THE IMPROVED ART OF FARRIERY. 21] 



is generally eleven months, sometimes more and some- 

 times less, according to circumstances. May is the 

 month from which ages are always dated. The most 

 material thing to be observed in breeding is the quality 

 of the sire and dam, for peculiarity of form and con- 

 stitution is inherent, and descends from generation to 

 generation ; hence the necessity of attention to those 

 niceties which breeders are often apt to forget and 

 pass over ; nor is it sufficient that one of the parents 

 be good and the other but indifferent, for the perfection 

 of the sire may be lost through the deficiencies of the 

 mare, and vice versa. 



In the selection of a stalUon many things should be 

 observed. There should be general uniformity and 

 compactness in every part, without an atom of super- 

 fluous weight or size of carcass. The height should 

 depend upon the occupation the foal is destined to 

 fulfil. The legs should be particularly examined, and 

 disease should pervade no part of the system. Fat, 

 heavy horses, with thick legs, and coarse unseemly 

 heads, should always be avoided. Horses that are 

 blind, or broken-winded, must be shunned. Temper 

 is an essential point, for vice is frequently hereditary, 

 and when this is carried to any extent it more than 

 outweighs other good qualities. Stallions which cover 

 for small sums of money are not generally to be trusted ; 

 the price is often a temptation to many who are un- 

 willing to give much, and the consequence is, they are 

 brought to cover too many mares in a season, and as 

 the period advances their stamina fails, and their pro- 

 duce is often weak and small in proportion to the ex- 

 cess of exertion they have undergone. 



As regards the mare, it is now better understood 

 that the dam contributes as much, or perhaps more, 

 to the production of a healthy stock than the sire. It 



