250 DISEASES OF THE MOUTH. 



artery is wounded, the animal may bleed to death, as the movements 

 of the tongue interfere with thrombus formation. In venous bleeding 

 the following treatment is generally sufficient : after covering the 

 tongue with flour to the thickness of an inch, the mouth is firmly 

 bound and the horse left at rest for 6 — 8 hours. In severe arterial 

 bleeding from the hard palate, the mouth should be held open with 

 a gag, and the actual cautery applied to the bleeding point ; or the 

 horse may be cast and the artery ligatured. Under some circum- 

 stances pressure may be employed, as, for instance, in injuries of 

 the anterior parts of the palate. After placing on the injured spot 

 a pad of tow, preferably soaked with adrenalin solution, a bandage 

 is passed over it, and firmly tied around the jaw, beneath the upper 

 lip. This should remain in place for 12 hours. 



In spite of the unpleasant smell, wounds of the mouth usually 

 heal rapidly after removal of the foreign body. Where deep cuts 

 exist, the mouth should be cleansed after each meal and the animal 

 prevented, either by muzzling or tying up short, from again soiling 

 the part. 



The tongue is sometimes strangulated by a cord or rubber band ; 

 this has repeatedly been seen, both in horses and dogs. Sometimes 

 with the view of keeping the horse quiet during grooming, or 

 occasionally from malice, a piece of string is tied round the tongue. 

 Kirchner relates a remarkable case of the kind in a cow, where the 

 tongue became snared in consequence of chewing some string. In 

 dogs and cats, sections of blood-vessels or elastic bands sometimes 

 slip on to the tongue and remain fast. In one of the two cases 

 described by Barrier, a section of aorta was found encircling the 

 tongue, which was necrotic. Carrucci relates a similar case, where 

 the tongue was swollen to four times its normal size. Kitt, when 

 making a post-mortem examination of a goat, found an iron ring, 

 | inch broad and 2J inches in circumference, firmly fixed round the 

 tongue. The animal had shown difficulty in eating and was finally 

 killed. 



Such a condition is recognised at the first glance by the great 

 swelling and bluish-red colour of the tongue. The affected portion 

 is sharply defined posteriorly and the adjoining part is still perfectly 

 normal. Closer examination discovers the encircling object, which 

 may at first be hidden by the swelling. The condition is one of 

 strangulation, and, if not relieved, necrosis of the tongue results 

 from interference with circulation and nutrition. But this necrosis 

 does not always set in rapidly, and recovery sometimes occurs, even 

 where the tongue is already insensible and cold, and of a bluish- 



