ON THE DISORDERS OF THE DIGESTIVE APPARATUS. 127 



gentle exercise, and good generous diet; in faGt, this is a 

 disease in the treatment of which everything rests on 

 good nursing. 



We have next to deal with a number of surgical con- 

 ditions, such as are rather frequent in the dog and gene- 

 rally very serious. 



Impaction is denoted by colicky pains, which are some- 

 what more continuous than those of simple colic, and are 

 followed by enteritis : external manipulation or digital 

 rectal exploration may enable us to detect some obstructing 

 mass. Generally obstinate constipation is present, and 

 not unfrequently some vomiting. The offending substance 

 varies in different cases, thus sometimes it is a bone, 

 sometimes a stercoral mass, or an accumulation of vege- 

 table matter, or a stone which has been swallowed. Occa- 

 sionally, perhaps, a calculus ; but this kind of impediment 

 is very rare in the dog, for there are no sacculi of the 

 walls of the bowels of carnivorain which such concretions 

 can seclude themselves and oppose the propulsive move- 

 ments of peristalsis.* In cases where we are sure im- 

 -pactment of some kind is present, and relief does not 

 follow treatment with antispasmodics, laparotomy should 

 be performed before the strength of the animal fails. 

 Dogs are very tolerant of this operation. I have no 

 evidence of Volvulus occurring in the dog — probably the 

 shortness and directness of the bowels has something to 

 do with this. But, on the other hand, Invagination or 

 Intussusception is very frequent, probably because reversed 

 peristalsis can occur as readily in the bowels as in the 

 oesophagus of the dog. Large dogs seem most prone to 

 this derangement, a fact which must be remembered in 

 , dealing with cases of intestinal obstruction in them. The 

 most frequent form of invagination is where the caecum, 

 carrying with it the terminal portion of the ileum, passes 

 into the cavity of the colon. It is really wonderful how 

 little urgency is shown from the symptoms in these cases, 

 and often after death there is no trace of adhesions about 



* Youatt quotes a case in which a sacculus had formed in the wall of the 

 ileum and accommodated the calculus. 



