416 The Management and Diseases of the Dog. 
ip ourselves, and, probably, a more successful issue to our 
patient. 
When, then, we have such a powerful instrument at 
hand, easy of application, and, with care, harmless in its 
results, there surely can be no excuse for wanton torture. 
Indeed, to the right-minded man, the unavoidable infliction 
of pain must ever be a source of regret. Away with the 
theory that dumb animals are devoid of imagination, which, 
it has been observed, adds so much to the torment of 
human pangs. They are not only imaginative, but their 
imagination is acutely sensitive, and in the dog and the 
horse this is particularly the case. 
Rather, therefore, than we should stsetch our imagination 
with so unreasonable a theory, let us use the means placed 
within our reach to allay suffering, and to afford to those 
animals which are the firm, faithful friends and companions 
of man the best and most humane treatment we are 
capable of bestowing. So that, as recently remarked by a 
noble member of my profession, “ we may be a blessing to 
that lower portion of God’s creation for which we are so 
deeply responsible.” We must ever remember that the 
most sacred duty of the Veterinary Surgeon is to prevent 
or alleviate pain and distress in animals ; and we must aiso 
recollect that, in addition to their companionship, they 
possess.— 
‘*Many a good 
And useful quality, and virtue too— 
Attachment never to be weaned or changed 
By any change of fortune ; proof alike 
Against unkindness, absence, and neglect; 
Fidelity that neither bribe nor threat 
Can move or warp; and gratitude for small 
And trivial favours, lasting as the life, 
And glistening even in the dying eye.” 
