ON CANKER. 
426 
domen, and made an opening to allow the escape of discharge 
at the bottom of the sac. 1 saw her daily for a week, and 
prescribed according to the state in which I found her. On 
the whole, her health proved good, and her wounds healed 
pleasantly. She was fourteen, indeed nearly fifteen, years old, 
and, like most old cows, had a large belly. She fattened well, 
and was sold for the shambles in April. The butcher told the 
farmer that he found a large abscess in her side when he cut 
her up. 
ON CANKER. 
By William Gavin, M.R.C.V.S. 
To the Editor of 11 The Veterinarian 
Dear Sir, — In your excellent paper on Canker, you omit to 
notice a form of the disease which I have twice met with, and 
found incurable, and which may or may not be found often to 
occur. 
The disease in the foot presents the usual characters ; but, 
instead of resulting from derangement of function in the se- 
creting surface, seems to be dependent on disease of the ab- 
sorbents, and most probably also of the veins in the leg, which 
becomes very much enlarged gradually, from the hock down- 
wards. This enlargement consists of organized deposit, having a 
sanious greasy discharge from the skin covering it. In the bend 
of the heel or pastern there is a wound, attended with a more 
or less copious exudation. If the discharge be dried up, the 
canker becomes very much worse, and pours out a discharge 
similar to what comes from the leg. Great labour and atten- 
tion will be so far successful on the foot as to renew healthy 
horny secretion in it, saving and excepting upon one small spot, 
of uncertain situation, on the sole, which nothing can induce to 
heal or suppress the constant exudation of the discharge from, I 
mentioned. In this state a single day’s neglect will undo the 
labour of months. I have tried the seton and firing-iron for the 
leg ; but, as I thought, with a little benefit. Also purgatives, 
alteratives, tonics, &c. without any service whatever. I con- 
sider canker in these cases incurable, unless the condition of the 
limb can be very considerably ameliorated. 
I remain, your’s truly. 
*** Are not cases such as the one above described sequelae of 
inveterate canker 1 Mr. Gavin will accept our thanks for 
calling our attention to the subject. — E d. Vet. 
