REPORTS OF CASES. 
563 
horse was first noticed to be sick at 4 p. m., and I saw him half 
an hour later. At noon he had eaten his usual feed, and was to 
all appearances in perfect health. At the time of my exami¬ 
nation the horse was still hitched with his mate to the 
truck. He presented the following symptoms : Pulse quick and 
weak (70 per minute), mucous membrane of a pale blanched 
color, ears cold and hanging pendulous, head hanging down in 
a listless manner, lower lip pendulous, legs and body very cold, 
temperature in rectum F., respiration slightly above 
normal. Frequent attacks of dyspnoea with reeling gait when 
the animal was made to move backward or his head was raised 
higher than the natural position. Not the slightest abdominal 
pain was shown by the animal, nor was there any perspiration 
present on any part of the body. 
When placed in his stall the horse would eat at times a 
small amount of hay, between the attacks of dyspnoea, which 
would come on every few minutes. 
Diagnosis : Internal haemorrhage from some large organ. 
Prognosis: Death. Took place some time during the night. 
Post-mortem : August 28, 10 A. m. Body well nourished ; 
in fact, very fat. On removing the skin from the body the sub¬ 
cutaneous tissues were seen to be stained a deep yellow color. 
This staining was most apparent over the loins and hind limbs. 
On opening the abdominal cavity a rush of blood took place, 
in such an enormous quantity that it appeared as if the horse 
had bled to death into his own abdomen. This was just what 
had happened. On the lower borders of both the right and left 
lobes of the liver were large rents, extending through the outer 
serous covering, Glisson’s capsule, and nearly through the par¬ 
enchyma of the gland. The entire portion of the liver above 
the rupture was of a dark red color, smooth to the touch and 
very dense in structure the external covering of the gland, 
Glisson’s capsule, was of a tough leathery nature. On section 
of the liver numerous white spots were visible around the mar¬ 
gins of the hepatic lobules, presenting that well-known appear¬ 
ance known as “ nutmeg ’’ liver. The parenchymatous struc¬ 
ture of the liver was soft and easily broken down on pressure 
with the fingers. The portal vein was filled with a gelatinous 
plug of serum. The other bloodvessels of the gland were 
partly filled with coagulated blood of a dark brown color. 
No cicatrix of previous rupture of small bloodvessels or of 
perihepatitis of the organ were to be seen upon the external 
surface of the liver. 
