Chapter II (1)

PHYSIC, THE MODE OF ADMINISTERING IT, AND MINOR OPERATIONS.

Let the reader ask any gentleman of his acquaintance, “Whether man is not morally answerable for the welfare of those animals which are gathered beneath his roof?” The individual thus appealed to will most probably lean back in his easy chair, and, with a look of amiable surprise, may reply “Certainly! certainly! Assuredly, my dear sir, I regard myself as fully responsible! Every horse in my stable costs me one hundred pounds, or very nearly, a year. The poor animals ought to be well looked after for that money! Clerks--many young city men--receive only fifty pounds annually--from respectable houses too. Therefore, my horses ought to be especially well cared for!”

But to drive this matter home, allow the author, with all humility, to inquire if it be in the power of money to discharge the smallest or the slightest moral bond? Is there no difference between paying and doing? May there not be certain duties which are equally stringent upon the very rich and the very poor? Can the wealthy compound for such obligations, and are the needy, only, to be judged for the non-fulfillment of these responsibilities?

It is among the worst features of modern society that, while it boasts of several worthy gentlemen who can draw largely upon their bankers, there are in its ranks so very few who would willingly submit to the smallest personal exertion for the fulfillment of that which they confess to be a moral duty. Would these most agreeable and amiable individuals occasionally lounge toward the stable, the cost of its maintenance might be decreased, and, nevertheless, the creatures for whose welfare the owner is confessedly responsible be better treated at the diminished outlay.

When a dumb slave fails in the service of some affluent proprietor, all that might be done is not accomplished when an order is hastily given “to call in” a veterinary surgeon. It is not sufficient that baskets of drugs are delivered and paid for; that physicking and bleeding are practiced and remunerated; that a “horse doctor” is constant in his attendance, or that a building, by its odor, attests to the activity of his measures. No. Man is formed capable of investigation, and is blessed with a power of locomotion. A man is bound to go, to see, to hear patiently, and to judge conscientiously, of that which is done to the lives intrusted to his responsibility. Had this duty been discharged, many processes, still sanctioned by custom, might have fallen into disuse; some habits, now indulged, might have been discarded; while a few objectionable measures might have been altogether forbidden as useless formalities and needless cruelties.

=Horse Balls=--particular forms of veterinary medicine--are generally sent to stables by the dozen. Physic is thus placed at the pleasure or the caprice of ignorance to administer. The author has seen a large chest full of such abominations--looking very pretty, and made up all of one size, each labeled, and bearing some distinctive title--directed to an English nobleman resident in the country. Such a supply, the writer was informed, is dispatched to “my lord’s” address twice in each year, and is always used by the grooms, and by the stated period, in accordance with the accompanying directions.

The only safeguard attending such implements of destruction was that the majority were harmless, either from the worthless nature of the drugs composing them, or from the change which took place between the agents being compounded and at the time of their being employed. Many, no doubt, were thrown away; but that fact excuses neither the professional man who sent them, the honorable person who ordered them, or the ignorant servants by whom they were accepted. Each was impressed with a belief that such things were potent. It is astonishing how much of this world’s sin is gilt over by its credulity. All concerned regarded these things as mysterious projectiles, strong enough to regulate the eccentricities of health and powerful enough to vanquish the dangers of disease.

One form of ball, however, is neither innocuous nor safe--it is the aloetic. Aloes is the common purgative of the stable. So general was the use of the drug, and so unquestioning appears to have, formerly, been the confidence lavished upon its operation, that this medicine always took the precedence in every sickness, and, ultimately, by popular consent, engrossed to itself the significant term of “physic.” “Has this horse had physic?”--“Prepare this horse for physic”--when spoken in the stable, signify, has such an animal had aloes? or imply an order that another quadruped is to be prepared for a dose of aloes. The groom can only imagine that to be worthy of the title “physic,” which is capable of producing visible effects; and, certainly, when judged by the stable-man’s standard, aloes merits the distinction bestowed upon its drastic results.

Other things will move the bowels of the horse, and will empty its intestines much more gently, and with altogether more safety; but the stable cannot, therefore, afford to part with its favorite representative of the many forms of medicine. Bran mashes, four of these being given daily, it is well known, will relax the animal’s system; but the groom employs these agents merely as _preparatory_ to the favorite dose of aloes; and, though repeated mashes will induce purgation in the equine patient, the groom is never satisfied unless that result be aggravated by a dose of aloes.

The horse’s body does not quickly respond to opening medicine; but the action, once elicited, is not invariably easy to command. The animal’s life is frequently a prey to a potent purgative. The veterinarian knows that the different creatures vary much in their capability of swallowing amounts of aloes; that the dose which will not move one quadruped may destroy the inhabitant of the next stall. One creature will imbibe two ounces of the drug without marked effect; another will be shaken by the action of less than half an ounce of the preparation. Nevertheless, the stable-man always craves for aloes, and always experiences an odd delight when watching for its hydragogue operation.

The farmers in Norfolk are strongly tainted with the superstition of the London mews. They also crave for aloes, and the youthful veterinary surgeon frequently yields to the demand. Young practitioners delight in strong doses. Accordingly, a full dose of aloes is sent to the Norfolk farmer, and by him rammed down the throat of some unfortunate teamster. The next time the novice encounters his customer, the man of the diploma is greeted with “Hey, doctor! doctor! what beautiful physic that were you sent for Slyboots! Oh! how it did work the poor thing, to be sure! If anything could have saved the beast, that must have done! But the time were up, and he died of a powerful inflammation. Thanke, thanke, doctor! Let’s have your bill!”

