Encyclopaedia Britannica, or, a Dictionary of arts, sciences, and miscellaneous literature : enlarged and improved. Illustrated with nearly six hundred engravings > Volume 8, ELE-FOR

533 FARR
Difeafes. changes from cold to heat. “ If (fays he) a colt is
^ taken from grafs, and immediately kept in a warm fta-
ble, after having been ufed to the feverity of the atmo-
fphere, he then gets the diforder. When old horfes are
troubled with the greafe, we (hall find that their feet
have been expofed firft to cold, and afterwards to heat,
as when they have been in cold water or fnow for a
long time, and on coming into the liable have a large
bed of draw, or perhaps hot dung, to (land upon. This
fudden tranfition from cold to heat, produces a weak-
nefs in the legs, particularly in the {kin j when inflam¬
mation and cracks, fimilar to chilblains in the human
fubjedt, take place, and are called the greafe in
horfes.”
Nothing contributes more to the produftion of greafe
than negligence, with refpedl to keeping the legs
clean, and rubbing them often. It is a difputed point,
whether the hair that grows about the fetlock is preju¬
dicial or not to horfes that are fubjedt to greafe. It is
contended by Mr Richard Lawrence, that greafe is a
very common confequence of removing the hair ; and
confidering that the hair is a good prefervative againft
fudden tranfitions from heat to cold, we are difpofed to
think its removal improper, where the heels are not al¬
ready ulcerated. On the other hand, Mr Blaine re¬
marks, that whenever accidental wet occurs, this hair
mult retain a large quantity of it, and hence be long
in drying, occafioning a copious evaporation,, and thus
producing much cold, and that the hair renders it dif¬
ficult to keep the legs fo clean, as they might be pre-
ferved without it. Even fuppofing thefe arguments to
be juft, they only {how the neceflity of greater care and
attention in rubbing the heels dry and keeping the
hair free from dirt.
Greafe may alfo be produced by too much hard work,
after which the legs fwell, and if the fwelling be ne-
gledfted the heels may become greafy. This, however,
is probably not a very common caufe.
Greafe is faid to be moft common in fpring and
autumn, when horfes are moulting or calling their
coats.
On the whole, it appears that this complaint may
take place in two different ftates of the body y a ftate
of general weaknefs, the effefl of conftitution or dif-
eafe ; and a ftate of plethora, attended with propor¬
tional languid circulation in the veffels of the legs or
feet.
In the treatment of greafe, we muft confider whether
it be merely a local affedlion, or be connedled with
fome general morbid affedlion of the body ; and we
muft alfo attend to the ftate of the affedlion, as the na¬
ture of the local applications will depend much on the
progrefs that the difeafe has made.
In the early ftage of the complaint, when the in¬
flammation is flight, and the {kin is not yet broken, if
it has been owing to want of exercife and plethora, it
may be proper to draw blood from the veins of the
thighs, and a diuretic ball, fuch as N° 12. or 13.
fhould be given, and repeated every two or three days.
The hair muft be cut clofe, and the heels well waftied
with warm foap and water, after which they muft be
gently rubbed till they are perfedlly dry, and bathed
with fome ftimulating liniment. This plan, with gen¬
tle exercife and a cooling diet, efpecially bran malhes^
2
I E R Y.. yj.
with an ounce of nitre in each, every flight, will pro- Difeaf
bably prevent the complaint from going any farther.
If the inflammation be very confiderable, and the horfe
is plethoric, he muft be bled pretty largely from the
jugular vein, and have a mild purge. Cloths, dipped
in vinegar and water, or in a folution of fugar of lead,
fhould be applied to the heels after walhing, and kept
conftantly moift with the fame liquor. More than
walking exercife here will be improper ) but if it is
dry weather, a run for a few hours a-day in a field will
greatly contribute to removing the fwelling. Mr Fe-
ron, who is a great advocate for warm fomentations in
inflammatory affe&ions of the feet and legs, recom¬
mends the legs to be kept the whole day in warm wa¬
ter ; and when they are taken from the bath, to be well
wrapt up in a warm poultice of bran and water: If by
thefe means the inflammation fubfides, the legs may be
waflied with a folution of alum.
If cracks appear, great attention muft be paid to keep
them clean from dirt, and they ftiould be frequently,
waflied with a folution of blue vitriol. If grapes ap¬
pear, they may be touched with blue vitriol, or burnt
alum j or if they become large, they muft be cut away,
with a fliarp knife, and afterwards feared with a hot
iron. If the ulcers are foul, one of the beft applications
will be a folution of verdigrife, or the ointment com¬
monly called Egyptiacum, of which verdigrife forms onu
of the principal ingredients.
The ftrideft attention to diet, regimen, and cleanli-
nefs, muft be obferved during the whole treatment,
and gentle exercife muft be perfifted in. The beft diet
on thefe occafions will be cut grafs, lucerne, frefti clo¬
ver, carrots, or good fweet hay, and an occafional feed
of corn. The horfe ftiould not be tied up in the flail,
but fliould ftand loofe while he is in the liable, and
ftiould be allowed no litter, except at night. The lia¬
ble ftiould be kept perfeflly clean and well aired, and
not too warm.
Sometimes, even though the complaint fliould not at
firft have originated in debility, there will, if the dif¬
eafe is of long {landing, be produced a confiderable de¬
gree of weaknefs. In thefe cafes the cure will be
greatly aflifted by giving (Lengthening, remedies, fuch
as bark, horfe-chefnut bark, &c. And as in this weak
ftate of the body the difcharge from the ulcerated fur-
face is commonly thin and ichorous, the fore muft be
dreffed with ftimulating ointment; and if there appears
a tendency to mortification, as fometimes happens, a
powder of equal parts of Peruvian bark and opium
fhould be fprinkled on the fores, before applying the
plafter. If the difcharge is very oftenfive, a ferment¬
ing poultice, fuch as N° 64. may be applied over the
dreffings.
It will readily appear, that the beft means of pre¬
venting greafe, will be to give the horfe regular exer¬
cife, to drefs him well, and efpecially to keep his legs
dry and clean, and to avoid the extremes of heat and
cold.
Greafe might perhaps have been confidertd under
the head of fpecific inflammation j but as it is fometimes.
attended with a general affeflion of the body, and is
ultimately connefted with one of the moft interefting
eruptive difeafes, we thought it beft to treat of it in this
place.
Ckap,.