Читать книгу Special Report on Diseases of Cattle - Lowe - Страница 43

Constipation is to be regarded rather as a symptom of disease or of faults in feeding than as a disease in itself. It occurs in almost all general fevers unless the bowels are involved in local disease, in obstructions of all kinds, from feeding on dry, bulky feed, etc. In order to remove the constipation the treatment must be applied to remove the causes which give rise to it. Calves sometimes suffer from constipation immediately after birth when the meconium that accumulates in the bowels before birth is not passed. In such cases, give a rectal injection of warm water and an ounce of castor oil shaken up with an ounce of new milk. The mother's milk is the best food to prevent constipation in the new-born calf, as it contains a large amount of fatty matter which renders it laxative in its effects.

It is usually better to treat habitual constipation by a change of diet than by medicine. Flaxseed is a good feed laxative. If the constipation has lasted long, repeated small doses of purgatives are better than a single large dose.