38 .SPECIAL (JATTLE THEKAPY 



THUROW'S DISEASE 



Thurow's disease is a condition which is seen now 

 and then in cattle and presents itself in the form of 

 a distention of the subcutaneous tissues with gas. It 

 is always a hyper-acute condition and at times accom- 

 panied by most alarming manifestations. 



Thurow's disease most frequently affects cows at the 

 height of the milking period, and apparently the na- 

 ture of the feed has no bearing on the disease. It has 

 been seen in cows on pasture as well as in cows sta- 

 bled and fed only dry feed. 



The symptoms of this disease are always the same 

 and, in our experience, the disease never appears in 

 an atypical form. The history, course and termina- 

 tion are the same in practically every case. 



The cow stops eating suddenly, sometimes abruptly, 

 so that the last mouthful of feed is held between the 

 lips. The animal seems terribly distressed almost in- 

 stantly and stands immovable. Breathing becoraes 

 rapid and labored; salivation and lachrymation be- 

 come marked. Defecation and micturition seem to be 

 performed involuntarily or spontaneously. The ani- 

 mal trembles markedly and soon begins to shift her 

 weight from one leg to the other repeatedly. While 

 the observer is looking on he sees the eow ^'rowing in 

 size; the distention is not confined to any particular 

 region but seems to be general. The sides of the neck, 

 shoulders, thorax, flanks, hips, thighs, udder — in fact, 

 the entire integument — seems to undergo inflation. 



This distention takes place so rapidly that in the 

 course of a half hour the animal bears but little 

 resemblance to a cow. 



If death does not supervene in the course of an 

 hour or two, the swelling begins to recede; in the 



