32S 
S. R. HOWARD. 
Did you ever give a pill to a horse and have the pill lodge and 
close the epiglottis? 
I have had two such accidents and I can tell you the symp¬ 
toms are alarming, not to say embarrassing. The horse staggers 
and falls as if shot, stiffens out, eyeballs retract, lips draw tight 
over teeth, nostrils dilate, and he presents a most painful picture. 
Now don’t get rattled. Just quickly pull out the tongue and 
push it back several times in quick succession, knead the throat, 
or, better, open the mouth and push pill back with fingers. 
I don’t have that choking happen any more. I am sure to 
wet each bolus before it is given. If no water is at hand I just 
moisten it with saliva and down she goes. 
That precaution, of course, is not according to Pasteur, but 
extremes may be in any direction, as note the following: 
I once tested for tuberculosis the 25 Polled Durham cows of 
Dean Price of Agricultural Department, Ohio State University. 
The herdsman required that I thoroughly disinfect each thermo¬ 
meter between each reading for fear of transmitting the disease 
—only 350 times—which I did without a waver. I admit con¬ 
tagious abortion might be communicated with contaminated 
thermometers, but tuberculosis by thermometers per rectum— 
hardly. 
I shall never forget my first experience with a stomach tube. 
That was a long time ago. I had never seen one used and I 
thought I had the directions down fine. Being of a very modest 
and retiring disposition, it was but natural that I should not wish 
to display my first attempt before a critical audience. 
One night in my stable there was a large draft mare near 
her end, and, with the assistance of my wife, I decided to try 
my hand on this mare at passing the tube. Mrs. H. held the mare 
and lantern, while I did the operating, so called. I had fre¬ 
quently passed a catheter to the oesophagus, and I thought this 
tube looked very formidable. Still I thought I was doing very 
well, for the tube, in passing, presented uniformly little, if any, 
resistance. 
The mare stood stock still, and the tube was about all passed 
