174 DISEASES OF CATTLE. 



TWISTING OF THE NECK OF THE WOMB. 



This is not very uncommon in the cow, the length of the body of 

 the womb and the looseness of the broad ligaments that attach it to 

 the walls of the pelvis favoring the twisting. It is as if one were to 

 take a long sack rather loosely filled at the neck and turn over its 

 closed end, so that its twisting should occur in the neck. The twist 

 may be one-quarter round, so that the upper surface would come to 

 look to one side, or it may be half round, so that what was the upper 

 surface becomes the lower. The relation of the womb of the cow to 

 the upper and right side of the paunch favors the twisting. The 

 paunch occupies the whole left side of the abdomen and extends 

 across its floor to the right side. Its upper surface thus forms an 

 inclined plane, sloping from the left downward and to the right, and 

 on this sloping surface lies the pregnant womb. 



It is easy to see how, in the constant movements 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 movements of the cow, the womb 

 should 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 when 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 for- 

 ward 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 con- 

 trary, 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 downhill, 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 successful, 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 onto 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 



