TREATISE 



ON 



VETERINARY MEDICINE, 



PART I. 



THE ECONOMY OF THE STABLE. 



INTRODUCTIOX. 



As tlie preservation of tlic horse's healtli is an object of tlie lii^li- 

 est importance, I shall begin my treatise with some observations 

 on that subject. The most effectual method of accomplishino- this 

 is to keep him in a wholesome stable, work him foirly, feed him 

 properly, and to observe all those attentions which, taken toge- 

 ther, and considered generally, are named grooming. Accord- 

 ing to this view of the subject, the first object of consideration is 

 the construction and arrangement of the stable. 



CHAPTER I. 



ON THE STABLE. 



Loftiness is very desii-able in a stable. It should be from 

 nine to twelve feet high, which will admit of its being properly 

 ventilated, without the necessity of currents of cold air. The air, 

 by being breathed, becomes unfit for the purpose again, havino- 

 undergone a change in its constituent principles. This chano-e 

 consists in the deprivation of a portion of its oxygen, which is 

 essential for the purpose of life, and the substitution in its stead 

 of carbonic acid gas, the inhalation of which would quickly 

 deprive an animal of existence. Fortunately the respired air, 

 from being heated, quickly ascends, whilst a supply of fresh 

 air enters the nostrils. The foul air, from this circumstance, 

 does not enter the lungs again, unless the pure air of the stable 

 be exhausted, or so diminished as to become mixed with that 

 previously expired. Thus the partial deprivation of oxygen is 



B 



