UNSOUNDNESS OF
HOUSES DESCRIBED
Methods of Detection Point
ed Out with Hints on
Damage to Animal
Had Blemishes on Legs and Head
Often Require Close Scrutiny of
Observer.
(C arl N. Kennedy.)
(Continued from tn*t week)
N ext stepping to the side, the set
of the fore legs should be noted. Any
unsoundness of the knees will be
readily detected. The usual troubles
are “ kneesprung,” when the knees are
sprung forw ard of the perpendicular
line, and "calf-kneed,” when they are
L arge bone spavin. Serious unsound
ness of hind legs.
sprung back. Viewing the hind legs
from the side, the set of the hock
m ay be seen and the presence of curb
noted. Curb is an enlargem ent of the
posterior border of the joint, and is
due to a straining of ligam ents. The
back line from the point of the hock
to the pastern should be perfectly
straig ht. In rare cases unusual de
velopm ent of the cuboid bone is found
which may be m istaken for curb. This
bony enlargem ent, however, is con
genital. and is usually found lower
down on the hock and som ewhat m ore
on the outside than curb. M anipulation
will soon enable the exam iner to de
cide.
Having completed the general su r
vey, calculated to give the exam iner
a general idea of the horse and to de
tect defects of the knee and hock, the
detailed exam ination should begin.
Stepping to the head, the hand
should be passed over the poll to
search for poll evil, either past or
present. Swelling or soreness in this
Eye blind w ith cataract—note w hite
in center.
region is sufficient ground for con
dem nation, and if scars or cavities are
present, indicating th at he has been
operated on. he should be condemned,
for while in some cases a cure may be
effected, the disease is very liable to
tecur a fte r a period of tim e. N ext
observe the face for scars, which are
som etim es present as the result of
trephining. The nostrils should then
be observed; these should be of red
dish-pink color, and moist. Any alte r
ation from the norm al color, or any
discharge gives ground for suspicion
of glanders, nasal gleet, influenza, etc.
N ext exam ine the eyes. He should
be in a clear light, but the sun m ust
not be shining either in the eyes of the
horse or the exam iner. The healthy
eye is elliptical in shape, and if the
shape tends to spherical, disease is
suspected. If any trouble is suspect
ed, motion us though about to strike
ihe face with the hand. If the sight
be all righ t he will flinch a t each mo
tion. A w hitish grow th over the up
per p art of the eye indicates cataract.
The mouth should next be noticed.
“ P arro t m outh" and “under-shot jaw ”
are the chief troubles, and they are
com paratively rare. In the first, the
lower jaw is not as long as the upper,
and the teeth fail to m eet evenly; in
the second, the reverse exists. While
these cannot be considered as un
soundnesses, they are serious defects
to any purchaser.
The hand should next be passed
carefully and slowly upw ards and
backw ards in the space between the
hones of the lower jaw , to ascertain
if there be any hardening or swelling
of the glands in this region. If swell
ing be present it is an unsoundness.
The w ithers should next be ex
am ined for signs of fistular swelling.
With or w ithout discharge. The pres
ence of scars in this region is sufficient
indication for condem nation. The top
of the neck, w here the collar rests,
should also be examined fo r fistula,
and the shoulders should also be ex
amined.
P assing to the foreleg, the points
of the elbows should be exam ined;
then the knees, for scars-—which in
dicate stum bling propensities. The
cannon bone should be observed for
splints. These occur on the cannon
bone below the knee and usually on
the inside. They may be detected as
boney enlargem ents by the eye and
hand and may or m ay not be unsound
ness. If large and very near the
TYPES FLUCTUATE
OF OREGON FARMS
Changed Conditions of Land
Values, Population and
Markets Causes
Many Failures Resulted from Hap-
H azard Choice of Farm Crops and
Cropping and M arketing System s.
By E. A. Brodie,
Farm Specialist of 0 . A. C.
In the fa r W est the types of fa rm
ing have not settled down to a definite
basis owing to the exploitive period
through which a new country alw ays
passes. Twenty-five years ago, th a t
section of th e W illam ette valley w ith
which I w as fam iliar w as devoted en
tirely to the production of w heat and
other sm all grain. Land w as valued
a t $15 to $30 per acre.
A t the present tim e the type of
farm ing is entirely changed, as shown
in the following table:
P ercent of income from various pro
ducts on 332 farm s in Oregon—
Products sold
P er cent of income.
Crops (grain, hay, clover, seed,
fruit, etc) ................
47.0
Stock ................................................... 11.0
Stock products .......
18.6
M iscellaneous .................................. 4.2
Increase of inventory ................. 15.6
i
Note th a t the receipts from crops
m ake up 47 per cent of the average
income of the farm , but instead of
being represented bv w heat and other
small grain, it is largely fru it, vege
tables, hay and clover seed. This
change is due largely to the g reat in
crease in the population due to im m i
gration, the consequent rise in the
value of land to its present average of
$113 per acre, a period of low prices
for w heat and the high cost of tra n s
portation to eastern m arkets. The
present types of farm ing have de
veloped during a boom period when
iand w as sold in sm all tracts to people
unfam iliar w ith the country and the
m arket conditions, who began raising
fru it and other perishable products
fo r which there is a very lim ited
m arket at home and very poor facili
ties for shipping to d istan t m arkets.
Very few of these types can be con
sidered as being in a stable condition.
Many of them are being run a t a loss
and it is doubtful w hether they can be
m ade to pay under present conditions
o f inflated farm values and lack of
m arketing facilities. Those farm ers
who secured th eir land prior to the
boom are the only ones who are able
to figure on reasonable capitalization
of th eir lands and it is am ong these
the really stable types are to
To locate side bone place thum b on w be here
found and a fte r a while the others
lateral cartilages to see if elastic will settle down to th eir level.
or bony.
