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shoes ought not to be made too heavy, for it is 



astonishing how much a small weight will af- 

 fect their motions. The shoes must not, how- 

 ever, be made so thin or so light as to admit of 

 bending, lest the sole of the foot should be 

 injured by a bruize. They should be made 

 narrow and thick, rather than broad and thin; 

 for, as was before observed, the pressure of the 

 horse's weight is principally round the circum- 

 ference of tlie hoof. 



That the hoof may not become too dry and 

 hard, and lose its elasticity, it will be necessary 

 *to wet the feet twice or thrice a day by riding 

 the horse into water as high as the knees, 

 which cools and moistens the feet and legs. If 

 he be watered out of a pail, each foot should 

 be taken up and dipped into it for a short time. 

 Water is the most natural moisture for the legs 

 and feet of a healthy horse *, the other neces- 

 sary moisture is afforded from the constitution 

 of the animal. A horse's hoofs, however, are 

 benefitted by being rubbed with an oily sponge 

 before he is rode. 



If a horse becomes tender about the frog, or 

 the hinder part of the fooc, a bar-shoe is com- 

 monly applied, to protect those parts until they 



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