CHAPTER VI

Making a Post Mortem Examination

Even on the best-managed stock farms some animals do get sick and die. Good care and good nursing may be given, but the sick animal frequently does not recover--death often follows very quickly, before you have an opportunity to observe the development of the disease or to secure the services of a veterinarian. Then, again, after a lingering sickness an animal dies, the disease being known or unknown as the case may be.

In any event, a post-mortem examination is usually desirable, if for no other reason than that it serves to familiarize you with the organs of the body. With a little experience you can become quite proficient in examining a dead animal, and you can soon learn the difference between healthy and unhealthy organs, between diseased and normal tissues and the relation of the internal parts to the whole body. A post-mortem examination thus enables you to know the cause of the disease--where it is located or whether death is the result of accident or of some fatal disturbance of the system.

This examination should be made as soon after death as possible; the longer the delay the greater the changes due to decomposition of the body and its decay back to the original elements from which it has come. Soon after death the stiffening process takes place. This is known as rigor mortis. It may occur within an hour after death and again it may not be complete until twenty-five or thirty hours have passed. Soon after the death stiffening has occurred the tissues soften and decomposition rapidly follows.

FIRST THINGS TO DO

In making a post-mortem examination, in case the animal has not been moved, the position of the body is to be observed. Look all about you. Is there any evidence of a struggle? Does either the body or the ground appear as if spasms have taken place? It may be a case of poisoning. If such be true, the outward appearance may be further substantiated by the internal condition. If inflammation and irritation of the stomach and bowels are observed, this evidence helps to confirm the first observation.

The appearance of the struggle, however, is not enough to establish a case of poisoning; for struggling is a death characteristic of many diseases. Of course, in making this preliminary examination you will note if death could have been the result of some other reason. Has some obstruction had anything to do with the trouble? Maybe the animal has been caught in some way and not being able to move about has starved to death, or maybe some over-exertion has had something to do with the trouble.

Many animals choke, and, not being able to relieve themselves, die. Thousands of farm animals, especially in the West and Southwest, die annually from cold, and not a few from heat. All these things enter into the case and must be considered in reaching a reasonable conclusion.

=Observe the Discharges.=--The next thing to do is to observe the discharges from nose, mouth and other natural openings of the body. External scars and wounds often bear a close relation to the disease and these should be considered in examining the carcass. How do the eyes look? Is there a discharge from the ears? Is the swelling of the abdomen and the bloating more pronounced or different than should be the case in ordinary death? Practice will indicate the lesson that each of these teach.

=Accidents and Injury.=--Farm animals are often killed by stray shots from the guns of hunters and trespassers. A casual observation will indicate if death has been due to this. Again, animals may die from distemper or be eaten up with lice or troubled with itch or mange--you will note these facts as you go along with your work.

In the South, where Texas fever is so prevalent, you should look for ticks, as these bring death to thousands of animals each year. Look for the wee tiny ones--they cause the trouble. When cattle are fairly covered with the large ticks death does not ordinarily follow, since the animal has practically become immune to the poison caused by the tick. These large ticks, however, are filled with blood and nutriment, both obtained from the animal, and hence they may rob the animal of blood and nutriment that it ought to have itself.

=After Removing the Skin.=--The skin is now to be removed, so that the color of the tissues and the nature of the blood may be noted. If the blood be thin or black, with a disagreeable odor, you can expect some germ trouble like blood poisoning or an infectious and contagious disease. If the white tissues are yellow you may be reasonably certain that the liver has not done its work as it would have done had it been in a thoroughly healthy condition.

In removing the skin and making other observations be cautious that you do not prick your fingers with the knife, since you may convey in this way disease to yourself. If by accident a cut or prick is made, cauterize the wound at once, so as to destroy any germs transmitted in this way to you.

EXAMINING THE INTERNAL ORGANS

The next step is to examine the internal organs. To do this, place the animal on its side, remove the upper front leg and the ribs over the chest region. The ribs should be removed as near as possible to the backbone so as to give an unobstructed opening over the important organs. This large opening now allows you free access for examination, and an unimpaired view all about the vital organs, if these are entirely exposed.

While making this opening, observe the watery fluid as it escapes. If a large quantity is present, dropsy or a rupture of the bladder is indicated. If the trouble is due to the latter, an odor in the urine will be quickly noted. When the fluid is red in color, it indicates the presence of blood or some inflammation of the abdomen or the bowels. A large amount of watery fluid in the chest cavity is an indication of some lung trouble; this is further indicated by the tiny attachments running between the lungs and the chest wall.

=Stomach and Intestines.=--If the stomach and intestines be abnormally red, congestion is indicated, and if they be quite dark, even purple in color, you may be sure that some kind of inflammation has been the trouble. You will note also if the stomach is hard and compacted; and, if so, indigestion may have been the trouble. The intestines will also show if they be hard and compacted or in any otherwise bad condition. Pass the hands along to see if the intestines are knotted in any place or if nails are present in the stomach. It is not likely that the nails have been the direct cause of death, but this fact helps to indicate the condition of the digestion trap.

Often hair balls or parasites will be found; either may clog up the channel and may be the immediate cause of death. I have on more than one occasion found that the fuzz of crimson clover, accumulating in the intestines of horses, rolls up into a hard, compacted ball, and not being able to pass out, becomes an obstruction in the passageway and ultimately causes death.

=Kidneys and Bladder.=--The urine tells its tale also; a very disagreeable odor indicates some disturbance; and a brownish or dark-red color may indicate a local disease or a constitutional breakdown. Texas fever in cattle produces a very dark or reddish urine, Azoturia in horses, a similar color. Gallstones or gravel are often found in the bladder, and these frequently cause serious disturbance, if not death.

=Lungs.=--Look the lungs over carefully. See if the natural color is present and if the soft, spongy constituency responds to the same kind of touch as does the thoroughly healthy lung. In health the lungs are a very light pink color. If inflammation has been present this will be indicated by the dark color and the hard density.

When the lung is cut apart with the knife further observation should be made. A marble appearance indicates inflammation and hard lumps or tubercles indicate tuberculosis. These tubercles, when cut open, show pus and a cheeselike material, yellow in color--a true indication of the disease.

=Other Observations.=--You should feel the heart to know if it is natural or not, or to see if any of the valves are broken, or if some inflammation has been back of the trouble. The sides of the open cavity should be observed before leaving. Is it spotted, speckled? Are pink spots seen about the ribs? This is an indication of hog cholera, and in itself may lead to a correct interpretation of the disease.