A lm ost every section of the w est
been through sim ilar experiences.
knee joint they are liable to interfere has
The g re a t w heat sections are still
with its action and are unsoundnesses; prosperous
in spite of the system of
but low down on the cannon and of
ate w heat and sum m er fallow on
m oderate size they are of no im por altern
hogh-priced land. H ere again, it is
tance fu rth er than blemishes. P ass the
er who secured his land be
ing down the legs, sores and eruptions fore farm
the era of inflated prices who is
on the cannons (known as grease) m aking
the
money and even he could
should be looked for. W indgalls, if not do it except
th e n atu ral fe r
small and soft, do not m atter, but if tility of the soil. for
newcom er who
large and tense they are liable to pays $75 to $100 The
acre fo r land
lame a horse and should be considered to grow a crop of per w heat
an unsoundness. Bony enlargem ents other year has an uphill job on to every
here are sufficient to condemn a horse. for his land and m ake a living pay
fo r
The pastern joint is next examined for him self and fam ily.
ring-bone, which is a bony grow th en
Types of farm ing which have de
tirely or in p art surrounding the pas veloped
in the irrig ated sections are
tern. Its presence is sufficient to con undergoing
rapid and continued
demn a horse, w hether he be lam e or changes. W hen
the first irrig ated
not. Side bone next should be looked sections w ere opened
intensive fa rm
for. This is found as a hard bony en ing developed on account
of the lim it
largem ent on the side of the pastern, ed area th at could be w atered.
There
ju st at the crown of the hoof, and is
due to an ossification of the lateral
cartilages which surm ount the wings cracks running down from the top,
of the bone of the foot, one on each known as false quarter, sand cracks
side. In the norm al foot these ca rti or q uarter cracks, are sufficient to
lages yield to pressure, but when side condemn the horse.
bones exist they are hard and unyield
Thrush is an unsoundness of the
ing. Sidebone is very objectionable foot, and is characterized by a foul,
and disqualifies a horse at once. The ill-sm elling discharge from the frog.
coronet (head of hoof) should be ex C anker is a m ore aggravated and ad
amined for sores or eruptions and the vanced stage of the sam e disease.
hoof should be closely observed. A Corns m ay also be present but not re
ridgy or uneven wall is suspicious and vealed by lam eness. W here they are
was plenty of sale for the products
grown on the local m arket, but as
tim e w ent on and other projects open
ed up and began grow ing the sam e
crops, the local m arkets were soon
supplied and others had to be found.
This brought in the problem of tran s
portation and refrigeration and g rad
ually crops which would stand ship
m ent began to be grown. An exam ple
of this is the grow ing of alfalfa under
irrigation, which has received g reat
im petus since the m anufacture of al
falfa m eal m akes it possible to ship
alfalfa as a concentrate.
As already stated, the type of fa rm
ing m ust be in keeping w ith the local
conditions. The products to be raised
m ust be such as can be disposed of
advantageously, th a t is, there m ust
be a demand for them , the m arketing
facilities m ust be favorable, and the
cost of tran sp ortatio n such as to leave
a fair m argin of profit.
In any locality a study of the types
of farm ing shows th a t those th at
are m ost generally successful are
those th at are best adapted to the
local conditions, and th a t they are
the types th at survive. F or exam ple,
in C hester Co., Pa., the prevailing
types are hay grow ing and the selling
of m arket milk combined w ith about
a dozen lesser ' enterprises, grain
grow ing or stock, ranging from 8.7
per cent down to less than one per
cent of the income. This is one of the
oldest settled sections in this country
and these are the types th a t have sur
vived all others. The hay being bulky
will not sell fo r prices which m ake it
profitable to ship it long distances,
consequently hay in bulk m ust be con
sumed near home. M arket milk m ust
also be consumed near home, because
it will not stand long distance ship
m ent. A num ber of our larg est cities
are w ithin easy shipping distance,
which m akes a m arket for these pro
ducts.
BIG A TTEN D AN CE A T COLLEGE
Four thousand one hundred seventy-
six people attended College a t O. A. C.
last year, in addition to the much
larg er num bers taking instruction a t
movable schools and in correspondence
courses. The new College catalogue
shows th a t of those taking resident
instruction 2592 w ere men and 1584
women. The following table shows
the classification by courses and by
sex:
Course
Men W omen Tl.
A griculture
540
547
Engineering, etc.
297
297
F orestry
83
83
Home Economics
371 371
Music
15 57 73
Commerce
116 54 170
Pharm acy
54 7 61
O ptional
6 21 27
Music
6 57 73
Sum m er School
75 133 208
W inter S hort Course 1405 934 2339
W hole attendance 4176.
HOW GRANGE CAN U SE COLLEGE
Every G range is interested in the
work the college is carrying on. In
deed every local G range is a little
agricultural college of its own, so
each of th e locals should keep in
touch w ith the big central college all
the tim e. Through the college we can
g et tested and im proved v arieties of
com and other grains into our loaali-
ties. The college can help in our
m arketing problem s. It can assist
our farm women in m aking farm life
m ore enjoyable. We are paying for
our college and we cas use it rig h t
a t home in our local granges. Al
though few of us can get to Corvallis
even for a short course, we can see
to it th a t the work of the college is
brought rig h t into our local granges.
— Oregon G range Bulletin.
suspected but not revealed by lam e
ness it is advisable to remove the shoe
and pare the hoof down som ewhat
on the quarters. If corns are present
the horse will usually flinch, especial
ly if struck a sm art blow on the quar
te r of the hoof. N avicular disease is
indicated by the foot being shrunken
in diam eter and apparently lengthen
ed and inflamed.
(To be Continued.)