THE POINTS OF THE HORSE 



175 



Figure 53. The teeth showing 

 6 years of age. 



The teeth of the horse at 

 eight years show the cups of the 

 third and last pair of incisors in 

 each jaw worn off. By this time 

 all the teeth have been worn 

 about level, so that the mouth 

 mark largely loses its value. The 

 cups in the incisor teeth of the 

 upper jaw wear off more slowly, 

 however, those in the central 



pair disappearing at about nine years. This result is due 

 to the fact that the cup in the upper incisors is deeper than 

 in the lower ones, and so remains a longer time. 



The six permanent teeth in 



^tftfSBfe^t each jaw at first meet each other 



jjijJF ^liH^ m mucn the same position, their 



mf ^| ends butting directly together. 



As age increases, the teeth gradu- 

 ally take a more inclined or slant- 

 ing position in each jaw, so that 

 they come together at a sharper 



Figure 54. The teeth showing 

 7 years of age. 



angle. The older teeth are also 

 more worn off at the surface, but 

 have grown out longer. In horses from 12 to 16 years of 

 age, the ends of the teeth become somewhat three-sided. 



The soundness of the horse is regarded as very impor- 

 tant. Many unsound horses are , 



sold to men who think they are 

 buying sound ones. Then, when 

 the buyers attempt to sell, their 

 horses often show a great loss on 

 the purchase price. If, therefore, 

 one is to be a capable judge, one 

 must be able to distinguish cases 

 of unsoundness. It is not always 



Figure 55. The teeth showing 

 8 years of age. 



