DISEASES OP THE GENERATIVE ORGANS. 177 



hand introduced into the passages will feel the nose presenting between 

 the fore limbs, and on passing the hand back over the face the hard 

 rounded mass of the cranium is met with. A sharp-pointed knife or 

 a canula and trocar should be introduced in the palm of the hand and 

 pushed into the center of the rounded mass so as to evacuate the water. 

 The hand is now used to press together the hitherto distended but thin 

 and fragile walls, and the calf may be delivered in the natural way. 

 If the enlarged head is turned backward it must still be reached and 

 punctured, after which it must be brought up into position and the 

 calf delivered. 



If the hind feet present first, all may go well until the body and 

 shoulders have passed out, when further progress is suddenly arrested 

 by the great bulk of the head. If possible, the hand, armed with a 

 'knife or trocar, must be passed along the side of the shoulder or neck 

 so as to reach and puncture the distended head. Failing in this, the 

 body may be skinned up from the belly and cut in two at the shoulder 

 or neck, after which the head can easily be reached and punctured. 

 If in such a case the fore limbs have been left in the womb, these may 

 now be brought up into the passage, and when dragged upon the col- 

 lapsed head will follow. 



If the distention is not sufficient to have rendered the bony walls of 

 the cranium thin and fragile, so that they can be compressed with the 

 hand after puncture, a special method may be necessary. A long 

 incision should be made from behind forward in the median line of 

 the cranium with an embryotomy knife (PI. XXI, fig. 1) or with a long 

 embryotome (PL XX, fig. 3). By this means the bones on the one side 

 are completely separated from those on the other and may be made 

 to overlap and perhaps to flatten down. If this fails they may be cut 

 from the head all around the base of the rounded cranial swelling, by 

 means of a guarded chisel (PL XX, fig. 8) and mallet, after which 

 there will be no difficulty in causing them to collapse. 



DROPSY OP THE ABDOMEN OP THE CALP (ASCITES). 



This is less frequent than hydrocephalus, but no less difficult to deal 

 with. With an anterior presentation the fore limbs and head may come 

 away easily enough, but no effort will advance the calf beyond the 

 shoulders. The first thought should be dropsy of the belly, and the 

 oiled hand introduced by the side of the chest will detect the soft and 

 fluctuating yet tense sac of the abdomen. If there is space to allow 

 of the introduction of an embryotomy knife, the abdomen may be 

 freely cut with this, when the fluid will escape into the womb and 

 parturition may proceed naturally. If this can not be effected, a long 

 trocar and canula may be passed between the first two ribs and 

 straight on beneath the spine until it punctures the abdomen. (PL 

 XVIII, fig. 2.) Then the trocar is to be withdrawn and the liquid 



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