BITS 



to fix hi 



collar rope to the side wall so that he cannot 

 reach his neighbour. Many horses destroy their 

 clothing because they are suffering from some 

 skin trouble which is irritated by contact with 

 the rug, and therefore if the offence is suddenly 

 developed, the cause may be discovered by 

 examining the offender's body. In confirmed 

 cases a coarse canvas outer sheet with rough 

 edges may be worn outside the ordinary 

 stable clothing, but nothing is so effective as 

 the muzzle. 



Muzzle for Biters. 



Bits. — The subject of bits is one that is either entirely 

 misunderstood or else grossly neglected in many stables, as 

 it is an undoubted fact that horses' mouths differ so greatly 

 that an animal which will go perfectly in one sort of bit may 

 become absolutely unmanageable and useless in another. 

 There is a great disposition, too, on the part of both owners 

 and their servants, to over-bit a puller, the impression 

 apparently being that a hard mouth is only susceptible to 

 the influence of a very severe bit ; but this is by no means 

 invariably the case. Were people only to realise the effect 

 produced by a bit they would more readily understand, and 

 sympathise with, the behaviour of a horse which resents the 

 pressure brought to bear upon his lips, tongue, and the bars 

 and roof of his mouth by some of the instruments of torture 

 which are used by unreflective persons. 



A bit is composed of a mouthpiece which may be 

 straight or else consist of three parts — namely, the port, 

 which is an arch of greater or less depth, is so situated in the 

 centre of the mouthpiece that it presses upon the palate 

 when the reins are pulled. The cannons of the bit are those 

 parts which extend from the port to the lips or sides of the 

 mouth, and the heels are the ends of the cannons on the 

 inside, where they join the port. The branches of the bit 

 extend from the top eye, attached to the head-collar or 



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