PROLAPSUS OF THE RECTUM 



75 



and congested, and at the centre of the dependent portion an indenta- 

 tion is seen; this is the opening of the intestine. Through this we can 

 introduce the finger into the intestine. At the anterior end, the mucous 

 membrane passes directly into the skin and the anal opening. If there 

 is any invagination, the membrane does not terminate at the anus, but 

 seems to go into the rectum, and the protrusion can be lifted up and 

 passed into the rectum between the swelling and the rectum (see Fig. 35). 

 Therapeutics. — The first thing to do is to remove the cause, whether 

 it be due to diarrhoea or constipation, by putting the animal under 



Fig. 35. — Prolapsus of the rectum with invagination. 



treatment suitable for such conditions. The most important thing to do 

 is to reduce the prolapsus as soon as possible; place the dog on his front 

 legs and elevate the hind ones, and having cleaned and oiled the inflamed 

 portion, return it to its normal position and fill it with astringent solu- 

 tion, and if it is a long-standing case, opium in suppository or 5 per 

 cent, solution cocaine. If the mucous membrane is very much swollen 

 and inflamed, it is best to scarify it slightly. If the folds of the mucous 

 membrane are blackened and necrosed from prolonged exposure, they 

 must be trimmed off with the scissors. The writer has generally suc- 

 ceeded, even in very bad cases, in reducing the protrusions by bathing 



