66 THE HORSE 



Chapped or cracked heels are usually the result of 

 cold and mud. They should not be washed, but 

 wiped free from mud with a dry cloth, and a dry 

 poultice formed of equal parts of bran and oatmeal 

 may be applied. The following ointment, however, 

 will very often be found sufficient to effect a cure, 

 and some may be applied night and morning — 



Carbonate of lead i ounce. 



Iodoform \ ounce. 



Vaseline .. ... ... ... ... 4 ounces. 



String halt is the name given to the unsightly jerk 

 or snatch which is occasionally given to the knee, 

 but more commonly to the hock by some horses, and 

 is practically incurable. 



Mud fever is the result of mud being splashed 

 on the legs and belly, and causing chill and irritation. 

 The horse should not be washed except upon the 

 sheath, but the mud should be brushed off when 

 dry, and the lotion prescribed for shoulder sores 

 applied. 



Za7fii?iitis, or fever in the feet, is caused by an 

 insufficient amount of exercise, working on hard 

 roads, high feeding, and other similar causes. The 

 fore feet are the most commonly attacked, and the 

 presence of laminitis may be detected by the dis- 

 inclination which the horse shows to move, and the 

 tender way in which he puts his feet down. The 

 latter are very hot to the touch and evidently tender, 

 and consequently the sooner the shoes are taken off 

 the better, and poultices should at once be applied. 

 If the bowels are confined, opening medicine should 

 be administered, and in some instances bleeding is 

 resorted to as a means of producing relief and sub- 

 duing the inflammation. A ball of caloniel, 2 

 scruples, and powdered opium is, however, usually 

 given as a preliminary measure. Subsequently the 

 coronets may be blistered. 