This is the more lamentable when we consider that in nine cases out of ten, or rather in twenty-nine out of thirty, the administration of aloes is unnecessary. In the great majority of cases, its place could be advantageously supplied by bran mashes, which are readily made according to the following receipt: Put a peck of bran into a perfectly clean stable-pail. One person should stir the bran as briskly as possible, while another person, with speed, empties a sufficiency of boiling water into the pail to render the contents a pultaceous mass. The vessel is then covered up, and when it has become cool, the pudding is thrown into the manger.

However, one horse shall devour bran mashes with avidity, another will not touch them. This will not partake of the potion unless it be partially warm; another will not eat until it is perfectly cold; while most will partake of the mess if it be flavored by the admixture of a little salt or a few crushed oats.

So it is, also, with water. Certain horses, when feeding upon bran mashes, refuse all drink; others enjoy frequent draughts of cold fluid; while a third set seem to crave warm water; and a fourth will neither imbibe freely nor entirely abstain, being wholly indifferent as to the temperature of the liquid. Thus the order, which is inserted in most books, to give to the horse, after the animal has swallowed a dose of aloes, copious draughts of warm water, is frequently rendered futile; for, as the proverb teaches, “one man may lead the horse to the pond, but forty men cannot make the quadruped drink.”

Bran mashes, however, will act without the aid of repeated doses of warm fluid. Of themselves they do not debilitate, though from the length and size of the horse’s intestines, purgation cannot be long maintained without inducing serious exhaustion; and it is never safe to work the animal while any looseness is observable. A tendency to inflammation is often announced by repeated and liquid discharges; therefore, never let the horse be taken out while the bowels are in a state of excitement, for exercise may increase that action to one of positive disease. Bran mashes, however, are the safest and the gentlest of laxatives. Any condition may be induced, according to the number and frequency of the potions. In general, they act mildly, without inducing that bodily discomfort and that constitutional weakness which throws the animal out of condition and renders rest an absolute necessity for recovery. Altogether, these mixtures are the best and the safest laxative of the stable; but even these should never be administered to the horse without the special direction of the proprietor.

On the other hand, aloes can, in no form, be administered to some horses. Very many cannot receive a full dose of the drug. Several can only with safety swallow the medicine when highly spiced or in solution. While a few are all but insensible to the action of the agent. Alarming spasms often follow the exhibition of a moderate quantity of aloes, which always renders the quadruped sickly ere the effects are visible. The drug, in most instances, lies dormant twenty-four hours; during which period the appetite is lost, the spirits oppressed, the coat dull, and the entire system evidently shaken. It is not esteemed prudent to work the patient till several days’ rest have been allowed for its restoration.

It used once to be the custom to trot the animal which was sickening under a dose of aloes; but experience has shown the danger of the habit. The horse is now left in the stable, has an extra rug thrown upon the back, while a pail of warm water is in most instances placed in the manger. Where safe, it is obviously unnecessary to ride the quadruped which is sickening under aloes; since the loss of appetite shows the medicine has affected the system, and the natural effects of the physic may, therefore, be anticipated.

Very many animals, when suffering from chronic debility, may be slaughtered by a moderate dose of aloes, while many never sufficiently recover from purgation to do a day’s work after the medicine has ceased to operate. Of all the preparations the veterinarian has at his command, the writer does not know one which exerts so decided an effect upon the constitution; nor does the veterinary pharmacopœia contain an agent which could be more advantageously dispensed with. During the years the author was in active practice, he does not remember to have ever given a dose of aloes that the symptoms did not afterward cause him to regret the administration.

There is another fact rendering the aloetic ball an unsafe agent to be intrusted to the keeping of a groom. These things, as commonly compounded, become, in a short time, as hard as stones. The author has handled many which might be broken, but which could not be indented. Such bodies are not in a fit condition to be thrust down a horse’s throat. All unyielding substances are liable to stick in the gullet, and to provoke choking--the digestive passages of the horse not contemplating the deglutition of other than moist and soft pellets of thoroughly masticated food. Aloes was, at one time, in spite of the objections urged, very popular in the stable; for that consequence, the late Professor Coleman was mainly answerable. They are at present chiefly employed in accordance with the dictates of routine, and usually take precedence of other forms of medicine.

A horse ball represents some substance in powder mixed into a mass with some moist ingredient, such as soft soap, treacle, palm oil, etc. The compounds, when united, are usually rolled into sticks about three-quarters of an inch in diameter. These sticks are subsequently cut into lengths of two and a half or four inches in extent, according to the amount required for a dose; each piece is weighed, is dusted with some non-adhesive powder, is securely wrapped in paper, is labeled, and is packed away for use or sent out to such stables as delight in strange property.

