1 30 EXAMINA TION OF HORSES 



You will hear numbers say they actually prefer a horse 

 that has been fired, especially one who has been fired 

 on the hock, because, they say, he is not so likely to fall 

 lame. So far as I have observed, such is really the case. 

 It may be from either or both of two causes, — either 

 that the irritation set up hastens the consolidation of 

 the bones involved in spavin, or that fired parts act as 

 a bandage to the parts beneath. I have no doubt the 

 former is the reason in the case of spavin, but most 

 undoubtedly the latter is the reason in the case of 

 injured back tendons of either fore or hind legs, inas- 

 much as firing, if sufficiently deep, causes more or less 

 destruction of the highly elastic subcutaneous tissue, 

 which is replaced by white fibrous (inelastic) tissue. 

 You know how inpossible it is to " skin " such a part 

 without cutting into the skin on the one hand, or scoop- 

 ing out pieces of the tissue to which the skin is, as it 

 were, glued, on the other. 



I have perhaps encroached too much on your time 

 by entering, it may be, at too great a length on the two 

 subjects of ''causticking" and "firing; " but I trust that 

 you will be the better able to estimate each at its just 

 value, remembering that a horse may be and often is 

 even technically as well as practically sound, who has 

 been the subject of either operation. 



