Special report on diseases of the horse / by Drs. Pearson [and others].

Date:
1903
Catalogue details

Licence: In copyright

Credit: Special report on diseases of the horse / by Drs. Pearson [and others]. Source: Wellcome Collection.

    649/690 (page 563)
    At rest, the .observer should stand in front and note the slant of the long pasterns. Do they drop perpendicularly, or slant downward and outward (base-wide foot), oj* downward and inward (base-narrow foot)? Whatever be the direction to the long pastern, an imaginary line pass- ing through its long axis, when prolonged to the ground, should appar- ently pass through the middle of the toe. But if such line cuts through the inner toe the foot-axis is not straight, as it should be, but is broken inward at the coronet, an indication that either the outer wall of the hoof is too long (high) or that the inner wall is too short (low). On the'contrary, if the center line of the long pastern falls through the outer toe the foot-axis is broken outward at the coronet, an indication that either the inner wall is too long or the outer wall too short. The observer should now place himself at one side, two or three paces distant, in order to view the limb and hoof in profile. Note the size of the hoof in relation to the height and weight of the animal, and b Fig. G.—a, Side view of foot with the foot-axis broken backward as a result of too long a toe. The amouht of horn to be removed from the toe in order to straighten the foot-axis is denoted by a dotted line; b, side view of a properly balanced foot, with a straight foot-axis of desirable slant; c, side view of stumpy foot with foot-axis broken forward, as a result of overgrowth of the quarters. The amount of horn to be removed in order to straighten the foot-axis is shown by a dotted line. the obliquity of the hoof. Is the foot-axis straight? that is, does the long pastern have the same slant as the toe ? or does the toe of the hoof stand steeper than the long pastern (fig. 6c)?—in which case the foot-axis is broken forward at the coronet, an indication, usually, that the quarters are either too high or that the toe is too short. If the long pastern stands steeper than the toe (fig. 6a) the foot-axis is broken backward, in which case the toe is too long or the quarters are too low (short). In figures Ga and 6c the dotted lines passing from toe to quarters indicate the amount of horn which must be removed in order to straighten the foot-axis, as shown in figure 6b. Note also the length of the shoe. Next, the feet should be raised and the examiner should note the outline of the foot, the conformation of the sole, form and quality of the frog, form of the shoe, wear of the shoe, and the number and