Treatment.—In the majority of cases, they will disappear of their own accord in two or three months. In case the rupture shows no signs of diminishing in size it is well to apply a bandage around the abdomen.
OPEN JOINT.
Cause.—Injuries such as a kick from a sharp shoe, wire cuts, punctures from snags, or from probing a wound near a joint. Open joint is one of the most serious accidents that may happen to a horse, for the sufferer is apt to die from the ensuing constitutional disturbance, and even if he recovers the joint will, in all probability, be permanently stiff.
Symptoms.—If the joint is opened or severely injured the wound will have an ordinary appearance except that there may be a flow of joint oil from the injured oil sack. However, the discharge gradually becomes more unhealthy until finally it is mixed with pus and blood and assumes a fetid odor. After two or three days the joint swells and becomes very painful and a high fever sets in. In unfavorable cases the animal dies from exhaustion very shortly, or at best recovers with a permanently stiff joint.
Treatment.—Never probe a wound near a joint. If the injury is small and noticed immediately, apply Red Iodide of Mercury, two drams; Vaseline, two ounces. Mix and rub in well over the wound. This will set up sufficient inflammation to close the opening and kill any infection that may be present, as it possesses powerful antiseptic properties. If the wound is large, wash with Bichloride of Mercury, one part to one thousand parts distilled water. The wound should be washed twice a day with this solution. Then dust the wound with Tannic Acid, one ounce; Iodoform, one ounce; Boracic Acid, one ounce; Calomel, one dram. Mix and place in sifter top can and apply this after washing each time. Then bandage the wound by first placing clean absorbent cotton over the wound. Do not attempt to syringe a solution into an opening or some of the solution may gain entrance into the joint. Keep the animal as quiet as possible and feed laxative food.
PALESADE WORM.
(Strongulus Armatus)
This parasite thrives on marshy ground and is commonly found in the United States and Canada. The body of the worm is gray in color, more or less stiff and straight and thicker in the front than in the hind part; it varies in length, the male measuring from three-fourths of an inch to one inch and the female from one to two inches. It may occur in an adult or an immature state. In the former it implants itself on the mucous membrane of the large intestines by means of its armed mouth, while in the latter it lives in cysts underneath the mucous membrane of the intestines and is sometimes found in the brain, testicles and liver. The immature worms which do not issue directly from the cysts get into the arteries and are carried by the force of the blood to all parts of the body.
Symptoms.—Same as in Red Worm with the exception of colicky pains caused by the worms blocking the arteries which carry blood to the intestines, thus interfering with the process of digestion. Where the worms enter the arteries of the limbs it results in lameness. It is a good plan to examine animals once or twice a year to insure them against this pest.
Treatment.—Same as for Red Worm.