12 



NEW ENGLAND FARMER, 



July 30, 1830 



aCbratB of iUsetul J^noWrtacss-jFarmcvs' Series . 



DISEASKS OF UORSES. 



[Cunlinued.] 

 DISEASES OF THE TEETH. 



Of the diseases of the teeth m the horse, we 

 know little. Carious or hollow teeth have oc- 

 casionally, but not often, been seen ; but the edges 

 of tlie grinders from the wearing off of the ena- 

 mel, or the irregular growth of the teeth, become 

 rough, and wound the insivie of the cheek ; it is 

 then necessary to adopt a summary but effectual 

 method of cure, namely, to rasp them smooth. 

 Many bad ulcers have been produced in the mouth, 

 by the neglect of this. 



Tiie teeth sometimes grow irregularly in length, 

 and this is particularly the case with the grinders, 

 from not t)eing in e.xact opposition to each other, 

 when the mouth is shut. The growth of the 

 teeth still going on, and there being no mechan- 

 ical opposition to it, one of the back teeth, or a 

 portion of one of them, shoots up half an inch or 

 more above the others. Sometimes it penetrates 

 the bars above, and causes soreness and ulcera- 

 tion ; at other time?, it interft-res partially, or alto- 

 gether, with the grinding motion of the jaws, and 

 the animal pines away without the cause being 

 suspected. Here the saw should be used, and the 

 projecting portion reduced to a level with the oth- 

 er teeth. The horse which has once been sub- 

 jected to this operation should afterwards be fre- 

 quently examined, and especially if he lose con- 

 dition ; and, indeed, every horse that gets thin or 

 out of condition, without fever, or any otiier ap- 

 parent cause, should have his teeth and mouth 

 carefully examined, and especially if he quid 

 {partly chewing and then dropping) his food, 

 ■without any indication of sore throat, or if he 

 hold bis head somewhat on one side, while he 

 eats, in order to get the food between the outer 

 edges of the teeth. A horse that has once had 

 very irregular teeth is materially lessened in value, 

 for, although they may be sawn down as care- 

 fully as possible, they will jiroject again at no 

 great distance of time. 



DISE.4SES OF THE TONGDE. 



The tongue is sometimes exposed to injury, 

 from carelessness or violence in the act of drench- 

 ing, or administering a ball, being pressed against, 

 and cut by the edges of the grinders. A little 

 diluted tincture of myrrh, or alum, dissolved in 

 water, or even nature unassisted, will speedily 

 heal the wound. The horse will bite his ton- 

 gue, — most frequently in his sleep. If the injury 

 be trifling, it requires little care ; but in some in- 

 stances, a portion of the tongue will be torn or 

 nearly bitten off, and the assistance of a veterinary 

 practitioner will be needed. 



Bladders will sometimes appear along the under 

 siile of the tongue, which will increase to a con- 

 siderable size, and the tongue itself will be much 

 enlarged, and the animal will be unable to swal- 

 low, and a great quantity of ropy saliva will drivel 

 from the mouth. This disease often exists with- 

 out the nature of it being suspected. It resembles 

 what is called the blain in the cow, which is a 

 very serious complaint in that animal, frequently 

 connected with much fever, and terminating insuf- 

 cation. If the mouth of the horse be opened, 

 one large bladder, or a succession of bladders of 

 a purple hue, will be seen to extend along the 

 ■whole of the under side of the tongue. If they 

 be lanced freely and deeply, from end to end, the 

 swelling will very rapidly abate, and any little 



fever that remains may be subdued by cooling 

 medicine. The cause of this disease is not clear- 

 ly known. It usually proceeds, perhaps, from iu- 

 digestioH, connected with a general tendency to 

 inflammation. 



THE STRANGLES. 



This is a disease principally incident to young 

 horses — usually appearing between the fourth and 

 fifth year, and oftener in the spring than in any 

 other part of the year. It is preceded by cough, 

 and can at first be scarcely distinguished from 

 common cough, except that there is more dis- 

 charge from the nostril, of a yellowish color, mix- 

 ed with matter, but generally without smell ; and 

 likewise a considerable discharge of ropy fluid 

 from the mouth, and greater swelling than usual 

 under the throat. This swelling increases with 

 uncertain rapidity, accompanied by some fever, 

 and disinclination to eat, partly arising from the 

 fever, but more from the pain the animal feels in 

 the act of chewing. There is considerable thirst ; 

 but after a gidp or two, the horse ceases to drink, 

 yet is evidently desirous of more. In the attempt 

 to swallow, and sometimes when not drinking, a 

 convulsive cough comes on, which almost threat- 

 ens to suffocate the animal, and thence probably 

 the name of the disease. The tumor is about the 

 centre of the channel under the jaw, it soon fills 

 the whole of the space, and is evidently one uni- 

 form body, and may thus be distinguished from 

 tllanders, or the enlarged glands of catarrh. At 

 length the centre of it becomes more prominent 

 and softer, and it evidently contains a fluid. This 

 rapidly increases, the tumor bursts and a great 

 quantity of pus is discharged. As soon as the tu- 

 mor has broken, the cough subsides, and the horse 

 speedily mends although some degree of weak- 

 ness may hang about him for a considerable time. 



