320 DISEASES OF THE HORSE. 
when the true nature of the trouble has become apparent it is usually 
‘too late to resort to the remedial measures which, if duly forewarned, 
a skillful practitioner might have employed. We are fully per- 
suaded that but for the loss of the time wasted in the treatment of 
purely imaginary ailments very many cases of bone spavin might be 
arrested in their incipiency and their victims preserved for years of 
comfort for themselves and valuable labor to their owners. 
Treatment.—To consider a hypothetical case: An early discovery 
of lameness has been made; that is, the existence of an acute inflam- 
mation—of periostitis—has been detected. The increased tempera- 
ture of the parts has been observed, with the stiffened gait and the 
characteristic pose of the limb, and the question is proposed for solu- 
tion, What’ is to be done? Even with only these comparatively 
doubtful symptoms—doubtful with the nonexpert—we should direct 
our treatment to the hock in preference to any other joint, since of 
all the joints of the hind leg it is this which is most liable to be 
attacked, a natural result from its peculiarities of structure and 
function. And in answer to the query, What is the first treatment 
indicated? We should answer rest—emphatically, and as an essen- 
tial condition, rest. Whether only threatened, suspected, or posi- 
tively diseased, the animal must be wholly released from labor, and 
it must be no partial or temporary quiet of a few days. In all stages 
and conditions of the disease, whether the spavin is nothing more 
than a simple exostosis, or whether accompanied with the complica- 
tion of arthritis, there must be a total suspension of effort until the 
danger is over. Less than a month’s quiet ought not to be thought 
of—the longer the better. 
Good results may also be expected from local applications. The 
various lotions which cool the parts, the astringents which lower the 
tension of the blood vessels, the tepid fomentations which accelerate 
the circulation in the engorged capillaries, the liniments of various 
composition, the stimulants, the opiate anodynes, the sedative prepa- 
rations of aconite, the alterative frictions of iodin—all these are 
recommended and prescribed by one or another. We prefer counter- 
irritants, for the reason, among many others, that by the prompt- 
ness of their action they tend to prevent the formation of the bony 
deposits. The lameness will often yield to the blistering action 
of cantharides, in the form of ointment or liniment, and to the alter- 
ative preparations of iodin or mercury. If the owner of a “spav- 
ined” horse really succeeds in removing the lameness, he has ac- 
complished all that he is justified in hoping for; beyond this let 
him be well persuaded that a “cure” is impossible. 
For this reason, moreover, he will do well to be on his guard 
against the patented “cures” which the traveling horse doctor may 
urge upon him, and withhold his faith from the circular of the agent. 
