DISEASES OF THE FETLOCK, ANKLE, AND FOOT. 407 



QUITTOR. 



Quitter is a term applied to various affections of the foot wherein 

 the tissues which are involved undergo a process of degeneration 

 that results in the formation of a slough followed by tlie elimination 

 of the diseased structures by means of a more or less extensive sup- 

 puration. 



For convenience of consideration quittors may be divided into four 

 classes, as suggested by Girard: (1) Cutaneous quittor, which is 

 known also as simple quittor, skin quittor, and carbuncle of the coro- 

 net; (2) tendinous quittor ; (3) subhomy quittor; and (4) cartilagi- 

 nous quittor. 



CUTANEOUS QUITTOR. 



Simple quittor consists in a local inflammation of the skin and 

 subcutaneous connective tissue on some part of the coronet, followed 

 by a slough and the formation of an ulcer which heals by suppura- 

 tion. 



It is an extremely painful disease, owing to the dense character of 

 the tissues involved; for in all dense structures the swelling which 

 accompanies inflammation always produces intense pressure. This 

 pressure not only adds to the patient's suffering but may at the same 

 time endanger the life of the affected parts by strangulating the 

 blood vessels. It is held by some writers that simple quittor is most 

 often met with in the hind feet, but in my experience more than two- 

 thirds of the cases have developed in the fore feet. While any part 

 of the coronet may become the seat of attack, the heels and quarters 

 are undoubtedly most liable. 



Causes. — Bruises and other wounds of the coronet are often the 

 cause of cutaneous quittor, yet there can be no question that in the 

 great majority of cases the disease develops without any known 

 cause. For some reason not yet satisfactorily explained most cases 

 happen in the fall of the year. One explanation of this fact has 

 been attempted in the statement that the disease is due to the injuri- 

 ous action of cold and mud. This claim, however, seems to lose 

 force when it is remembered that in many parts of this country 

 the most mud, accompanied with freezing and thawing weather, is 

 seen in the early springtime without a corresponding increase of 

 quittor. Furthermore, the serious outbreaks of this disease in the 

 mountainous regions of Colorado, Wyoming, and Montana are seen 

 in the fall and winter seasons, when the weather is the driest. It 

 may be claimed, and perhaps with justice, that during these seasons, 

 when the water is low, animals are compelled to wade through more 

 mud to drink from lakes and pools than is necessary at other seasons 

 of the year, when these lakes and pools are full. Add to these condi- 

 tions the further fact that much of this mtid is impregnated with 



