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tible habit of body. They are also frequently 
the effect of improper treatment, such as the 
application of substances too strongly stimulant, 
the use of undue pressure of straps or bandages, 
or want of cleanliness. The indolent ulcer, more 
rare in animals than the former, is distinguished 
by its thick, smooth, and callous edges, which 
cause the sore to wear an appearance of great 
depth. Its surface is smooth, glistening, and 
destitute of distinct granulations, varying in co- 
Jour, but generally dark grey or brownish. The 
discharge is viscid, and usually adheres tena- 
ciously to the surface of the sore. It is often 
accompanied by a considerable degree of swell- 
ing. Neither of these ulcers shows any tendency 
to cicatrize, until the nature of its action under- 
goes the necessary change into what constitutes 
the condition of the simple healthy ulcer, such 
as has already been described while detailing the 
process of cure by the second intention. Ulcers 
of long standing are apt to assume the indolent 
form, and in this state are found to be of very 
tedious and difficult cure. We should also no- 
tice, that certain disordered conditions of the 
system tend to delay the healing of wounds. 
These will, of course, require to be watched for 
and obviated where possible. The state of the 
digestive organs, in particular, will often demand 
a careful attention. 
Wounds receive their most common and ap- 
propriate classification from the different man- 
ner in which they have been produced. We 
have thus, first, incised wounds, or such as have 
been caused by instruments having a sharp edge 
or point; secondly, contused wounds, or such as 
owe their origin to contact with bodies which 
act only by their mass, or by the swiftness of 
their motion, or, if at rest, by the resistance 
which they offer to the motions of the animal; 
and, thirdly, lacerated wounds, where the tissues 
of the body are subjected to too high a degree of 
tension, to which they yield, and are forcibly 
torn asunder. 
Ineised Wounds.—An incised wound is one of 
the most common accidents to which the lower 
animals are exposed, and presents itself in a con- 
siderable variety of forms. These will admit of 
being reduced to three principal divisions, first, 
the simple incised wound, which is susceptible 
of cure by the first intention; secondly, the sup- 
purative wound, which can be healed only by the 
process of granulation and cicatrization; and, 
thirdly, the punctured wound, which differs from 
the others by its breadth being small in propor- 
tion to its depth, and which admits of cure some- 
times by the first, and sometimes by the second 
intention. . 
Simple Incised Wounds.—The great object, in 
all cases of simple incised wounds, ought to be 
to attain an union by adhesion. Some veterinary 
surgeons tell us, that, in the lower animals, and 
especially in the horse, it is impossible to achieve 
a cure by the first intention. They would have 
WOUND. 
spoken more correctly, had they contented them- 
selves with maintaining that such a cure was 
often a matter of difficulty. Daily experience 
shows instances of the wound attending blood- 
letting being united without the formation of 
matter; and Blaine, with every other veterina- 
rian of eminence, admits the possibility of thus 
healing far more extensive injuries. The experi- 
ments of Duhamel and Hunter show even that 
portions may be entirely removed from one part 
of the animal system to another, and yet perfect 
adhesion be obtained. Yet it must be allowed, 
that a considerable obstacle to the success of this 
process of cure is found in the strong tendency 
to inflammatory action which seems to charac- 
terise the horse; and a still greater obstacle in 
the restlessness of the animal, and the difficulty 
of subjecting him to due control. But the pro- 
portion of successful cases has been too great, 
where the immediate union has been judiciously 
aimed at, for the practice to be allowed to fall 
into disuse; and the attempt may always be at- 
tended with this satisfactory assurance, that, even 
in cases of failure, matters are placed in no worse 
condition than before, as the cure by the second 
intention still remains open to us, and what would 
otherwise have been our first resource may be ac- 
complished still with the same ease as formerly, 
while the chance of doing better has not been 
neglected. No wounds can be said to be capable 
of union by the first intention, excepting such as 
are recent, and whose margins can be brought 
into close approximation. The first care, in dress- 
ing a wound of this description, ought to be di- 
rected towards ascertaining its extent and depth, 
and the precise nature of the parts involved, by 
gently separating its sides, washing away the 
blood by which it is covered, and removing all 
foreign substances, such as sand, Wce., should any 
be present. The use of the probe may sometimes 
be necessary, but should be always sparingly ap- 
plied. The two sides of the division must then 
be brought into contact, and so carefully retained. 
For this purpose, in very slight cases, where the 
injury extends only to the skin, or to the tissues 
immediately subjacent, the use of adhesive plas- 
ters, either alone or aided by the uniting band- 
age, may be sufficient; and, in such cases, they 
ought to be preferred; but it will be generally 
requisite, in considerable wounds, that one or 
more sutures or stitches should be employed. 
What is termed the interrupted suture is that 
usually resorted to, and is performed by means 
of curved needles, armed with silk, common 
thread, or fine tape. 
from without inwards, at some distance from the 
margin, and down to near the bottom of the 
wound, and the one lip being thus penetrated, 
it must be carried through from within outwards, 
The sides of the wound must then be brought 
together, when the ligature may be tied, and its 
ends cut away. If the wound be extensive, more 
than one stich will be required, but they should 
The needle should be passed | 
