The skin may be only ruffled, or the knee may be bared to the bones; in both cases, and in all degrees between these, the slightest and the severest injuries, the horse is said to get a broken knee. The name does not, as a stranger might suppose, indicate fracture of the bones.

If the wound be superficial, the horse may finish his work. A handkerchief may be bound loosely round it merely to exclude air and dirt; but in general no treatment is required till the horse reach home. If the wound be deep, whether large or small externally, it will be prudent to ascertain whether or not it be fairly into the joint, which is little more than half an inch from the surface. Clear away the sand and mud, bend the knee, and examine the interior of the wound. It is sometimes so large that the bare bones can be seen at the bottom of it. When the external orifice is small, and the depth not apparent, the oozing of a whitish glary matter, resembling the white of eggs, is evidence that the joint is open. This fluid is joint oil, and is forced out by bending the knee. If it be clear that the joint has been penetrated, apply a bandage, and take the horse to the nearest stable, and put him immediately under the care of a veterinarian. Apply a poultice till he arrives. If the horse have to go above a mile or two after this accident, the oil will escape, the bones will rub one upon another, intense inflammation will succeed in the course of twenty hours, and ultimately the horse either dies of fever, or he becomes useless.

The joint stiffens.

It is not always easy to be sure whether the joint is or is not penetrated. The wound is often in such a state with sand and mud, that the first examination can not be conclusive. When there is any doubt, the horse should, if possible, have the benefit of it. The danger increases with the distance and the pace. If he must go, all that can be done in precaution, is to apply a bandage. A neckcloth or handkerchief will do.

When valuable horses are travelling, a kind of cap is sometimes applied to each knee. It prevents injury, should the horse fall. It is usually made of cloth, having a circular piece of leather, and a little stuffing opposite the joint. Kneecaps made entirely of Indian rubber have been introduced, but it is said that they shift more than those of cloth. They are too heavy.

Injuries of the Back most frequently happen in the field or upon ice. The hind feet slip backward, sometimes in leaping across a ditch, and sometimes going up a steep hill. The violent effort which the horse makes to recover his footing seems to be the cause of the injury. The joints of the loins are put upon the stretch; the bones are partly separated, sometimes completely, and sometimes broken. A sprain of the loins may be so slight as to attract no attention till the horse is cool. When the bones are displaced, the horse stands stock still, he refuses to proceed; when urged, he staggers, perhaps falls. When the spinal marrow is involved, the hind legs are partially or completely paralysed. The horse has little control over them, or he has none. If he can be raised, he may be taken to stable, assisted by a man at each haunch to steady him. If, after raising him, it be evident that the horse can not stand, if he have no power whatever over his hind legs, he will never recover. If he start to his fore feet, and rest on his hip or haunch, and can not get further, he may be lifted by the tail.

Injury of the back is seldom apparent from external examination. The bones may be broken and crushed upon the spinal marrow, without presenting any external mark of displacement. The extent of mischief is known by the extent and degree of the palsy. Sometimes the paralytic limbs are likewise insensible, and sometimes there is a twist of the back, slight, but evident.

Injuries of the Neck are produced by falls upon the head. They occur most frequently in hunting, and in steeple-chasing. When there is merely displacement of the bones, the neck is twisted and the head carried to one side; sometimes it droops almost to the ground, and the horse can not raise it. In either case he may recover, although it is common for the neck to remain permanently distorted.

When the neck is fairly broken, the spinal marrow crushed or strained, the horse is instantly deprived of motion and sensation in every part behind the seat of injury. When the fracture is close to the head, the horse dies instantly, and without the slightest struggle. If he fall with the head under him, there it remains; he is dead before he can make an effort to extricate it. When the fracture is farther back, nearer the middle of the neck, the horse lives for a while.

He breathes, sees, hears, swallows, and his blood flows as usual. But the limbs, before and behind, are perfectly motionless and insensible. The horse may be pulled about, rolled over and over, pinched, pricked, and cut, as if he were quite dead. The head, part of the neck, and some of the internal organs alone retain vitality. Looking at the neck as it lies, depression or elevation is sometimes apparent; when not, the seat of injury is shown by raising the head; the neck yields all at one place. When it is clear that the limbs are all quite powerless, the neck fairly broken, recovery is out of the question. The horse may be destroyed. This accident is very rare on the road and on the race-course. It happened, however, on the Paisley course in 1836. The horse tumbled completely over his head, and lay with his tail homeward.