HORSE AILMENTS AND HOW TO DOCTOR THEM. 391 



Spavin Cure, or good liniment, with friction, also ; use every 

 other morning until a cure is effected. 



SETONS AND ROWELS. 



Setons may be composed of pieces of tape or common 

 lamp-wicking, or of hair from the tail of the horse, or from com- 

 mon cotton cloth, or string like a large fishline. I prefer the 

 tape string of proper size to the hair ; pass it through and be- 

 neath the skin, leaving the two ends hanging out, either tied 

 together or with a knot at each end. I think the latter plan 

 the safer, as a loop is liable to get caught into sometimes and 

 may get torn out'. 



Among veterinary instruments we find a needle made 

 on purpose for putting in setons, and called a seton needle. 

 This is very handy for all horsemen to have ; they come in 

 various sizes, calculated for use in various places. By the 

 aid of this needle and tape, or other material, smeared with 

 blister compound, a large tract of the cellular membrane — by 

 pinching up the skin into a fold — can be pierced close to the 

 body ; the needle is then carried straight through. In three 

 or four days a profuse discharge will commence, and must be 

 kept up, if necessary, by repeated applications of this blister. 

 The ends of the seton should be sponged occasionally to re- 

 move the accumulated matter. 



STRAINS AND SPRAINS. 



A strain is a severe wrenching of the muscles, tendons, or 

 ligaments of some part of the structure, in which some of the 

 fibers may be lacerated or torn. Strains constitute an impor- 

 tant class of the accidents of the horse. Strains of many parts 

 require special attention at once — such as strains of the coffin 

 joint, of the back sinews, of the stifle, of the shoulder, of the 

 back, of the hip joint, and of the knee, etc. 



Treatment. Absolute and entire rest is the principal point 

 to be attended to in the care of sprains of whatever nature and 

 wherever located, as a sprain cannot be cured without rest, no 



