234 THE EXTERIOR OF THE HORSE. 



Clearness of Outline. It is not sufficient that the knee be 

 "dry/' wide, thick, Avell located, and set in the right direction, but it 

 is absolutely indispensable that the outline be perfectly clear, that is 

 to say, neatly denned in its external lines, whether viewed from the 

 front or from the side. Any deformity, even a slight one, should be 

 considered grave, for it is a sign of the weakness and the ultimate ruin 

 of the limb in which it is noticed. 



Diseases and Blemishes. H. Bouley 1 has described the dis- 

 eases and the blemishes of the knee in his usual happy style. We will 

 therefore limit ourselves to condensing here what he has written on 

 this subject. 



1. Recent Lesions and Diseases. First among these are denudations, 

 excoriations, and more or less deep wounds of the skin of the anterior surface of 

 this region, the result of falls, and the gravity of which varies with the nature 

 of the soil, the velocity of the gait, and the weight of the burden which the ani- 

 mal carried at the time. These lesions, as well as the scars they leave behind, 

 are, as a rule, somewhat circular in shape, on which account the horse thus disfig- 

 ured is said to be crowned. The cicatrices which succeed them usually have quite 

 a regularly circular form, and designate the animal that presents them crowned. 

 It is important to ascertain whether they are the result of a lack of steadiness in 

 the anterior limbs or due to accidental falls. It is likewise necessary to find out 

 if the lesion of the knee has affected only the skin and the subcutaneous con- 

 nective tissue, or if, on the contrary, the synovial bursse have been involved, for 

 the gravity under these diverse circumstances is not the same. In general, super- 

 ficial wounds are not accompanied by any great difficulty in walking, while the 

 deep ones, those which have brought about the opening of the articulations, are 

 extremely painful, and make it impossible for the animal to press his hoof on 

 the ground. 



Sometimes injuries or falls have determined no other consequences than a 

 simple excoriation of the epidermis and the hairs thereon, which latter will grow 

 again with their natural change of color. At other times the region is more or 

 less contused, without a loss of substance, and the extravasation of blood or 

 serum underneath the skin will occasion the formation of abscesses capable of 

 rendering the subjects incapable of service for some time. 



2. Chronic Lesions and Diseases. In this category are arranged 

 numerous lesions and affections, which, in most instances, are tantamount to 

 true blemishes. They involve the skin, subcutaneous connective tissue, the artic- 

 ular and tendinous synovial bursas, and the bones. Let us examine them 

 rapidly. 



a. Skin. We have seen that the horse styled crowned may receive upon the 

 anterior surface of the knees injuries of greater or less importance; but the skin 

 only preserves permanent traces when it has been affected in its essential parts. 

 The most trifling of these after-results are those which proceed merely from 

 a modification of the hair-follicles. Where these follicles are the new hair 

 grows white, and thus bears witness of the fall which has taken place. In other 



i H. Bouley, loc. cit. 



