MAMMITIS. 
817 
the base of the teat, relieves the engorgement and acts in the 
same manner as a free incision into an infected punctured 
wound penetrating a firm aponeurosis. Such treatment is of 
course only admissible when hope of recovery of the gland has 
been abandoned. 
When gangrene appears or the life of the animal is threat¬ 
ened, amputation of the gland is indicated, though possibly not 
always imperative, while in chronic induration, with unwieldy 
enlargement of the udder, amputation is frequently advisable 
because of the annoyance of the enlarged gland to the animal 
and the probability of recurrent attacks of inflammation. The 
general rule in reference to amputation would be to operate as 
soon as the gland has passed beyond reasonable prospect for re¬ 
covery and consequent future usefulness, and threatens at the 
same time the animal’s life or its value aside from the affected 
gland. The so-called botrvomycotic mammitis of the mare 
generally demands amputation, as do also the neoplasms in the 
mammae of the bitch. 
This operation, not prominently described in English, is 
simple, comparatively safe, and its results usually highly favor¬ 
able. The arrangement of the glands makes it practicable to 
amputate half or all the gland. In the cow the intimate con¬ 
nection between the two quarters of each side make it imprac¬ 
ticable to amputate a quarter while the septum formed from 
the abdominal tunic between the two halves makes them read¬ 
ily separable. In gangrene prompt operation is demanded, 
while in botryomycosis, induration, etc., delay and deliberate 
preparation may be warranted. 
Technique .—Secure the animal in such a position as to ex¬ 
pose the affected gland freely (dorsal or lateral decubitis), 
anaesthetize the animal, cleanse and disinfect the operative 
area ; if the skin is healthy, preserve enough to cover the wound 
area after operation (if gangrenous remove all gangrenous por¬ 
tions), and make a free incision under antiseptic precautions 
through the skin at the lower part of the udder from before to 
behind, the length of the gland, the line of the incision being 
