— 896 — 



the hock-joint is completely destro3^ed, stiff, or anchylosed. 

 Shakspeare thus refers to Petruchio's horse: "His horse hipped 

 with an old moth}- saddle, the stirrups of no kindred ; besides 

 possessed with the glanders, and, like to mose in the chine, 

 troubled with the lampas, infected with the fashions, full of wind 

 galls, sped with spavins, raied with the yellows, past cure of the 

 fives, stark spoiled with the staggers, begnawn witli the hots, 

 swayed in the back, and shoulder shotten, ne'er legged before, and 

 with a half-checked bit, and a head stall of sheep's leather." 



(1.) Bog Spavin. — This kind of spavin is situated in front of the 

 hock -joint, and is a soft, fluctuating swelling, which rarely ever 

 causes lameness. It is merely an enlargement or distention of the 

 bursal cavit}^ of the joint, and is filled with the natural fluid of 

 the joint, but increased in quantit}^, and possibly in some cases 

 a little changed in quality also. 



(2.) Blood Spavin. — This is the same as bog spavin, but more 

 extensive, and generally involving the hock-joint on its three 

 sides, front, inside and outside, and giving to the limb a thick, 

 rounded appearance, called thoroush-pin (which see). The swell- 

 ing is soft and fluctuating, and indeed there is no perceptible 

 diff'erence in the nature and result of this form of spavin and the 

 preceding variety, be3^ond it being more extensive, interfering, 

 perhaps, with the flow" of blood in the sub-cutaneous (under the 

 skin) vein, which is seen in front, and partly to the side of the 

 joint, adding very little to the general swelling. 



Causes. Hard work and fast driving, especially when horses 

 are young. 



Treatment. The application of the ointment of red iodide of 

 mercury, in the hands of some, has done much good ; but the 

 enlargement is apt to return when the horse is again put to work, 

 from the fact that more joint-oil or fluid is poured out- Acui)unc- 

 turation, or forcing small steel instruments into the swelling to let 

 out the fluid, is sometimes resorted to, after wdiich a bandage or 

 truss is fitted to the part to press out the fluid tliat remains, and 

 to cause the adhesion of the parts together. The difficult}' in 

 curing soft spavin is the danger of opening into a cavity or joint 

 containing oil (synovia). An old way of treating such disease, is 

 by striking the parts with a mallet, so as to break the skin, that 



