VARIATIONS IN FOETAL WEIGHT AND VASCULAR SUPPLY ALONG THE UTERINE HORN OF THE PIG

Abstract

Summary. Weights of foetuses in ninety pigs were studied in relation to their positions in the uterine horn. Position had no effect when there were some five or fewer foetuses in the horn but as the number increased, those at the ends tended to have an increasing advantage over those in the middle and the foetus at the ovarian end tended to have an increasing advantage over the foetus at the cervical end. Percentage differences in foetal weight were substantially constant over the period of the pregnancy studied, namely 31 to 113 days after conception. Differences in foetal weight between positions could not be explained in terms of the uterine vascular architecture.