338 FRACTURE OF THE SHOULDER, ARM, ELBOW. 



possible to retain them in it, for the slightest motion would dis- 

 place them. A rapid survey of each may not, however, be alto- 

 gether useless. 



Fracture of the shoulder. — The author is not aware of 

 the successful treatment of tliis accident by any Enghsh veteri- 

 nary surgeon. 



It is not at all times easy to discover the existence and precise 

 situation of fracture of the humerus. The lameness is very great 

 — the animal will not bear at all upon the broken hmb — he will 

 drag it along the ground — he will move slowly and with difficulty, 

 and his progression will consist of a succession of short leaps The 

 lifting of the foot will give very great pain. If he is roughly han- 

 dled, he will sometimes rear, or throw himself suddenly down. By 

 careful application of the hand, a crepitus (crackling sound) wiU 

 more or less distinctly be heard. 



Fracture of the arm. — This accident is not of unfrequent oc- 

 currence. It commonly takes an oblique direction, and is usually 

 first discovered by the displacement of the hmb. Mr. Gloag, of 

 the 10th Hussars, gives an interesting account of a case that oc- 

 curred in his practice. " An entire black cart-horse was grazing 

 in a field, into which some mares were accidentally turned. One 

 of them kicked him severely a little above the knee. He, howev- 

 er, contrived to get home, and being carefully examined, there was 

 fomid a simple firacture of the radius, about an inch and a half 

 above the knee. The ends of the fractured bone could be heard 

 distinctly grating against each other, both in advancing the leg 

 and turning it sideway from the body. He was immediately 

 placed in a sling not completely elevated from the ground, but in 

 which he could occasionally relieve himself by standing. The leg 

 was well bathed with warm water, and the ends of the bone 

 brought as true to their position as possible. Some thin slips of 

 green wood were then immersed in boiling water until they would 

 readily bend to the shape of the Imee, and they were tied round 

 the joint, reaching about nine inches above and six below the knee, 

 the ends of them being tied round with tow. 

 . A fortnight afterwards he became very troublesome, knocking his 

 foot on the ground, and when, at the expiration of the sixth week, 

 he was taken from the slings, there w^as a considerable bony de- 

 posit above the knee. This, however, gradually subsided as 

 the horse regained his strength, and, wdth the exception of turn- 

 ing the leg a little outwards, he is as useful as ever for common 

 purposes." 



Fracture of the elbow. — This is far more exposed to danger 

 than the two last bones, and is oftener fractured. The fracture is 

 generally an oblique one, and about two-thirds from the .summit 

 of the limb. It is immediately detected by the altered action, and 



