DISEASES OF DOMESTIC ANIMALS. 129 



lars at stake, and the owner wants him ready for the engagement ; 

 perhaps you can, by the judicious use of cold water and anodyne lini- 

 ments, get him ready ; however, the proper treatment would be to 

 rest, physic, foment, blister, etc.; but if there are several thousand 

 dollars at stake, it makes a difference in the case. Use cold water, 

 with acetate of lead, powdered opium, etc. 



Inflaniiuation, or Sprain of the Hock.— Perhaps there are well 

 marked symptoms, or it may be that some of the little ligaments are 

 injured and no plain symptoms present, but the animal does not flex 

 the hock so nicely as natural, or perhaps he lifts the foot from the 

 ground. Manipulation will assist you in diagnosing this. Give rest, 

 foment, and in some cases blister. 



Open Joint in the Hook is a very serious injury, and if produced 

 in a violent manner, from a kick, etc., the chances are that it will 

 result in anchylosis, if it does not destroy the animal by the constitu- 

 tional fever. There is intense pain, the foot lifted from the ground, 

 the soft tissues swollen, and you are told that the animal received a 

 kick in that region. It is likely that anchylosis will be the result. 

 The same applies to open joint in the stifle, and if it occurs to a horse 

 not worth more than eighty or one hundred dollars, it is generally 

 best to recommend his destruction. Sometimes it looks much like 

 open joint when the capsular ligament is not ruptured. 



Bursal Enlarg-enients, just little puffy tumors. In any region 

 where there are tendons and prominences of bone, there are little 

 bursas, and these may be enlarged both inside and outside of the hock, 

 but they rarely interfere with the animal's usefulness. Treat the 

 same as wind galls. 



Gastrocnemius Internus is liable to slip out of its place, where it 

 passes over the joint of the hock, and it is very difficult to get it into 

 its place, but nature accommodates itself to the changed condition of 

 the parts. It is, of course, best to get it in its place, but if you can- 

 not, then allay the irritation until nature accommodates itself to the 

 change. 



Ulceration of the Tibia, — I saw a case; the animal became sud- 

 denly lame from being ridden hard once or twice, was laid up and treated 

 with the ordinary applications ; got better, but afterwards died from 

 congestion of the lungs. There are just about the same injuries 

 below the hock as are met with in the fore extremity, but sprain is 

 more frequent in the hind limb, and break-down more frequent in 

 the fore leg. 



LAMINITIS. 



Laminitis signifies inflammation of the sensitive laminae, and is, 

 perhaps, not a good term, as there are other structures than the 

 laminae involved, and, in a well-marked and severe case, the whole 

 sensitive structures are involved — the bone, ligaments, etc. Another 

 name is founder — a name, perhaps, applied from the peculiar manner 

 in which the animal progresses. When it terminates quickly in reso- 

 lution, then it is principally in connection with the sensitive laminae 

 structures. It occurs in the acute, sub-acute and chronic forms. It 

 is serious, and, perhaps, one of the most painful diseases to which the 

 horse is subject, as the parts are extremely sensitive, and are largely 

 supplied with blood and nerves, and enclosed in the hard and resist- 



