42 



HORSE— DISEASES AND REMEDIES. 



collar reins is sometimes made to draw 

 down with a spring-catch, which releases 

 them when pulled in that direction, but 

 in no other. When, however, the sinker 

 is properly weighted, it is almost impossi- 

 ble for such an accident to occur; and 

 this simple invention has now become ob- 

 solete. 



HORSE, Tearing the Clothes off, is by 

 means an unusual stable habit, and it is not 

 one very difficult to cure. There are 

 two effectual preventives, however: one 

 of which consists in the regular employ- 

 ment of a rough horsehair cloth, made 

 like that for hops, outside the rug and 

 which is so disagreeable to the teeth, 

 that no horse will attempt to tear it ; the 

 other is carried out by means of a pole 

 of ash, about three-quarters of an inch 

 in diameter, with an iron eye attached to 

 each end. One of these is fastened, by 

 means of a short leathern strap or 

 buckle, to the side of the roller-pad, 

 while the other has a strap or chain about 

 a foot long, which attaches it to the head 

 collar. The pole should reach about fif- 

 teen inches beyond the point of the 

 shoulder, and it should be fixed on the 

 side which is generally uppermost when 

 the horse lies down, so as not to be un- 

 der him in that position, It is a very 

 simple and cheap apparatus, and any 

 village blacksmith can make and ap- 

 ply it. 



HORSE, Weaving is a mark of an ir- 

 ritable nervous system, beyond which it 

 is harmless, but quite incurable. It con- 

 sists in a perpetual moving of the head 

 from one side of the manger to the 

 other, with an action like that, of a wild 

 beast in his den. The constant friction 

 soon wears out the collar reins when 

 there are two, and on that account a sin- 

 gle rein may be adopted in this particu- 

 lar instance with advantage. 



HORSE, Eating the Litter is a pecu- 

 liar appetite, which chiefly occurs either 

 in those horses which are kept short of 

 hay on account of their tendency to fat- 

 ten, or when the animal possessing it has 

 been stabled for a very long time togeth- 

 er and requires a change. In the form- 

 er case, nothing but the muzzle will be of 

 the slightest service, but in the latter a 

 run at grass, or soiling indoors for a 

 month or two, will remedy the disorder 

 of the stomach. Rock salt in the man- 



ger will sometimes have the desired 

 effect, producing a degree of thirst which 

 will make dry litter distasteful. 



HORSE, Ricking and Biting savagely 

 are marks of actual vice, and scarcely 

 come within the limits of the present 

 section. Still the groom must know how 

 to guard against them in the best way, 

 so as to save himself from danger with- 

 out unnecessarily punishing the horse. 

 There are some animals which cannot be 

 effectually restrained without severity, 

 but on the average, kindness and firm- 

 ness united will overcome any horse. 

 Sometimes it is necessary to put on the 

 muzzle while the dressing is going on r 

 but this is chiefly because the skin is so 

 irritable that the brush or whisp excite 

 sensations which lead to the use of the 

 teeth or hind legs to prevent their recur- 

 rence. 



HORSE, Bad Habits and Outdoor 

 Vices.- -Out-door vices depend upon the 

 temper of the individual, and include 

 shying, rearing, kicking, lying down, 

 plunging or bucking, shouldering, and 

 running away. Bad habits arise from a 

 defective formation of the body, and are 

 confined to stumbling and cutting. 



HORSE, Shying generally arises from 

 timidity, but sometimes it is united with 

 cunning, which induces the animal to- 

 assume a fear of some object for the sole 

 purpose of finding an excuse for turning 

 round. The usual cause for shying is 

 doubtless the presence of some object to 

 which the colt has not been accustomed, 

 and if he has buck eyes, which render 

 him short-sighted, it will be difficult to 

 convince him of the innocent nature of 

 the novel object. There are endless pe- 

 culiarities in shying horses, some being 

 dreadfully alarmed by one kind of object, 

 which to others is not at all formidable. 

 When a horse finds that he gains his ob- 

 ject by turning round, he will often repeat 

 the turning without cause, pretending to 

 be alarmed, and looking out for excuses 

 for it. This is not at all uncommon, and 

 with timid riders leads to a discontinuance 

 of the ride, by which the horse gains his 

 end for the time, and repeats the trick on 

 the first occasion. In genuine shying 

 from fear, the eyes are generally more or 

 less defective ; but sometimes this is not 

 the cause, which is founded upon a gen- 

 eral irritability of the nervous system. 



