Page:Horsemanship for Women.djvu/164

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HORSEMANSHIP FOR WOMEN.

ing synovial fluid which has oozed out of the joint. The result usually of brutality. Incurable.

Blood-spavin. — A swelling in nearly the same place caused by an aneurism or sac of arterial blood. Incurable. Very rare.

Bone-spavin. — A swelling caused by a bony growth on the inside of the hock-joint towards the front. It produces lameness, which sometimes passes off temporarily after a few minutes' work. Sometimes curable. This is what is usually meant by spavin.

Bots. — Caused by the larvae of the bot-fly, which cling to the lining of the stomach by their two hooks till after several months they reach maturity and pass out with the droppings. They seem to do little harm, and should be left alone, as they cannot be destroyed by any medicine safe for a horse to take.

Breaking Down. — A rupture of the tendons of the leg causing the fetlock-joint to give way downward. Incurable.

Broken Knee. — Indicated by white or bare spots, showing that the horse has been down, and is presumably a stumbler.

Broken Wind. — Accompanied by a husky cough, and indicated by heaving flanks and forcible double respiration after exercise. Incurable.

Capped Hock. — A soft movable swelling on point of hock, caused by a bruise, usually got in kicking.

Cataract. — Opacity of the crystalline lens of the eye.

Chapped Heels. — Always the result of neglect, Often accompanied by fever and constitutional disturbance.

Cold. — Shown by dulness, rough coat, loss of appetite, tears and running at the nose. Give soft food and nurse well without exercise.

Colic. — Distinguished from inflammation of the bowels by intervals of quiet between the spasms, and by the fact that the horse will strike his belly violently in the hope of relief. Give first a warm injection, to remove any obstruction in lower bowel, and then administer stimulants.

Contracted Heels. — Often caused by improper shoeing, but often natural, and in this case producing no ill result.

Corns. — Do not at all resemble human corns. A corn is a red-