INTRODUCTION 



Lameness is a symptom of an ailment or affection and is not 

 to be considered in itself as an anomalous condition. It is the 

 manifestation of a strnctural or fnnctional disorder of some part 

 of the loeomotory apparatus, characterized by a limping or halt- 

 ing gait. Therefore, any affection causing a sensation and 

 sign of pain which is increased by the bearing of weight upon 

 tbe aff'ected member, or by the moving of such a distressed part, 

 results in an irregularity in locomotion, which is known as lame- 

 ness or claudication. A halting gait may also be produced by 

 the abnormal development of a member, or by the shortening of 

 the leg occasioned by the loss of a shoe. 



For descriptive purposes lameness may be classified as true and 

 false. True lameness is such as is occasioned by structural or 

 functional defects of some part of the apparatus of locomotion, 

 such as would be caused by spavin, ring-bone, or tendinitis. False 

 lameness is an impediment in the gait not caused l)y structural 

 or functional disturbances, but is brought on by conditions such 

 as may result from the too rapid driving of an unbridle- wise 

 colt over an irregular road surface, or by urging a horse to trot 

 at a pace exceeding the normal gait of the animal's capacity, 

 causing it to "crow-hop" or to lose balance in the stride. The 

 latter manifestation might, to the inexperienced eye, simulate 

 true lameness of the hind legs, but in reality, is merely the re- 

 sult of the animal having been forced to assume an abnormal pace 

 and a lack of balance in locomotion is the consequence. 



The degree of lameness, though variable in different instances, 

 is in most cases proportionate to the causative factor, and this 

 fact serves as a helpful indicator in the matter of establishing a 

 diagnosis and giving the prognosis, especially in cases of some- 

 what unusual character. An animal may be slightly lame and 

 the exhibition of lameness be such as to render the cause baf- 

 flingly obscure. Cases of this nature are sometimes quite diffi- 

 cult to classify and in occasional instances a positive diagnosis 

 is impossible. Subjects of this kind may not be sufficiently in- 



