46 ULCERATIVE DISEASE OF JOINTS. 



both these discoveries were made known through papers pubUshed 

 in the second and third vokimes of THE VETERINARIAN, to which 

 we shall have occasion to draw the especial notice of our readers 

 Avhen we come to treat of those diseases in detail. Our intention 

 at present is to make a few observations applying to ulcerative dis- 

 ease of joints in general, as being one of the most frequent, the 

 most grievous, and the most irremediable causes of lameness. 



It has frequently happened that a horse has been known to be 

 lame, and lame too for a great length of time, and yet nothing un- 

 natural to be detected either by the hand or by the eye in the lame 

 limb: at one time he goes better, at another time worse — seldom 

 so lame as not to be able to do some work ; and often, on that ac- 

 count, being worked on until he becomes lame to that degree that, 

 for shame's sake — if not from humanity's — his master cannot use 

 him any longer : in which condition he is either submitted to some 

 veterinary surgeon for treatment, or else shot as being no longer 

 useful, or as being from neglect reduced to a state past redemption. 

 The animal is destroyed, his lame limb examined, the joints of it 

 dissected, and within their cavities marks of ulceration discovered. 

 The secret is unravelled ; the horse went lame from ulcerative dis- 

 ease of his joint. The natural inquiry to the mind of the dis- 

 coverer now is, how came this ulceration here 1 — what is the history 

 of it ] — what the cause of it — the effects of it 1 — and what could or 

 might have been done by way of cure or mitigation of it 1 informa- 

 tion all leading to instruction how such cases are to be detected, 

 and how they ought to be treated. 



The Production of Ulceration may happen in one of two 

 ways: it may either be the effect of bruise or breach of the 

 synovial membrane, or the consequence of inflammation excited in 

 it. With a view of bringing to our aid in the solution of these 

 interesting questions any observations afforded us by practice that 

 bear upon them, let us make mention of some notorious enough to 

 shut out all doubt as to their application, whatever difference of 

 opinion any theorization upon them may give rise to. One of 

 these facts is, that the ordinary seat of lameness arising from 

 ulcerative disease in the fore limb is the navicular joint, in the 

 hind limb the hock joint. Now, these are both joints likely in an 



