bueedtko.] 



MODEllN VETERINARY PRACTICK. 



[UUEEDINO. 



rctainoil as stallions. Tiiov are always the very 

 [)rime of tlio breed ; but the mares uro not 

 uliat they used to be. I'ovorty luuj induced 

 many of the breeders to ])art wiLii those from 

 whieh they used to raise their stock, and which 

 were worth their weight in gold ; and the jade 

 on which the farmer now rides to market, or 

 which he employs on his farm, costs him but 

 little money, and is only kept because he can- 

 not get much money for her. It has, likewise, 

 become the fashion for gentlemen to ride mares, 

 almost us frequently as geldings ; and thus the 

 better kind are taken from the breeding ser- 

 vice, until old age or injury renders them worth 

 little for that purpose. 



In the third volume of The Veterinarian, 

 this will be found strikingly pointed out by 

 Mr. Castloy, an intelligent veterinary surgeon. 



It ought to be as deeply impressed as pos- 

 sible on the minds of breeders, that peculiarity 

 of form and constitution are inherited from 

 both parents; that the excellence of the mare 

 is a point of quite as much importance as that 

 of the horse ; and that out of a sorry mare, let 

 the horse be as perfect as he may, a good foal 

 will rarely be produced. All this is recognised 

 upon the turf, although poverty or careless- 

 ness has made the general breeder neglect or 

 forget it. 



In the midland counties it is recognised in 

 matching the breed of cart-horses ; and the 

 strict attention which has been paid to it, has 

 brought our heavy draught animals to almost 

 the same perfection, in their way, as it has 

 brought our blood horses. It is an unaccount- 

 able fact, however, that in our saddle-horses, 

 our hunters, and, to a great extent, our car- 

 riage-horses, this should be left to chance. 



That the constitution and endurance of the 

 horse are inherited, no sporting man ever 

 doubted. The qualities of the sire or the 

 dam descend from generation to generation, 

 and the excellences or defects of certain 

 animals, are traced, and justly so, to some 

 peculiarity in a ipr-distant ancestor. 



It may, perhaps, be affirmed with justice, 

 that there is more difficulty in selecting a 

 good mare to breed from, than a good horse, 

 because she should possess qualities somewhat 

 opposite. That sufficient room may be given 

 for the growth of the foelus, her carcase should 

 be long, and yet with this there shaald be 



coiiipactncss of form and Bhortneas of log, 

 AVhat can be expected from the practice of 

 those who purchase worn-out, Hpavined, foun- 

 dered nuires, about which they funey tlioro huvo 

 been some good points, and hend thom fur 

 into the country to breed from ; aud, with all 

 their variety of shape, to bo covered by tho 

 same horse ? In a lottery like this, there 

 may be, now and then, a prize, but there must 

 bo many blanks. If horse-breeders, possessed 

 of good judgment, would pay the same at- 

 tention to breed and shape as Mr. Bakewell 

 did in sheep, they would probably attain 

 their wishes in an equal degree, and greatly 

 to their advantage, wliether for the collar or 

 the road, for racing or for hunting. 



As to the shape of the stallion, little satis- 

 factory can be said. It must depend on that 

 of the mare, and the kind of horse wished to 

 be bred ; but if there is one point which 

 we should say is absolutely essential, it is 

 this, "compactness" — as much goodness and 

 strength as possible, condensed into a little 

 space. 



Next to compactness, the inclination of tlio 

 shoulder will be regarded. A huge stallion, 

 with upright shoulders, never got a capital 

 hunter or hackney. From him the breeder 

 can obtain nothing but a cart or dray-horse, 

 and that, perhaps, spoiled by the opposite 

 form of the mare. On the other hand, au 

 upright shoulder is desirable, if not absolutely 

 necessary, when a mere slow draught animal 

 is required. 



It is of no little importance, tliat the parents 

 should be in full possession of their natural 

 strength aud powers. It is a common error 

 to suppose that because a mare has once been 

 good, she may profitably be used to breed 

 from when she is no longer capable of ordinary 

 work. Her blood and perl'ect frame may 

 ensure a foal of some value, but he will inherit 

 a portion of the worn-out constitution of her 

 from whom he sprung. 



On the subject of breeding in and in — that 

 is, persevering in the same breed, and selecting 

 the best on either side — much has been said. 

 The system of crossing requires larger ex- 

 perience and judgment, perliaps much larger 

 than breeders usually possess. The bad 

 qualities of the cross are too soon engrafted 

 on the original stock ; and once eugrafted there, 



L39 



