LAMINITIS. 363 



opposite foot or limb, which compels the animal to throw all 

 the weight of that part of his body upon the sound side. The 

 sound foot becomes inflamed, which is indicated by lameness, 

 heat, and pain. Premonitory to the advent of the disease in 

 the sound foot, the patient will sometimes suddenly be seen 

 to bear his weight upon the originally lame side, although the 

 wound, open joint, or other injury from which he may be 

 suffering, continues in all its severity. An ordinary observer 

 will consider the animal to have been unexpectedly relieved 

 of pain ; but in a short space of time the hitherto sound foot 

 will be elevated from the ground, the animal at the same time 

 evidencing agonising pain ; fever will set in, and the head will 

 be pushed into a corner. These symptoms are manifested to a 

 much severer degree when a hind foot is involved. To prevent 

 this complication to a severe injury or lameness, the shoe is to 

 be removed from the sound foot, which, in very aggravated 

 cases of injury, may be placed in a soft poultice, or allowed to 

 stand upon some soft substance. The leg must be bandaged ; 

 and if the horse is unable to lie down, as will generally be the 

 case when a hind limb is involved, he must be placed in slings. 

 I once saw a case where the os pedis of the off hind foot had 

 been forced through the horny sole, in consequence of the animal 

 having received an injury to the near hind leg. The animal 

 was young, and newly taken up to be broken-in. Through 

 some oversight, the horse was shod upon both fore and the off 

 hind feet, the near side foot, owing to the lameness in the leg, 

 being left without the shoe. By this error extra weight was 

 thrown upon the foot of the sound limb — thus elevated above 

 its fellow by the shoe — which caused violent inflammation, and 

 the destructive process above mentioned. The case is very 

 instructive. 



Symptoms of Inflammation of loth Fore Feet. — The horse is 

 excessively lame, almost immoveable, especially at starting ; he 

 seems as if all his body were cramped ; stands with his hind 

 legs drawn under the belly, and the fore feet advanced, in 

 order to relieve them from the weight as much as possible ; 

 occasionally he may be seen to sway himself backwards, elevat- 

 ing the toes, throw his weight for a moment upon the heels of 

 the fore feet, and then assume his original position. If com- 

 pelled to move, he elevates his feet with great difficulty, not 



