DISEASES OF THE GENERATIVE ORGANS 67 



animals. It may be due to the ovaries undergoing 

 the same changes as do the testicles of the male 

 under like conditions, or to the closure of the mater- 

 nal passages by the accumulations of fat. In the for- 

 mer case the changes in the ovaries may be so great 

 that they cannot return to the normal, and the sterility 

 is permanent. In the latter it is usually temporary, 

 and the function of the organs can be restored by 

 reducing the condition of the sow. 



Sometimes a rigidity and closure of the opening 

 into the womb prevent the seminal fluid from enter- 

 ing it. Such a condition may occur in a young or 

 aged sow. Inflammation of the lining membrane of 

 the womb and the passages leading to it may also 

 cause barrenness. In this disease a discharge, some- 

 times so slight as to escape notice, occurs, and the 

 male element of the seminal fluid on coming in con- 

 tact with it, is destroyed. In old age both sexes 

 may fail to breed. 



Faulty development of the sexual organs may oc- 

 cur in sows. The uterus may be abnormally srriall, 

 the ovaries rudimentary or undeveloped, and the 

 vagina and os not perforated. Hermaphrodites are 

 sometimes met with in this species of animals. 



Treatment. — Excessive fat is so often a cause of 

 sterihty in both sexes that more attention should be 

 given to preventive than to curative measures. Breed- 

 ing animals should not be fed a ration high in fat- 

 producing elements. Exercise is also an essential 

 part of the care, and should not be overlooked. In 

 other wordsj we cannot expect the parents to be 



