SIXTH ANNUAL YEAR BOOK — PART VII. 543 



The predisposition to ringbone is undoubtedly hereditary, and one 

 seldom finds it unless it is the result of some extraordinary exciting 

 cause when the pastern is of good formation. The two extremes of long, 

 light oblique pasterns and the short straight, coarse ones, are both pre- 

 disposed, the former from the tension to which the ligaments are sub- 

 jected and consequent tendency to sprain, and the latter from the in- 

 creased tendency to concussion. 



As we proceed up the front leg we find defective formation in the 

 neighborhood of the knee predisposing to unsoundness. Many horses 

 that are more or less knee-sprung are practically sound. Others become 

 progressively weak and are decidedly unsound, so that we are not much 

 amiss in characterizing the condition called knee-sprung as an hereditary 

 unsoundness. 



A commission was appointed some j-ears ago in England to make out 

 a list of hereditary unsoundnesses, which they made as small as poss^ 

 ble. The list included navicular disease, ringbone, spavin, sidebone, 

 periodic ophthalmia or moon-blindness, and roaring. It will be observed 

 that knee-sprung was not included. In order not to complicate matters 

 they made the list as short as possible and only included the most 

 serious forms of unsoundness or those that are very abstinate in yieM- 

 ing to treatment or are incurable. Unsoundnes«es such a« knee-sprung, 

 curb or splint, though the tendency to them is undoubtedly hereditary, 

 were not included. It was because these conditions seldom permanently 

 interfere with a horse's practical soundness. A horse is what is called 

 "tied iof" below the knee when the leg immediately below the knee is 

 narrower from before backwards than it is just above the fetlock. In 

 this condition the tendons behind the knee are not well developed and 

 are placed too close to the shank-bone at this point. This imperfect 

 tendonous development in a front leg is not usually confined to the 

 tendons behind the leg, called the flexor tendons, as an imperfect develop- 

 ment of these tendons is usually associated with an impaired develop- 

 ment of the tendons running down the front of the leg called the exten- 

 sor tendons. Such a condition frequently results in shaky knees, if the 

 subject experiences hard work, which is likely to become progre^ively 

 worse. In some cases the flexor tendons appear to be much better de- 

 veloped than the extensors and in an individual so formed, particularly 

 if he is inclined to stand with his fore feet well back under him, there 

 is inordinate strain on the extensors leading to relaxation and a corre- 

 sponding tendency to contraction of the flexors. Here we have a lack 

 of balance between the extensors and flexors, and eonsequently a knee- 

 sprung condition. 



Although shaky-kneed or knee-sprung horses are not frequently- 

 incapacitated for work the breeder should not lose sight of the fact that 

 his condition is apt considerably to depreciate a horse's value in the mar- 

 ket, particularly for some purposes, and the breeder can seldom afford to 

 ignore this fact. It is not intended to advise breeders never to breed to a 

 sire that stands a little over in the knees, especially if sufficient cause can 

 be assigned for it, but we would recommend them to be very wary about 



