Horses and Horsemastership. loi 



2. CARIES, IRREGULARITIES, &c. 



Diseases of the teeth are fortunately not of common 

 occurrence, but, owing to carelessness, the presence of 

 small stones, and the like, in the corn does occasionally 

 give rise to injuries, resulting in decayed teeth. It is 

 therefore desirable to examine the teeth at intervals, 

 and if a bad one is discovered to have it extracted. The 

 presence of caries is usually indicated by toothache, 

 evidence of which is dribbling, foetid breath, and hanging 

 the head to one side, as w^ell as reluctance to feed and 

 "q bidding" (i.e., rejecting partly masticated food, instead 

 of swallowing it). '" Quidding" is also practised when 

 the edges of the grinders or molar teeth have become so 

 sharp and irregular as to wound the tongue or the 

 cheeks. Tlie presence of whole oats in the faeces also 

 points to the fact that the animal is not able to use his 

 teeth properly. By withdrawing the tongue (p. 72) 

 the sharp edges of the teeth can be felt with the hand, 

 and abrasions both on the cheek and the tongue itself 

 may be observed. Tlie services of a veterinary surgeon 

 should be requisitioned without delay ; pending his 

 arrival, the animal should be fed on soft food. 



