38 MEANS OF KESTKAINT. 



with a sudden jerk which may throw the hobbles off with force suf- 

 ficient to severely hurt some unguarded spectator upon whose per- 

 son they might infringe. We have been witness to such an oc- 

 currence, when they were thrown a distance of twenty feet, with 

 violence sufficient to inflict, possibly, dangerous injuries. 



An animal thrown and secured as has been described is in a 

 suitable position for the majority of operations, such as those 

 about the head and neck, of the body, or of the up^Der part of the 

 legs. But in many cases, it is necessary to fix a leg in a peculiar 

 position either to expose a given region of the body, or when 

 the limb itself becomes the seat of operation. The action of se- 

 curing the animal in the recumbent position is one of great im- 

 portance, and none of its details ought to be overlooked. And 

 there are several points to which we have already referred in our 

 introduction, which may be again noticed with advantage. Bear- 

 ing in mind the accidents which may result from keeping the 

 horse in a state of painful passivity, and his instinctive struggles 

 to free himself, not to mention the painfulness of the constrained 

 posture itself, the inference is palj)able that it is incumbent on the 

 surgeon to release the suffering patient from his trying constraint 

 at the earliest moment consistent with the proper completion of 

 the OiDeration. Again, in securing the legs, care must also be 

 taken that, although a given position of a leg may facilitate the 

 movements of the operator, it is not justifiable if there is another 

 mode of securing the same object by means more comfortable 

 and less dangerous to the patient, as well as easier for the surgeon. 



An experience of many years has taught us that six principal 

 modes of fixing an animal's leg, fulfil all necessary requirements, 

 and that the special purposes and effects of these are such as to 

 forbid their modification. 



In considering these six specific modes, it will promote facility 

 of description if the reader will follow our references to the dif- 

 ferent legs on a sort of mental diagram which by a mode of ab- 

 breviation by initials will designate — supposing the animal to be 

 thrown on the near side — the near anterior as N.A.; the off 

 anterior as O.A.; the near hind as N.H.; and the off hind as O.H. 



First 'position — Exposing the inside of the N.A. leg. — A loop 

 of the plate-longe is secured on one of the fore legs, above the 

 knee, say the off leg, carried in front of the near leg, imder it, 

 back and between the fore legs, always above the knee, to return 



