CHAPTER XXIV 



WOUNDS, FRACTURES AND DISLOCATIONS 



The horse is particularly liable to both wounds and 

 fractures, and it is by no means exempt from dislocations, 

 particularly in one joint, viz. the stifle. The majority 

 of flesh wounds in horses heal readily, but when com- 

 plicated with a fracture the damage is usually irreparable, 

 and nearly always necessitates the immediate destruc- 

 tion of the animal. There are certain fractures — such as 

 those of the ribs and the pastern — which are capable of 

 repair provided that the animal is placed under favour- 

 able conditions for the restoration of the damaged part. 

 It is the absence of flesh below the knees and hocks which 

 either hinders or completely prevents repair. Super- 

 added to these features, however, we have to consider the 

 extreme difficulty experienced in keeping the patient in a 

 position favourable to repair. In the human subject it is 

 quite a different matter, the conditions being exactly the 

 converse. The horse is unquestionably capable of receiv- 

 ing suggestions, and not only receiving but often inter- 

 preting them ; still, when it comes to a question of pain 

 and restraint the matter is entirely different. Wounds 

 vary from a mere abrasion of the skin to the implication 

 of the flesh, blood-vessels, tendons, and hgaments, or even 

 injury to bone, and in some cases vital parts may be 

 injured, as happens when the cavities of the brain, chest, 

 and belly are severely penetrated. The position of a 

 wound and the relationship it bears to vital structures 

 influence its course and termination. Most of the wounds 

 in a horse consist of laceration of the skin and subjacent 

 flesh, but some are incised or clean cut, exactly as though 



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