Oil of Neat's Foot.
Oil of Neat's-foot. Oleum Bubulum. Oleum Pedum Tauri. Axungia Pedum Tauri. Huile (Oraisse) des Pieds du gros Betail, Fr. Klauenol, Ochsen Klauenfett, G.—This formerly official oil is obtained by boiling for a long time the feet of the ox, previously deprived of hoofs. The fat and oil which rise to the surface are removed and introduced into a fresh portion of water, heated nearly to the boiling point. The impurities having subsided, the oil is drawn off, and, if required to be very pure, is again introduced into water, which is kept for twenty-four hours sufficiently warm to enable the fat which is mixed with the oil to separate from it. The liquid being then allowed to cool, the fat solidifies and the oil is removed and strained, or filtered through layers of small fragments of charcoal free from powder. The oil is clear and yellowish in color, of sp. gr. 0.916 at 15° C. (59° F.), and, when properly prepared, inodorous and of a bland taste. It thickens or congeals with great difficulty, and is, therefore, very useful for greasing machinery. It is also used for softening leather and in grinding metals. It has been given as a substitute for cod liver oil in scrofulous diseases. It is apt to be laxative, and in certain cases proves useful in this way. It is given in the same dose as cod liver oil. (See Am. J. M. S., N. S., xxiv, 498.) It is at present difficult to obtain pure neat's-foot oil in commerce.
