194 HORSESHOEING. 



6. Ossification of the Lateral Cartilage (Side-Boxe). 



The ossification of a lateral cartilage (Fig. 213) consists in 

 a cliange of the cartilage into bone. Heavy horses are more 

 frequently affected than lighter ones. It most often involves 

 the outer cartilages of tlie forefeet, seldom both cartilages. 

 Side-bones always interfere with the physiological movements 

 of the foot, and may, indeed, entirely suppress them. 



The disease can only be diagnosed with certainty after the 

 upper part of the cartilage has ossified. The coronet is then 



rather prominent (bulging), 

 ^'°- 2^^- and feels hard. The gait is 



short and cautious, and well- 

 marked lameness often follows 

 severe work. As causes, may 

 be mentioned predisposition in 

 heavy lymphatic horses, and 

 violent concussion or shock due 

 to fast work upon hard roads. 

 The disease is incurable. 



A special method of shoe- 



A left fore os pedis viewed in profile, show- . . ■. i j.i 



ing ossification of the external lateral carti- "Ig IS Only nCCCSSary whcu the 

 lage: a dotted line shows normal line of union ^ cartilage is OSsificd and 



of cartilage with wing of os pedis; 6, ossined t?^ 



portion ("side bone"). The unossified car- -^l^g quarter UpOU that sido is 

 tilage has been removed by maceration. i « c 



contracted. After removing 

 the old shoe, whose outer branch is, as a rule, more worn away 

 than the inner, the outer wall will always be found too high, 

 due to the fact that there has been little or no expansion 

 and contraction in this quarter and, therefore, little or no wear 

 of the horn against the shoe. The hoof is therefore wry, — on 

 the outside too high, and on the inside too low. This shows 

 us how the foot should be dressed so as to obtain a proper 

 base of support and a uniform wear of the shoe. The most 

 suitable shoe is a flat shoe, whose out.er branch must be wider 

 than the inner. It is so applied that the inner branch fol- 



