<;EMEi.i.ii'Ai:i>rs a\i> MrLTiF.inors ri:t:i:.\A\rY. 103 



Tilt' rule doeis not always hold ;^'oocl, howevt'r, as to the infecundity 

 of twill Calves, as many instances are on record in whicli they have 

 bred. For instance, in the Veterinarian (vol. ix., p. 22) there is an 

 authenticated case in which the female of a twin birth, when five 

 months old, became prej^nant, and in due course produced a Calf. The 

 next birth was twin Calves. And a few years ago, a Shorthorn ('ow 

 belonging to Mr. James Harrison, Water Stratford (1 rounds, near 

 Buckingham, dropped twin Calves- — a Bull and a Cow-calf. As the 

 Cow was well descended, Mi-. Harrison decided to keep both Calves for 

 breeding purposes, and tlie experiment was quite successful, for the 

 Heifer had a strong Cow-calf, and the Bull was the sire of three 

 Calves. 



Diaijnuais of Multiple rrcijuancij. 



The (liatjnosis of multiple pregnancy in animals ordinarily uniparous, 

 is not very certain. It is usual to say that the signs are only those in- 

 dicative of a single ftrtus, but exaggerated. The belly is more volumin- 

 ous than wlien there is but one, especially in the early months ; the 

 respiration is more than usually embarrassed; the animal lies frequently, 

 and soon moves lazily and heavily, while the posterior limbs become 

 ccdematous. These signs, it will be remarked, are obscure, as a lai'ge 

 Foal or Calf, or some morl)id condition, may occasion the disproportionate 

 size of the abdomen and alteration in breathing; so that at best they only 

 afford a vague presumption as to the condition of the mother. It is 

 also said that the belly is larger on the side on which it is usually least 

 enlarged — the left ; in others, both sides are enlarged at the same time, 

 and there the movements of the young are most evident. But tliissign, 

 in addition to being far from constant, depends upon the relative posi- 

 tion of the progeny ; as when there are two one may occupy the body, 

 the other the cornu, of the uterus. Neither does an examination per 

 rectum or vatjinani art'ord any certain indication of multiple gestation ; 

 as the number of young, supposing there are more than one, cannot be 

 sufficiently distinguished. 



Auscultation, if it could be successfully applied to the larger animals 

 — which are usually uniparous — would doubtless greatly aid in diagnos- 

 ing whether a gestation was single or multiple. The distinct pulsation 

 of the foetal hearts, especially if at a distance from each other, and if 

 the number of pulsations were ditTt-rent in the respective situations, 

 should be conclusive proof of multiple pregnancy. It would, of course, 

 b<' important to note the different situations of the pulsations, as the 

 action of the fci-tal hearts might be at times synchronous. Care would 

 also have to be observed not to confound tlie beating of the maternal 

 heart with that of the fditus. 



Wolffian bodi(«, are to be regarded aa rudiments of testicles cannot be determined, but 

 he admits that there is much in favour of such a view. The general re«tj!t of hii« 

 examination, which is in >;reat measure corroborative of former ((b^ervations, Mullcr 

 i,'i ves as follows : (1) From a practical point <»f view, female twin f'alves should never be 

 used for breeding purpo.ses, because they are generidly barren in consequence of mal- 

 flevelopment of the internal genital ori;ans. Kxceptinns to this rule are few and far 

 between : one such is recorded in Krarf't's JoHninl a<t having been noticed in 187.1. 

 (-) The cau?e of such sterility depends on an arrested development of the genital glands 

 in the earliest stage of their development from the Wolffian bodies, at which jKiriod the 

 sex is indifferent. The view that the incomplete female is really a m.ile not fully 

 developed, is not supported by the two cases under notice. Neither can it be assumed 

 with certainty that it is a hermaphrodite, although there are some grounds for justification 

 of the latter opinion. 



