RURAL VETERIXARY SECRETS 183 



also stop bleeding, warm water encourages it. The hands should be 

 cleaned and dipped frequently in the antiseptic solution when dressing 

 a wound. Stitches are not used as frequently in wounds of animals, 

 the powerful muscular contraction tends to tear them out ; in cases 

 of severe wounds the veterinarian should be called. The use of such 

 irritants : Acids, salt, turpentine, etc., serve no useful purpose on a fresh 

 wound when compared with the pain caused, such materials really 

 tend to hinder and thus prevent rapid healing; their use is also liable 

 to result in permanent scars or blemishes. A solution of Lotio \^ita is 

 most satisfactory in these cases. It leaves no scar and heals quickly. 



Another class of wounds to deal with are those known as frac- 

 tures (breaks). They occur in hard structures, such as bone, differ- 

 ing from those already spoken of, which are of soft tissues. 



FRACTURES require expert dressing and the application of 

 bandages and splints in the larger animals; in calves, lambs, pigs and 

 poultry the stockman can with little trouble bind up the broken part and 

 save loss. Fractures are of various kinds and vary greatly in their 

 seriousness ; generally speaking, if the ends of the bones extend through 

 the skin, the case is not worth bothering with. Fractures may be straight 

 across a bone, on the slant (obliquely), or lengthwise; if the bone is 

 broken without external wound, it is termed a simple fracture; if the 

 l^roken ends do communicate with an external wound we have a com- 

 pound fractm-e; if the bone is broken into small pieces the fracture is 

 known as comminuted; greenstick fractures occur in young animals 

 and resemble the break in a green stick, not a clean, sharp break, hence 

 the term. 



UNION OF FRACTURES (broken bones) takes place some- 

 what as follows : During the first 3 days inflammation and exudation 

 is going on, from then to the twelfth day soft material is thrown out 

 around the broken ends, and if the bone is hollow also in the hollow 

 space; by the end of a month, if the ends have not been disturbed, the 

 soft material mentioned is changed into bone (being known as the pro- 

 visional callus) ; following this stage, material forms between the 

 broken ends, being later converted into bone, which process takes about 

 two months, thus completely uniting the broken parts ; this material 

 forms what is known as the definite callus. If occasional movement 

 of the ends occur during this stage, complete union is not possible, and 

 in such cases the material thrown out instead of becoming bone, takes 

 on a gristly formation. The absorption of more or less of the excess 

 of callus follows, usually taking several months or longer to be per- 

 formed, before this occurs the point of union is shown by an enlarge- 

 ment. Briefly the treatment of fractures consists in bringing the broken 



