BRAXY. 



437 



a forward direction, implicating the other stomachs, or backward in- 

 vadmg the small or both small and large intestines. The other parts of 

 the mtestmal canal are congested. The pleural and peritoneal cavities 

 contam a little serous fluid. The blood is dark in colour, but may be 

 clotted ; the spleen is at times somewhat swollen, at others normal. The 

 liver is usually light-coloured, soft, and degenerated; occasionally this 

 degenerative process is extremely marked, but due allowance should 

 always be made for post-mortem change. The kidneys may appear 

 degenerated ; in many cases they are enlarged and soft, or almost fluid 



Pig. 20-5. — The shaded areas of the above map indicate the distribution of braxy. 



in consistence. The carcase decomposes very rapidly; within a short 

 time of death the belly is distended with gas, the rectum protrudes at 

 the anus; the skin assumes a bluish colour in places, and the wool falls 

 out ; sometimes the skin bursts, revealing the presence in the sub- 

 cutaneous tissue of a sero-hfemorrhagic fluid. 



Braxy is, then, a primary violent hfemorrhagic inflammation of the 

 abomasum, with or without secondary general infection. 



From careful study it seems quite certain that the Scottish " braxy ' 

 is identical with the Norwegian and Icelandic " bradsot " ; it appears at 



