DISEASES AND THEIR TREATMENT. 163 



The great trouble with most farmers and horsemen is, 

 they do not know either how to bleed or give a ball of 

 physic medicine. 



In that case you must do all you can by poulticing the 

 feet and the use of sedatives. Take a large tub or part of 

 a barrel ; put in some blue clay, upon which pour hot water. 

 (The mixture should come half way to the knees when the 

 horse stands in it.) See that it is not hot enough to scald. 

 Stand the horse in for several hours, after which poulticing 

 as before, at the same time give aconite as for fever. You 

 can also give a pint of raw linseed oil. It would be also 

 conducive to success to bleed from the toes, which can be 

 easily done by cutting through the sole at the toe. 



If, however, you can treat as first advised, your success 

 will be certain, as this treatment I know will cure any case 

 of acute founder, or laminitis. 



HEAVES, OR BROKEN "WIND. 



Heaves produces increased action of the flanks. The 

 inspiration is natural, but the expiration requires two mo- 

 tions to expel the air. There is always a short cough, or 

 grunt, and at the same time expels wind while coughing. 

 Heaves are never found in the racing stable, where horses 

 are properly fed. They are always found among cart or 

 team horses, where the owners suppose they must feed a 

 large quantity of coarse food or hay. 



The seat of the disease is located in the air cells of the 

 lungs, causing enlargement and sometimes a rupture of these 

 cells. A result of bronchitis, or inflammation of the small 

 air passages of the lungs, is the lodgment of mucous fluid in 

 those passages of the lungs, causing inability to breathe, 

 (wheeze,) and leads to this result. But in all cases of 

 heaves we find the horse to be a greedy eater, — stuffs the 

 stomach with coarse food, causing the lungs to be greatly 

 restricted in their action, causing an enlargement of or rup- 

 turing of the air cells. 



An important and necessary auxiliary to the successful 

 treatment of heaves is restricting the quantity of coarse 

 food or hay, and increasing that of condensed, nourishing 

 food, thereby giving the lungs increased room to act. 

 Horses fed on chopped stuff", corn fodder, etc., improve, 

 and get worse by being fed on coarse food or hay. 



