74 MODERN FARRIER. 



48. Wens. 



Symptoms. — Wens are usually a small, spongy^ 

 fleshy substance, contained in a bag, and grow out 

 of various parts of the body. They are seldom 

 painful, grow very slowly, and, though a deformity, 

 very seldom causes lameness. Swellings which ap- 

 pear on the cap of the hock, and also oii the point 

 of the elbow, are generally classed amongst wens. 



Causes. — These tumours generally arise from ac- 

 cidents ; but when they appear on both heels or el- 

 bows, they seem to be a spontaneous production. 



Cure. — When wens are produced by blows and 

 contusions, it will in general be sufficient to wash 

 the part frequently with vinegar and water ; but 

 when they are likely to suppurate, warm and soft- 

 ening fomentations ai"e proper. Should the thick- 

 ness of the skin seem to retard their breaking, and 

 they appear ftdl of matter, it v»'ill be necessary to 

 open them on one side with a lancet, after which 

 apply some digestive ointment. 



Mr. Gibson, in treating of wens, says, 'I was once 

 concerned in the case of a very fine horse that had a 

 large wen on the lower part of his neck, near the 

 windpipe, which was cut off with a sharp instru- 

 ment. It grew from a small beginning, not bigger 

 than a walnut, to the bulk of a middle-sized melon, 

 without pain or inflammation ; but at last it became 

 troublesome, and affected the motion of his should- 

 ders. This substance, when it was cut off", appeared 

 to be no other than a mass of fungous flesh, a little 

 variegated in its colour, and probably proceeded 

 from a rupture of some very small twigs of the ju- 

 gular arteries, which, being enlarged by a continual 

 afflux of the blood, caused so great an effusion of 

 blood from several orifices, that it was with difiiculty 

 stopped by the application of the actual cautery. 

 When wens are pendulous (he observes) and hang 



