260 



A DICTIONARY. 



be discovered by a patient and careful ex- 

 amination. A slight degree of lameness 

 often passes unnoticed ; or, if it be observed, 

 the owner too often persuades himself that 

 it will pass off. It is always the most pru- 

 dent plan to lay up a horse the moment he 

 is observed to be lame, and submit to the 

 inconvenience of doing without his services 

 until he is cured. When lameness is caused 

 by wounds or bruises, the injured part is 

 generally discovered without difficulty, 

 though pricking, in shoeing, is not always 

 so easily seen. All lameness from injuries 

 within the hoof is often detected with diffi- 

 culty. Slight lameness is most readily seen 

 by making the horse trot gently, without 

 giving any support to the head by the bridle 

 or halter, and without urging him with the 

 whip : the lameness is then seen by his 

 dropping harder and dwelling longer on the 

 sound leg than on the lame one, in order to 

 favor the latter ; and this, when the lame- 

 ness is at all considerable, is attended with 

 a corresponding motion of the head, which 

 drops a little whenever he steps on the sound 

 limb. An experienced observer can at any 

 time distinguish lameness merely by seeing 

 a horse walk out of the stable. It often hap- 

 pens, in very severe lameness of one or both 

 fore feet, that the horse, Avhen led out, wiU 

 appear to be lame in the hind feet also : this 

 is occasioned by the animal endeavoring to 

 favor the fore foot or feet by throwing the 

 bulk of his weight on the hind legs. In all 

 cases of lameness, unless the cause is so evi- 

 dent as to render it unnecessary, it is proper 

 to examine the foot carefully in the first 

 place ; and it should never be forgotten that 

 swelling, heat, and tenderness of the fetlock 

 joint, or even the leg, may arise from an in- 

 jury to the foot. In lameness of the foot, 

 the affected foot wiU be warmer than the 

 other. Considerable relief may almost 

 always be afforded in foot lameness by keep- 

 ing the feet moist, or pasturing the animal 

 in soft meadow land, or by stopping the 

 bottoms of the feet with a wet sponge, by 

 paring them when necessary. "We some- 

 times find, on examining a lame foot, that 

 there is an enlargement immediately above 



the coronet, at the heels and quarters, and that 

 this enlargement feels hard and bony. This 

 is termed ossification of the lateral carti- 

 lages ; it is more distinctly seen by compar- 

 ing it with a sound foot. In lameness of 

 the foot, there is sometimes a crack in the 

 horn towards the heels, extending from the 

 coronet a little way down the hoof: this 

 happens sometimes after a horse has been 

 travelling. This is named a sand-crack. 

 When the seat of lameness is in the fetlock 

 joint, some degree of heat or swelling will 

 be perceived. As the horse stands, he will 

 be observed to favor the joint. Lameness 

 of the back, sinews, or flexor tendons of the 

 leg, is easily perceived by the heat and ten- 

 derness of the part. 



Lampas. — A swelling and sometimes ten- 

 derness of the roof of the mouth, adjoining 

 the front teeth. When the part is tender, 

 and prevents the horse from feeding, he 

 should be fed on scalded shorts for a few 

 days ; during that time, the mouth may be 

 washed twice a day with an infusion of 

 powdered bayberry bark. Two ounces of 

 bark may be infused in one quart of boiling 

 water : after macerating for one hour, it will 

 be fit for use. 



Larynx. — The upper part of the trachea 

 or windpipe. 



Lax. — (See Scouring.) 



Laxative. — Medicines that purge gen- 

 tly ; the most simple and safe is aloes. 



Ligaments are strong, elastic membranes, 

 connecting the extremities of the movable 

 bones. 



Ligature. — Twine, thread, or sUlc, 

 waxed, for the purpose of tying arteries, 

 veins, or other parts. 



Lights. — A common name for lungs. 



Lily. — The root of the white lily is fre- 

 quently used for poulticing. 



Linseed, or Flaxseed. — An excellent 

 emollient drink is made by pouring two 

 quarts of boiling water on four ounces of 

 linseed, and suffering it to stand in a warm 

 place for a short time. It is useful in cold, 

 catarrh, and in diseases of the kidneys or 

 bladder. 



Liquorice. — The root, dried and pow- 



