Management of Normal Parturition 541 



until labor sets in normally. In such cases, however, it would 

 be still more unfortunate to overlook some essential and funda- 

 mental difficulty which is preventing normal labor and which 

 must eventually be overcome in order to save the life of the 

 mother or fetus, .or both. For example, in cases of torsion of 

 the uterus, effective or vigorous labor pains do not occur 

 because the conditions of the uterus are such as to prevent 

 them. It would be exceedingly unfortunate and perilous to the 

 lives of both mother and fetus to pass over this displacement of 

 the uterus without recognition of its character, because a few 

 days or even hours of wait may lead to difficulties which are 

 insurmountable and which could readily have been remedied at 

 the right time. In cases of the bi-cornual development of the 

 fetus in the uterus of the mare, we are not likely to observe very 

 pronounced and vigorous labor pains, and yet each hour that is 

 permitted to pass makes the obstacle which is to be overcome 

 more and more difficult and renders the death of both mother 

 and fetus all the more certain to occur. 



In other cases, as in the cow, where the cervix of the uterus is 

 very long and dense and where its canal dilates very slowly, it 

 is unwise to be hasty when it is possible or probable that, with a 

 little patience and watching, the dilation will occur normally and 

 the fetus be born alive without assistance. On the other hand, 

 it is equally unwise to delay the dilation of the os and the ex- 

 traction of the fetus if the conditions which are present clearly 

 indicate that a natural dilation will not occur. Take, as an 

 example, a case of rigidity or constriction of the cervix uteri 

 observed by us, where a cow was allowed to go for some 10 

 weeks after the normal end of gestation with a fetus imprisoned 

 within the uterus and undergoing putrefaction ; here it is evi- 

 dent that surgical interference should have occurred at the end 

 of gestation, when it was noted that portions of the afterbirth 

 had protruded beyond the vulva. 



So long as the act of parturition seems to be progressing 

 favorably, the caretaker of the animal should not in any way in- 

 terfere. Owners of breeding animals should be carefully in- 

 structed by the. veterinarian as to the dangers of unnecessary 

 interference in cases of normal parturition. If the presence of 

 the owner causes the animal to be nervous or irritable, he should 

 remain at a safe distance until his services are required. On the 



