The management and treatment of the horse in the stable, field, and ...

In the Stable, Field, and on the Road. 201
and barb are free from this complaint, and no doubt our
climate has something to answer for in this respect.
This is a disease arising from an affection of the larynx
and superior portion of the windpipe. When a horse so
affected has been hard trotted or galloped, he may be
heard at some distance to utter a grunting sound, or
when he is standing if touched suddenly with a stick or
whip he will grunt or groan. Dealers are often seen to
lay hold of the horse by the head with the left hand,
while with the right hand they feign to hit the horse
he will cringe away from them and utter a loud grunt if
he is a roarer. This disease is supposed to be produced
by a thickening of the larynx and upper portion of the
windpipe, in consequence of previous inflammation, and
thus obstructing the passage and limiting its action.
After strangles this disease frequently follows, and it is a
noticeable fact that horses whose sires or dams were
affected with this disease are predisposed to the com-
plaint. Another great cause of this complaint, in the
carriage or harness horse, is the cruel and absurd
bearing-rein, which gags the horse's head out of its
natural form, and the constant strain on the muscles of
the neck set up inflammation in the region of the
maxillary gland, the larynx becomes affected, thickening
takes place, and for our foolisii fashion, a horse that
would have been worth a hundred guineas becomes fit
only for a cab horse. By this action the larynx and
superior muscles of the windpipe are circumscribed and
ultimately become semi-paralysed with consequent loss
of power and action ; therefore the opening not being
sufficiently capacious during the rapid breathing oc-