698 
FIBRINOUS TUMOUR SITUATED IN THE PELVIC 
CAVITY OF AN OX. 
By E. J. Bovett, M.R.C.V.S., Bridgewater. 
I have forwarded, for your inspection, the rectum of a 
three-year old steer. The history of the case is as follows: 
Early on Sunday morning, September 9th, I was called to see 
a steer, the property of Mr. Thomas Danger, of Huntstile, the 
messenger informing me that the animal was supposed to have 
eaten yew, and to be poisoned, as he had got into a wood w here 
there w 7 as plenty of this shrub. He was first taken ill on Friday, 
when a neighbouring cow’-leech, passing by, was called in, 
and gave some medicine, both on that and the following day. 
The owner also, as the bowels were constipated, gave a 
pint of castor oil and a pound of salts in tw r o doses in the 
afternoon and evening of Saturday. On my arrival I found 
the steer lying down and breathing heavily, and bending 
himself similar to a cow 7 in parturition. A small quantity of 
faeces had passed, which were, however, chiefly of a mucous 
character, containing little egesta. The horns, ears, and 
mouth w 7 ere hot, as in ordinary sympathetic fever. I w r as 
informed that the animal had urinated freely just before my 
arrival, or I should have suspected the neck of the bladder 
to have been the seat of disease. He rose without any dif¬ 
ficulty and w alked out of his stall in an ordinary manner. 
He also appeared hungry, as he w 7 ould crop the grass, and 
eat it with apparent relish, between the “ bendings, 55 which 
were very frequent. 
I introduced my hand into the rectum, when he imme¬ 
diately threw T himself down, but soon rose again, and I was 
enabled to pass my hand in a little further. On doing this, 
I felt that the rectum was somewhat diminished in size, 
and there was some blood-stained mucus also in the intestine. 
At first I fancied that “ gut-tie 55 must be the cause of his 
suffering, but then there was an absence of nearly all the 
symptoms described by my friend Vine and others, who have 
written on that peculiar form of strangulation of the intes¬ 
tines. Abandoning this idea, I administered some more 
aperient medicine, and injected warm water up the rectum, 
which I ordered to be frequently repeated, until the bowels 
should respond. Antispasmodics w 7 ere also administered. 
5 p.m.—The patient has voided a fair quantity of faeces, in 
