220 CANINE MEDICINE AND SURGERY 



after the injury has occurred. Place the patient 

 under a general anesthetic to relax the muscles and 

 so faciliate reduction. By palpation or, if available, 

 by the X-ray determine exactly the condition to be 

 dealt with and then think out the manipulations 

 required to reduce the joint to its normal position. 

 When successful, the bones often go back into place 

 with a distinct snap and the deformity of the joint 

 disappears. After reduction, the whole extremity 

 should be placed in a plaster bandage. When the 

 dislocation occurs in the shoulder, hip, or stifle, 

 where it is impossible to apply a bandage, the parts 

 may be more or less immobilized by first of all 

 clipping the hair, applying fish glue to the skin, and 

 then pieces of book muslin, layer on layer, using the 

 glue as frequently as required, until about a dozen 

 thicknesses of the muslin have been applied. This 

 glue cast sets very hard, is light, and supports the 

 parts nicely. It is easily removed by soaking in 

 warm water. 



Dislocation of the tail is generally met with in 

 greyhounds, whippets, or in dogs having a long 

 tail. If seen sufficiently soon after injury the dis- 

 location is easily reduced. The tail should be kept 

 in place either by a glue bandage or adhesive plaster. 



Necrosis 



Necrosis of the caudal vertebra is frequently met 

 with and in advanced cases necessitates amputation 

 of the tail. The condition is the result of injury, 

 such as a bite from another animal, or the tail be- 

 ing run over, jammed in a door, or trodden upon. 



The symptoms of necrosis are a swelling in the 

 affected region, tenderness and abscess formation. 

 The treatment consists of free incision, the removal 

 of sequestra, and free curettage. After operation 



