its weight upon it, holds it
firmly on the ground, fearing to move it. Examination of the outside of the
joint will disclose the situation of the patella outside its proper place.
If the operator is not familiar with the normal appearance of the joint, it
is well to make a comparison between the injured and the sound one. If
compelled to move, the animal does so with great difficulty, jerking the
leg which it is unable to bring forward, hopping with the other, and
partially dragging the injured one.

[Illustration: PLATE XXV. SKELETON OF THE COW.]

_Treatment._--The treatment is simple. A rope 20 feet long should be
applied around the fetlock of the affected leg, passed forward between the
front legs and up over the opposite side of the neck, back over the
withers, and wrapped once behind the elbow around that portion of the rope
which passes between the front legs. The leg is then drawn away from the
body and forcibly pushed forward by an assistant, while another person
tightens up the slack in the rope until the affected leg is off the ground
in front of the supporting leg. The rope is then drawn taut and the
assistant grasps the tail and pulls the cow toward the affected side. The
animal makes a lurch to keep from falling, contracts the muscles, and the
patella slips into place with a sharp click, and the animal walks off as if
nothing had happened. If the animal resists this method of handling, it may
suffice to manipulate the dislocated kneepan by shoving it inward and
forward with the heel of the hand while the affected leg is drawn well
forward. Unless some precaution is taken the accident is liable to recur,
as the ligaments have been stretched by the dislocation till they no longer
hold the bone with that firmness necessary to retain it. The animal should
be tied and the foot fastened forward, so that the patient can just stand
on it comfortably, by means of a rope or strap around the fetlock carried
forward between the front legs, around the neck, and tied on the breast.

Should this accident occur more than once it is a good practice to apply a
blister around the joint, as in the formula recommended for sprain of
shoulder, and observe the precautions as to restraint and subsequent
treatment there recommended. With this one exception dislocations in the ox
occurring independently of other complications are rare.

Dislocation with fracture may occur in any of the joints, and if one is
suspected or discover