12 DISEASES OF THE HORSE. 



from a severe and long-continued disease or from lack of proper food 

 and care. Where an animal is emaciated — that is, becomes thin — 

 there is first a loss of fat and later the muscles shrink. By observing 

 the amount of shrinkage in the muscles one has some indication as to 

 the duration of the unfavorable conditions that the animal has lived 

 under. 



By constitution we understand the innate ability of the animal to 

 withstand disease or unfavorable conditions of life. The constitution 

 depends largely upon the conformation. The type of construction 

 that usually accompanies the best constitution is deep, broad chest, 

 allowing plenty of room for the lungs and heart, indicating that 

 these vital organs are well developed ; capacious abdomen, allowing 

 sufficient space for well-developed organs of digestion; the loins 

 should be short — that is, the space should be short between the last rib 

 and the point of the hip; the head and neck should be well molded, 

 without superfluous or useless tissue; this gives a clear-cut throat. 

 The ears, eyes, and face should have an expression of alertness and 

 good breeding. The muscular development should be good; the 

 shoulders, forearms, croup, and thighs must have the appearance of 

 strength. The withers are sharp, which means that they are not 

 loaded with useless, superfluous tissue ; the legs are straight and their 

 axes are parallel ; the knees and hocks are low, which means that the 

 forearms and thighs are long and the cannons relatively short. The 

 cannons are broad from in front to behind and relatively thin from 

 side to side. This means that the bony and tendinous structures of 

 the legs are well developed and well placed. The hoofs are compact, 

 tense, firm structures, and their soles are concave and frogs large. 

 Such a horse is likely to have a good constitution and to be able to 

 resist hard work, fatigue, and disease to a maximum degree. On the 

 other hand, a poor constitution is indicated by a shallow, narrow chest, 

 small bones, long loins, coarse neck and head, with thick throat, 

 small, bony, and muscular development, short thighs and forearms, 

 small joints, long, round cannons, and hoofs of open texture with 

 flat soles. 



The temperament is indicated by the manner in which the horse 

 responds to external stimuli. When the horse is spoken to, or when 

 he sees or feels anything that stimulates or gives alarm, if he responds 

 actively, quickly, and intelligently, he is said to be of lively, or nerv^- 

 ous, temperament. On the other hand, if he responds in a slow, 

 sluggish manner, he is said to have a sluggish, or lymphatic, tempera- 

 ment. The temperament is indicated by the gait, by the expression 

 of the face, and by the carriage of the head and ears. The nature of 

 the temperament shoidd be taken into consideration in an endeavor to 

 ascertain the severity of a given case of illness, because the general 

 expression of an animal in disease as well as in health depends to a 

 large extent on the temperament. 



