VESICAL CALCULI, OR STONE IN THE BLADDER. 183 



his death, occasioned by the obstruction to the passage of the 

 urine by means of these stones. Death had already happened be- 

 fore I was called in, or probably relief might have been afforded 

 by an operation ; but the symptoms had been, constant difficulty 

 in his urinary evacuations, until one of the number of calculi had 

 entered the urethra, and had so blocked up the urinary flow 

 that mortification ensued. When a small calculus obstructs the 

 urethra, and can be felt, it may be attempted to be forced forwards 

 through the urethra to the point of the penis, from whence it may 

 be extracted by a pair of forceps : if it cannot be so moved, it 

 may be cut down upon and removed with safety. But when one 

 or more stones are within the bladder, we must attempt lithotomy, 

 after having fully satisfied ourselves of their existence there by 

 the introduction of the sound : to do which it must be remem- 

 bered that the urethra of the dog, in passing from the bladder, 

 proceeds nearly in a direct line backwards ; and then, making an 

 acute angle, it passes again forwards to the bladder. It must be, 

 therefore, evident that, when it becomes necessary to introduce a 

 catheter, sound, or bougie, it must first be passed up the penis to 

 the extremity of this angle : the point of the instrument must then 

 be cut down upon, and from this opening the instrument can be 

 readily passed forwards into the bladder. The examination made, 

 and a stone detected, it may, if a very small one, be attempted to 

 be pushed forward by means of a finger passed up the anus into 

 the urethra ; but as this could be practicable only where the dog 

 happened to be a large one, it is most probable that nothing short 

 of the operation of lithotomy would succeed. To this end, the 

 sound being introduced, pass a very small gorget, or otherwise a 

 bistoury, along its groove into the bladder, to effect an opening 

 sufficient to admit of the introduction of a fine pair of forceps, by 

 which the stone may be laid hold of and extracted. 



