STUMBLING. 275 



So surprised was I at his tranquillity that I thought he was 

 deaf, until I had to go out to " take up a point ;" for after 

 cantering a few yards, I spoke to him, and he went up to 

 his bridle in a moment ; thus showing that he paid far 

 more attention to an indication from me, than to one from 

 outside. 



Shying is sometimes due to defective sight caused by 

 cataract and shortsightedness, which is frequently present 

 with that prominent appearance of the eyes called among horse- 

 men " buck eyes." It may also be a silly trick practised even 

 by the best tempered horses. We can recognise this form by 

 the fact that the animal will go on with his game of, say, 

 shying at every heap of stones he sees by the side of a road, 

 only when he is fresh, but not when he is tired. A well-bred 

 mare I once owned was a very bad shyer when ridden by 

 grown-up persons out hacking or going to a meet, but would 

 never shy after seeing the hounds or when ridden by a child. 



Habitually prancing and dancing about is a very disagree- 

 able variety of unsteadiness that is in almost all cases a vice, 

 manifested by impatience of control. Its worst forms are 

 generally associated with the habit the animal has of " blowing 

 his nose." This kind of snorting, exhibited without adequate 

 cause, is a certain sign of an unruly temper, as I have found, 

 particularly in my breaking experiences with wild and vicious 

 horses. 



STUMBLING. 



The usual causes of stumbling, which may act singly or 

 in a combined form, are failure to raise the feet high 

 enough, undue depression of the toe when the foot is being 

 brought forward, and excessive weight on the fore-hand. 

 When a horse stumbles from the first two causes, but not from 

 the third, the accident will not as a rule be enough to upset 

 the equilibrium of the body, and a not very nervous rider may 



1 8* 



