WOUNDS 239 



and the whole maintained in position with a bandage 

 previously soaked in a 1 in 500 solution of perchloride of 

 mercury. Once on, this dressing should be allowed to 

 remain until healing is complete. Should the animal 

 manifest pain, however, by constantly pawing, or should 

 swelling and heat of the parts be suspected, the bandage 

 should be removed, and the condition of the wound ascer- 

 tained. 



An excellent example of the value of this method of 

 treatment is that given below : 



' I call to mind a valuable hunter in my practice a few 

 seasons since, who. whilst hunting, we suppose, struck him- 

 self in the way we suggest. He not only removed the 

 superior portion of the inner heel, but tore about 3 inches 

 of the hoof from the top nearly to the bottom. This was 

 clapped back by the owner, tied with a handkerchief, and 

 the horse removed home. When the handkerchief was 

 lemoved, I confess I did not think the horse looked at all 

 like hunting again. The heel was fairly pulled down, the 

 portion of the hoof that was hanging to it I could easily 

 have wrenched off. The parts were fomented, however, 

 with warm water which was slightly carbolized. I then 

 removed a great portion of the heel and the lateral cartilage, 

 which was split; placed the portion of hoof again on the 

 laminae, smothered the wound with iodoform pulv., covered 

 it with cotton-wool packing, and all the boracic acid I could 

 get it to hold. A piece of linen bandage was then tightly 

 wrapped a few times round, and the lot enclosed in a 

 plaster-of-Paris bandage. It did not undo it for a fortnight, 

 when, to my great pleasure, the heel and hoof presented a 

 highly satisfactory appearance. I did it up in much the 

 same way for another ten days, then put the sand-crack 

 clamps into the hoof and fixed it to the sound part. The 

 hoof remained in position while the new horn grew from 

 the top, and the horse hunted again the same season.'* 



Sequels. — Either of the complications we have mentioned 



* Veterinary Record, vol. ix., p. 501 (Bower). 



