66 



HORSE— DISEASES AND REMEDIES. 



putting the weight upon them, whilst in 

 mere strains 'they do not, and the ten- 

 dency is to the opposite extreme. Fre- 

 quently after a bad strain of the flexor 

 tendons, the fetlock is " over shot," or 

 beyond the upright, in consequence of 

 Hhe continued flexion of the joint, to pre- 

 vent pressure upon the injured fibres, and 

 m the management this result should be 

 carefully guarded against. The injury 

 is generally confined to the sheath of the 

 tendons, which in most cases gradually 

 puts on inflammatory condition for some 

 time before actual lameness is observed. 

 In bad cases, however, the ligamentous 

 tfibres which are given off by the poster- 

 ior carpal ligament to the flexor tendons 

 .are ruptured, greatly increasing the 

 .amount of inflammation and subsequent 

 loss of strength. In any case the ten- 

 dons feels spongy, and slightly enlarged, 

 and there is more or less soreness on 

 pressure and on being trotted, but in the 

 "latter case exercise removes the tender- 

 ness, and very often temporarily causes 

 an absorption of the effused fluid, which 

 is again deposited during rest. This state 



• of things goes on for a time, the groom 

 doing all in his power to alleviate it by 

 wet bandages, etc., but at last a severe 

 race or gallop brings on an extra amount 



• of inflammation, with or without actual 

 . strain of the fibres of the tendon, and 



then there can be no doubt about the 

 propriety of rest and severe treatment. 

 It often happens that both legs are slight- 

 ly affected, but one being more tender 

 vthan the other, the horse attempts to save 

 at by changing legs, the consequence of 

 •which is that the comparatively sound 

 itendons are strained, and he returns to 

 3iis stable with both legs in a bad state, 

 but with one of them requiring immediate 

 attention. The treatment should be by 

 local bleeding (from the arm, thigh, or 

 toe), followed at first by warm fomenta- 

 tions, and in a few days by cold lotions. 

 A high-heeled shoe (called a patten) 

 should be put on the foot, so as to allow 

 fthe horse to rest part of the weight upon 

 5the heel without distressing the tendon, 

 ;and this will prevent him from over slioot- 

 dng at the fetlock joint, which he will 

 ■otherwise be very apt to do, from con- 

 •stantly balancing his leg on his toe. After 

 :three or four days the hot fomentations 

 will have done what is wanted, and a cold 



lotion may be applied by means of a loose 

 linen bandage. The best is composed as 

 follows : 



Take of Muriate of Ammonia - - 2 oz. 



Vinegar y£ pint. 



Methylated Spirit of Wine - y 2 pint. 



Water 2 quarts. 



Mix. 



With this the bandage should be kept 

 constantly wet, the application being 

 continued for a fortnight at least, dur- 

 ing which time the patient must be 

 cool, by lowering his food, and giving 

 him a dose of physic. At the end of 

 three weeks or a month from the ac- 

 cident, the leg must be either blistered 

 or fired, the choice depending upon the 

 extent of injury, and the desire to avoid 

 a blemish, if such a feeling exists. The 

 former is the more efficacious plan no 

 doubt, but blistering will frequently suffice 

 in mild cases. If, however, the tendons 

 at the end of a month continue greatly 

 enlarged, a cure can hardly be expected 

 without the use of the "irons." 



HORSE, Breaking Down. — Great con- 

 fusion exists among trainers as to the ex- 

 act nature of this accident, which is con- 

 sidered by the veterinary surgeon to 

 consist in an actual rupture of the sus- 

 pensory ligament either above or below 

 the sesamoid bones, which, in fact, merely 

 separate this apparatus of suspension into 

 two portions, just as the patella inter- 

 venes between the rectus femoris and the 

 tibia. Whichever part of the suspensory 

 apparatus is gone (whether the superior 

 or inferior sesamoidal ligament is imma- 

 terial), the fetlock and pastern joints lose 

 their whole inelastic support; and the 

 flexor tendons, together with their liga- 

 mentous fibres which they receive from 

 the carpus, giving way, as they must do, 

 to allow of the accident taking place, the 

 toe is turned up, and the fetlock joint 

 bears upon the ground. This is a com- 

 plete "break down;" but there are many 

 cases in which the destruction of the lig- 

 amentous fibres is not complete, and the 

 joint, though much lowered, does not ac- 

 tually touch the ground. These are still 

 called breaks down, and must be regard- 

 ed as such, and as quite distinct from 

 strains of the flexor tendons. The acci- 

 dent generally occurs in a tired horse, 

 when the flexor muscles do not continue 

 to support the ligaments, from which cir- 



