76 PRACTICAL HORSESHOEING. 



APPLYING THE SHOE. 



The foot having been duly prepared, and the form of 

 shoe decided upon, the next step is to apply the shoe to 

 the hoof, and retain it there by nails. 



In ordinary practice the wall of the foot has been only 

 partially diminished, the remainder of the task being left 

 until the shoe has to be fittOfl. This causes the farrier to 

 have a very imperfect idea of the proper shape or size of 

 the hoof, and he therefore prepares a shoe which he 

 guesses is about the size, though in nearly every case it is 

 too small ; and, moulding it according to his fancy, he 

 proceeds to adjust the foot to it. This is done by cutting 

 more or less deeply into the wall at the toe, to make the 

 shoe appear long enough by embedding the clip deeply in 

 its substance, or "letting it back," as it is termed. The 

 consequence is, that when the shoe has been nailed on, 

 the basis of support of the limb is abnormally diminished, 

 a large portion of the wall of the hoof — its strongest por- 

 tion — projects beyond the shoe in front and at the sides, 

 and this is afterward carefully removed by the rasp, to the 

 great injury of the most essential portion of the hoof. In 

 every respect, the foot is made to fit the shape of the shoe, 

 and as this is generally prepared with a view only to neat- 

 ness or the traditions of routine, the organ suffers, to 

 jxlease the fancy or fashion of the unreasoning artisan. 



By our method, the horn having been reduced to 

 proper dimensions, the shoe is now made to exactly fit 

 the hoof, and to follow the outline of its lower face. The 

 part of the hoof intended to be protected by the iron rim 

 lias been made as level as possible by the rasp, aided a 

 very little, perhaps, by the knife ; the surface of the shoe 

 destined to rest on this horny bed has also been made 

 perfectly level and smooth, particularly at the clip or 



