368 BOVINE PATHOLOGY, 



OvEROROWTH OP HoRN, though not a disease, occasionally 

 requires attention from the veterinarian, since it may give 

 rise to foul and other diseases. It is seen in animals con- 

 stantly housed, and so deprived of the attrition which 

 naturally maintains the proper length of the hoof, and the 

 remedy consists in regulated application of the rasp and 

 drawing-knife. 



Pricks and other Penetrating Wounds op the Foot 

 must be treated in such a manner as to give free exit to 

 all discharges, by removal of horn, so as to form a depend- 

 ing orifice ; and carbolic dressings ; however, cases of this 

 kind are not so important in the ox as in the horse, for 

 the pus readily bores its way to the coronet, and gains 

 exit in consequence of the comparatively loose union of 

 the laminated surfaces, whereas in the horse there is a 

 tendency to form secondary sinuses. Youatt lays stress 

 on this difference. 



Monstrous condition op the Foot. — The development 

 of extra digits in the ox is of very rare occurrence, but 

 we have before us an instance in which the inner rudi- 

 mentary digit was fully developed, and bore a hoof about 

 three quarters as large as those of the two functional 

 digits. A case was mentioned before the Societe 

 Centrale de Medecine Yeterinaire of an ox with a cloven 

 condition of one hind limb, extending up to the tarsus.^ 



Interdigital Fibromata are sometimes seen ; as they 

 increase in size they cause lameness, tension of the inter- 

 digital ligament, and may ultimately lead to foul. They 

 should be removed with the knife. 



Ulceration op the Heel, of a sluggish character, either 

 associated with foul or as a distinct affection, sometimes 

 proves obstinate to treatment. It develops luxuriant 

 papillae, assuming a fungoid character, or may form an 

 irregular, hard, callous mass. In either case cauterisa- 

 tion is called for. This condition results from long-con- 

 tinued exposure to cold and dirt. Youatt compares it to 



^ We have just received the hind limb of a calf with a well- developed digit, 

 consisting of a metatarsal, the full number of phalanges, and a fairly 

 formed hoof, curling upwards from the inner side of the hock. 



