21 8 THE STABLE FLOOR 



Yet both have standings as a rule on a paved 

 floor for not less than eighteen hours out of the 

 average twenty-four. 



A notable difference between the sound 

 outdoor horse and the unsound indoor horse is 

 in this matter of standing, for the range animal 

 visits but does not live in a stable, while the 

 unsound animal spends three fourths of his 

 time on a hard pavement. I have noticed also 

 in travel that when I brought weary horses to 

 a stable with a wooden floor their pasterns 

 always swelled over night. On a metalled or 

 paved floor the swelling was almost as bad as 

 on wood, whereas on earthern standings there 

 was never the slightest trace of inflammation. 



In recent handling of some sixty army 

 horses I took them from pasture to horse lines 

 without noting much unsoundness on either 

 ground. Unsoundness developed when I took 

 them to paved stalls, but was much diminished 

 when I moved them to earth-floored sheds. I 

 find too that notable horsemasters have 

 removed the pavements from their stables in 

 favour of clean, dry, well-drained earth stand- 

 ings ; or, failing that, lay bedding a foot deep. 



But my experiment has gone further. My 

 horses have not only earth standings, but 

 sheds so built that they are walled only to 



