THRUSH

New Zealand Mail, 5 February 1902, Page 55

THRUSH

Thrush sometimes occasions lameness, but only in very advanced or neglected cases, and in a general way it may bo said that thrush rarely causes the horse to go lame. As a matter of fact, it is extremely rare to find a horse whose frogs in all four feet are absolutely sound and dry, and thus it is obvious that in the majority of cases where there is thrush it is not accompanied by lameness. When lameness does occur there is generally extensive disease of the frog, or it is temporarily owing to the animal having hurt the organ on a rough or stony road. Thrush may be present when some other disease of the foot or limb causes lameness. For example, in navicular disease there ia often contraction of the heels, and in contraction there is invariably a shrinking or wasting of the frog, a diseased condition of the member, and more or less discharge of an unpleasant odour. Where a horse is slightly lame in one fore foot, occasionally holds it up as if in pain, and stands with it forward in the stable, which we call “pointing,” the odds are all in favour of something more serious than thrush. When calomel is employed in the treatment of thrush, it should be dotted into the cleft and diseased portions of the frog after washing and drying roughly with a sponge.