156 The 'Book of the Goat. 



I have seen these animals, when this matter has been 

 neglected for a long period, go about with the horny part 

 of the hoof three or four inches long and turning up at 

 the ends like a Dutch shoe, causing a peculiar rattling noise 

 as it walked. When goats have a daily run on hard 

 ground, the hoof is of course worn down by the friction 

 induced, but if the animal is always standing on straw 

 or other litter there is nothing to prevent the corneous sub- 

 stance from attaining excessive growth. With some goats 

 this growth seems to be more rapid than with others, though 

 kept under the same conditions, and they sometimes re- 

 quire their hoofs to be pared even if they are partly on 

 grass. There is no difficulty whatever in the operation, 

 which simply consists in cutting away the horn that overlaps 

 the frog or the sole of the foot until the two parts are on 

 a level. If dirt has got in between and is not dislodged by 

 the paring, it should be scraped out. as it is liable to cause 

 foot-rot. 



