256 The Care of Animals 



obstruction is located in tiie horse's chest-cavity there 

 are few symptoms except inability to swallow food. 

 Dogs and cats often attempt to vomit. In cattle there 

 is a tendency to bloat in an hour or so after choking. 



The proper treatment is to remove the obstruction 

 by getting it up, if possible; if not, by pushing it 

 down. When neither effort is successful, one should 

 remove the object by a surgical operation. If the 

 obstacle is in the throat outside of the body cavity it 

 can usually be seen or felt as a swelling on the left 

 side of the neck. In such cases it should be worked 

 up to the throat, and while an assistant holds it firmly 

 to prevent it from slipping back, the operator should 

 reach down the animal's throat and remove the object. 

 In the cow^ and dog this is not difficult; but in the 

 horse it is necessar}- to use a speculum, or other instru- 

 ment, to keep the mouth open and to prevent the 

 operator from being bitten. If the obstacle cannot 

 be removed in this way, it should be pushed down to 

 the stomach; frequently, if started slightly from the 

 outside, it will pass down without any other assistance. 

 Sterilized (boiled) water can often be injected into the 

 mass near its lower border by inserting a hypodermic 

 syringe through the tissues from the outside, and thus 

 soften and assist in breaking up the mass. 



Where the lump can not be felt in the thi\)at it is 

 necessary to push it down with a "probang," a smooth, 

 flexible tube or rod, about six feet long. This is in- 

 serted through the mouth, and the obstruction gently 

 pushed down to the stomach. In the horse, precaution 

 should be taken to prevent his biting the probang in 



