THE 
VETERINARIAN. 
VOL. XLV. ,r A v -inryn Fourth Series. 
No.533. MAY, 1872. No. 209. 
Communications and Cases. 
QUINTUPLE GESTATION IN THE COW. 
By G. Fleming, M.H.C.V.S., Royal Engineers. 
The singular case of plurality of foetuses in a cow, recorded 
by Mr. Litt, of Shrewsbury, in last month’s Veterinarian , 
deserves more than a passing notice, from its great rarity 
and physiological value. The cow, a uniparous animal like the 
sheep, not unfrequently gives birth to twins, but there its pro¬ 
lificacy generally ends ; whereas the latter animal may bring 
forth as many as seven perfect lambs at one birth. Certainly, 
instances are recorded in which the cow has produced three, 
and even four calves, though these occurrences are so infre¬ 
quent that it requires much patience to seek for them in the 
different veterinary periodicals. Having had occasion recently 
to investigate these cases of multiple gestation in uniparous 
animals, I was delighted to find Mr. Litt’s extraordinary 
relation, as it increases the number of quintuple gestations 
in the cow I have been able to gather, after a careful and 
extensive research, to two . The other case is more interesting 
than that now referred to, inasmuch as the calves were born 
alive, and lived for some time. In an anatomical point of view, 
it is a pity Mr. Litt did not inform us as to the position the 
foetuses occupied in the uterus, and how the foetal envelopes 
were arranged. Perhaps he may yet be able to furnish us with 
these always valuable details—useful no less to the anatomist, 
physiologist, and embryologist, than to the accoucheur. 
The first case mentioned is reported by Professor Giuseppe 
XLV. 19 
