HOW TO SELECT A HORSE 29 



almost always a horse rather hard to keep. A horse's 

 ribs should be well sprung out, that is rounded out in 

 barrel shape. These horses are almost always 

 stronger than flat or slab-sided horses. This forma- 

 tion is characteristic both of the Arabian and of the 

 Morgan horse. 



Thin-waisted horses are usually delicate. A good 

 "bread basket" is what the experienced horseman 

 looks for. And yet some thin-waisted horses have so 

 much nerve force and courage that their endurance is 

 great. " Blood is better than substance." 



THE FOOT 



The most important part of the foot is its texture. 

 The foot should be of fine, close-knit texture, wide at 

 the heels, with a strong, tough wall, and neither too 

 high nor too low at the heels. A thin or weak wall 

 is apt to accompany low heels. A horse that is high 

 at the heels, especially one that has what are called 

 "mule feet," or a "cup-foot," has really stronger feet 

 than other horses, and could go without shoes on soft 

 roads better than other horses; but this kind of foot, 

 inasmuch as it receives less frog-pressure than a foot 

 of less depth, does not usually last as well in the city 

 as a foot with lower heels and less depth to it. All 

 horses in the city must suffer more or less from want 

 of frog-pressure, and the high-heeled foot suffers more 

 than the low-heeled. Even in the country, a horse 

 with a deep foot and high heel needs more attention 

 than a horse with low heels, for, owing to the want of 

 frog-pressure, it is more apt to harden and contract. 



