82 ANIMAL MANAGEMENT. 



Kicking Kicki?!^^ in the stable may be due to want of work, the remedy for 



in the which is obvious ; or a persistent vice which is always troublesome, and 



sta e. frequently dangerous, and is more common in mares than in geldings. 

 Some animals kick constantly in the dark, and a light in the 

 stable keeps them quiet, but others will continue the habit in spite 

 of every precaution. The following are some methods by which it 

 may be combated : — The bails and stall posts may be padded or 

 wrapped with straw so that noise is prevented and the chances of injury 

 lessened. It appears in some cases that the noise produced is a 

 stimulus to repetition and if deadened, animals occasionally stop. 

 Bunches of furze or other prickly plants may be hung in such a position 

 that they are struck during the kick, when the pain caused either stops 

 the habit or increases it ; and the plan therefore requires careful 

 watching. 



Kicking boards may be slung from the bails. These should be 

 thick, heavy boards, extending at least half-way up the stall from the 

 rear stall post, reaching within a couple of inches of the ground, and 

 hinged to the bail so that they swing when hit. They may be padded 

 with sacking loosely filled with peat mo^s to deaden the sound. Although 

 they do not cure the evil they are one of the best palliatives. 



Kicking blocks of wood or rubber may be made to fit closely into the 

 hollow of the heel, and being fastened there by a strap which passes 

 through the body of the block, they prevent the heel being bent or the leg 

 raised : these, however, must fit very accurately, for if they slip from the 

 heel they are useless and may even increase the trouble. Another 

 variety of kicking block is a shackle with a few links of heavy chain 

 attached to which is sometimes added a smooth wooden ball, when the 

 horse kicks, the chain or block hits him on the leg and in some cases stops 

 the habit. 



Attaching heavy weights to the legs by means of shackles, e.g.^ bags 

 of sand, or hanging these behind the animal so that they swing back 

 when struck, are harmless and sometimes quite efficacious expedients, 

 and the legs may be shackled together if other means fail. 



It will be noted that some of the methods given above are likely to 



cause considerable damage to the animal if the kicking is persisted in, 



and they should all be carefully supervised when employed ; horses 



which are not cured of the habit by one method, will sometimes yield to 



another, and none should be persisted in if they do not at once check it. 



Gnawing Gnawing the walls and eating their own droppings are instances ol 



the walls depraved appetite occasionally observed in horses'. The former is 



and eating usually ascribed to a craving for lime salts, but it is by no means proved 



