc any premoni- 

 tory symptoms of abortion, they are pre- 



