Accidental and local diseases of the apparatus of locomotion are matters of less urgency in the case of cattle than in that of the horse. On the other hand, general affections, such as rheumatism and osseous cachexia, demand a larger share of attention, and are of the utmost importance.
As the accurate diagnosis of any disease demands careful and systematic examination, the practitioner usually observes a certain order in his investigations, as indicated below:—
(1.) Inspection, from the side, from the front and from behind, reveals the existence of deformities of bones, limbs, muscles and joints, articular displacements, and irregularities of conformation or of gait.
By inspection of an animal as it walks various forms of lameness, and their particular characteristics, are rendered visible.
(2.) Palpation and pressure will detect changes in local sensibility, the softness or hardness of tissues, the existence of superficial or deep fluctuation, œdematous swelling, and abnormal growths like ring-bones and exostoses, as well as the exact character of articular enlargements.
(3.) Percussion is of little value in examining the apparatus of locomotion. Nevertheless, percussion of the claws, and of certain bones of the limbs, or of flat bones, may afford valuable information in cases of laminitis, ostitis, and periostitis. Percussion along the longitudinal axes of the limb bones is also useful in diagnosing intra-articular fractures, subacute arthritis, osteomyelitis, etc.
(4.) The gait. Lame animals should be made to move, in order to assist both in discovering the cause, and in estimating the gravity of the condition. Sometimes it is advisable to turn the animal loose, but most frequently it is moved in hand, either in straight lines or in circles.
Information so obtained should always be supplemented by local manipulation and by passive movement, such as flexion, extension, abduction, adduction and rotation of the joints.
A knowledge of the characteristics of normal movement in any given joint, renders it comparatively easy to detect abnormality, such as increased sensibility, articular crepitation or friction, and to diagnose fractures with or without displacement, ruptures of tendons or ligaments, etc.