116 DISEASES OF CATTLE. 



catheter to draw off the urine, yet by extending the penis out of its 

 sheath the bend is effaced, and a small gum-elastic catheter, not over 

 one- fourth of an inch in diameter, may with care be passed into the 

 bladder. In the cow the urethra is very short, opening in the median 

 line on the floor of the vulva about 4 inches in front of its external ori- 

 fice. Even in the cow, however, the passing of a catheter is a matter 

 of no little difficulty, the opening of the urethra being very narrow 

 and encircled by the projecting membranous and rigid margins, and on 

 each side of the opening is a blind pouch (canal of Gartner) into which 

 the catheter will almost invariably find its way. In both male and 

 female, therefore, the passage of a catheter is an operation which 

 demands special skill. 



General symptoms of urinary disorders. — These are not so promi- 

 nent in cattle as in horses, yet when present they are of a similar kind. 

 There is a stiff or straddling gait with the hind limbs and some diffi- 

 culty in turning or in lying down and rising, the act drawing forth 

 a groan. The frequent passage of urine in driblets, the continuous 

 escape of the urine in drops, the sudden arrest of the flow when in 

 full stream, the rhythmic contraction of the muscles under the anus 

 without any flow resulting, the swelling of the sheath, the collection 

 of hard, gritty masses on the hair surrounding the orifice of the sheath, 

 the occurrence of dropsies in the limbs, under the chest or belly, or 

 in either of these cavities, and finally the appearance of nervous 

 stupor, may indicate serious disorder of the urinary organs. The 

 condition of the urine passed may likewise lead to suspicion. It may 

 be white, from crystallized carbonate of lime ; brown, red, or even 

 black, from the presence of blood or blood-coloring matter; yellow, 

 from biliary coloring matter; it may be frothy, from contained albu- 

 men; cloudy, from phosphates; glairy, from pus; or it may show 

 gritty masses, from gravel. In many cases of urinary disorder in the 

 ox, however, the symptoms are by no means prominent, and unless 

 special examination is made of the loins, the bladder, and the urine 

 the true nature of the malady may be overlooked. 



DIURESIS (POLYURIA, DIABETES INSIPIDUS, EXCESSIVE SECRETION OP 



URINE). 



A secretion of urine in excess of the normal amount may be looked 

 on as disease, even if the result does not lead to immediate loss of 

 condition. Cattle fed on distillery swill are striking examples of such 

 excess caused by the enormous consumption of a liquid food, which 

 nourishes and fattens in spite of the diuresis; but the condition is 

 unwholesome, and cattle that have passed four or five months in a 

 swill stable have fatty livers and kidneys, and never again do well on 

 ordinary food. Diuresis may further occur from increase of blood 

 pressure in the kidneys (diseases of the heart or lungs which hinder 

 the onward passage of the blood, the eating of digitalis, English broom, 



