44 Gait of the American Trotter and Pacer 



The ideal gait for the trot, as well as for the pace, lies in the 

 words : equal extension of all four legs. Anything short of that may 

 be classed as irregular and subject to a possible correction. 



All my endeavors to reduce these two gaits to a basis of purity 

 have brought out certain points which will be demonstrated by various 

 experiments. The very fact that these experiments were tried on dif- 

 ferent subjects, and that the principles involved were applied and 

 yielded definite and practical results, may .give the reader some idea 

 of the usefulness of this investigation. It may strike the reader as 

 a laborious process to establish the facts of a gait; but are not facts 

 better than guess work? 



Balancing the horse in motion should be based on exact principles 

 and these principles should be deducible from careful experiments. 

 This is, to my mind, the only rational view to take of the matter. 



I anticipate criticism to the effect that this method of measurement 

 is not practical. To be sure, it requires some actual work in the field 

 and some mental effort at figuring; but the time so spent will be far 

 less than the time used up in endless, haphazard trials, with all the 

 guesses and the errors of visual observation. 



This method is not given as a cure-all, by any means, but merely 

 as a correct indicator of faults in gait. The certainty of exact meas- 

 urements enables us to get at the facts in the case. When we once 

 know the cause of disturbance, or have any indication of it, we can 

 proceed at least with intelligence to correct that disturbing cause, if 

 that be possible. No claim is set up either of a cure following post- 

 haste on such a detection of a fault. Time is the most important ele- 

 ment in correcting a faulty gait. It should be remembered that a 

 change in shoeing is not immediately effective of good results, and that 

 the effect of a previous shoeing or paring of hoof becomes part of the 

 effect of the last shoeing and paring. For, the adjustment of muscles 

 and tendons to such a change does not, without possible injury, occur 

 on the spot. Hence the importance of a continual record of the treat- 

 ment of the foot and its results. This means a steady progress and 

 an enlightenment on the peculiarities of the subject's gait, such as hap- 

 hazard guess-work can never accomplish. 