Previous to a ball being delivered it is customary, with the generality of practitioners, to pinch the sharp edge of the forward extremity until that part of the substance becomes rounded. The intention, when doing this, is so to modify the shape as to facilitate the passage of the body down the gullet. Where the medicine is soft, as all newly-compounded drugs must necessarily be, the muscular contractility of the horse’s swallow would render such trouble useless; but, as the ball must be rather pulpy which can be thus moulded by the fingers, it would be no more than a prudent regulation should every proprietor insist on this custom always being complied with. Whether the present practice in any degree is beneficial to the animal, the author is very dubious; at all events, the horse were very fortunate if the sharp edges of the forward extremity were the only danger it encountered when swallowing the physic which is supposed to be curative in its effect.

Several potent caustics rank among the most common of horse physics. Those agents are of great power; as bichloride of mercury, arsenic, nitrate of silver, sulphate of copper, etc. These burning compounds are frequently administered in substance, and in enormous doses. Even where the quantity prescribed is not objectionable, the form in which the caustic is generally given is calculated to be highly injurious. In the first place, the use of such things in the veterinary pharmacy is too common an occurrence for the compounder to bestow much care upon the accuracy of the weight--a scruple more or less being commonly esteemed of no importance. Next, small thought is bestowed upon the necessity of incorporating such fiery components with more mild ingredients before the mass is forced down the sensitive throat of a living creature. A ball made of linseed meal and treacle is quickly snatched from one of the drawers of the surgery; the powerful agent is speedily reduced to powder; the placebo is torn from its envelope; a slit is cut down its center; from the mortar the potent material is emptied into the cavity thus formed for its reception; and the whole, after having been rewrapped in fresh paper, is esteemed to be ready for delivery.

When such an article has been swallowed by the creature, in whose welfare no living being seems to take a genuine interest, the paper or outward investment is speedily removed by the action of the stomach. Then, the retaining cover being destroyed, the burning mass falls out upon the fine, moist, and velvet coat lining the viscus; this fact may very probably explain why stomachic diseases are so general with the majority of old favorites. As such substances are caustics when applied to the external flesh, it is only reasonable to infer that no tissue within the body could long withstand the burning properties of such potent destroyers. It is true that certain inhumanities, miscalled experiments, have been practiced upon living horses. Enormous quantities of the most destructive compounds have been poured down the living throats of submissive quadrupeds. Some animals long survived such disgusting brutality; but others have succumbed at the very commencement of the trial. Veterinary therapeutics, however, take no notice of such as yielded to the smaller dose. The men who conducted these cruelties delight to dwell upon the fact that a certain horse actually took so much of such a poison, and, _apparently_, suffered no ill effects from imbibition of the deadly potion.

However, supposing such an experiment were made on human beings. Let a certain number of cripples be procured from the workhouses; aged creatures whose span of existence was almost run, and on whose countenances years of suffering had impressed the lines of prolonged misery. Let such poor mortals be deprived of speech, and let all the signs of suffering in them be disregarded. Then force these wretched beings to swallow large quantities of the various poisons. Would all perish simultaneously? By no means. Affliction often acts as a defense to those whom it envelops. Men in different stages of distress have endured strange things, as during every hour the record of calamity makes known.

The poor animals which served for the subjects of the so-called veterinary experiments were procured from the knackers; they were in the last stages of disease, and the poison, which would kill healthy horses, acting upon frames exhausted by every possible accumulation of agony, probably may have stimulated the exhaustion of excessive debility. That which would destroy an ordinary life, acting upon an existence sinking to its last sleep, may, to the blindness of mortal recognitions, appear to work without sensible result, or may seem to recall the fleeting spirit back to earth. At all events, no sound deduction can be drawn, as to the action of any medicinal substances upon the healthy body, from the apparent influence exerted by such agents upon decrepitude and upon senility.

The so-called experiments, which are here alluded to only to reprobate them as horrible cruelties, very probably have induced the carelessness that prevails throughout veterinary practice as to the use of caustic bodies among its customary medicines. Such salts should, on no account, be exhibited in substance, if, indeed, their supposititious virtues should recommend them at all to the prescriber. During the years which the author was in practice he scrupulously abjured all these abominations, and the results which were obtained by gentler agents were such as did no discredit to the adoption of milder measures.

Humanity should prevail consistently throughout all acts forced upon the life which Providence has intrusted to our mercy. If the recognition of this duty, as an actuating motive, be a weakness, in its adoption is carried its own defense. If charity does no good, it cannot possibly work harm to the dumb life upon which its offices are expended; whereas, when administering balls to horses, the cruelty often indulged causes many of these gentle animals to acquire those habits of resistance which are at first no more than the wild efforts of conscious helplessness aiming at self-defense. Such timid creatures, influenced by fear, will instinctively rear, kick, and vigorously attack whoever may approach them.

He who will have the patience and the courage to encounter what is in stable language denominated “a savage horse,” may do so with every confidence. Let him approach the quadruped alone, when the groom is absent and silence reigns around. Nothing must be done quickly. When the horse moves, the man must remain stationary. Every symptom of alarm must be assuaged by kind looks and gentle words. When the horse is convinced that no injury is designed--and it is astonishing how quickly a generous spirit will comprehend the intentions of benevolence--in proportion as ferocity was previously displayed will gratitude gush forth and submit the huge body to man’s pleasure.

