DETECTION OE THE SEAT OF LAMENESS. 17 



confirm the diaguosis made by the hoof tester ; and under 

 certain conditions a diaguosis can only be arrived at by the 

 percussion sound of the hammer. 



If the examination reveals disease, the shoe must be 

 removed. If necessary, the sole should be pared, the 

 condition of the white line being of particular interest, and 

 all loose shreds of the frog are to be cut off. Foreign 

 bodies are usually found when the sole is cut out. 



If any portion of the sole indicates by its color or its 

 friable consistency a diseased state, or if the painful spot 

 pressed upon by the hcof pincer shows a nail-hole, further 

 examination with the searching knife is imperative, and in 

 the latter case the nail-hole is to be traced until either an 

 abscess is found or that part of the white line where the 

 nail entered the horny wall. 



In all cases of hoof lameness the pulsation of the artery 

 along the shin bone, or those along the fetlock, must be 

 taken into consideration, and undue throbbing or fullness 

 of these vessels must be followed by a careful, S3'stematic 

 examination of the hoof. 



Finall}', it is well to remember that the swelling'of the 

 subcutis along the flexor tendons — the result of inflammation 

 of the podophyllous meoibrane — being oedematous and 

 painless, should exclude an error as to the diagnosis of 

 inflammation of the flexor tendons. 



Completion of the examination of the hoof is followed 

 by inspection and palpation of the i)halangeal articulations, 

 bestowing special care upon the joints below the knee 

 or hock, observing them from various points of view, 

 always comparing them with the corresponding part of the 

 sound leg. 



Knee, fore-arm and shoulder receive similar attention. 



