Cut out the aperture with a fine shoeing knife 

 and remove all particles that have been forced 

 into it ; dress the wound carefully and put in a 

 few drops of spirits of turpentine and cover 

 with antiseptic cotton or gauze ; put a pad — 

 leather or aluminum — on the shoe and fasten 

 the shoe on with only two or three nails, using 

 the old nail holes in the wall so you can remove 

 it easily every twenty-four hours to dress. In 

 cases of puncture it is always advisable to call 

 a qualified veterinary surgeon, as there is al- 

 ways danger of tetanus — lockjaw — developing. 



Oftentimes a horse will pull a shoe partly ofiF 

 and step back on it ; the nails happen to be bent 

 in a little, and when he puts his w^eight on the 

 foot the nails are driven up into the sensitive 

 part of the foot inside the wall. He won't go 

 far ; he may fall down ; he will certainly stop 

 unless he is in a race and this seldom happens 

 in a contest. It usually occurs when you are 

 leading him or jogging him. Pull the shoe ofif 

 as quickly as possible^ examine the nails and 

 note the direction in which they are bent, and 

 if the clinches are on them or have been broken 

 off, get the foot into a tub of hot water at once, 

 and after ten minutes of soaking, to relieve 

 the pain, open the holes made by the nails, 

 dress with any strong antiseptic remedy you 

 have at hand and then do up in a hot flaxseed 

 poultice, replacing it in four hours with another 

 one. If no complications set in the 'horse will 

 be ready for work again in a couple of days, if 

 you will see to it that no pressure is allowed on 

 that part of the sole or foot where the injury is 

 or was, 



47 



