FRACTURE OF THE LOWER PASTERN. 341 



when he has been incautiously permitted to run down a steep 

 descent — and has occurred when a horse has been travelling on 

 the best road, and at no great pace. 



The existence of fracture in this bone is, generally speaking, 

 easily detected. The injured foot is, as lightly as possible, per- 

 mitted to come in contact with the ground. As little weight as 

 may be is thrown on it, or, if the animal is compelled to use it, 

 the fetlock is bent down nearly to the ground, and the toe isf 

 turned upward. If the foot is turned sideways a crackling 

 sound is generally heard, though this is not always the case. 



The probability of success in the treatment of this fracture, 

 depends on its being a simple or compound one. If it runs 

 laterally across the bgne, it may be readily and successfully 

 treated — if it extends to the joints above and below, it will 

 probably terminate in anchylosis (bony union), and if the bone 

 is shivered, as it too frequently is, into various parts, there would 

 scarcely seem the possibility of a successful treatment of the 

 case. The instances, however, are numerous in which the case 

 terminates successfully. Hurtrel d'Arboval recommends that a 

 bandage steeped in some adhesive matter should be applied from 

 the coronet to the middle of the leg. On this some wet paste- 

 board is to be moulded, enveloped afterwards in a linen ban- 

 dage. A small splint is now to be applied before and behind 

 and on each side, and the hollow places are filled with tow, in 

 order to give them an equal bearing. If this does not appear 

 to be sufficiently secure, other splints, thicker and broader, are 

 placed over those extending to the knee or the hock. 



The case related by M. Levrat was treated in this way. It 

 will be comparatively seldom that it will be necessary to suspend 

 the patient. The animal, under the treatment of M. Levrat, 

 kept his foot in the air for nearly three weeks. At the end of 

 that period he now and then tried to rest his toe on the litter. 

 Six weeks after the accident, he began to throw some weight on 

 the foot ; and a few days afterwards he was able to go to a pond, 

 about fifty paces from his stable, and where, of his own accord, 

 he took a foot-bath for nearly an hour at a time. At the expir- 

 ation of another month he was mounted, and went well at a 

 walking pace ; he was, however, still lame when he was trotted. 



Fracture of the loavePv. pastern. — Although this bone is 

 much shorter than the upper pastern, there are several instances 

 of fracture of it. The fractures of this bone are commonly 

 longitudinal, and often extend from the larger pastern to the 

 coffin-bone. It is frequently splintered, the splinters takmir this 

 longitudinal direction. Hutrel d'Arboval relates three cases of 

 this, and in one of them the bone was splintered into four pieces. 

 Ir several instances, however, this bone has been separated into 



