46 SPRAINS. 



with a piece of soft cotton cloth, or by putting on an ordinary 

 flannel bandage, and the cotton wool over it. In my experience, 

 no matter how bad the sprain over which it has been placed, its 

 application has invariably been followed by marked relief in the 

 symptoms, provided, of course, that it was employed during the 

 early stages of the injury ; that is to say, before the exudation had 

 become solidified and more or less organised. It should be re- 

 m_embered that its use is to remove fluid, the presence of which is 

 liable to seriously impair the soundness of the part. The bandage 

 may be taken off after twenty-four hours, although it is generally 

 better to let it remain on for double that time in the first instance. 

 After the bandage has been removed, the foot should be lifted oft' 

 the ground, held up and the part carefully hand-rubbed (p. 675) ; 

 the leg bent and extended a few times ; and a fresh bandage of the 

 same kind put on ; care being taken that none of the material used 

 has become caked. The bandage may now be removed morning 

 and evening, and the part hand-rubbed and passively worked by 

 taking up the leg and bending the joints without demanding any 

 muscular effort from the horse. 



In case of descent of the fetlock, support cam be given to that 

 joint by filling up the hollow at the back of the pastern by tightly 

 paoked cotton wool, or other suitable material, over which a firm 

 ba.ndage should be placed. A tennis ball might be utilised for 

 giving the required support. For the purpose in question, the 

 special shoe shown in Fig. 22 can be used with advantage. When 

 placed on the foot, the fetlock rests on the cross bar, which should 

 be covered with soft materials 



In bandaging for sprains, on or above the knee and below the 

 elbow, first put a loose cotton wadding bandage on the leg up to 

 the knee, so as to prevent .the bandage intended for the injured 

 part from slipping down. 



Acting on the principle of prevention being better than cure, 

 cotton wool bandages may be used on the legs of hunters after a 

 hard day's work, with highly beneficial results. 



This form of bandage was suggested tO' me by Dr. Henderson, of 

 Shanghai, for use in horse practice, and was described for the treat- 

 ment of sprain in " Hayes' Sporting Notes " of October 20th, 1888 

 (Calcutta). Since that time it has been used with such marked 

 success, that it may be relied on solely with massage (p. 675) in 

 the treatment of those sprains to which it can be applied. Many 

 persons to whom this method has been taught have obtained equally 

 good results. It has certainly been the most useful improve'ment 

 ever introduced into veterinary surgery. Although stress has been 

 laid on the fact that the early stage of sprain is the time when 

 special benefit can be obtained from well-adjusted pressure, it is 



