DISEASES OF HORSES AND CATTLE. 109 



blood vessels are found. These lymphatic vessels 

 sooner or later pass into lymphatic glands, which 

 are very numerous in the fore legs and under and 

 between the lower jaws and other parts of the 

 body. The use of these vessels is to collect sur- 

 plus fluid which exudes through the blood vessels, 

 as well as waste products, and convey them into 

 the circulation. The use of the glands through 

 which these vessels pass is to purify in some way 

 this fluid before it reaches the blood vessels. 

 When the system gets overcharged with these ma- 

 terials, the lymphatics become distended, and in 

 some cases inflamed. 



Inflammation of the lymphatics is called Lym- 

 phangitis. This disease can be caused by several 

 conditions. First: Horses with a sluggish circu- 

 lation are predisposed to this disease, animals that 

 are over-fed and have not sufficient exercise or ani- 

 mals that are half -starved and over- worked, sudden 

 exposure to cold and wet. A common cause of this 

 disease is feeding a horse that is idle or that has 

 very little work and too much nutritive food; the 

 system soon gets blocked up, and if the animal does 

 not take an attack of lymphangitis it will suffer in 

 some other form. When a horse is to be idle for a 

 time its allowance of food should be cut down, and 

 if the animal should become reduced, then increase 

 it a little, but a horse allowed to stand eating all 

 day and night is almost sure to suffer some ill ef- 

 fects. On the other hand, when a horse is over- 

 worked and under-fed, the whole system becomes 

 weak and the lymphatics are not able to do their 



