1 WEAVING.' 303 



when brought out into the air, and dances, rather 

 than walks, through the door. If the doorway be 

 too narrow or too low, the animal is apt to strike 

 itself against the door-post, and so to break one of 

 the projecting portions of the hip bone. It is true 

 that if a groom places himself in front of the horse 

 and backs out of the stable, leading the horse after 

 him, he will take the animal safely through a very 

 narrow doorway. But it is never right to trust the 

 discretion of a subordinate when the welfare of the 

 horse is at stake, especially when a mere enlarge- 

 ment of the doorway will make it safe even for a 

 restive horse and a careless groom. 



There are many other defects in ordinary stables, 

 such, for example, as the narrowness of the stalls, 

 which is the primary cause of * weaving ' — i.e. fidget- 

 ting, crib-biting, and other ' vices ' of the stable. 



As for weaving, all imprisoned animals weave 

 in one way or another, as any one may see by 

 visiting the Zoological Gardens. It is their only 

 mode of relieving the intolerable monotony of their 

 existence. There is just now a wolf which has 

 invented a totally new method of weaving. He goes 

 to the back of the cage, runs a pace or two, jumps 

 into the air with outspread and stiffened legs, and 

 comes down so as to slide as far as the bars. 



There is really no great harm in weaving, any 



