26o THE HORSE 



another remedy. In an extreme case, poulticing may 

 be necessary. 



Blue vitriol will cure the worst case, but its use 

 should be avoided, if possible, because it leaves the 

 foot very hard, and having cured the thrush, you would 

 then have to take measures to cure the hardness. 



Thrush neglected often runs into canker, an obstinate 

 disease requiring treatment by a good veterinary sur- 

 geon. In the absence of a veterinary surgeon, cleanse 

 the parts thoroughly and throw in calomel. 



CORNS 



A corn in the equine foot is not like a corn in the 

 human foot. It is simply a bruise of or injury to the 

 membrane covering the bone of the foot immediately 

 beneath the horny sole. It may occur at any part of the 

 sole, but most often at the inside heel in the angle 

 between the frog and the bar — the sole being thinnest 

 at that point. 



A blood-stain in the hoof is not necessarily a corn — 

 it may be only a bruise of the sole. 



Corns are usually caused by contraction of the hoof, 

 and want of circulation, or by a shoe which pinches the 

 foot because it was too small in the first place, or has 

 been left on too long.^ 



In the case of horses that have corns the shoeing 

 should be such as to get frog-pressure. If a horse has 

 a painful corn, he will, as a rule, "point" the foot 

 when he is standing; and a light tap with a hammer 

 on the wall near the place of the corn will make him 



1 See page 103. 



