Dystocia Due to Conjoined Twin Monsters in Murrah Buffaloes

inflammatory (Meloxicam, 30 ml) drugs were administered daily for 5 days. Antiseptic dressing of the surgical wound was done on alternate day using povidone iodine solution and sutures were removed on day 14 after the operation. All the treated animals recovered without any complication. After removal, all the conjoined twins were subjected to postmortem examination and it was observed that all were attached with each other at anterior abdomen and in one of the twins the diaphragm was fully developed and the small and large intestines were common to both the foetuses, in all the conjoined monsters. The presence of other organs is described in Table 1. Twins are monozygotic in origin, and are, moreover, due to incomplete division of one embryo into two components usually at the primitive streak development state (Roberts, 2004). Conjoined twins are non-inherited teratologic defects (Shukla et al., 2011). Such abnormal embryonic duplications, resulting in conjoined twins are rare and are not well documented in buffaloes. In this study, it seems to be a non-inherited teratogenic defect of development since there was no history of monster birth Haryana Vet. 52 (December, 2013) pp 139-140