DISEASES OF THE FETLOCK, ANKLE, AND FOOT. 



By A. A. HdicuMUK. 1 >. N. S.. 



Vetvihiiii)! I iisptttor. Itnnuit nf Anininl I ml iislni. 



ANATOMICAL REVIEW OF THE FOOT. 



In a dosciiption M the foot of tlu' lioi'so it is cnstomarv t(> includo 

 only the hoof and its contents, yet, iroiii a /oolofficiil standpoint, th(^ 

 foot includes all the leir from the knee and the hock down. 



The foot of the horse is undouhtedly the most important i)ait of 

 the animal, so far as veterinary surp:ery is concerned, for the reason 

 that it is subject to so many injuries and diseases which in part or 

 in whole render the patit>nt unfit for the lahoi" demanded of him. 

 The old aphorism " no foot no hoi-se " is as true to-day as when til^st 

 expre.s.sed ; in fact, domestication, coupled with the multijilied uses 

 to which the animal is put. and the constant reproduction of heredi- 

 taiy defects and tendencies, has largely transformed the ancient 

 " companion of the wind " into a very cotnmon piece of machinery 

 which is often out of repaii-. and at l)0sst is i)ut shortlived in its us«'- 

 fulness. 



Since the value of the horse depends laigely or even entirely uj)on 

 his ability to labor, it is essential that his or«rans of locomotion l>e 

 kept sound. To accomplish this end it is nece^ssary not only to know 

 how to cure all diseases to which these ore:rtns are liable but, l>etter 

 still, how to prevent them. 



An impoi-tant prerecjuisite to the detection and cure of disease is a 

 knowledLTe of the con^tru(■tion and function of tlu' ]iart-s which riiav 

 i)e involved in the diseased pr(K'ess. Hence, first of all. the anatomical 

 structui'es must be understood. (See also p. 583.) 



The bones of the fetlock and foot constitute the skeleton o!i which 

 the other .structures are built and compi*ise the lowt>r end of the can 

 non bone (the metacarpus in the fore leg, the metntarsus in the iiind 

 leg), the two sesamoids, the large pasteiii or os sutiVaginis. the small 

 pastern or coronet, the small sesamoid or navicuhir bone, and the 

 coffin bone or os pedis. (Plate XXXIV, fig. 3.) 



The cannon bone extends from the knee or ho<k to the lethnk. is 

 cylindrical in shape, and .stands neaily or <iuite peri)endictdar. 



The sesamoids occur in pairs, are small, shaped like a three-faced 

 pyramid, and are set behind the fetlock joint, at the upper end of tlu' 

 large pastern, with the basr of the pyramid down. 



395 



