422 GROOMING AND SIGNS OF BAD GROOMING. 



GROOMING. 



The primary object of grooming is to stimulate the circu- 

 lation and keep the system in a normal condition of cleanli- 

 ness. This can only be done by removing the worn-out 

 tissues of the cuticle or outer skin as well as the dust and 

 dirt which become matted at the roots of the hair and 

 obstruct the oil glands in their function of excretion. These 

 innumerable pores are the drains or outlets for whatever the 

 system rejects, and unless these channels are kept open the 

 health of the horse becomes impaired. The secondary 

 object, that of producing a glossiness to the coat, is treated 

 as the primary one by most masters and servants ; hence the 

 groom taxes his ingenuity to produce silken coats with the 

 expenditure of as little muscular force as is compatible with 

 a fair amount of success. 



SIGNS OF BAD GROOMING. 



Grooming is the hardest work a stableman has to per- 

 form, and his preparation for the task will give some indica- 

 tion of how thoroughly he contemplates doing his work. If 

 the man appears in his ordinary clothes and merely removes 

 his coat or hat, the reader may safely conclude that the 

 primary object of grooming will be entirely neglected, and 

 the secondary one obtained by a very inadequate and insuf- 

 ficient amount of manual labor. A good groom will make 

 his first appearance in the morning dressed in a flannel shirt 

 and a pair of old trousers, prepared for " a sweat." 



Many otherwise good coachmen cannot or will not 

 thoroughly clean a horse, and an owner should satisfy any 

 suspicions of negligence by passing his fingers through the 

 horse's coat, against the hair, especially about the mane, 



