198 DISEASES OF CATTLE. 



lies the pregnant womb. It is easy to see how, in the constant move- 

 ments of the paunch upon its contents and the frequent changes of 

 position of the growing fetus within the womb, to say nothing of the 

 contractions of the adjacent bowels and the more or less active move- 

 ments of the cow, should lead the womb to roll downward to the right. 

 And yet, in many cases, the twist is toward the left, showing that it is not 

 the result of a simple rolling downward over the paunch, but rather of 

 other disturbances. The condition may be suspected Avhen labor pains 

 have continued for some time without any sign of the water-bags, and 

 it is confirmed when the oiled hand, introduced through the vagina, 

 finds the mouth of the womb soft and yielding, but furnished with 

 internal folds running forward in a spiral manner. If the folds on the 

 upper wall of the orifice run toward the right, the womb is twisted to 

 the right ; if, on the contrary, they turn toward the left it indicates 

 that the womb is turned over in that direction. The direction of the 

 twist must be known before treatment can be undertaken. Then, if 

 the twist is toward the right, the cow is laid upon her right side, with 

 her head down hill, the hand of the operator is introduced through the 

 spirally constricted neck of the womb, and a limb or other portion of 

 the body of the calf is seized and pressed firmly against the wall of 

 the womb. Meanwhile two or three assistants roll the cow from her 

 right side over her back to her left side. The object is to hold the 

 womb and calf still while the body of the cow rolls over. If success- 

 ful, the twist is undone, its grasp on the wrist is slackened, and the 

 water bags and calf press into the now open passage. If the first 

 attempt does not succeed it is to be repeated until success has been 

 attained. If the spiral folds on the upper wall of the opening turn 

 toward the left, the cow is laid on her left side and rolled over on her 

 back and on to the right side, the hand being, as before, within the 

 womb and holding the fetus, so that all may not rotate with the cow. 

 In introducing the hand it will usually be found needful to perforate 

 the membranes, so that a limb of the calf may be seized direct and 

 firmly held. Among my occasional causes of failure with these cases 

 have been, first, the previous death and decomposition of the fetus, 

 Jeading to such overdistension of the womb that it could not be made 

 to rotate within the abdomen; and. second, the occurrence of inflam- 

 mation and an exudate on the twisted neck of the womb, which hin- 

 dered it from untwisting. 



In obstinate cases, in which the hand can be made to pass through 

 the neck of the womb easily, additional help may be had from the use 

 of the instrument shown in Plate xx. Fig. 5. Two cords, with running 

 nooses, are successively introduced and made fast on two limbs of the 

 calf; the cords are then passed through the two rings on the end of the 

 instrument, which is passed into the womb and the cords drawn tight 

 and fixed round the handle. Then, using the handle as a lever, it is 

 turned in the direction opposite to the twist. The hand should mean- 



