231 



raised about an inch, the inside calk being lower, in 

 order to throw most of the weight on the outside of 

 the joint. After the acute inflammation has subsided, 

 a sharp blister should be applied, covering an area of 

 at least three inches in diameter over the spavin A 

 "red blister" is usually preferred. The blister may 

 cause the exostosis to increase in size for a time, but 



I^r-jw this is not to be feared. The blister 



§ W^ may be repeated in three or four weeks. 



F ill After the blister has been applied, a run 



at pasture is excellent, the high -heel 

 shoe being left on. In bad cases, it is 

 often a good plan to "fire" the spavin 

 at once. In firing a spavin, the usual 

 plan is to "feather" or "line" fire 

 clear around the joint ; then to put a 

 few punctures in the region of the 

 bunch, care being taken not to open 

 the joint. The essentials to success, in 

 treating spavins, are counter-irritation 

 ^ I IB ^^^ ^^^^' "^ cured spavin is one in 



^ li_a^V which the inflamed joint is firmly 



Fig. 44. Bone-spavin, welded tcgethcr by the bony bunch or 



as shown on bones . . i* . i 



o£ the hock-joint, exostosis, SO there IS no motion m the 

 joint. This stops all irritation, and, as a result, the 

 horse goes without limping. A spavined horse is 

 always unsound, and an expert can detect such an 

 animal, even though a "cured" one, by seeing the ani- 

 mal move. Spavins are more successfully treated in 

 young animals than in old. In some cases, spavins 

 resist all forms of treatment and the horse remains 



