206 REARING. 



REAEING. 



This vice is not very common, at least in a dangerous form, 

 and can generally be prevented by the use of the martingale. 



In the case of saddle-horses, another good prevention is, when 

 tbe horse is about to rise, to touch him with the spur on one side 

 only ; this will cause him to stop to lift the hind leg on that side, 

 and if he persists in his attempt the spurs may be used vigor- 

 ously, first on one side, and then on the other, but not so fast 

 as to prevent the horse from raising his hind legs alternately, 

 as he is spurred. The least touch of the curb-bit will cause 

 some vicious and badly trained horses to rear, while those which 

 have been thoroughly trained will rear slightly, to a great height, 

 or not at all, as their rider may desire ; but it is obvious that 

 horses so delicately trained should not be ridden by unskillful 

 persons, lest the awkwardness of the rider should cause unex- 

 pected curveting. 



The remedy of some breakers, that of pulling the horse back- 

 ward on a soft piece of ground should be practiced by reckless 

 and brutal fellows alone. Many horses have been injured in the 

 spine, and others have broken their necks, by being thus sud- 

 denly pulled over ; while even the fellow who fears no danger, 

 is not always able to extricate himself from the falling horse. 

 If rearing proceeds from vice, and is unprovoked by the bruis- 

 ing and laceration of the mouth, it fully partakes of the invete- 

 racy which attends the other divisions of restiveness. 



PULLING BACK ON THE HALTER. 

 This is a vice which has probably arisen from the horse 

 having, at some time, broken a weak halter in a fit of impa- 



