172 The Diseases of Animals 
irritation, such as repeated hitting of a part. Tumors 
sometimes follow surgical operations or wounds. Horses 
often have tumors in their noses. 
The only satisfactory treatment for tumors is to 
remove them. There are several methods of doing 
this ; the best one, for most: tumors, and the only one 
for some, is to eut them out with a knife. Care should 
be taken to guard against hemorrhage, as the blood 
supply to some tumors is large. Another method 
that can be used to advantage when the growth has 
a small base is to tie a strong string—a waxed- 
end, fish line, or a rubber band wound several times 
—tightly around this stem, thus shutting off the 
blood supply. In a few days the tumor will slough 
off, and the resulting sore should be treated as a 
simple wound. Another method is to slough them off 
by using caustics. Arsenic or corrosive sublimate are 
commonly used, either singly or combined. A pellet of 
the caustic about the size of a small pea, wrapped 
in tissue-paper or muslin, is pushed into a small inei- 
sion made in the base of the tumor. Sometimes two 
or three pellets are placed in a large one. In a few 
days the tumor will begin to separate, and will finally 
slough off. The difficulty in using causties is to confine 
their action to the diseased tissue. 
Shoe-boil — Capped Elbow 
A disease that partakes of the nature both of an 
abscess and a tumor is a ceapped elbow, or shoe-boil. 
It is situated on the elbow, and first appears as a soft, 
