THEIR PATHOLOGY, DIAGNOSIS, AND TREATMENT. 



c. 



Canker.— Canker is often the sequel to neglected or improperly treated 

 cases of grease or thrush, and rarely or never occurs in horses properly 

 attended to and kept in clean stables, but where they are compelled to 

 stand in a filthy puddle of manure cauker and other troubles are very 

 likely to be the result. It i3 a kind of fungoid growth spreading over the 

 sensitive frog and sole, ulcerating and discharging a foul and offensive 

 matter. It is difficult to cure, and the first step to that end must be the 

 removal of any exciting cause by attention to thorough cleanliness— all 

 decomposed horn should be cut away and the ulcers exposed, so that 

 they may be within reach of the proper remedies ; the parts should then be 

 touched with butyr of antimony, and a good dressing of the following 

 applied on a piece of tow : 



Dressing for Canker.— Take red precipitate one part, blue stone in fine 

 powder four parts, lard twelve parts — or the two powders well mixed may 

 be dusted over the sores and a pledget of tow applied. 



As pressure is of importance the tow must be folded evenly and applied 

 firmly, being kept in position by two thin pieces of iron crossing each other 

 and slipped in under the shoe. The discharge should not be allowed to 

 accumulate under this, but the foot must be examined, cleaned, and re- 

 dressed at least every other day, and at each examination all loose and 

 sloughing parts must be carefully cut away, keeping a perfectly level 

 surface that the pressure may be equal. 



Capped Hock and Capped Elbow or Capulet.— This is an injury to 

 the point of the hock or elbow, causing enlargement, a degree of stiff- 

 ness, and sometimes lameness. When observed, the whole hock joint 

 should be examined to see how far the injury extends. It is generally the 

 result of a blow, self-inflicted when the horse kicks in the stable, or it 

 may be caused by the movement of the horse lying without proper bedding 

 The amount of swelling varies considerably, as doe3 the inflammation 

 present. Situated just beneath the skin at these points are sacs, called 

 bursa mucosa, lined with synovial membrane, for the lubrication of the 

 tendons passing over the points of the bones ; these get bruised, swell, and 

 become soft and puffy to the feel, and the reduction of these to their 

 natural condition is the object to be attained. The insertion of a seton 

 below the swelling has been recommended and often tried, but the result 

 is not satisfactory, and is to be avoided. The constant application of 

 a cooling lotion, especially if resorted to in good time, is the safest and 

 most generally successful treatment. A recipe for cooling lotion has 

 already been given (p. 9), but if that is not handy do not wait till you 

 can get it, but apply cold water at once, and this will be improved by 

 adding a fourth part of good vinegar, or an eighth part of spirits, as 

 whisky, brandy, &c. Atf has already been insisted on when cold lotions 



