212 Diseases of the Genital Organs 



found irritation. No sooner has the stallion dismounted 

 than the mare trembles, looks anxiously at her sides, may 

 pass some feces and blood, moves uneasily, and may lie 

 down, but does not roll violently. The pulse is rapid and 

 weak, the breathing is shallow and quickened, the abdomen 

 is held rigid, and the patient looks tympanitic. The symp- 

 toms resemble in many particulars those of rupture of the 

 stomach. The diagnosis is readily made by manual explora- 

 tion per rectum, since the hand passes easily out through 

 the rupture into the peritoneal cavity. In one of my cases 

 of rupture into the peritoneal cavity, the mare lived some 

 eight hours ; in another, less than four hours. 



Not all cases lead to rupture into the peritoneal cavity. In 

 one instance under my observation, in an old brood mare, 

 no history of injury was obtainable, and apparently the rup- 

 ture had not occurred during the several years of ownership 

 by her last proprietor. She died under symptoms of colic. 

 Autopsy revealed a large intra-pelvic sac, opening into the 

 rectum, which had been habitually filled with feces but, be- 

 coming over-distended, had obstructed the bowel and caused 

 a rupture of the sac into the peritoneal cavity. It was al- 

 most certainly the result of an old penial wound. 



In another case I recognized the accident at the time of its 

 occurrence. Blood and feces were voided, and the perineal 

 region was swollen. Manual exploration revealed a large 

 rent through the rectal walls into the periproctal connective 

 tissue, six to eight inches from the anus. The resulting sac 

 contained about two liters of feces impacted into the readily 

 distensible wound. The feces occupying the sac and those 

 from the rectum immediately anterior to the rupture were 

 carefully removed by the hand, and the sac was cautiously 

 flushed out with an antiseptic solution. This method of 

 handling, repeated twice daily, along with restricted, laxa- 

 tive diet and complete rest, brought about a prompt recov- 

 ery with little sacculation. 



According to Harms, false copulation in the sow is usu- 

 ally followed by no more serious consequences than a swollen 

 anus, accompanied by a bloody discharge. 



