174 Veterhiarv Obstetrics 



intensity but not identical with normal estrum ; sometimes it 

 follows a very slight estrum, in other cases it is brought to light 

 only when a cow standing beside the diseased one comes into 

 heat and very often is first observed when the animal is out at 

 pasture. Sexually excited cows seldom lie down and only for 

 brief periods. They assume an aggressive behavior, attempt to 

 rub their posterior parts upon other cows or objects, elevate the 

 tail, urinate frequently, less frequently exhibit vaginal straining 

 and neither drink deliberately nor even graze quietly. In the 

 pasture these animals graze badly, run about, annoy the herd, 

 and tear up the earth with horns or hoofs. If the nymphomania 

 is intensely developed the animal becomes very vicious toward 

 surrounding objects, especially strange persons or glistening 

 bodies in bright colors and falls upon them, as we have repeatedly 

 observed, in maniacal fury. In some cases of nymphomania, the 

 affected animals attempt to mount neighboring cows, bulls, oxen, 

 and even persons and continue to ride the former for a long in- 

 terval ; on the other hand, they permit bulls and also other cows 

 to mount them constantly. [The viciousness of nymphomaniac 

 cows and their tendency to mount persons when not on their 

 guard make such animals a positive menace to keepers or others 

 who come in contact with them, as we have had occasion to per- 

 sonally observe. In one instance observed by us, a previously 

 kind cow became dangerously vicious toward women and would 

 attack them furiously at every opportunity.] 



There occur nymphomaniac cows with cystic ovaries, however, 

 which, on the contrary, resist all attempts of bulls or of other 

 cattle to mount them. After a variable duration of the malady 

 the affected cow, which has already become markedly unthrifty, 

 shows an elevated croup, a forward sinking of the anus and vulva, 

 lordosis, stiffness of the loins, a.ssociated with an upright direc- 

 tion or knuckling-over of the hind fetlock, " kuhhessige " posi- 

 tion and often a slightly staggering gait. That a nymphomaniac 

 cow may suffer simultaneously from other disea.ses, such as capped 

 knee, pelvic fractures, foul in the foot, etc., is to be regarded 

 merely as a coincidence and that old, oft recurring cyst forma- 

 tion may lead to an exaggeration of all the symptoms described 

 is readily understood. 



According to the duration of time between the last parturition 

 and the advent of the nymphomania, there is a somewhat corre- 



