348 OPERATIONS. 



of the inflammation which it excites, and the pain it inflicts, it should only be liad 

 recourse to when milder means rarely succeed. 



The part which is to be submitted to the operation should be shaved, or the hair 

 cut from it as closely as possible with the trimminp; scissors. This is necessary in 

 order to bring the iron into immediate contact with the skin, and likewise to prevent 

 the smoke that will arise from the burned hair obscuring tlie view of the o])erator. 

 The horse must then be thrown. This is absolutely necessary for the safety both of 

 the operator and the animal. The side line may be applied in a shorter time, and so 

 many hands may not be wanted to cast the horse ; but no person can fire accurately, 

 or with the certainty of not penctratinor the skin, except the animal is etfectually 

 secured by the hobbles. Although accidents have occurred in the act of casting, yet 

 many more have resulted to the operator, the assistants, or the horse, in a protracted 

 operation, when the side-line only has been used. 



The details of the operation belong to the veterinary surgeon. The grand points to 

 be attended to are to have the edge of the iron round and smooth — the iron itself at, 

 or rather below a red heat — to ])ass it more or less rajjidly over the skin, and with 

 slighter or greater pressure, according to the degree of heat — to burn into the skin 

 until the line produced by the iron is of a brown colour, rather light than dark, and, 

 oj' all means, in common cases, to avoid penetrulinq the skin. Leaving out of the 

 4uestion the additional cruelty of deep firing, when not absolutely required, we may 

 depend on it that if the skin is burned through, inflammation, and ulceration, and 

 sloughing will ensue, that will be with much dilticulty combated — that will unavoida- 

 bly leave unnecessary blemish, and that has destroyed many valuable horses. It may 

 happen, nevertheless, that by a sudden plunge of the animal the skin will be una- 

 voidably cut through. The act of firing requires much skill and tact, and the practi- 

 tioner cannot be always on his guard against the struggles of the tortured beast. 

 It will, also, and not unfrequently, occur that the skin, partially divided, will separate 

 in two or three days after the operation. This must not be attributed to any 

 neglect or unskilfulness of the surgeon, and the ulceration thus produced will be 

 slight and easily treated, compared with that caused by actually burning through the 

 skin. 



A very considerable change has taken place in the breed of many of the varieties 

 of the horse, and the labour exacted from him. As illustrations of this we refer to 

 the altered character and pace of the modern hunter and the additional increase of 

 speed required from the coach and the post horse ; the exertion being limited only by 

 the degree to which every muscle and every nerve can be extended, while the calcu- 

 lation between the utmost exaction of cruelty and the expenditure of vital power, is 

 reduced to the merest fraction. The consequence of this is, that the horse is subjected 

 to severer injuries than he used to be. and severer measures are and must be employed 

 to remedy the evil. Hence the horrible applications of the actual cautery to the horse 

 that have disgr;iced the present da}^. Lesions — gashes have been made on either side 

 of the tendon of the leg, which it took no fewer than seven months to lieal. Was 

 there nothing short of this lengthened torture that could have been done to relieve the 

 victim'? Could he not have been more lightly fired for the road or for the purposes 

 of breeding 1 Was there no pasture on which he had earned a right to srraze ? — or 

 could he not have been destroyed ] These sad lesions will occasionallj' come before 

 the practitioner and the owner. It will be for the first, to advocate that, which, on a 

 careful view of the case, mercy prompts ; and the Intter, except there is a reasonable 

 prospect of ultimate enjoyment, as well as usefulness, should never urge a continua- 

 tion of suffering. 



Supposing, however, that prospect to exist, the surgeon must discharge his duty. 

 These gashes, after a while, begin to close, and then commenr-es the beautiful process 

 of granulation. Little portions of the integument form on the centre of the wound, 

 and the sides of the wound creeji closer together, and the skin steals over t!i(^ surface, 

 until the chasm is perfectlj- clos(>d. In order to insure the continuance of this, a ridge 

 of contracted integument as hard as any cartilagre. but without its elasticity, runs from 

 one end of the lesion to the other, lig-hter. and harder, and more effectual every week, 

 and month, and year, and lasting during the life of the animal. Therefore, the vete- 

 rinary surgeon is not to be too severely censured, if, after due consideration, he is 

 induced to undertake one of these fearful operations : but let him do it ts seldom m 

 he can, and only when every circumstance promises a favourable result. 