If, however, the person has neither time nor inclination to undertake such a trial, then, with an animal having a tendency to become excited, he must adopt one of those mechanical restraints known as =balling-irons=. These things are not altogether safe for their employer, while they are decidedly not beneficial in their operation upon the quadruped. A balling-iron is simply a piece of metal, so shaped that when thrust violently between the creature’s jaws it forcibly holds the mouth open. Therefore, it will certainly prevent biting; but an irritable or a fearful horse can rear up and strike with its forefeet. Such an animal is not entirely subdued when the iron is adjusted. Moreover, these instruments occasion pain, and the horse, instructed by repeated agony, soon grows very cunning, and equally resolute in its efforts to oppose the insertion of the dreaded instrument which causes its suffering.

The man using a balling-iron has, therefore, to guard himself from blows rapidly dealt with the forehoofs of a desperate animal.

A A. The ring of iron which, being forced into the animal’s
mouth, keeps the jaws asunder.

B B, B B. That portion of the metal which steadies the ring by
remaining against the jaws.

C. The handle.
]

THE IMPROVED FORM OF THE COMMON BALLING-IRON, WHICH AFFORDS A
PROBABILITY OF ESCAPE FOR THE OPERATOR’S ARM.

A A. The part forced into the mouth.

B B, B B. The parts which remain against the jaws.

C. The handle.
]

He has also to be ready at the slightest intimation of an intention to rear, so that he may withdraw his arm on the instant, otherwise the operator is dragged upward with the elevated crest, and, hanging by the inserted member, he is very lucky if a broken limb does not reward his tardiness. The use of the balling-iron, consequently, is not free from danger; and in practice it will be found safer to subdue by kindness than to partially conquer by the employment of mechanical restraints.

The most common form of balling-iron is constructed according to the model indicated in the preceding illustration. The circular piece of metal is inserted into the mouth of the animal. A straight bar is attached to either side of the metallic ring, the design of these last being to steady the instrument after it has been forced into its proper position. Through the circle the operator’s arm is thrust, and the iron ring affords security so far as it disables the jaws from closing upon the member. But, though safe in one direction, such a protection also creates its particular peril; for, should the horse rear, the arm, being surrounded by a metallic rim, could not be withdrawn with the speed requisite to insure the operator’s safety. The suspension of the man’s body is almost certain to provoke the fracture of his imprisoned limb; consequently, to remedy that evil, the improvement indicated by the right-hand illustration was introduced.

The circle in the foregoing is left free on one side; thus, the inexpert have a little more time allowed for their movements. The arm could be retracted with greater ease, and the former danger was, in a great measure, removed. Still, this new shape was not wholly satisfactory. The form was fixed: horses are not all of one height, one breadth, or of one capacity. There are small creatures designated ponies; while horses are not rarely encountered of enormous proportions. As the iron has no power of being adapted, the form that should prove not large enough for one may be altogether disproportioned to another quadruped.

A NEW BALLING-IRON, INVENTED BY PROFESSOR VARNELL, OF THE ROYAL
VETERINARY COLLEGE, LONDON.

A A. India-rubber tubing, to protect the mouth from the harshness
of the metal bars.

B B B. Side pieces to keep the iron in its situation.

C. The handle.

D. The lower bar, attached to the handle.

E. The side piece, which can be raised or depressed.

F. The screw, at the extremity of the side piece.

G. The nut which, fastened to the handle, acts upon the screw and
fixes its position.
]

The weight of metal necessarily employed to assure the requisite strength, also rendered it inconvenient for a veterinary surgeon to carry more than one of these bulky articles; and though small was the amount of ingenuity which had hitherto been lavished on the improvement of the thing, for years it continued of the last character. Mr. Varnell, assistant professor at the Royal Veterinary College, however, appears to have entirely removed all former objections, and to have invented a balling-iron which seems to possess all the qualities that such an instrument is capable of exhibiting. The restraining bars of this last amendment are formed of polished steel, and are covered with a stout piece of India-rubber tubing, thus in some measure protecting the mouth of the creature from injury by what hitherto was the exposed metal. The lower bar, moreover, is attached to the handle, and the handle can be readily raised or depressed by turning the nut situated at its base. It can, therefore, be quickly adapted to any possible capacity of jaw.

Such a form of immunity is, however, seldom sought, save by the very inexperienced in the veterinary practice. A few years of active employment enables any person to discard this defense. A sufficient security is in all ordinary cases afforded by the horse’s tongue, which, when a ball is about to be administered, is grasped by the left hand, and withdrawn to the right side of the mouth. The hand thus employed is fixed, being lightly pressed against the inferior margin of the lower jaw; for, when retained in such a position, the tongue is pressed upon the foremost of the huge molar teeth. Of course, the animal, thus held, cannot approximate its jaws so as seriously to harm the operator without biting its own flesh; by that circumstance is safety supposed to be rendered certain. But should violence be exerted, animal fear is apt to be superior to bodily pain; the tongue and arm may be simultaneously bitten through. The practiced veterinary surgeon, however, takes advantage of the first emotion of surprise which the creature experiences at the liberties taken with, and the indignities offered to, its person. Having the ball ready in the right hand, he, standing on the left side, quickly introduces the bolus into the wondering quadruped’s mouth.

The medicine is lodged at the back portion of the tongue, whence, as the horse does not expectorate, the creature has no ability of expelling it, save only by coughing. During the spasm, which accompanies this act, the soft palate is raised and the ball is carried outward with the volume of violently-expired breath. Some horses acquire a habit of thus returning all forms of physic, and will cough up a ball twenty times. Such a circumstance illustrates the necessity of distracting the attention of the quadruped the instant the hand is retracted; for in the confusion of the moment the most inveterate “dodger” may be surprised into swallowing any abhorrent morsel.

