Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1902-11-10
:SOUNDNESS OF A HORSE
:..:.:
Esprit of the West. ]


| Esprit of the West.1
| An interesting address, on the exam
NATION of a horse as to his soundness
was recently given by DR.. f. Terrence
D. V. S.. of Winnipeg, Manitoba, which
was reported for the Live Stock Jour
iral, and it will be read with interest
He said: "a sound horse is one tha'
| mas no disease and no alteration OF
| structure that impairS, or is likely &c
impair, his usefulness. An unsouno
| horse is one which is suffering from
| disease or has some alteration of struc-
| ture. 1t was demonstrated that In or
der to properly examine horse 1t is
necessary to have the animal tree from
harness. 1t is well to take the morse
from different points of view. First OBJ
serve the horse from the front. rake
the head; note the eyes, any difference
between the two eyes is a mark OF I'M
soundness. Notice from this point OF
view any abnormal sweilings upon the
head or legs. Then place yourself OPP
posite the horses shoulder and note the
same from behind the horse, noticing
especially the outline of the coup, as
from this point of view it is easy to de-
tect the want of symmetry caused by
the horse having a hip down" the re-
suit of fractured bone. The next step
Is to examine the horses teeth in order
to ascertain the age, and the molars to
detect decayed or missing teeth.
BY turning the face of the horse to
the light we are enabled to test and
trace any symptoms of blindness. In
blind horses, or those likely to be SO
affected, there is in some cases d
cloud in the eye; in the others the low
er portion contains a muddy looklng
sediment. Paralysis of the optic nerve
is detected in horses commonly known
as star gazers. Horses with this dis
ease show no appearance whatever OF
the disease in the eye, but the animal
is totally blind. In order to detect 1t
we can either expose the animal to
some slight action by which his infirm-
ity would be revealed, or we can see
whether the eye loses its natural sensi-
tiyeness to the light II the pupil of
the eye changes in size when the eye is
covered and uncovered the fact proves
the vision all right; if the pupil shows
no difference by being covered or I'M
covered, the horse is blind. Poll evil,
located behind the poll, is detected by
the presence of a swelling, or running
sore or scar in this situation. A horse
that has once contracted this disease is
more likely to again suffer from it than
one that never had it. Taking the low
er section of the head, we examine the
pulse. In testing the pulsation be sure
that the animal is not excited, ass that
is likely to cause the pulse to beat
quicker than is natural: forty-f1ve to
the minute is the average beat of a
horses pulse.
We next examine the glands beneath
the jaw for enlargement, a symptom of
possible CHAMBERS, and the throat for
evidence of the disease causing the
condition known as roaring" Pass the
hand along the larynx and feel the car
tilages and make sure that there is no
depression on either side, as any de-
a little pressure on the jugular vein,
which sometimes becomes diseased on
account of the animal having been bled
Will q ull ~ lISlfuIIleul. TdSSluS lie
hand over the shoulder, we next ascer-
tain abnormalities that might have
arisen from the pressure of the collar.
Broken knees are not always from
accident, and it is necessary to find out
il the horse is a habitual stumbler.
Examine the cannon bone for evidence
of splint, which is a common ailment
of horses, and also very often we find
an abnormality between the carpal and
meta -carpal bones, the fetlock and the
pastern. Any enlargement of the past
ern constitutes an unsoundness, as
probably the result of ringbone Pass
the hand down the back of the leg, and |
first examine the elbow for capped ell
bow; then observe the back tendons, |
noting especially the one next the bone |
This ligament supports the greater part |
Of the horses weight, and prevents dis
placement of the fetlock. If there is an |
1t may be the result of |
some strain to the tendons and this |
may be considered an unsoundness. In |
order to carefully examine the foot, it |
IS necessary to remove the shoe, and |
find out if there is bad smelling dis
charge from the frog. This is called |
thrush. CornS are source of I'M
notice, when pairing the |
horn, and If there is a blood stain in |
The heel 1T is an indication of corns |
Also notice if the foot is normal in size |
and shape. BY the term 'side-bone" is |
that the cartilage has turn
I'd into bone, a condition often found |
n old horses. In a young and sound |
norse it should be gristly or elastic. I
This side-bone is to be found just above
he heel of the hoof 1t causes lame
less, and is an unsoundness.
Some horses have contracted feet or
4 contracted foot. This can be distin-
guished by noting the size of the horses
loot in proportion to it's body, and
should foot appear to be small in
to the size of the animal we
may have a contracted foot The disease
Known as navicular disease can not be
Ietected unless the animal is being ex-
srcised, when the peculiar stilty gait
'eveals It's presence. The best way of
the hook is TO take the ami
nal from different standpoints and
compare the two hooks to see that there
S no difference. Then feel for enlarge
nents. The experience of the observer
s important here. and some spavins are
,nly to be detected by very careful
ouch. After examining with the fin
gers, we pass on to examine the cannon
zone, the fetlock and the pasten just