LAMENESS, TEST FOR ASCERTAINING. QLTTTOR. 171 



Bunoury, of Bildeston, the introduction of this practice on a large scaie, which 



IS so evidently harmful to the rising generation — of horses. 



Lameness is universally the symptom that denotes disordered limb ; it is 

 the only one perceptihle for some time, until its continuance throws out some 

 appearance on the surface ; and that inquirer who can ascertain its true seal 

 IS most likely to find the cause, and to effect a cure. For instance, lameness 

 occasioned by disordered bone, as in ring-bone and bone-spavin, is almost uni- 

 versally ascribed by the stable-men and humble practitioners to strain in the 

 stifle, in the shoulder, or the whirlbone ; whereby so much valuable time is 

 lost in applying the proposed remedies at the wrong place, that those two dis- 

 orders in particular make head almost irremediably before the true seat of ail- 

 ment is ascertained. The same species of blunder is propogated when a dis- 

 ease happens to the foot, and the precise cause thereof, even when well known 

 to those employed about the stable, is kept a secret from the owner and the 

 doctor. " Let them find it out" is sometimes heard muttered in the distance ; 

 and in order to coni{)ly with the unfeeling permission, we pass the hand down 

 the whole leg and foot from the top to the sole, compare the size of the lame 

 limb with the corresponding sound one, and move the animal about. For 

 without this examination it would be next to impossible to ascertain the pre- 

 cise seat of the disorder, and quite so to apply even the right remedy at the 

 proper place. As an illustration of this position by its reverse, I may adduce 

 the coming on of bone-spavin as that kind of attack which we can ascertain 

 with the greatest precision of all those which lie concealed from our view and 

 touch. It happens, too, that this is one of the few disorders of the leg that 

 admits of cure by early applications, as it is also that which, being neglected, 

 .enders the animal wholly useless. When a horse becomes lame of a hind 

 leg occasionally, and that after rest only, the complaint going ofTon taking a 

 short exercise, we may be quite sure he labours under incipient bone-spavin, 

 provided no other distinct cause can be adduced for his lameness; but should 

 the lameness increase with exercise, then it does not depend upon bone-spavin, 

 but some other malady. Further consideration of the causes, symptoms, and 

 cure of this disorder will be found a few pages lower down. 



*^* When lameness occurs to his horse unaccountably, and the inquiring 

 reader turns to these pages for information, he had better run over once more 

 the whole of the next six or seven heads of information ; their great similarity 

 m many respects dictates the propriety of this additional trouble, as most of 

 the series will be found referrible to the same causes, and require much the 

 same treatment, though differently situated. 



Throughout the vvhole of this chapter, the reader will find great help to un- 

 derstanding the details, iiy carefully consulting the delineations of the leg 

 Hnd foot on plates 2 vMid 3, and the cut at page 166, with the description of 

 each. References are not always made in words at length, it being presum- 

 fd that he is already acquainted with the preceding pages, to which he is now 

 referred. 



aUlTTOR. 



Undpr the class of fistulous aflections, I spoke of this disease at page 125 

 To wnat i*; there said I may here add that as quittor is caused by sand-crirk. 