The hand, during the delivery of the ball, being rapidly thrust into the mouth, is frequently cut by the sharp edges of the molar teeth. No knowledge, which has hitherto been attained by veterinary science, can point out the animal possessed of grinders of this dangerous description, and the only protection as yet suggested is to cover the hand with a glove. But a glove cannot be washed and dried so readily as the hand; it, moreover, is highly objectionable to introduce the saliva of one animal into the mouth of another, as disease may be thus conveyed from horse to horse; also, it being impossible to provide a new glove with every fresh patient, the protection is not universally adopted.

The medicine being delivered, the hand is quickly withdrawn, and the jaws of the animal are clapped together. The nose is then rubbed somewhat roughly, for--the upper lip being the organ of prehension, as well as the seat of feeling, in the horse--this part is excited with the design of preventing the quadruped from dwelling too intently on the unpleasant nature of the substance which has just been forced into its mouth.

Mr. Gowing, the excellent veterinary surgeon, of Camden Town, has, with his usual ingenuity, endeavored to remove those objections to which the previous manner of delivering a ball is obviously liable. This gentleman grasps the tongue rather higher up than is customary; and, having done so, does not retract the member, but fixes the hand upon the gums which cover the upper margin of the lower jaw. The point of the tongue protrudes between the thumb and fingers, and it is then plain that the animal cannot close the mouth without biting upon its own flesh.

Yet candor obliges the author to state that he does not view this method of grasping the tongue as an improvement on the old practice. The tongue, not being drawn out of the mouth, is not so decidedly fixed upon the molar teeth; while the hand appears to be placed in a somewhat dangerous position. For if, under excitement, the horse can become so oblivious as actually to bite through its own flesh, how would the hand of the operator fare when the closing of the jaws should lacerate the lingual body? The only advantage which can attend upon Mr. Gowing’s proposed plan must result from the smaller outrage it offers, thus leaving the amiable disposition of the animal the better chance of controlling its emotions.

It is, therefore, demonstrated the tongue can afford the operator no decided protection; the question, consequently, resolves itself into which of the methods affords the hand the greatest immunity, should the animal become alarmed. The author cannot but think the outside of the jaw is, under such circumstances preferable to the interior of the mouth.

However, the method proposed by Mr. Gowing for holding and delivering the ball is unobjectionable. According to the plan adopted by that gentleman, the knuckles are not elevated; but the hand is extended, the thumb and fingers being all brought upon one level and all held close together. The ball is placed between the fore and middle fingers, on the same level as the hand generally, being retained simply by slight lateral pressure. In this position it is introduced, and evidently demands less space for its entrance than was required according to the former system. When the ball has been advanced to the desired situation, a separation of the fingers allows the morsel to drop into its place.

Some stress, however, is laid upon the manner of clasping the head after the ball has been lodged. Mr. Gowing claps-to the jaws and evidently contemplates holding them in apposition. This is a mistake; for the muscles of the horse are not to be controlled by the utmost power of the strongest human being. The old custom, which applied friction on the most sensitive portion of the horse’s body, the writer esteems as better calculated to distract the attention of the quadruped.

The delivery of a horse ball is, however, rendered difficult in proportion to the number of persons who surround the animal, and to the noise made on the occasion. For the above reason, all the pupils at public schools have to learn this portion of their profession under heavy difficulties. The fuss which accompanies this simple operation in such institutions alarms the horse. It is turned round in its stall; the twitch is put upon the upper lip; a futile attempt is made to hold the jaws apart; while the nervousness of the young student who is about to perform,--all are likely to exercise an evil influence upon a sensitive and a timid creature.

Veterinary surgeons, however, soon learn to give a ball with greater speed and with less ceremony. They go alone up to the head, and play for a time with the quadruped’s face. Confidence being thus established, the practitioner gently withdraws the creature’s tongue. This being accomplished, of course the jaws are sundered; when, without any sign of flurry, the hand is introduced into the cavity and the medicine properly lodged. After such a manner, the practiced veterinarian gives many balls in the course of the day, and is hardly ever known to fail. Indeed, were the practitioner, when going his rounds, to wait till four or five assistants could be collected ere he administered the requisite medicine, the duties of the day could never be discharged.

The physic being introduced into the mouth, the person who has undertaken to deliver it should on no account esteem his business finished, and thereon leave the stable. He should proceed to the left side of the horse and watch the neck. In that position, when the animal swallows, any substance can be seen to travel down the gullet; this proof having been witnessed, the building may be quitted with a safe conscience. The illustration of this fact was drawn on the wood correctly; but the artist did not make proper allowance for the transfer of his sketch by the engraver. The last process has made that which was originally on the left side of the neck appear as on the right side of the body.

=Drinks= or =draughts= are not in favor with the majority of veterinary surgeons. Most practitioners urge, in justification of their dislike to such a form of medicine, that solutions are attended with danger--being apt, when administered, to pass into the trachea, and thus to flow upon the lungs. Admitting this objection, it does not decide the question; for the advocates of solid physic can possess small experience if they are to be told that balls have proved injurious by also entering the forbidden channel. Likewise, that when the popular form of physic has grown hard, much harm has been occasioned by the mass becoming impacted within the gullet. Evil can, therefore, be caused by physic in either form, if given without the necessary caution; and the balance of fact can incline the judgment to neither one side nor the other.

