90 DISEASES OF CATTLE. 



Hill, ill his "Bovine Medici n<> and Surgery/' reports the following 

 case which will serve as an illustration of the trouble: 



A row v.'a.i near the time of calving, when she Ix-rumr seriously ill, but the 

 symptoms did not indicate any connection with parturition; indeed, they were of 

 such obscure nature that it was impossible to say what was the malady. There were 

 dullness, unwillingness to move, constipation, and cedematous swelling about her. 

 She died on the sixth day. On opening her it appeared that the heart and its in- 

 vesting membrane or bag occupied nearly three times their natural space. The deli- 

 cat-' and transparent membrane was thickened until it bore no slight resemblance to 

 a portion of the paunch; and the bag contained a gallon of discolored fluid. A 

 piece of darning-needle, two iuches and a half in length, with the eye broken off, 

 was found in the pericardium, aud a small ulcer, three-quarters of an inch deep, 

 appeared noar the apex or point of the heart. Two sixpenny nails were found in 

 the paunch. 



Hill also reports the following case of a cow attended by himself: 



I found her breathing short, eyes unusually bright, pulse quick, temperature 105, 

 milk nearly gone, aud no appetite. I was informed by the bailiff that she had 

 appeared well until the day but one previously, and he thought she must have taken 

 cold during one of the bleak nights she was out. There was, however, no grunting 

 or cough ; the breathing, which I have stated was short, was to appearance much 

 tli.- same as one observed in a broken-winded horse a jerking double movement in 

 the flank. On auscultation, congestion of both lungs particularly the left was 

 manifest. I ordered mustard to be applied to the sides, and sent a diffusible stimu- 

 lant to be given in gruel morning and night. She continued in the same state uutil 

 the 25th, when diarrhea set in, and I observed the slightest perceptible grunt; her 

 pulse had now reached 96, and the temperature was still high. From her disinclina- 

 tion to move, the absence of any cough, the grunt aud the peculiarity in the breathin" 1 

 which I have observed before in such cases, I suggested the probability of some for- 

 eign body having been swallowed. 



The cow died in great agony on the 28th. Post-mortQtn examination 

 discovered a stocking needle, 3 inches long, in the apex of the heart, and 

 the heart and pericardium diseased to such an extent that they weighed 

 17 pounds. 



As a matter of course, treatment in such cases is useless, but when 

 it is possible to diagnose the case correctly the animal could be turned 

 over to the butcher before the flesh becomes unfit for use. Knowing 

 that cattle are prone to swallow such objects, ordinary care may be 

 exercised in keeping their surroundings as free of them as possible. 



PERICARDITIS. 



Inflammation of the pericardium (heart-bag) is often associated with 

 pneumonia and pleurisy, rheumatism, and other constitutional diseases. 

 It also occurs as an independent affection, due to causes similar to 

 those of other chest affections, as exposure to cold or dampness, and 

 changes of the weather. 



Symptoms. It may be ushered in with a chill, followed by fever, of 

 moro or less severity ; the animal stands still and dull, with head hanging 

 low, and anxiety expressed in its countenance. The pulse may be large, 

 perhaps hard; there is also a venous pulse. The hand against the 



