SHOEING 99 



numbness, and throbbing. When the rubber band causes pain, 

 we can remove it instantly. If our shoes pinch, we can kick 

 them off, and sigh with relief as discomfort subsides, and the 

 blood courses back into its usual channels. But alas, poor horse I 

 If the horny box of his hoof, which corresponds to the leather 

 shoe we wear, contracts and pinches the sensitive parts under- 

 neath, he has no relief. His shrunken hoof is a fixture. He 

 cannot kick it off. He cannot ease the pinching by loosening 

 laces. No ; he has to suffer excruciating pain as he works, eats, 

 or lies down on his too often uncomfortable bed, and seeks to 

 rest with his tight boots on ! 



BAR SHOES 



Bar shoes are often extremely useful for the pur- 

 pose of protecting a foot which has a strong frog, but 

 is weak at the quarters. In such a case the bar should 

 be so fitted that it will be in contact with the frog, in 

 order to obtain frog-pressure. In other cases the bar 

 is used to protect a weak or diseased frog, and it should 

 then be fitted so as not to touch the frog. 



PADS 



The use of rubber and leather pads has already been 

 mentioned. (See page 86.) Generally speaking, no 

 horse should ever be used in the city without a pad, 

 either of rubber or of leather, for the pad not only pro- 

 tects the foot from Injury but also serves to hold in 

 place the tar or other material which Is needed to keep 

 the foot of the city horse from becoming dry and from 

 contracting. By the way, gas-house tar has sometimes 

 been substituted for the ordinary or North Carolina 

 tar, and has proved injurious to the foot. 



