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dropping or irregular carriage of the head is a 

 sure sign of lameness. Very high action is bad — 

 it is often unpleasant to the rider ; it wears and 

 bruises the feet on hard roads, and it is not un- 

 frequently the cause of the speedy cut ; the foot 

 striking against the inside of the opposite knee ; 

 this is particularly the case in horses with broad 

 feet and soft heels. Very low action is unsafe, 

 for obvious reasons ; the toe has a tendency to 

 strike any accidental elevation of the ground, such 

 as a large stone or frozen rut, and becomes worn 

 almost to the quick ; thus the foot is inj ured, even 

 if the horse is not brought down. Some horses 

 are very apt to turn their feet very much outwards 

 or inwards in their trot ; either defect is very un- 

 pleasant to the eye, and the latter often unsafe : 

 the former is usually found in slow horses, the 

 other in fast trotters. To judge if such a fault 

 exists, it is prudent to change your position to the 

 end of the ride, and watch the horse's approach, 

 as well as his passing action. 



A wide, straddling action of the hind legs, or 

 the opposite fault, of having the hocks too close, 

 so as to turn the hind feet outwards on the trot, 

 is very ungraceful, and usually implies an uneasy 

 seat. The latter fault is generally described as 

 cow-hocked, because it makes the action resemble 



