HORSES: THEIR POINTS AND MANAGEMENT 



Head. — ^Tlic summit (^f the head, or that portion lying 

 between the ears, is known as the poll or occiput. It is from 

 here that a tuft of hair or " forelock " springs, giving, as it 

 were, a finish to the mane. 



Extending from the last named down to the inner angles 

 of the eyes — commonly occupied in part by a patch of white 

 hair — (the so-cahed star) there is a flattened area. This is 

 the Forehead. The forehead is continued as the Nose, 

 until the nostrils are reached, the Muzzle being formed by the 

 Lips and Nostrils. In some horses, the nasal bones are 

 convex, constituting the so-called Roman nose. The areas 

 lying between the ears and the eyes are the Temples, and above 

 each eye there is a small depression — the supra-orbital depres- 

 sion. Normally, this is occupied by a pad of fat. With 

 increasing age this usually disappears, so that old and worn 

 horses have a well marked hollow above the eyes. 



The Cheeks comprise the areas bounded behind, and 

 below, by the angle of the jaw, and the segment of a circle 

 drawn from the latter to the outer angle of the eye. Each 

 cheek is occupied by a single flattened powerful muscle known 

 as the Masseter, the chief muscle of mastication. The tri- 

 angular space occupying the branches of the low^r jaw, is known 

 as the intermaxillary area. 



The lower lip has a transverse depression immediately behind 

 it, called the chin groove, and it is here where the curb chain 

 should sit. 



The spaces of the gums between the incisor and molar 

 teeth on each of the lower jaws are known as the " bars." 



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