TREATMENT OF WOUNDS 71 



operations for ten days to two weeks pending an im- 

 provement of the patient. The abscesses were lanced 

 and irrigated and the patient, previously working per- 

 haps, was rested, groomed, fed well, and medicated until 

 a better state of health was induced. The loss in time in 

 such cases turns to actual gain in the more speedy recov- 

 ery — that is, in the more rapid healing of the wound. 

 The hairy, pot-bellied colt, that has subsisted on rough- 

 age all winter, should get the invigorating effect of two 

 weeks at pasture before it is castrated, and like precau- 

 tions should be taken throughout the whole category of 

 surgical operations. 



In emergency cases the weak require, as a remedy 

 against their enfeebled state, a much more painstaking 

 method of procedure to prevent infection, more careful 

 anesthesia, and a more constant and diligent after-care. 

 It is here that vaccines find their greatest usefulness in 

 animal surgery. Although general systemic enfeeble- 

 ment does not always indicate a low opsonic index, our 

 observations lead to the conclusion that vaccines wield 

 a powerful influence for good in the great majority of 

 cases of this type. 



The administration of iron, quinin, and potassium iodid 

 to encourage a better behavior of wounds has many 

 defenders, and no doubt serves as a more or less valu- 

 able adjunct to the feeding, bedding, grooming, and 

 general care of weak surgical subjects. 



Another point in the preoperative attention of pa« 

 tients is the care of the feet. Any horse about to be 

 subjected to a surgical operation, whether the wound is 

 intentional or accidental, should be given the benefit of 

 good "underpinning." The shoes should be removed 

 and the feet pared and then reshod, so as to give the 

 most comfort. This is particularly important when the 

 standing position must be maintained day after day. 



