348 DISEASES OF THE HORSE. 



and the hope dwindles to still smaller dimensions when it is secondary 

 to other diseases below the fetlock. If it is caused by overworking 

 the animal, the first indication will, of course, be rest. Line firing has 

 proved very efficacious in these cases. The animal must be turned 

 loose and left unemployed. Careful attention should be given to the 

 condition of his feet and to the manner of shoeing, while time is 

 allowed for the tendons to become restored to their normal state and 

 the irritation caused by excessive stretching has subsided. A shoe 

 with a thick heel will contribute to this. But if no improvement can 

 be obtained and the tendons though retracted have yet been relieved 

 of much of their thickening, the case is not a desperate one, and may 

 yet be benefited by the operation of tenotomy, single or double — an 

 operative expedient which must be committed to the experienced 

 surgeon for its performance. 



SPRUNG KNEES. 



Though not positively the result of diseases of the tendons acting 

 upon the knees, we venture to consider this deformity in connection 

 with that which we have just described. It consists in such an alter- 

 ation in the direction and articulation of the bones which form the 

 various carpal joints that instead of forming a vertical line from the 

 lower end of the forearm to the cannon bone they are so united that 

 the knee is more or less bent forward, presenting a condition due to 

 the retraction of two of the principal muscles by which the cannon 

 bone is flexed. 



Cause. — This flexion of the knee may be a congenital deformity and 

 have continued from the foaling of the animal ; or, like clubfoot, it 

 may be the result of heavy labor which the animal has been compelled 

 to perform at too early an age. It may also be due to other diseases 

 existing in jjarts below the kneejoint. 



Sytnptojns. — This change of direction largely influences the move- 

 ment of the animal by detracting from its firmness and practically 

 weakening the entire frame, even to the extent of rendering him inse- 

 cure on his feet and liable to fall. This condition of weakness is some- 

 limes so pronounced that he is exposed to fall even when standing at 

 rest and unmolested, the knees being unable even to bear the portion 

 of the mere Aveight of the frame which bekmgs to them. This results 

 in another trouble — that of being unable to keep permanently upright. 

 He is apt to fall on his knees, and by this act becomes presently a 

 sufferer fi-om the lesion known by the t^rm of hrokcn knees. 



Treatment. — Whatever may be the originating cause of this imper- 

 fection, it detracts very largely from the usefulness and value of a 

 horse, disqualifying him for ordinary labor and wholly unfitting him 

 for service under the saddle Avithout jeopardizing the safety of his 

 lider. If, hoAvever, the trouble is known from the start, and is not 

 the result of congenital de^^'mity or Aveakness of the kneejoint, or 



