203 



DISEASES OF THE RESPIRATORY ORGANS. 



485. The respiratory organs, being delicate, are extremely susceptible 

 to derangement and disease in this ever-changing climate of ours, and 

 all sudden chills and changes of temperature — especially from cold to 

 heat — are very liable to have a baneful effect. Apart from purely 

 atmospheric differences, we sometimes have horses subjected to, what I 

 may term, artificial changes of temperature, and these are even more 

 prone to be accompanied by injurious results than are the natural 

 changes. For instance, when a young horse is brought in 

 from grass, for the first time, put into the stable and there tied up, 

 along with a number of other horses ; or it may be it is turned into a 

 small, stuffy loose box, commonly called a " hnll,^' or more properly 

 " hole,''' where the doors, windows, and ventilators (if there are any) 

 are closed to keep out the cold. All this is done with an utter 

 disregard of the climatic conditions to which the animal has 

 been exposed outside, and consequently the sudden change from the 

 cold clear air to the warm air of the stable (which the breathing of the 

 other horses rapidly contaminates), or to the cooped up "/;»//" (the 

 atmosphere of which is soon rendered impure by the animal's own 

 breathing) is very apt to produce an attack of congestion of the lungs. 

 Young horses, then, when first brought in, should be placed in a well- 

 ventilated airy box, say, for the first ten days or so, thus making the 

 change more gradual. Again, young green animals, when sold and 

 taken from the country into the town, should at first be put into a 

 separate box or stable, so as to acclimatize them to their new 

 surroundings before they are stabled with other seasoned horses. 



486. The Nose. — Occasionally growths of a cartilaginous or 

 fibrinous nature, also long necked tumours, or polypi, are met with 

 in the nasal chambers, firmly attached to the turbinated bones or the 

 septum of the nose. These growths produce a peculiar snoring 

 sound, and are generally accompanied by a foetid discharge from the 

 nose, particularly when the bones are implicated. The only treatment 

 of any avail is to cast the horse and remove the obstruction by an 

 operation, which should be performed by a professional man. Some 



