MODIFICATIONS jy THE (TEUrs. 135 



important to consider in the larger animals, is the more or less com- 

 plete rotation or twisting on its axis of this organ — its upper face 

 becoming the lower, or again becoming superior after describing an 

 entire circle ; for this torsion occasions serious changes in the form of 

 the cervix and the direction of its cavity. The position of the cervix is 

 the inverse of that of the uterus, being always found on the 

 side opposite to that of the new direction of the organ itself; it is 

 directed upwards if the uterus is downwards, and if the latter twists to 

 the right or left the cervix goes to the left or right. Cases are men- 

 tioned in which torsion of tlie cervix itself has been found ; and though 

 it has been argued that the lateral ligaments would not permit this 

 malposition, yet there can be no doubt as to the fact. Lecoq of Bayeux, 

 cited by Raiuard, found in a Cow that had died through non-delivery, 

 the upper face of the uterus tui-ned towards the floor of the abdomen, 

 rotation having taken place from right to left ; the utero-vaginal 

 portion was twisted on itself, and the suspensory ligaments were 

 themselves twisted around this part. Numerous cases are recorded 

 which incontestably prove that, during pregnancy, the uterus performs a 

 half, or even a complete revolution on itself, producing torsion of the 

 cervix and the posterior part of the vagina, and consequent strangula- 

 tion of the organ near the neck, by the suspensory ligaments; so that 

 spontaneous delivery of the young animal by the natural passage is 

 impossible. 



Influence on ami Alteration, in the Position of Neiijlibourimj Organs. 



The alterations occurring in the uterus necessarily bring about others in 

 the neighbouring organs with which it lias mechanical relations. The 

 changed position of the organ in the abdominal cavity has been alluded 

 to In the Mare and Cow the horn in which the limbs of the fcctus is 

 lodged becomes extended and displaces the intestines, pushes the 

 stomach more to the left, rests on the liver, and is an obstacle to the 

 free movements of the diaphragm. The suspensory ligaments of the 

 uterus retain that organ and the cornua in situ ; but when they, in 

 the early stage of gestation, begin to extend forward, the vagina is 

 lengthened, until at a later period, when the size of the ftt'tus forces the 

 uterus backwards into the pelvic cavity, that canal is also pushed back 

 and forms a circular enlargement in the vulva. Its lining membrane, 

 owing to the compression and the increased circulation of blood through 

 it, assumes a violet or dark-brown tint, and appears to become thick- 

 ened, while it secretes a larger quantity of viscid mucus. 



The pressure the gravid uterus exercises on the bloodvessels of the 

 hind limbs and the vulva and rectum, retards the venous and lym- 

 phatic circulation ; so that towards the end of gestation, and especially 

 in the Mare, there is often considerable adema of these parts. This 

 oedema is all the more marked, in the Cow as well as in the Mare, 

 when the compression is greatest at the posterior parts of the abdomen, 

 towards the commencement of the sapliena and mammary veins. 



The anlema is always greatest in those cases, somewhat rare it is 

 true, in which there is a giving-way of the abdominal parietes near the 

 crural arch and above one of the mammic, when the uterus forms a 

 hernia beneath the skin ; then there is seen an enormous swelling at the 

 upper part of the limb. 



The udder increases notably in volume, and it and the teats become 

 tense. In the Carnivora, the prominences of the mammaj, especially 



