320 FAULTS OF MOUTH. 



and holding him on the ground with his head pulled round 

 (see remarks on pulling, page 306). 



Horses which do not go up to their bridle sufficiently 

 when jumping are apt to injure their hind legs by putting 

 too much weight on them. Long rein work over fences 

 (see page 240) with a fairly short martingale, and riding 

 over obstacles with a large smooth snaffle and plenty of 

 " rein," will soon break the animal of this vice. 



TEACHING PACERS (AMBLERS) TO TROT. 



We may modify the gait in the desired direction by circling 

 the pacer with the long reins on foot in a ring sufficiently 

 small to compel him to trot instead of to amble. I may 

 explain that as the amble is a lateral gait (near and fore 

 hind, and off fore and off hind), the horse which adopts it 

 on a circle will have to step shorter with the inside pair of 

 legs than with the outside, and will consequently be incon- 

 venienced by this mode of travelling, proportionately to 

 the smallness of the circle. As the steps of the trot, on the 

 contrary, are composed of one inside and one outside leg 

 (near fore and off hind, and off fore and near hind), the 

 size of the circle will not affect the regularity of this 

 diagonal gait. Having obtained a well-balanced trot to 

 both reins (right, as well as left) in a small circle, we may 

 gradually increase it, until it is from 15 yards to 20 yards 

 in diameter. We may then put the animal into a light 

 two-wheeled cart, and circle him on foot with the long 

 reins, until he trots as steadily with the cart behind him as 

 he did without it. We may now get into the cart, and trot 

 him on the circle to the right as well as to the left. We 

 may gradually enlarge the circle, do figures of eight, and 

 end by working the horse on a straight line. 



