GOOD POINTS.] 



MODEEN VETEBINAPvY TRACTICE. 



[defects. 



Lips aro lofty atul prominent, but not ragged ; 

 BO tliat many of our best racers aro higher 

 boliiiul than before; the spaces between them 

 ami the points of tlio quarters great, as are 

 also those between the latter parts and the 

 stillea. The haunches want the jilump and 

 round appearance of the full quarter; but so 

 far from either being lank or thin, tliey are 

 .striped with bold and prominent muscles, free 

 ■from the adipose and cellular substance which 

 constitutes the flabbiuess of those with full 

 quarters, and are so distinct, that even through 

 the skin, we can distinguish where one ends 

 and another begins. The stifles should pro- 

 ject boldly forwards, and have a perceptible 

 irregularity of surfiice. Thighs, when long, 

 thick, and muscular, are pronounced to be 

 '• good." The hock, of all other parts in tlic 

 racer, is of the utmost importance ; it should 

 be broad, flat, and of largo dimensions. The 

 propulsion of the animal machine is effected 

 chiefly by those muscles which are attached to 

 the point of the hock ; so that the more this 

 projects, the greater the force these can exert, 

 simply on the principle of the lever. 



The half-bred horse, with good hocks, pos- 

 sesses the same advantage in hunting as the 

 racer does on the turf. The point of the hock, 

 as we have before observed, cannot stand out 

 too much ; indeed, the greater its dimensions 

 altogether, the better, provided it be not 

 gummy, or that its various bony projections 

 and sinewy parts are distinctly seen or felt. 

 If the hock is narrow, its point round and not 

 well defined, it is said to be straight; and, 

 from its being liable to curbs, is called a curhy 

 hock. Should its point be directed inwards, 

 and the toes turned outwards, the horse is 

 said to be cow-hoclced, or cat-hammed. As 

 this is a part very liable to disease, as well as 

 to original mal-formation, the nicest examina- 

 tion is required to detect all that may prove 

 disadvantageous or injurious to its function, 

 the proper performance of which is of so much 

 importance, that the propulsion of the \Yhole 

 machine depends chiefly upon it. 



In spite of the old adage, " that a good horse 

 is never of a bad colour;" still colour is, by 

 many persons, esteemed of considerable im- 

 portance. Bays and browns are considered, 

 generally, good colours, as they are almost 

 invariably accompanied by black legs, and, as 



a consequence, good black hoofH, which aro 

 always preferable to white ones. Chestnut 

 colours and roans aro much up])roved of. The 

 dark iron-grey is ol'ten a colour sought after; 

 yet, horses of this colour, as they advance in 

 years, gradually become lighter; and, ut the 

 age of eight or nine, will be nearly white. 

 (J rooms have an objection to this colour, and 

 with some justice; for the animals stain them- 

 selves so frequently by even lyiug down, that 

 it is almost impossible to keep them clean 

 without washing them, and this renders them 

 liable to take cold. There is also an objection, 

 generally, to the natural softness of their hoofs, 

 a circumstance which makes it difllcult to shoe 

 them firmly and well. 



Such, generally speaking, may be considered 

 the essential properties of an elTective animal ; 

 and what constitutes sometimes its opposite we 

 will now consider more particularly. 



Tlic editor of The Horse says — " That horse 

 is sound in which there is no disease, nor 

 any alteration of structure in any part which 

 impairs, or is likely to impair his natural use- 

 fulness. That horse is unsound that labours 

 under disease, or that has some alteration of 

 structure that does interfere, or is likely to 

 interfere with his natural usefulness. One 

 horse may possess great speed, but is soon 

 knocked up ; another will work all day, but 

 cannot be got beyond a snail's pace : one with 

 a heavy forehead is liable to stumble, and is 

 continually putting to hazard the neck of his 

 rider; another, with an irritable disposition 

 and a washy make, loses his appetite, and begins 

 to scour if a little extra work is exacted from 

 him. The term unsoundness cannot be applied 

 to either of these ; it would be opening a door 

 to endless wrangling. The buyer can discern, 

 or ought to know, whether the form of the 

 horse is that which will render him likely to 

 suit his purpose ; and he should try him suffi- 

 ciently to ascertain his natural strength, 

 endurance, and manner of going. Unsound- 

 ness, we repeat, has reference only to disease, 

 or to that alteration of structure which is con- 

 nected with, or will produce disease, and lessen 

 the usefulness of the animal." 



These principles will be best illustrated by 

 a brief consideration of the usual supposed 

 causes of unsoundness. 



jBroJcen.-hiees certainly do not constitute 



159 



