SCROFULOUS OSTITIS IN FOALS. 
577 
hard it was with difficulty crushed with the hand. The hard¬ 
ness of the pus led me to think that the cavity might have 
been a center of suppuration during intra-uterine life, and the 
point of departure of the subsequent disease. Williams 
(.Principles and Practice of Veterinary Medicine, p. 716), says in 
connection with an article on nephritis: “ The next case was 
that of a foal two days old which had died from acute sup¬ 
purative arthritis. A post-mortem examination revealed not 
only the presence of pus in the tissues surrounding the artic¬ 
ulations, but sundry purulent points in the kidneys, the pus 
in which being more or less inspissated or caseous. I look 
upon this case as important, as to some extent it supports the 
view that‘joint disease ’ occurring in young animals is not 
always a primary disease, but secondary to the formation of 
pus in other parts of the organism.” 
Another case which came to my notice may be mentioned 
in this connection. A colt in breeding a high grade Norman 
was foaled with a large umbilical cord, measuring about two 
or two and a half, inches in diameter. I saw the colt when 
only a few hours old and it seemed lively, but showed unmis¬ 
takably signs of previous inflammation of umbilical cord. 
The parts were kept as nearly antiseptic as possible by wash¬ 
ing with bichloride solution and the application of absorbent 
cotton. The patient died on the fifth day from omphalitis 
and showing symptoms of arthritis. 
Taking my experience with the disease as a criterion, I 
should say that the dam occasionally is the medium by which 
the colt gets the specific germ, or at the least is responsible for 
the susceptibility of the foal. In support of this opinion I 
submit the following: The disease occurs more frequently 
among the heavy draft breeds, it being very rare in the light 
harness horse. Plethora, past system of breeding or some 
non-specific condition or influence must be present in this 
class of dams to render the foal more susceptible to the mi¬ 
cro-organism. My attention has been directed to a few draft 
mares, the majority of whose foals would succumb to the dis¬ 
ease. Two cases in particular. A Clyde mare lost three out 
of five colts, the last two of which were given special care 
