ment, I went to a blacksmith's shop, and had cHps made on the sides 

 of ain old pair of tongs. With these I removed the eight shells, or 

 crowns, and then prescribed tonic medicine. Up to this case, I knew 

 little about dental trouble, it being my first lesson. Since then I have 

 devoted a good deal of time to it, and have had made, to my order, 

 various instruments (Plate XXX., Nos. 1 and 2). I have, I may note, 

 frequently seen the crown of the second pre-molar come off before 

 that of the first. I have also, in one operation, removed the crowns 

 of the first and second pre-molars, joined together, and of such teeth 

 I have several specimens (Plate XXVII., C, 1st and 2nd). 



350. When a young animal is suffering from retarded dentition, it 

 loses flesh, and the belly becomes tucked up ; there is a long, shaggy 

 coat, tight skm, ewe-neck, thin thighs, and flat ribs; it drags its legs, 

 and walks with a listless gait, feeds badly, and eats little or no hay. 

 There is also occasional and exhaustive diarrhoea. Examine the 

 mouth, and if the crowns of the temporary teeth are the cause, remove 

 them. Prevention is said to be better than cure, and people acting 

 on this maxim now have young horses brought to my surgery, from 

 December to June, to have their mouths examined, when, if necessary, 

 I remove the crowns. This long and varying period is due to the time 

 when the animals are born, as well as to their mode of feeding. 



351. When from three-and-a-half to four years old (7) the horse 

 casts its lateral incisors and the third temporary pre-molar, and these 

 are replaced by permanent ones, one on each side, above and below. 

 The sixth tooth or third molar now comes into view ; thus, at fouy years 

 old, it casts eight temporary, and gets twelve permanent teeth, but it 

 seldom seems to suffer so much as at three years old, although there 

 is an old saying, that a four-year-old horse cannot stand work so well 

 as a three-year-old. This, in my opinion, is due to the punishment it 

 has gone through as a three-year-old, and the effects of which it has 

 not been able to throw off. If you find an animal not doing well at 

 this period, examine the mouth, and, if necessary, remove the shells 

 from the third molars. As a rule, the shells of the milk teeth come 

 off from the lower jaw sooner than from the upper. In many cases, 



