The following are two analyses, by Von Bibra, of the urine of oxen obtained at different times. The animals had been fed on clover and hay : Water - - - 912'01 92311 Urea- - 1011 Hippuric acid - - 5.55 12.00 Mucus - - - 007 0.06 Alcoholic extract - 1411 1010 Watery extract - - 22.48 16.43 Soluble salts - - 21'42 25.77 Insoluble salts - - P50 2'22 It will be perceived that the insoluble salts or earthy carbonates are in small proportion in the urine of oxen, while in the urine of horses they are present in about equal pro portion to the alkaline carbonates. The urine of a cow, which was submitted to analysis by Boussingault, gave a result varying consider ably from that obtained by Von Bibra from the urine of oxen, as above quoted. It yielded in 1000 parts : Water - - - - - 921'32 Urea - - - - 18.48 Hippurate of potassa - - 16.51 Lactate of potassa - - - 17.16 Bicarbonate of potassa - - 16.12 Carbonate of magnesia - - 4'74 Carbonate of lime - - - 0%55 Sulphate of potassa - 3'60 Chloride of sodium - - P52 Silica, a trace.
Phosphoric acid, none.
The great excess of the earthy salts ob served in the urine of horses, as compared with that of oxen, is a remarkable circum stance, and would appear to be in some way connected with the difference in conformation of the two animals rather than on differences in diet. Thus the conditions alluded to per tained whether the horses were fed on hay and oats, or on trefoil and vetches. The oxen too, the urine of which was examined by Von Bibra, were fed on hay and clover, a diet closely resembling that of the horses ; but the earthy salts were, notwithstanding, found in the urine in very small proportion.
Vogel has examined the urine of the ele phant and the rhinoceros: That of the elephant possessed the following characters : 1. It was turbid, owing to carbonates of lime and magnesia.
2. It contained more urea than the urine of the rhinoceros.
3. No hippuric acid was present.* The urine of the rhinoceros is described as follows : 1. It was turbid, owing to the presence of carbonate of lime, earthy phosphates, silica and peroxide of iron.
2. It gave out the odour of formic acid.
3. It yielded hippuric acid in considerable quantity.
Chevreul examined the urine of the camel.
1. It contained no uric acid.
2. Urea was present in abundance.
3. No phosphates could be detected.
4. The chief constituents, in addition to urea, were chloride of sodium, hippurate of soda, carbonate of soda, sulphate of potassa, carbonate of ammonia, and traces of sulphate of soda and oxide of iron.
Chevreul considers this urine to contain a volatile oil to which it owes its colour, and to which he ascribes the property it possesses of becoming red on the addition of the mi neral acids.
The urine of pigs has been examined by Lassaigne, Van Setten, and Boussingault.
Its specific gravity appears to vary between 1003 and 1013.
Van Setten's analysis is as follows: Water - - - - - 990'028 Urea - - - - - 0'750 Uric acid - - - - 0'195 Watery extractive - - P708 Alcoholic extractive - - 105 Resinous matter - - - 0'425 Albumen and mucus - 0/21 Lactic acid - - - - 0'490 Stearin - - - - 0092 Sugar - - - - 0'375 Phosphate of soda - P376 Sulphate of potassa, chlorides of potassium and sodium - 2'075 Sulphates of lime and magnesia 0'425 Sulphate of ammonia - - 0.196 Chloride of ammonium - - Von Bibra describes the urine of the pig as clear, odourless, and of alkaline re-action. He could not detect uric, hippuric, or benzoic acid in it when operating on three ounces of the fluid ; but he subsequently obtained mi croscopic crystals of hippuric acid. No trace of uric acid could be discovered.
Boussingault could not detect hippuric acid in the urine of a pig fed on potatoes and salt. He varied the diet by the addition of green trefoil, but still he could not discover the acid.
Von Bibra analysed the urine of the goat. He found it alkaline and of pungent odour, of specific gravity 1008 or 1009. The animals had been kept in a stable and fed on bad hay. From two analyses made on 1000 parts, the following results were obtained : Water - - - 980'07 983.99 Urea - - - 3'78 0.76 Hippuric acid - - P25 088 Alcoholic extractive - 4.51 4'66 Watery extractive - 1.00 056 Mucus - - - 0.06 0'05 Soluble salts - - 8'50 80 Insoluble salts - - 0'80 0'40 In this urine, as in that of oxen, the alkaline carbonates greatly predominate over the earthy salts.
According to Vanquelin, the urine of the beaver contains the colouring matter of the bark of the willow, which is the food of the animal. He detected it by using alum as a mordant for pieces of cloth soaked in the urine. He detected the presence of bicar bonates of lime and magnesia, and hippurate of soda. He could not find any phosphates, nor uric acid.
The urine of rabbits and guinea-pigs has an alkaline reaction, and contains alkaline and earthy carbonates. It presents no peculiar qualities.
Von Bibra analysed the urine of the hare, both in summer and in winter. In December he found the urine turbid and alkaline, de positing phosphate of magnesia. In June it was only faintly alkaline. The proportion of earthy phosphates present was more than twice as great in summer as in winter, which Simon remarks upon as probably caused by the great difference in the food of the hare during the two seasons. With respect to his examination of the urines of herbivora, Von Bibra states he obtained in most of them indications of the presence of humic acid, or a substance closely allied to it.