844 DISEASES OF THE HORSE'S FOOT 



must be laid aside for at least several weeks, whereas in 

 this way he maj^ be kept at work and a cure effected at the 

 same time. 



The Actual Cautery. — Largely of the same empirical 

 nature, yet doing something a little more calculated to 

 destroy necrotic tissue and bring about its sloughing is the 

 use of the cautery, both actual and potential. 



The actual cautery may be beneficially employed for the 

 relief of sub-horny quittor in at least two ways. 



In the first place, it is often used — a blunt ' point-firing ' 

 iron being the instrument — instead of the knife as a means 

 of evacuating the contents of the coronary abscess. Those 

 who use it for this purpose are able to say this in its 

 favour : it brings about the opening of the abscess without 

 the unsightly haemorrhage attending the use of the knife, 

 and at the same time just as effectually empties it. The 

 opening made is not nearly so likely to close prematurely — 

 that is, before a proper course of treatment of the wound has 

 been carried out — and so leave necrotic tissue at its bottom. 

 The intense tissue reaction it sets up is productive of a large 

 slough, cast off by highly active inflammatory phenomena, 

 which means that the remaining wound is one in which no 

 dead tissue is left, and which is more amenable to treat- 

 ment. 



We have also seen the actual cautery used in sub-horny 

 quittor, where that disease has reached a chronic fistulous 

 stage, as a means of cauterizing the whole length of the 

 lining of each fistulous passage. 



At the present day this method is regarded as barbarous, 

 and savouring .too largely of the methods and practice of 

 the old empirics. There is no denying the fact, however, 

 that it is at times followed by a speedy and complete cure 

 of what has for months been an intractable and aj^parently 

 incurable quittor ; and, honestly speaking, we ourselves can 

 see nothing very greatly against the operation in certain 

 cases save its appearance. In that it is certainly rough, 

 and is not calculated to favourably impress the more 

 critical of our clientele. With the animal chloroformed. 



