THOROUGHriN 



SO much in the way of running long distances in heats, or 

 roughing it in the course of his journeys from meeting to 

 meeting. No doubt a great change has come over racing, 

 yet probably were he called upon to do the work and endure 

 the hardships which his ancestors underwent, the modern 

 race-horse would emerge triumphant from the ordeal, provided 

 that he was not treated like a hothouse plant in his youth. 

 The fact remains, however, that no such strenuous demands 

 are made upon his energies ; nor can it for a moment be 

 questioned that the race-horses of the present day in very 

 many instances do all that is required of them in a style 

 which could not be surpassed. On the other hand, there 

 are horses which win races which can by no stretch of 

 imagination be regarded as desirable animals to breed from, 

 and yet their services are sought after by owners of mares 

 who are tempted either by the lowness of the fees demanded, 

 or by the fact that unthinking persons will bid long prices 

 for foals owing to the fact that they are sired by winners. 

 The patronage accorded to such horses is not good for the 

 thoroughbred, nor does it justify the belief that the British 

 blood - horse of the future will be the equal of the best 

 animals of the present or the past. (See Hunter Sires.) 



Thoroughpin is a swelling on the back of the hock 

 towards the top, which usually appears on both sides of 

 the joint, rarely upon one ; if so it may be con- 

 fused with bog-spavin by inexperienced persons, 

 though it appears on a different part of the joint. 

 Thoroughpin is caused by inflammation of the 

 tendon, and if the swelling on one side of the 

 hock is pressed, that on the other side will in- 

 crease in size. 



Treatment. — A dose of opening medicine, 

 cooling food, and hot fomentations on the affected 

 part. Blistering often proves effective, but a con- 

 tinued course of iodine dressing will usually pro- 

 duce more satisfactory results. When the horse gets to 



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