The Common Farm Operations. 197 



etc., is dangerous, as these materials often contain germs 

 of various diseases, e. g., lockjaw (tetanus). Hot water 

 (above 110 F. ) or ice cold water will also stop bleeding, 

 warm water encourages it. The hands should be cleaned 

 and dipped frequently in the antiseptic solution when 

 dressing a wound. Stitches are not used as frequently 

 as formerly in wounds of animals, the powerful muscular 

 contraction tends to tear them out, in cases of severe 

 wounds the veterinarian should be called. The use of 

 such irritants as acids, turpentine, salt, etc., serve no 

 useful purpose on a fresh wound when compared with 

 the pain caused, such materials really tend to hinder and 

 thus prevent rapid healing, their use is also liable to re- 

 sult in permanent scars or blemishes. 



Another class of wounds to deal with are those known 

 as fractures (breaks), they occur in hard structures, such 

 as bone, differing from those already spoken of, which 

 are of soft tissues. 



Fractures require expert dressing and the application 

 of bandages and splints in the larger animals; in calves, 

 lambs, pigs and poultry the stockman can with little 

 trouble bind up the broken part and save loss. Frac- 

 tures (breaks) are of various kinds and vary greatly in 

 their seriousness; generally speaking, if the ends of the 

 bones extend through the skin, the case is not worth 

 bothering with. Fractures may be straight across a bone, 

 on the slant (obliquely), or lengthwise; if the bone is 

 broken, without external wound, it is termed a simple 

 fracture; if the broken ends do communicate with an ex- 

 ternal wound we have the compound fracture; if the bone 

 is broken in small pieces the fracture is known as com- 