But it is curious to read of serious dislike being entertained against drinks, and at the same time know that several practitioners are accustomed to administer this kind of medicine after a particular method, which evinces a desire to illustrate the very circumstance which constitutes the objection to every solid. Many country veterinarians are accustomed to pour all the liquids which they exhibit down the nostril of the animal. Now, the nostrils terminate immediately over the larynx--the direct channel is from one chamber into the other cavity--thus, any fluid administered after so unnatural a method will probably find its way on to the lungs.

Such an abuse of nature’s designs being largely practiced upon a powerful quadruped, is proof of the perfect submission with which the creature has accepted its appointed master. Such an absolute negation of self, deserved considerate recognition from the reasoning and superior being. Veterinary medicines are too generally composed of pungent and of caustic materials, while the nostrils are lined with a highly sensitive and delicately moist mucous membrane. It was created to come in contact with the air, to which the nostrils in the horse afford the only legitimate passage. The notion of disregarding the mouth and selecting so tender a channel, down which to pour acrid and burning solutions, appears to be such a refinement upon ordinary barbarity as must puzzle the reader to discover a motive to excuse.

_a a._ The windpipe.
_b b._ The gullet.
_c c._ The soft palate.
_d._ The tongue.
]

The fact appears the more monstrous when we consider the practice is adopted by the veterinary surgeon, and that it is exhibited upon the sick horse whose welfare he is especially bound to conserve. The irritation consequent upon so abhorrent an abuse cannot but be most prejudicial to that quietude which is, upon every form of existence, healing in its effect. The motive which prompts so outrageous a proceeding is the love of display, acting upon an ignorant or unscrupulous individual; joined to this, is the knowledge that medicine can be administered with greater speed than when delivered according to the natural method. The horse has no power to check the course of any liquid emptied into the nostril of the elevated head; whereas the animal will frequently occupy a considerable time before a fluid, delivered by the mouth, is swallowed. By one canal, the will is powerless; by the other channel, volition is operative. To save his time, as well as to excite surprise, are the only motives which can prompt a careless man to tamper with that welfare it is his duty to tenderly protect.

To render this subject the more intelligible to the reader, the natural process which enables the horse to imbibe liquids shall here be detailed. The mouth of this animal is peculiar for having at its backward extremity a fleshy screen, which hangs pendulous from the bony roof. This soft palate explains why the quadruped, under ordinary circumstances, breathes only through the nose; and why, when it vomits, the regurgitated matter is ejected by the nostrils. That specialty is of service, however, during the act of imbibition. The posterior entrance to the nasal chamber being open and the head in a pendulous position, were there no special provision to the contrary, the water, after having passed the mouth, would, from the mere force of gravity, have a tendency to return by the nostrils. This actually occurs whenever cold, strangles, influenza, sore throat, etc. interferes with the activity or the health of these parts now under consideration. Disease renders the organ sensitive, and tenderness makes the animal exert its volition to prevent the employment of the inflamed structure. In consequence of this cause, the nasal chambers are imperfectly closed, and a great portion of the fluid imbibed by the mouth flows forth again through the nostrils. Such a tendency to gravitate is, during health, effectually prevented by the soft palate. Before any substance can pass from the mouth toward the throat, that appendage must be raised, and its rising closes the posterior entrance to the nasal chambers.

DIAGRAM, (FIG. 1,) EXPLANATORY OF THE COMPOUND ACT OF DRINKING IN THE HORSE.

_a a._ The water drawn into the mouth and forced into the fauces by
the compression of the forward part of the tongue and the
enlargement of the backward portion of the organ.
_b b._ The fluid passing down the œsophagus or gullet.
_c._ The larynx, lowered to admit the passage of the liquid.
_d d._ The tongue, dilated at one place and contracted at another.
_e._ The soft palate, floated upward and effectually closing the
nasal passages.
]

DIAGRAM, (FIG. 2,) EXPLANATORY OF THE COMPOUND ACT OF DRINKING.

_a a._ The water driven backward by the forward dilatation of the
tongue and the upward movement of the larynx.
_b b._ The full current forced down the gullet.
_c._ The larynx propelled against the soft palate.
_d d._ The tongue, dilated anteriorly and compressed posteriorly.
_e._ The soft palate.
]

The tongue is the primary agent employed when the animal slakes its thirst. The backward portion of the organ is contracted, and the forward part compressed by muscular volition, (_d d_, fig. 1.) A vacuum would thereby be created, were not the water propelled by atmospheric pressure into the void thus formed, (_a_, fig. 1.) The posterior of the tongue is then relaxed, while the anterior division of the organ is pressed against the roof of the mouth, (_d d_, fig. 2.) The fluid is thereby driven to the backward part of the cavity, (_a_, fig. 2.) The tongue, during the act, continues to alternate the states of contraction and relaxation, each motion of the lingual agent serving to pump the water into the fauces, (_a_, fig. 1.) But, before that can be accomplished, the soft palate must be elevated. The soft palate (_e_, fig. 2) then closes the nostrils, (_e_, fig. 1;) and also in its course to take this position sets in motion the cartilages of the larynx. The last cover over and effectually protecting the windpipe, (_c_, fig. 1,) the fluid is forced onward by the contraction of the tongue, passes into a secure chamber, the roof and floor of which are but of temporary formation, (_a_, fig. 1.) Here it remains only during the inactivity of the larynx. The upward motion of the latter body (_c_, fig. 2) propels the fluid into the pharynx, whence involuntary contractility sends it into the gullet, the muscular action of which tube conveys it onward to the stomach, (_a b b_, fig. 2.)

