228 HORSE, SWINE AND POULTRY DISEASES 



placed firmly around the chest, although, while this limits the mo- 

 tion of the ribs, it is apt to render the respiration more labored. 



If there is displacement, with much accompanying pain and 

 evident irritation of the lungs, the fracture must be reduced without 

 delay. The means of effecting this vary according to whether the 

 displacement is outward or inward. In the first case the bone may be 

 straightened by pressure from without, while in the second the end 

 of the bone must be raised by a lever, for the introduction of which 

 a small incision through the skin and intercostal spaces will be 

 necessary. When coaptation has been effected it must be retained 

 by the external application of adhesive mixture, with splints and 

 bandages around the chest. 



WINDGALLS. 



This name is given to the dilated bursse found at the posterior 

 part of the fetlock joint. They have their origin in a dropsical con- 

 dition of the 'bursse of the joint itself, and also of the tendon which 

 slides behind it, and are therefore further known by the designations 

 of articular and tendinous windgalls, or puffs. They appear in the 

 form of soft and somewhat symmetrical tumors, of varying dimen- 

 sions, and generally well defined in their circumference. They are 

 more or less tense, according to the amount of secretion they contain, 

 apparently becoming softer as the foot is raised and the fetlock 

 flexed. Usually they are painless and only cause lameness under 

 certain conditions, as when they begin to develop themselves under 

 the stimulus of inflammatory action, or when large enough to inter- 

 fere with the functions of the tendons, or again where they have 

 undergone certain pathological changes, such as calcification, which 

 is among their tendencies. 



Cause. Windgalls may be attributed to external causes, such as 

 severe labor or strains resulting from heavy pulling, fast driving, or 

 jumping, or they may be among the sequelae of internal disorders, 

 such as strangles or the resultants of a pleuritic or pneumonic attack. 

 An unnecessary amount of anxiety is sometimes experienced respect- 

 ing these growths, with much questioning touching the expediency 

 of their removal, all of which might be spared, for, while they con- 

 stitute a blemish, their unsightliness will not hinder the usefulness 

 of the animal, and in any case they rarely fail to show themselves 

 easily amenable to treatment. 



Treatment. When in their acute stage, and when the dropsical 

 condition is not excessive, the inflammation may be checked during 

 the day by continuous cold water irrigation by means of a hose or 

 soaking tub and at night by applying a moderately tight roller 

 bandage. Later absorption may be promoted by a bandage of cloth 

 drenched in warm water or a dripping bandage laid around the dis- 

 eased part, then covered by several layers of woolen blanket or cloth, 

 which is in turn covered by parchment paper, rubber cloth, or other 

 impervious material. Heat, moisture, and pressure are obtained by 

 such a bandage if water is poured upon it several times daily, also 

 by roller bandages, sweating, the use of liniments, or if necessary 

 by a sharp blister of biniodide of mercury. This treatment should 



