308 CONTRACTIOH. 



cessaiy consequence of shoeing. There can be no doubt tiiat an 

 inflexible iron ring being nailed to the foot prevents, to a very 

 considerable degree, the descent of the sole and the expansion of 

 the heels below ; and it is likewise probable, that when the ex 

 pansion of the heels is prevented they often begin to contract. 

 But here, as before stated, nature makes provision for the change. 

 Some gentlemen who are careful of their horses have driven them 

 twenty years, and principally over the rough pavement of" towns, 

 without a day's lameness. Shoeing may be a necessary evil, but 

 it is not the evil which many speculative persons have supposed 

 it, and notwithstanding its effects, the foot ordinarily lasts longer 

 than the legs ; nay, horsemen tell us that one pair of good feet is 

 worth two pairs of legs. 



There is nothing in the appearance of the feet which would 

 enable us to decide when contraction is or is not destructive to 

 the usefulness of the animal ; his mamier of going, and his capa- 

 bility for work, must be our guides. Lameness usually accom- 

 panies the beginning of contraction ; it is the invariable attendant 

 on rapid contraction, but it does not always exist when the ivir- 

 ing in is slow, or of long standing. 



A very excellent writer, particularly when treating of the foot 

 of the horse, Mr. Blaine, has given us a long and correct list of 

 the causes of injurious contraction, and most of them are, fortu- 

 nately, under the control of the owner of the animal. He places 

 at the head of them, neglect of j)aring. The hoof is continually 

 growing, the crust is lengthening, and the sole is thickening. 

 This is a provision for the wear and tear of the foot in an unshod 

 state ; but when it is protected by a shoe, and none of the horn 

 -can be worn away by coming in contact with the ground, and the 

 growth of horn continues, the hoof grows high, and the sole gets 

 thick, and, in consequence of this, the descent of the sole and the 

 expansion of the heels are prevented, and contraction is the re- 

 sult. The smith might lessen, if not prevent the evil, by care- 

 fully thinning the sole and lowering the heels at each shoeing ; 

 but the first of these is a matter of considerable labor, aad the 

 second could not be done efiectually without being accompanied 

 by the first, and therefore they are both neglected. Owners 

 should often stand by and see that this is properly done. 



Wearing the shoes too long, especially when nails are placed 

 nearer than they should be to the quarters to make the shoes 

 hold, is another cause of contraction. There is no rule which 

 admits of so little exception as that, once in about every three 

 weeks, the growth of horn which the natural wear of the foot 

 cannot get rid of, should be pared away — the toe should be 

 shortened in most feet — the sole should be thinned, and the heels 

 lowered Every one who has carefully observed the shape of the 



