436 



WARTS. 



These are essentially a morbid overgrowth of the superficial papil- 

 lary layer of the skin and of the investing cuticular layer. They are 

 mostly seen in young horses, about the lips, eyelids, cheeks, ears, be- 

 neath the belly, and on the sheath, but may develop anywhere. The 

 smaller ones may be cli])ped off with scissors and the raw surface cau- 

 terized with bluestone. The larger may be sliced off with a sharp 

 knife, or if with a narrow neck they may be twisted off and then cau- 

 terized. If very vascular they may be strangled by a waxed thread or 

 cord tied around the neck, at least three turns being made round and 

 the ends being fixed by passing them beneath the last preceding turn 

 of the c ird, so that they can be tightened day by day as they slacken 

 by shrinkage of the tissues. If the neck is too broad it may be trans- 

 fixed several times with a double-threaded needle and then be tied in 

 sections. Very broad warts that cau not be treated in this way may be 

 burned down to beneath the surface of the skin with a soldering bolt 

 at a red heat and any subsequent tendency to overgrowth kept down 

 by bluestone. 



BLACK PIGMENT TUMORS — MELANOSIS. 



These are common in gray and white horses on the naturally black 

 parts of the skin at the root of the tail, around the anus, vulva, udder, 

 sheath, eyelids and lips. They are readily recognized by their inky 

 black color, which extends throughout the whole mass. They may ap- 

 l^ear as simple pea-like masses, or as multiple tumors aggregating many 

 pounds, especially around the tail. In the horse these are usually simple 

 tumors, and may be removed with the knife. In exceptional cases they 

 prove cancerous, as they usually are in man. 



EPITHELIAL CANCEit — EPITHELIOMA. 



This sometimes occurs on the lips at the angle of the mouth, and 

 elsewhere in the horse. It begins as a small wart-like tumor, which 

 grows slowly at first but finally bursts open, ulcerates and extends 

 laterally and deeply in the skin and other tissues, destroying them as 

 it advances (rodent ulcer.) It is made up of a fibrous framework and 

 numerous round, ovoid, or cylindrical cavities, lined with masses of 

 epithelial cells, which may be squeezed out as a fetid caseous material. 

 The most successful treatment is early and thorough removal with the 

 knife. 



VEGETABLE PARASITES OF THE SKIN. 



Parasite: Tricliopliytoiu tonsurans. Malady: Tinea tonsurans — 

 Circinate ringworm. — This is especially common in young horses com- 

 ing into training and work, in low-conditioned colts in winter and 

 spring after confinement indoors and during moulting, in lymphatic 



