358 THE PRACTICE OF VETERINARY MEDICINE. 



be extracted by means of the forceps alone, it becomes 

 necessary to cast the animal, divide the soft tissues over the 

 region of the tooth, trephine, and punch the tooth out, or at 

 least dislocate it, using a good strong steel or iron punch 

 for the purpose, and a wooden mallet, to strike the punch 

 with, will also be found preferable to one of metal. Having 

 loosened the tooth in its socket, its further removal may be 

 accomplished by means of the forceps ; in case a tooth be 

 broken in an endeavour to extract it, the animal should not 

 be kept down too long in the hope of extracting the stump, 

 but should be allowed to rise, and no further attempt made 

 for a month or six weeks, when, as a rule, the remaining 

 portion of the tooth will come away of its own accord. If 

 the practitioner becomes satisfied that the remaining por- 

 tion will not come away unless extracted, he should endea- 

 vour to effect its removal by the forceps in the same manner 

 as before ; the after-treatment consists of feeding soft food 

 for a few days, in addition to which, the cavity remaining 

 after extraction of the tooth should be frequently examined, 

 as small portions of hay, etc., may become lodged within it, 

 and set up irritation, in which case it may be necessary to 

 fill it with gutta percha ; but as a rule nothing of the sort 

 will be required. One serious objection to the operation 

 of trephining and punching out the tooth is, that the food 

 is likely to get into the opening and cause considerable 

 irritation, and possibly a fistulous opening. 



PARROT MOUTH. 



This condition has been spoken of before when treating 

 of the indications of age, as furnished by the teeth. In parrot 

 mouth the incisors of the upper jaw project further forward 

 than those of the lower jaw, and instead of meeting them 

 overlap so that when the mouth is shut the upper incisors 



