PREPARING THE SHOW HORSE AND HARNESS HORSE 311 



Should the animal be brought up from grass, it is a good plan to give 

 him a dose of aloes (about 5 drachms for a big horse, and less in pro- 

 portion for smaller ones), preceded by two or three bran mashes, and 

 after that the less physic he gets the better. In the case of a short- 

 ribbed horse, a good deal of time must be spent in endeavouring to get 

 his belly to drop, and thereby take away the tucked-up appearance which 

 disfigures so many movers. If this end is finally accomplished it will 

 generally be through the assistance of a system of feeding which, though 

 it does not commend itself to a man who requires his horses for work, 

 is absolutely essential to the purpose of a stud-groom who is in charge 

 of a naturally short -ribbed, narrow -middled animal. Great care should 

 be exercised in the cleansing and washing out of his manger after every 

 feed, and the removal of every particle he has not consumed. It is best 

 to mix all his grain with chopped stuff well damped or even scalded, 

 as the moisture assists in dropping the body and thereby concealing the 

 shortness of rib. The eternal question of exercise depends, as it does 

 in the race-horse and trotter (which see), upon the discretion of the 

 trainer, as not only do constitutions vary in horses, but in the case of 

 high-movers the feet will be much less tried by the lofty action of some 

 than will be the case in others. There is not, however, any great necessity 

 to give the majority of show horses very severe work, though in the 

 case of the hunter, which should appear muscular, it is desirable that 

 he should be ridden regularly and supplied with plenty of hard food. 

 As the amount of exercise is therefore somewhat limited, and the feed- 

 ing light, a periodical dose, perhaps once a month or sp, of an alterative 

 medicine should be administered, and this, with the addition of some 

 carrots to the diet, will usually succeed in keeping the blood in order. 



The Show Hunter. The preparation of the show hunter after the 

 animal has been " broke" is very similar during its early stages to that 

 adopted towards other varieties of horse; but when he comes to be ridden 

 and got ready for the show-ring, both skill and patience have to be 

 expended in the bridling and bending of him. The steeple-chaser, or 

 business-hunter, can be allowed to slip along with his nose forward, but 

 the show horse requires bending and pulling back on his hind-legs to 

 make him go off the ground and flex his hocks so that he may look smart 

 when ridden. The question of finding a suitable bit for the animal is 

 therefore a matter of serious consideration, whilst the hands of his rider 

 also have to be studied. Severe bits are always to be avoided when 

 young horses are under treatment, and, in fact, the less that old ones 

 have to do with them the better, and therefore, when side reins have 

 to be shortened on a colt, the more tender the bit, the better the mouth 



