44-8 HANDY-BOOK OF HUSBANDRY. 



" is not so much as a pound or pint to a human being. In cases 

 ** of acute inflammation, a horse may be bled eight or ten quarts 

 *'at a time, or until he lies down, with advantage; and if the 

 " symptoms do not abate, may be bled again at intervals of an 

 *' hour or two, to an extent which a person, ignorant how rapidly 

 "blood is made, would suppose must drain the animal of his life. 

 " Purgatives, in our opinion, on the other hand, should be very 

 " cautiously administered ; never when there is any inflammation 

 " of the lungs or bowels ; very rarely when there is any internal 

 " inflammation ; and when given, should never, or hardly ever, in 

 " our judgment, exceed five drams of new Barbadoes aloes. Injec- 

 " tions, diet, and mashes are vastly superior, for general practice, 

 " to acute purgatives, horses being extremely liable to super-pur- 

 " gation, and many valuable animals being lost in consequence of it 

 "yearly. 



" The first branch of the subject on which we propose to treat, 

 " is the early application of remedies to horses suddenly seized 

 " with violent and acute diseases, anticipatory to the calling in of 

 " regular medical assistance. It is highly necessary that this should 

 " be done as soon as the horse is known to be seized, and the 

 " nature of his seizure is fully ascertained, since, in several of the 

 " diseases to which the horse is most liable, the increase of the 

 " malady is so rapid that, if early steps bq not taken to relieve the 

 " sufferer, the evil becomes so firmly seated that the remedy, if 

 " long delayed, comes too late, and an animal is lost, which, by 

 " timely assistance, might have easily been preserved. These 

 " ailments, especially, are of common occurrence with the horse, 

 " of highly dangerous character, and so rapid in their development 

 " and increase, that if steps be not taken for their relief almost 

 " immediately after their commencement, all treatment will be 

 *' useless ; — these are spasmodic colic, inflammation of the bowels, 

 "and inflammation of the lungs." 



Mr. Youatt, in his excellent work on the horse, says of colic, — 



" There is often not the slightest warning. The horse begins 



" to shift his posture, look round at his flanks, paw violently, strike 



" his belly with his feet, lie down, roll, and that frequently on his 



