352 
cf FIRING }> HORSES. 
science has the comfort, longevity, and well-being of the 
dumb creatures around us for one of its objects; while its 
chief and most sacred aim is the prevention, mitigation, or 
cure of those maladies which torment these animals, and 
which are so frequently brought upon them by the neglect, 
ignorance, or cruelty of their owners, or are incurred while 
toiling for them. No veterinary surgeon deserves the desig¬ 
nation who is not actuated by the spirit that ennobles his 
profession ; and whoever can realise what the medicine of the 
domesticated animals was in this country less than a century 
ago, and knows what it is now, will gladly confess that 
science has done wonders for these creatures, and has rescued 
them from the ignorant and cruel “ doctoring” of the cow- 
leech and the farrier. 
The discovery of the anaesthetic properties of chloroform 
was looked upon, at first, as almost as great a boon to the 
lower animals as to man himself, and it was extensively em¬ 
ployed. But it was soon found that, except in special cases, 
its use was limited. In the first place, a horse about to be 
submitted to an operation must be thrown down in the 
ordinary way before the administration of the chloroform can 
be attempted—for no animal will stand, neither can man, 
while under its influence; and there being always a prelimi¬ 
nary stage of excitement before loss of consciousness, to try 
to make a horse inhale this drug while standing would be the 
height of folly, as it might cause serious accidents. There¬ 
fore it is absolutely necessary that the animal be cast, and 
the chloroform administered by an experienced assistant, as 
in the case of a human being. This requires some time, and 
then the operation is performed; after which the horse has 
to be recovered from its unconsciousness. Now it is scarcely 
necessary to point out that, however humane the veterinary 
surgeon may be, he would in but few cases elect to employ 
chloroform; and as “ firing” is a simple operation, and does 
not, or should not, occupy many minutes, it would be making 
a much to-do about nothing to resort to it. In the matter of 
expense alone, which is generally a serious affair with owners 
of animals, chloroform would be objected to by many; then 
there is the time occupied in administering it, and the neces¬ 
sity for a skilled assistant, the risk of the animal dying from 
its effects, &c. 
But to those w r ho have employed this fluid in the lower 
animals, there is another drawback which goes a long way to 
counterbalance the temporary abolition of pain it occasions, 
and that is the marked depression, and frequently nausea, the 
creature experiences for hours after its wakening up. Horses 
