SECTION IX. 



SURGICAL OPERATIONS. 



Of 8urgical Operations and the various Restraints it is sometimes nb» 



ck8sary to place the horse under for their performance — casting 



Slinging — Castration — French Method of Castration — Castration by 

 Ligature — Lithotomy — Tracheotomy — GSsophagotomy — Neurotomy — Mods 

 of Performing Neurotomy — Periosteotomy — Division of the Flexor Ten- 

 dons — Amputations — Amputation of the Penis — Amputation of the Tail — 

 Nicking — Firing — Blistering— Ammoniacal Blister— Rowelling — Setons — 

 Abstraction of Blood, or Bleeding — Division of the Temporal Artery — 

 Bleeding by the Palate — Bleeding by the Toe — Phlebotomy — Bleedino 

 by the Jugular Vein. 



Op Surgical Operations and the various restraints n 



IS SOMETIMES necessary to place the horse under for 



THEIR PERFORMANCE. 



" \^7"HEN it is necessary to perform any painful operation on 

 iT so powerful an animal as the horse, it is of consequence 

 to subject him to a restraint equal to the occasion. Horses are 

 very dissimilar in their tempers, and bear pain very differently ; 

 but it is always prudent to prepare for the worst, and few impor- 

 tant operations should be attempted without casting. Humanity 

 ehould be the fundamental principle of every proceeding, and we 

 ought always to subject this noble animal to pain with reluctance ; 

 but when circumstances absolutely call for it, we should joyfully 

 close our hearts to all necessary suffering. The resistance of the 

 horse is terrible, and it is but common prudence to guard against 

 the effects of it. The lesser restraints are various. Among them 

 may be first noticed the twitch. The twitch is a very necessary 

 instrument in a stable, though, when frequently and officiously 

 used, it may have the ill-effect of rendering some horses violent 



to resist its application. In many instances blindfolding will do 



(239) 



