HORSE-SHOEING. 787 



serve as a protection only to the forward part of the hoof, which is most subject to wear, 

 while the other portion remains in its natural state. 



There is no doubt that many of the diseases of the feet, and much of the lameness in 

 this locality, is due principally to improper shoeing, and the cutting away of the bars, frog, 

 and sole, those portions designed by the Creator as a protection and support to the foot of 

 that truly majestic and wonderful animal, the horse. 



If horses are to be shod, it is of the highest importance that the shoeing be performed 

 in such a manner that this process shall prove a benefit, rather than a detriment to them, and 

 the shoe serve as an added protection to that already given by nature, instead of cutting 

 away and mutilating the natural supports, and substituting a poor one in their place. There 

 is no department of horse management that requires so much discretion, and the exercise of 

 such good, sound judgment as shoeing, and yet there is, at the same time, no part of horse 

 management that is, as a general practice, so badly performed, and in which there is so little 

 skill and good sense displayed as in shoeing; ignorance and obstinate stupidity being the 

 rule with those that perform this business, rather than the exception. 



&quot;We are glad to know that there are exceptions to be met occasionally. Shoeing, when 

 necessary, may justly be regarded as a necessary evil, and too much pains cannot be taken by 

 the blacksmith in preventing the many ills resulting from faulty work of this kind. 



AVhen an unshod hoof that has never been tampered with rests upon an even, hard, 

 unyielding surface, the portions that maintain the weight are the edge of the crust all 

 around, and the frog. Where the surface is uneven, the sole, being slightly concave, sus 

 tains a portion or the whole of the weight, according to the degree of unevenness of the sur 

 face, caused by stones, frozen clods, etc. 



On ordinarily level roads, the hoof wears quite evenly in traveling, but where the sur- 

 face is uneven or gravelly, the toe will wear away faster than the other portions. &quot;Tips,&quot; 

 or the &quot;half-moon shoe,&quot; made thin and nicely fitted, will protect this portion of the hoof in 

 such cases, and permit the frog to rest upon the ground, as it always should. 



A. shoe, of whatever style, should always be so fitted that it will permit the frog to rest 

 upon the ground, and the frog and bars should never be cut; simply let them alone, as nature 

 formed them, and never permit a stupid blacksmith to cut and mutilate your horses feet after 

 the barbarous fashion so commonly seen. The sole should not be cut, and the crust or wall 

 of the hoof should only be cut sufficient to make the shoe fit well, and to reduce it to the 

 form and length to which it would naturally wear away if unshod, as the hoof will continue 

 to grow when protected by the shoe, and will require slight paring on this account. 



The wall of the hoof should not be made thin and weak by rasping. The shoe should 

 never extend outside the crust of the hoof ; if it does, there will be danger of interfering or 

 cutting. If the calks on the toe of the fore feet are too large, or the hoofs too long, there 

 will be a liability of the horse throwing his hind feet against the heels of the sole of the fore 

 feet in trotting, since, when thus shod, the fore feet will not naturally be placed as far for 

 ward, within an inch or two, as they would otherwise be, and over-reaching will generally be 

 found to be caused by such improper shoeing, and remedied by correcting this evil. 



It would be a very rare thing indeed to find a horse accustomed to go unshod, to inter 

 fere or over-reach. Fleming, one of the best writers on this subject, recommends the follow 

 ing pattern of shoe: 



&quot; If the sole of the hoof has not been mutilated by the knife, it does not require to be 

 covered by the shoe, as Nature has furnished an infinitely better protection. Wide surface 

 shoes can, therefore, be at once dispensed with; and a narrow shoe made of the very best 

 and toughest iron, adapted for traveling on slippery roads, and for aiding foot and limb, and 

 sufficient to withstand wear for four or five weeks is all that is required. We will there 

 fore conclude that the upper or foot surface should be the whole width of the shoe, and 



