THE MOUTH. 21 



jaw,) the foal is as a ' yearling' said to have a full 

 mouth, 



19. — During this first year, as might be expected, 

 the nippers vary in appearance; those cut first 

 coming to maturity first, so that the central teeth 

 which have attained their maturity at two months 

 present a strong contrast to the ones next them 

 at that time, which, as we have seen, are only a 

 fortnight old. When the nippers are first cut, their 

 upper cutting surface is sharp like a knife, and, this 

 surface meeting the surface of the teeth in the other 

 jaw, wears away until the broader part of the 

 tooth is come upon, and then, instead of a sharp 

 knife-like edge we get a flat surface like a table-top. 

 Every nipper thus changes, alike in temporary and 

 in permanent teeth. Therefore, at nine months old, 

 or even at twelve months old, whilst the centre 

 nippers and those next to them have more or less 

 well marked flat table-top cutting sw\faces, the 

 corner nippers have still shelly knife-like upper 

 edges. 



The upper surfaces, worn flat, will be seen to 

 have two distinct colours, but this we may quite 

 disregard in the temporary teeth, and pay attention 

 onl}^ to those appearances already named. 



It will be seen that during the first year the 

 nippers are nearly useless because of the uneven 

 surfaces of the teeth, some only being useable. Then 

 again the mouth is very tender during the cutting 

 of the teeth. During the second year the foal is in 



