51 iJ VICES OF THE HORSE. 



Altliougli many a crib-biter is stout and strong, and capable of all ordinary 

 work, these horses do not generally carry so mnch flesh as others, and 

 haA'e not their endurance. On these accounts crib-biting has very pro- 

 perly been decided to be unsoundness. We must not look to the state of 

 the disease at the time of purchase. The question is, does it exist at all ? 

 A case was tried before Lord Tenterden, and thus decided : ' A horse with 

 ci'ib-biting is unsound.' 



It is one of those tricks which are said to be exceedingly contagious, 

 and every companion of a crib-biter in the same stables is considered 

 likely to acquire the habit, and it is the most inveterate of all habits ; but 

 it must be confessed that more than one crib-biter in a stable is a very 

 rare occurrence, nor can the ■writer recall a single instance in which he 

 h.as seen two together. The edge of the manger will in vain be lined with 

 iron, or "vvith sheep-skin, or with sheep-skin covered with tar or aloes, 

 or any other unpleasant substance. In defiance of the annoyance which 

 these may occasion, the horse will persist in the attack on his manger. 

 A strap buckled tightly round the neck, by compressing the windpipe, 

 is the best means of preventing the possibility of this trick ; but the strap 

 must be constantly worn, and its pressure is too apt to produce a worse 

 aft'ection, viz. an irritation in the Avindpipe, which terminates in roaring. 



Some have recommended turning out for five or six months ; but this 

 has never succeeded except with a young horse, and then rarely. The 

 old crib-biter will employ the gate for the same purj^ose as the edge of his 

 manger, and we have often seen him galloping across a field for the mere 

 object of having a gripe at a rail. Medicine A\dll be altogether thrown 

 away in this case. 



The only remedy is a muzzle, with bars across the bottom ; sufiiciently 

 Vi^ide to enable the animal to pick up his corn and to pull his hay, but not 

 to grasp the edge of the manger. If this is worn for a considerable period, 

 the horse may be tii'ed of attempting that which he cannot accomplish, 

 and for a while forget the habit, but, in a majority of cases, the desire of 

 crib-biting will return with the power of gratifying it. 



The causes of crib-biting are various, and some of them beyond the con- 

 trol of the proprietor of the horse. It is often the result of imitation ; 

 but it is more frequently the consequence of indigestion. The high-fed 

 and spirited horse must be in mischief if he is not usefully employed. 

 Sometimes, but we beheve not often, it is produced by partial starvation, 

 whether in a bad straw-yard, or from unpalatable food. An occasional 

 cause of crib-biting is the frequent custom of grooms, even when the 

 weather is not severe, of di'essiug them in the stable. The horse either 

 catches at the edge of the manger, or at that of the partition on each side, 

 if he has been turned, and- thus he forms the habit of laying hold of these 

 substances on every occasion. 



WIND-SUCKING. 



This bears a close analogy to crib-biting. It arises from the same 

 causes ; the same pui-pose is accomplished ; and the same results follow. 

 The horse stands with his neck bent ; his head drawn inward ; his lips 

 alternately a little opened and then closed, and a noise is heard as if he 

 were sucking. If we may judge from the same comparative want of con- 

 dition and the flatulence which we have described under the last head, 

 either some portion of wind enters the stomach, or there is an injurious 

 loss of sahva. This diminishes the value of the horse almost as much as 

 ci'ib-biting ; it is as contagious, and it is as inveterate. The only remedies, 

 and they will seldom avail, are tying the head up, except when the horse 

 is feeding, or putting on a muzzle with sharj) spikes towards the neck. 



I 



