490 DISEASES OF THE HORSE. 
light bandage should then be applied, the horse allowed to rest, and 
if necessary the treatment may be repeated each day for two or three 
days. If, however, the wound is so severe that sloughing must ensue, 
we should encourage it by poultices made of linseed meal, wheat 
bran, turnips, onions, bread and milk, or hops. Charcoal is to be 
sprinkled over the surface of the poultice when the wound is bad 
smelling. After the slough has fallen off the wound is to be dressed 
with warm washes of carbolic acid, chlorid of zinc, permanganate of 
potash, or other antiseptic. If granulating (filling up) too fast, use 
burnt alum or air-slaked lime. Besides this local treatment, we find 
that the constitutional symptoms of fever and inflammation call for 
measures to prevent or control them. This is best done by placing 
the injured animal on soft or green feed. A physic of Barbados 
aloes, 1 ounce, should be given as soon as possible after the accident. 
Sedatives, such as tincture of aconite root, 15 drops, three times a 
day, or ounce doses of saltpeter every four hours, may also be admin- 
istered. When the symptoms of fever are abated, and if the dis- 
charges from the wound are abundant, the strength of the patient 
must be supported by good feed and tonics. One of the best tonics 
is as follows: Powdered sulphate of iron, powdered gentian, and 
powdered ginger, of each 4 ounces. Mix thoroughly and give a 
heaping tablespoonful twice a day, on the feed or as a drench. 
PUNCTURED WOUNDS. 
Punctured wounds are produced by the penetration of a sharp or 
blunt-pointed substance, such as a thorn, fork, nail, etc., and the 
orifice of these wounds is always small in proportion to their depth. 
In veterinary practice punctured wounds are much more common 
than the others. They involve the feet most frequently, next the 
legs, and often the head and face from nails protruding through the 
stalls and trough. They are not only the most frequent, but they are 
also the most serious, owing to the difficulty of obtaining thorough 
disinfection. Another circumstance rendering them so is the lack of 
attention that they at first receive. The external wound is so small 
that but little or no importance is attached to it, yet in a short time 
swelling, pain, and acute inflammation, often of a serious character, 
are manifested. 
Considering the most common of the punctured wounds, we must 
give precedence to those of the feet. Horses worked in cities, about 
iron works, around building places, etc., are most likely to receive 
“nails in the feet.” The animal treads upon nails, pieces of iron 
or screws, forcing them into the soles of the feet. If the nail, or 
whatever it is that has punctured the foot, is fast in some large or 
heavy body, and is withdrawn as the horse lifts his foot, lameness 
may last for only a few steps; but unless properly attended to at 
