230 THE COMMON COLICS OF THE HORSE 



In such circumstances it would not be difficult to 

 understand that the nervous mechanism of the ileum 

 might again be interfered with, and this organ again 

 wrongly direct the food. Or, if not that, then that such 

 portions of food as are passed along through the caecum, 

 by reason of its excessive dryness due to the lack of the 

 normal moisture of the parts, would again fail to pass 

 along to the colon, and instead be tempted to stay and 

 accumulate in the caecum. 



That much of this is theorizing pure and simple I am 

 well aware. Still, the whole thing is intensely interesting, 

 and bristles with problems that require yet a lot of 

 elucidating. It is just as well, therefore, to sometimes 

 give to matters such as these that amount of thought 

 which, although it may afterwards be proved to have 

 been wrongly directed, still helps to clear the air. If it 

 only serves the purpose of inducing others to bring for- 

 ward theories which may prove tenable, then it is not 

 wasted. 



While, then, we conclude this section by again stating 

 that the causes of caecal impaction are obscure, we still 

 hope we have indicated that there is no reason they 

 should not eventually be cleared up. 



Symptoms.^Before the exhibition of pain there is 

 one symptom which, so far as we are able at present to 

 judge, should be of value in assisting the veterinarian in 

 the later stages of the case to determine accurately the 

 case's true nature. Professor Gofton draws attention to 

 it as follows : 



' During the twenty-four hours immediately preceding 

 the appearance of the symptoms of colic, the animals had 

 a mild attack of diarrhoea at work, from which spon- 

 taneous recovery had taken place, and after which there 

 had been normal action of the bowels.' 



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