164 



BOOK III. 



OF TlIE LEG AND FOOT OF THE HORSE ; OR SHOEING^MITII'3 GUIDE. 



CHAPTER I. 



structure and Physiology of the Foot j Mode of studying it advantageousiy 



Certatn disorders of the foot owe their origin to bad structure of the limb, 

 and tne manner it is attached to the body, which influences the tread, or bear- 

 ing, that the foot has upon a plane surfaced ground ; others arise from accident 

 or hard work, and a good number from the errors shoeing-smiths fall into 

 when they neglect to adapt their work to the circumstances peculiar to each 

 kind of horse. Furthermore, almost every individual horse has its peculiar 

 tread, and the scientific workman should place himself in a situation to ascer- 

 tain whether this be owing to such original defectiveness, or to the evil accu- 

 mulations of age and hard usuage: he must not pretend to counteract, but tc 

 follow the first mentioned ; the second he may endeavour to correct, to amend, 

 and prevent its evil effects. In order to effect these objects, he should study 

 the form and structure of well-formed limbs, learn the uses of each bone, liga- 

 ment, and tendon, and ascertain how it happens that deviations from symmetry 

 in the limb always affect the sole of the foot, sooner or later. 



But so much space has been already occupied in the anatomical description 

 of the leg, that it might properly be considered a waste of time to enter into 

 new details to the same purpose. The reader will therefore turn back to the 

 early sections of the first book (page 5, &c.) and he will readily perceive in 

 what manner an originally defective limb, or the ill-adaptation of the parts to 

 each other, or its awkward attachment to the body, may become the harbinger 

 of one or other of the many diseases of the foot, which we come shortly to take 

 into consideration. He will know, also, that besides this error of birth, as 1 

 call it, there are others of mismanagement : as, the employment of horses in 

 work that is beyond their powers, or of that kind for which nature never de- 

 signed them; cither of which is as likely to bring on distortion of the foot, and 

 its train of disorders, as any accident of birth to which 1 before alluded. Na- 

 tural defects go much farther than shape or make, and the distinction between 

 these and the inflicted, or acquired, may be aptly illustrated by the fact, that 

 white-legged horses, whatever be tneir shape, are more disposed to contract 

 "grease" than those of any other colour. This is therefore a natural predis- 

 position to that disease; whilst the animal which is suffered to contract the 

 " grease " entirely through mismanagement suffers an infliction as much as 

 another, which, being put upon hard services, throws out splents, spavin, curb^ 

 &c. in consequence. 



Furthermore, the shoeing-smith who should inform himself of the primary 



causes of badly formed feet would carry on his business with the greatest 



emolument to himself, and with the most satisfaction to his employers; for he 



would ada[)t his shoes to the natural defects, whilst the acquired ones he would 



meml by degrees until he could control the horses' heels to a lieallhy shaiie. 