From the foregoing explanation, the reader is in a position to judge whether the nasal chamber is a fit passage for acrimonious mixtures, since he now understands the evident pains the _All-wise_ has bestowed to prevent the temperate fluid, of which the animal customarily partakes, from intruding upon the elaborate, delicate, and highly sensitive membrane that lines the air-passages. All veterinary students are not educated men, neither are all attentive to their studies while at college; but it should require an extraordinary amount of ignorance and conceit to thus grossly misconceive the _intentions_ which are so plainly impressed upon the body of the quadruped.

The author, however, doubts if those objections generally advanced to drinks are in any degree derived from the results of actual experience. Balls can be manufactured by the score, and then stored away for subsequent use. Drinks would decompose if thus mixed and kept ready in the surgery. Drinks must be separately compounded, as required. Balls occupy little space, and being solid can be safely carried or forwarded to any distance. Drinks being contained in bottles, are less convenient for transport, and the vessels are liable to fracture. Balls, moreover, are to be quickly thrust down an animal’s throat; require no assistance for their administration; and being wrapped in paper are not exposed to inquisitive discussion as to their ingredients. Drinks being inclosed in glass, protected only by a cork, are open to investigation, and likely to provoke remarks which are not always soothing to the pride of a pretender; liquids likewise necessitate more time should be devoted to their exhibition, and generally require the assistance which is not invariably at hand to aid the veterinary surgeon.

The above reasons and objections are not without influence upon practitioners, whose earnings are greatly dependent upon the speed of their movements; who generally give the medicines to those animals they treat, and habitually carry with them, ready compounded, the drugs which they administer. Drinks, moreover, demand several bulky articles for their proper administration, and are apt to soil the person who delivers them. Balls, as a rule, call for no other apparatus than the hand. Moreover, it causes delay at starting, if there are twenty or thirty drinks to be previously mixed, bottled, labeled, incased in paper and so packed as to be in no peril of breakage; whereas any number of balls can be almost instantaneously transferred from the drawer in the surgery into the gig at the door.

The usual mode of giving a drink is, moreover, a complex business. A twitch is mostly kept in regularly appointed stables, and the string or loop is fixed over the animal’s upper jaw, prior to other measures being proceeded with. The groom then grasps the stick and takes his place by the shoulder of the horse. At a previously arranged signal, he raises the pole; the string, paining the gums under which it is fixed, causes the head of the quadruped to be elevated. Supposing the horn having the larger mouth to be employed, the drink is then emptied into the hollow of this rude appliance until the liquid nearly fills the interior. The fluid is next carried upward, two fingers of the operator’s left hand being fastened on to the gums, so as to further expand the jaws and enable the veterinary surgeon to steady his body while straining to administer the medicine. The large end is pushed into the quadruped’s mouth, and, by a sudden movement of the wrist, the contents of the horn are meant to be splashed upon the animal’s tongue.

This, which is the more common method of administering a drink, is open to several objections. The horn, being of a limited capacity, can hold but a small quantity; and the lengthened time required for frequent replenishing, necessitates that the animal should be long held in an attitude of unnatural constraint. In the next place, the fluid is, by the action of the wrist, rather rudely thrown, than gently emptied, into the mouth, much of the medicine is generally lost, and no little of it, guided by the inserted fingers of the operator, is apt to find its way down the sleeve of his left arm.

To remedy these obvious defects, the tip of the horn was sawn off; while a piece of wood supplied a bottom to the larger extremity. A rude bottle was thus formed that would hold a larger amount of fluid, and from which the medicine could flow more gradually. The smaller opening afforded greater facilities for inserting that end between the horse’s extended jaws, and was less likely to pain, when introduced into the animal’s mouth. Still, drinks usually consisted of much more than the horn of an ox would contain, and as the smaller opening demanded greater care, when the article was being replenished, little time was saved by the last improvement.

A large tin bottle was next employed. It is of dimensions sufficiently capacious to require no replenishing; this was an advantage in one direction, an objection in the other; for in proportion to size it became inconvenient to transport. It rather aggravated than ameliorated the fault urged against drinks, because of their bulk. The mode of its employment is made plain in the right-hand illustration, where a loop of string is depicted as hung upon the prong of a pitchfork, and is made to do duty for a twitch--such a substitute being far from unusual, even in well-appointed stables.

Should the operator, having much fluid at command, fill the mouth too full, or the animal cough during the time of its administration, the administrator is saturated with the medicine. Any irritation of the larynx is invariably productive of this effect; the result of which a reader will the better understand, after the relative situation of those who are engaged in delivering a drench is fully comprehended.

The misfortunes which the delivery of drinks almost necessarily involve, will very readily account for any amount of dislike to the fluid form of medicine, more especially when it is stated that veterinary surgeons are somewhat slow in adopting new ideas, but seem, with the fervor and tenacity ignorance displays toward a favorite superstition, to love and cling to the practices in which they have been educated.