The treatment of strangles is very simple. As 

 the essence of the disease consists in the forma- 

 tion and suppuration of the tumor under the jaw, 

 the principal, or almost the sole attention of the 

 practitioner should be directed to the hastening of 

 these processes: therefore, as soon as the tumor 

 of strangles evidently appears, the part should be 

 actively blistered. Old practitioners used to rec- 

 ommend poultices ; which, from the thickness of 

 the horse's skin, inust have very little effect, even 

 if they could be confined on the part ; and from 

 the difiiculty and almost imi)ossibility of this, and 

 their getting cold and hard, they must weaken 

 the energies of nature, and delay the ripening of 

 the tumor. Fomentations are little more effect- 

 ual. A blister will not only secure the comple- 

 tion of the process, but hasten it by many days, 

 and save the patient much pain and exhaustion; 

 and it will produce another good effect — it will, 

 previous to the opening of the tumor, abate the 

 internal inflammation and soreness of the throat, 

 and thus lesson the cough and wheezing. 



As soon as the swelling is soft on the top, and 

 evidently contains matter, it should be deeply and 

 freely lanced. It is a bad, although frequent 

 practice, to suffer the tumor to burst naturally, by 

 which a ragged ulcer is formed, very slow to heal 

 and difiicult of treatment. If the incision is 

 deep and large enough, no second collection of 

 matter will be formed : and that which is already 

 formed may be suffered to run out slowly, all 

 pressure with the fingers being avoided. The 

 part should be kept clean, and a little friar's bal- 

 sam daily injected into the wound. 



The remainder of the treatment will depend 

 on the symptoms. If there is much fever, and 



evident affection of the chest, and which should 

 carefully be distinguished from the oppressioi' 

 and choking occasioned by the pressure of the 

 tumor, it will he proper to bleed. In the majority 

 of cases, however, bleeding will not only be un- 

 necessary, but injurious. It will delay the sup- 

 puration of the tumor, and increase the subse- 

 quent debility. A few cooling medicines, as ni- 

 tre, emetic tartar, and perhaps digitalis, may be 

 given, as the case requires. The appetite, or 

 rather the ability to eat, will return with the open- 

 ing of the abscess. Bran-mashes, or fresh cut 

 grass or tares, should be liberally supplied, which 

 will not only afford suflicient nourishment to re- 

 cruit the strength of the animal, but keep the 

 bovi^els gently open. If the weakness be not 

 great, no further medicine will be wanted, except 

 a dose of mild physic, to prevent the swellings or 

 eruptions which sometimes succeed to strangles. 

 In cases of debility, a small quantity of tonic 

 medicine, as camomile, and gentian with ginger, 

 in doses of a couple of drachms, may be adminis- 

 tered. 



As strangles seem to be a disease from which 

 few horses escape, and which, although attended 

 witli little danger, is sometimes tedious in its pro- 

 gress, and accompanied by much debility, some 

 foreign veterinary surgeons have endeavored to 

 produce a milder disorder by inociilaiing, either 

 with the matter from the tuinor, or the discharge 

 froH the nose; and it is said that a disease, with 

 all the characters of strangles, but shorter and 

 milder in its course, has supervened. English 

 practitioners have not, we believe, tried the ex- 

 peiiment. 



CANKER AND WOUNDS IN THE MODTH. 



The mouth is injured much oftener than the 

 careless owner suspects, by the pressure of a 

 sharp bit. Not only are the bars wounded and 

 deeply ulcerated, but the lower jaw between the 

 tush and the grinders is sometimes torn even to 

 the bone, and the bone itself affected, and por- 

 tions of it come away. It may be necessary to 

 have a sharp bit for the headstrong and obstinate 

 beast, yet if that be severely and unjustifiably call- 

 ed into exercise, the animal may rear, and endan- 

 ger himself and his rider; but there can be no 

 occasion for a thousandth part of the torment 

 which the trappings of the mouth often inflict on 

 a willing and docile servant, and which either 

 render the month hard, and destroy all the pleas- 

 ure of riding, or cause the horse to become fret- 

 ful or vicious. 



From the Westfield Register. 



AGRICULTURAL. 



Mr Hdntington — As it seems to be the fash- 

 ion of the day to communicate the result of ex- 

 periment, as well in husbandry as in the arts and 

 sciences, I beg leave to offer through the medium 

 of your paper, the following statement: 



In the spring of 1828, having a piece of wet 

 land near my house, which would probably be 

 most aptly called Bog Meadow, through which 

 runs a brook about six rods from the bank or up- 

 land. I hired three men with canal wheelbarrows, 

 and carried on loam from the adjoining upland, 

 (which when I commenced, was a steep elevation 

 of 6 or 8 feet ebove the meadow,) covering the 

 land to the depth of about six inolies. I then 

 sowed Herds Grass seed plentifully upon the earth 

 and raked it in ; and covered the whole with a 

 coat of hog manure. The first summer of course 



