16 THE VETERINARY SCIENCE. 



CHAPTER III. 



THE MUSCULAR SYSTEM 



COMMONLY CALLED FLESH. 



"^^USCLES are the chief organs of motion, each one being 

 / ^ 1 separated from the other by a thin, delicate membrane 

 -^ -*- made up of connective tissue, which forms a sheath for 

 the muscle. A muscle is divided into two parts, viz. : muscular 

 and tendinous. The muscular part is the larger of the two and 

 forms the larger portion of it, and is sometimes called the 

 belly of the muscle. It is made of muscular tissue, which has a 

 reddish meaty color. At both ends of the muscle we find a 

 tendinous part, or the hard, white portion of the muscle where it 

 becomes attached to the bone. Every muscle is attached to two 

 or more places on different bones, and, upon their contraction, 

 moves the joints of the body. They are well supplied with nerves, 

 which give strength and feeling, and also well supplied with small 

 blood vessels, from which the muscle is fed. Muscles are found 

 in separate groups, all of which have different actions to perform. 

 There are two kinds of muscles — voluntary and involuntary. The 

 voluntary muscles are under the control of the will of the animal ; 

 example — the muscles of the legs, hip, back, head, and neck. 

 The involuntary muscles are beyond control of the animal, and 

 will act even though the animal were asleep — such as the heart, 

 the large muscular curtain which separates the chest cavity from 

 the abdominal cavity, which is one of the great muscles of 

 breathing ; also the muscles around the chest which assist in 

 breathing. 



Voluntary Muscles are in groups. The first one we call 

 attention to, after removing the skin, is a thin muscle almost 

 entirely covering the body, and is sometimes accidentally removed 

 if not careful in skinning the animal. The action of this muscle is 

 to shake the skin when flies or something bother the horse. At 

 the head we find a group of muscles which assist in chewing, or 

 masticating, the food. Around the throat is another set of 

 muscles, sometimes called the muscles of the gullet, or pharynx, 

 which assist in swallowing. The neck muscles are divided into 

 two groups, one on each side. The action of these are to raise 

 and lower the head, also to turn the neck and head from side to 

 side. The muscles of the back are generally divided inlo two 