Else, it must have occurred to some member of a large profession that to violently oppose the instincts of an animal was hardly commendable in people who professed an observance and a worship of nature’s teaching. Most animals, however, and the horse among the number, lower the mouth during the act of drinking. The veterinary surgeon, when proceeding in his professional capacity, employs a twitch, with which the head is to be violently upheld while a fluid is being deglutated.

To illustrate the consequence of such conduct, the reader will pardon the author if he state the results of such opposite proceedings upon a dog in his possession. A saucer of milk being placed upon the floor, the head is lowered and the liquid lapped, without the act being characterized by any unusual circumstance. But should the vessel be held on the ordinary level of the mouth, the draught is certain to be interrupted by repeated fits of coughing. Now, the danger that exists of the horse coughing and spasmodically drawing the fluid upon the lungs, constitutes the strongest argument urged against the administration of drinks; but such an objection sounds oddly if he who listens to it is aware that, during the administration of fluids, the horse’s mouth is fixed according to the manner which will certainly provoke the obnoxious act in another quadruped.

All this is very sad and may readily be corrected. Let men endeavor to rightfully interpret the disposition of the horse. The creature is a most pleasant study; it is so timid, so loving and so confiding, that it immediately responds to the kindness which is intelligible to its understanding. Should it hang back, the fault rather lies with its limited comprehension than with the promptings of its inclination. Let the person who intends to deliver a drink fearlessly approach the animal: allow the huge nostrils to smell their new acquaintance, and not till the process is concluded, proceed to such trivial familiarities as may establish perfect trustfulness between the man and his dependent. So soon as the steed’s confidence is gained, the animal is all submission to the pleasure of its superior. Then let the practitioner uncork the bottle, and, putting the left hand gently under the quadruped’s jaw, empty with the other the contents, gradually, through the interspace which divides the incisors from the molar teeth.

But when adopting the above plan, the operator must be alone. No noisy or officious assistant must be near at hand to excite alarm or to create distrust. No pain must be inflicted; no angry words should be employed; no violent or hasty action ought to be used to frighten native susceptibility. All must be quiet. Should the animal be slow to swallow a nauseous draught, the creature must not be scolded for a natural dislike; but it should be encouraged by kind and cheerful accents, spoken as softly as though the words were addressed to a sick child. So alive is the equine heart to the seductiveness of benevolence, so unsuspecting is the full confidence of its species, and so happy is its spirit made by the praises of its superior, that rather than not deserve his commendation it will gulp down the most distasteful solution.

=Blistering.=--It is not praiseworthy to the human race that the animal given to man, with a mind thus impressible and yearning for kindness, should be treated with severity, and regarded as a brute, to be beaten and to be subdued. Such, however, is the case, and upon the poor body of this amiable life all kinds of cruelties are practiced. There is no barbarity more common than to blister the legs of the quadruped. Only of late years has the blistering application been somewhat reduced in strength; but it is still far more potent than is necessary. Our fathers, however, added all kinds of fiery and irritating drugs to Spanish fly, and never used to filter the extract; whereby particles got into the sores and cracks induced by the blister, and it was common for large pieces of skin to be removed by the sloughing process. A blemish was thus created.

Horses have perished under the agony attendant upon the blistering of all four feet. It is, however, still a recognized custom for horse doctors to score a leg or sometimes two legs with the red-hot iron, and over the lines thus created on a living frame to apply a liquid blister. To fully appreciate the abhorrent barbarity or the inutility of such a custom, the reader must recognize that animals suffer awfully from the wounds occasioned by fire, and understand that the sores are newly made, when the irritating liquid is placed upon the tender parts. A blister necessitates that the oil which contains the extract of the fly should be thoroughly rubbed in. Therefore the horse, when blistered, after having been fired, has to endure the friction of a rough hand, applied with all the coarse energy of an uneducated man, made upon a member smarting under the agony produced by the agent of which the creature has an instinctive dread.

Blisters, as at present used, are far too powerful. Were they diluted with three times their bulk of bland oil, or of solution of soap, they would be equally effective and far less dangerous. But, unfortunately, there is a prejudice among the partially educated, to which class nearly all veterinary surgeons belong, in favor of potency in their applications. Such persons seem to reckon the benefit to be produced according to the strength of the agent employed. By what other reason is it possible to explain the foolish perversity which still clings to the abuse of the heated iron? By what other motive can we account for the prejudice which tempts the use of the fearful blistering oil, as now commonly exhibited?

The parts of the horse most generally blistered are the legs, and the explanation commonly given to excuse the folly is a desire “to freshen the old animal on the pins,” or “to brighten up the manner of going.” The legs are parts of the living frame, and one part can hardly fail without the general system sympathizing. The author was once as tired as the horse commonly may be supposed to be; but, on that occasion, his feet were restored long before his body recovered from its exhaustion. Such a personal testimony seems to witness that fatigue affects the system generally. Indeed, the legs may be the means of progression; but it is the life which puts them in action, and it is the nerves which transmit energy to the muscles; none less ignorant than the generality of veterinary surgeons and the lower order of horse proprietors, would have conceived the possibility of restoring animation to a debilitated system by torturing the parts in which the symptoms of decay are most prominently testified.