1335.] 



FARMERS' REGISTER, 



J71 



It is one of (hose tricks which are very conta- 

 gious. Dvery companion of a crib biter in the 

 same stables is likely to acquire the habit, and it is 

 the most inveterate of all habits. The edge of 

 the manger will in vain be lined with iron, or with 

 sh ep-skin, or with sheep-skin covered with tar 

 or aloes, or any other unpleasant substance. Indefi- 

 anceofthe annoyance which these may occasion, the 

 horse will in a very short time again attack his 

 manger. A strap buckled tightly round the neck, 

 by compresshio- the windpipe, will prevent the 

 possibility of this action; but the strap must be 

 constantly worn, and its pressure is too apt. to pro- 

 duce a worse affection, viz. an irritation in the 

 windpipe, which terminates in roaring. 



Some have recommended turning out for five or 

 six months; but this has never succeeded except 

 with a young horse, and then rarely. The old 

 crib biter will employ the gate lor the same pur- 

 pose as the edge of his manger, and we have 

 seen him gallop across a field for the mere object of 

 having a grip at a rail. Medicine will be alto- 

 gether thrown away in this case. 



The only remedy is a muzzle, with bars across 

 the bottom; sufficiently wide to enable the animal 

 to pick up his corn and to pull his hay, but not to 

 grasp the edge of the manger. If this be worn a 

 very long time, the horse may be tired of attempt- 

 ing that which he cannot accomplish, and may 

 possibly for a while lbrget the habit; but in the 

 majority of cases the desire of crib biting will re- 

 turn with the power of gratifying it. 



The causes of crib biting are various, and some 

 of them beyond the control of the proprietor of 

 the horse. We have said that it is often the re- 

 sult of imitation; but it is more frequently the 

 consequence of idleness. The high-led and spi- 

 rited horse must be in mischief] if he is not usetiil- 

 ly employed. Sometimes, but we believe not often, 

 it is produced by partial starvation, whether in a 

 bad straw-yard, or from unpalatable food. An oc- 

 casional cause of crib biting is the frequent custom 

 of grooms, even when the weather is not severe, 

 of dressing them in the stable. The horse either 

 catches at the edge of the manger, or at the edge 

 of the partition on each side, if he has been turn- 

 ed, and thus he forms the habit of laying hold of 

 these substances on every occasion. 



Wind-sucking* 



This bears a close analogy to crib biting. It 

 arises from the same causes; the same purpose is 

 accomplished; and the same results follow. The 

 horse stands with his neck bent; his head drawn 

 inward; his lips alternately a little opened and 

 then closed, and a noise is heard as if he were 

 sucking. If we may judge from the same com- 

 parative want of condition, and the flatulence 

 which we have described under the last head, 

 either some portion of wind enters the stomach, 

 or there is an injurious loss of saliva. This di- 

 minishes the value of the horse almost as much 

 as crib biting; it is as contagious, and it is as in- 

 veterate. The only remedies, and they will sel- 

 dom avail, are tying the head up, except when 

 the horse is feeding, or putting on a muzzle, with 

 sharp spikes towards the neck, and which shall 

 prill him whenever he attempts to rein his head 

 in for the purpose of wind-sucking. 



Cutting. 



Of this habit Ave have already spoken at page 

 252, and we would advise the owner of a cutting 

 horse, without trying any previous experiments of 



raising or lowering the heels, to put on the cutting 

 foot a shoe of even thickness from heel to toe, not 

 projecting in the slightest degree beyond the rust, 

 and the crust itself being rasped a little at the 

 quarters; and to let that shoe be fastened as usual 

 on the outside, but with only one nail on the in- 

 side, and that almost close to the toe. The prin- 

 ciple on which this shoe acts has been explained 

 at page 243. 



Not lying down. 



It not uncommonly happens that a horse will 

 seldom or never lie down in the stable. He 

 sometimes continues in apparent good health, and 

 feeds and works well: but generally his legs swell, 

 or he becomes fatigued sooner than another horse. 

 If it is impossible to let him loose in the stable, or 

 to put him into a spare box, we know not what is 

 to be done. No means, gentle or cruel, will force 

 him to lie down. The secret is that he is tied up, 

 and either has never dared to lie down through 

 tear of the confinement of the halter, or he has 

 been cast in the night, and severely injured. If he 

 can be suffered to range the stable, or have a com- 

 fortable box, in which he may be loose, he will 

 usually lie down the first night. Some few horses, 

 however, will lie down in the stable, and not in a 

 loose box. A fresh, well made bed will generally 

 tempt the tired horse to lie down. 



Overreach. 



This unpleasant noise, known also by the terms 

 'clicking,' 'overreach,' &c. arises from the toe of 

 the hind foot knocking against the shoe of the 

 fore foot. In the trot, one fore leg and the oppo- 

 site hind loft' tire hist lifted from the ground and 

 moved forward, the other fore leg and the oppo- 

 site hind leg remaining fixed; but, to keep the 

 centre of gravity within the base, and as the 

 stride, or space passed over by these legs, is often 

 greater than the distance between the fore and 

 hind feet, it is necessary that the fore feet should 

 lie alternately moved out of the way for the hind 

 feet to descend. Then, as occasionally happens 

 with horses not perfectly broken, and that have 

 not been taught their paces, and especially if they 

 have high hinder quarters and low fore ones, if 

 the fore feet are not raised in time, the hind feet 

 will strike them. The fore foot will generally be 

 caught when it has just begun to be raised, and 

 the toe of the hind foot will meet the middle of the 

 bottom of the fore foot. It is a very disagreeable 

 noise, and not altogether free from danger; for it 

 may so happen that a horse, the action of whose 

 feet generally so much interferes with each other, 

 may advance the hind foot a little more rapidly, or 

 raise the fore one a little more slowly, so that the 

 blow may fall on the heel of the shoe, and loosen 

 or displace it; or the two shoes may be locked to- 

 gether, and the animal may be thrown; or the 

 contusion may be received even higher, and on 

 the tendons of the leg, when considerable swell- 

 ing and lameness may follow. 



If the animal is young, the action of the horse 



