304 INFLAMMATION OF THE FOOT. 



jnseed meal, made very soft, should cover the whole of the foot 

 and pastern, and be frequently renewed, which will promote eva 

 poration from the neighboring parts, and possibly through the 

 pores of the hoof, nnd by softening and rendering supple the hoof, 

 will relieve its painful pressure on the swelled and tender parts 

 beneath. More fully to accomplish this last purpose, the shoe 

 should be removed, tho sole pared as thin as possible, and the 

 crust, and particularly the quarters, well rasped. All this must 

 be done gently, and with a great deal of patience, for the poor ani- 

 mal can scarcely bear his feet to be meddled with. There used 

 to be occasional doubt as to the administration of physic, Irom fear 

 of metastasis (shilting) of inflammation which has sometimes oc- 

 curred, and been generally fatal. When, however, there is so 

 much danger of losing the patient from the original attack, we 

 nmst run the risk of the other. Sedative and cooling medicines 

 should be diligently administered, consisting of digitalis, nitre, 

 and emetic tartar. 



If no amendment is observed, three quarts of blood should be 

 taken from each foot on the following day. In extreme cases, a 

 third bleeding of two quarts may be justifiable, and, instead of 

 the poultice, clothes kept wet with water in which nitre has been 

 dissolved mvinediately before, and in the proportion of an ounce 

 of nitre to a pound of water, may be wrapped round the feet. 

 About the third day a blister may be tried, taking in the whole 

 of the pastern and the coronet ; but a cradle miust previously be 

 put on the neck of the horse, and the feet must be covered after 

 the blister, or they will probably be sadly blemished. The horse 

 should be kept on mash diet, unless green meat can be procured 

 for him ; and even that should not be given too liberally, nor 

 should he, in the slightest degree, be coaxed to eat. When he 

 appears to be recovering, his getting on his feet should not be hur- 

 ried. It should be left perfectly to his own discretion ; nor should 

 even walking exercise be permitted until he stands firm on his 

 feet. When that is the case, and the season will permit, two 

 months' run at grass will be very serviceable. 



It is not always, however, or often, that inflammation of the 

 feet is thus easily subdued ; and, if it is subdued, it sometimes 

 leaves after it some fearful consequences. The loss of the hoof is 

 not an unfrequent one. About six or seven days from the first 

 attack, a slight separation will begin to appear between the 

 coronet and the hoof. This should be carefully attended to, for 

 the separated horn will never again unite with the parts beneath, 

 but the disunion will extend, and the hoof will be lost. It is 

 true that a ncAV hoof will be formed, but it will be smaller in 

 size and weaker than the first, and will rarely stand hard work. 

 When this separation is observed, it will be a malter of calcula- 



