64 THE EXTERIOR OF THE HORSE. 



stasis of pus in the guttural pouches or in the frontal and maxillary 

 sinuses. If there is doubt as to the veritable cause of this odor, the 

 animal is made to cough by compressing the larynx with the hand, and 

 standing to one side of the animal to avoid being contaminated by the 

 expectorated matter. He is also made to snort by touching the sides 

 of the median septum of the nasal fossae, which will immediately 

 provoke such an effort and render the discharge visible if there 

 be any. 



It is important to add that the air should pass in and out without 

 making any sound; if a sound is perceived, the animal is affected with 

 roaring. 



Roaring is acute and chronic. The former is temporary, the second 

 permanent. It is a defect which nullifies the contract of his sale in 

 some Continental countries. (Law of August 2, Article 2, 1884.) 



Cysts of the false nostril, between the layers of the integument 

 which are placed in apposition to form it, are observed in some horses. 

 We have seen several examples, and never have we remarked the least 

 interference with respiration. 



We have proof of paralysis of one or of both nostrils. In the 

 latter case the animal will find it an impossibility to trot, from the 

 fact that the parietes of these openings are collapsed upon themselves 

 and offer an obstacle to the introduction of the air. 1 



Expression of the Nostril. Let us remark that the nostril 

 is one of the principal organs of expression of the physiognomy. 

 According to its state of contraction, dilatation, flaccidity, or crispness, 

 it manifests in a thousand ways the sensations which the animal expe- 

 riences. , Now it is surprise, fear, anger ; now joy, pleasure, anxiety, 

 and suffering. Persons who are experienced with horses will soon 

 become familiar with the expression of the organs, which defies all de- 

 scription from the multiple shades in which it is manifested. We 

 will return to this again, a propos of the head in general. 



Blemishes. The blemishes of this region are situated upon 

 the alse of the nostrils, the nasal fossae, the appendices of the turbinated 

 bones, and result from bites or lacerations. These may be produced 

 accidentally in draught-horses by the hook which is often placed at 

 the extremity of the shaft, when the animal is tied to a ring surmounted 

 by a hook, or when, in turning the head, the nostrils strike against any 

 sharp object. 



1 A. Goubaux, M6moire sur les paralysies locales (Recueil de medecine vtrinaire, ann6e 

 1848, p. 229). 



