LAMENESS IN HORSES. 611 
cannot with any ease do without shoes, and on that account is 
mostly found lying down. The sole, he adds, is so sensible in 
laminitis that it requires protection from pressure ; and pressure 
does not pain when confined to the border of the wall. A serious 
objection, in my mind, to this practice is the hammering of feet in 
a state of inflammation, to say nothing of the known difficulty, in 
most cases, of shoeing the animal in such a condition. 
Whether the shoes be taken off or not — and, for my own part, I 
am in favour of their removal — the next step in the treatment to 
be taken is, in my opinion, the insertion of frog-setons. In short, 
I am, after no little experience in the matter, most decidedly an 
espouser of the plan of treatment so strongly recommended and 
deservedly extolled by Mr. Gabriel, in an admirable paper he sent 
to The Veterinarian on the subject in the year 1844*. The 
strong language used on that occasion, and which I do not think 
that gentleman has since had any reason to alter or retract, is in 
itself so expressive that I shall take the liberty here to transcribe 
it : — “ The first and the only anxiety I have, on being called to a 
case of laminitis, is to ascertain whether or not disorganization has 
commenced : if it has, why then, of course, the mischief is irreme- 
diable; but if it has not, — and such will generally be the case, for 
the urgency of the symptoms is too great to allow of any neglect, — 
why, then, I feel perfectly easy as to the result, and I do not hesi- 
tate to predicate a favourable prognosis to the owner. I am now 
speaking of those cases in which the fore feet alone are affected, 
never having had one in which the hind feet, or all four, were 
suffering, under my own immediate care.” 
Mr. Gabriel goes on to inform us — “ My first step, without the 
slightest loss of time or waiting for any thing like preparation, is to 
give a full dose of physic — seven, eight, or nine drachms of Bar- 
badoes aloes, as may be required — and then to put on the hobbles, 
and immediately insert a seton through each frog ; thereby apply- 
ing the safety-valves, which regulate the course of the disease. 
As soon as the patient is released, and has a little rallied from his 
punishment, I have recourse to a copious venesection from the 
jugular vein. Having noticed the state of the animal’s condition, 
I place my finger on the pulse, and care not what quantity is taken, 
till it begins to falter ; but, having produced that effect, I stop. It 
maj be, that the abstraction of one, two, or three gallons is re- 
quisite to produce this impression ; but this impression I will have 
produced, and some intermediate quantity of the amount named 
will most generally do it. I then have his feet enveloped in large 
tepid bran poultices, order him to be comfortably clothed, to have 
plenty of chilled water and slop mashes, and then I consider he is 
* Veterinarian, vol. xvii, p. 142, et sequent. 
