BROKEN-WIND 197 



racer, are comparatively seldom broken- winded. They are fed, 

 at stated periods, on nutritious food that lies in little compass, and 

 their hours of feeding and of exertion are so arranged that they 

 seldom work on a full stomach. The agricultural horse is toe 

 often fed on the very refuse of the farm, and his hours of feeding, 

 and his hours of work, are frequently irregular ; and the carriage- 

 horse, although fed on more nutritious food, is often summoned 

 to work, by his capricious master, the moment his meal is de- 

 voured. 



A rapid gallop on a full stomach has often produced broken- 

 wind ; but generally, probably, there has been some gradual prep- 

 aration for the result. There has been chronic cough, more than 

 usually disturbed respiration after exercise, &c. Galloping after 

 drinking has been censured as a cause of broken- wind, but it is 

 not half so dangerous as galloping with a stomach distended with 

 food. 



It is said that broken-winded horses are foul feeders, because 

 they devour almost everything that comes in their way, and thus 

 impede the play ol' the lungs ; but there is so much sympathy be- 

 tween the respiratory and digestive systems, that one cannot be 

 much deranged without the other evidently suffering. Flatu- 

 lence, and a depraved appetite, may be the consequence as well 

 as the cause of broken-wnid ; and there is no pathological fact of 

 more frequent occurrence than the co-existence of indigestion and 

 flatulence with broken-wind. 



The narrow-chested horse is more subject to broken- wind than 

 the broader and deeper chested one, for there is not so much room 

 for the lungs to expand when rapid progression requires the full 

 discharge of their function. 



Is broken- wind hereditary ? We believe so. It may be re- 

 ferred to hereditary conformation — to a narrower chest, and more 

 fragile membrane — and predisposition to take on those inflamma- 

 tor}^ diseases which end in broken-Avind ; and the circular chest, 

 which cannot enlarge its capacity when exertion requires it, must 

 render both thick and broken- wind of more probable occurrence. 



Is there any cure for broken- wind ? None I No medical skill 

 can repair the broken-down structure of the lungs. 



If, however, we cannot cure, we may in some degree palliate 

 broken-wnid ; and, first of all, we must attend carefully to the 

 feeding. The food should lie in little compass — plenty of oat? 

 and little hay, but no c\ aff'. Chafl^is particularly objectionable, 

 from the rapidity with -v\ lich it is devoured, and the stomach dis- 

 tended Water should oe given in moderate quantities, but tlie 

 horse should not be suffered to drink as much as he likes until the 

 day's work is over. G reen feed will always be serviceable. Car- 

 rui» are particularly useful. They are readily digested, and ap- 



