34 



THE ART CF HORSE-SHOEING. 



diicing the final level surface, no encroachment upon the 

 necessary thickness of covering horn need be made. 



The OvEFiGROWN Foot, such as we find on a healthy 

 horse that has retained a set of shoes for some weeks, or 

 that has been without shoes on a surface not hard enough 

 to cause sufficient wear, is quite unfitted to receive a 

 shoo. It must be reduced to j)i"oportions. In Fig. 18, 



Fig. 18. 



I have attempted to show diagrammatically a side view 

 of an overgrown hoof. The dotted lines at the base 

 shoAV two effects of lowering one part more than another, 

 although both attain a level surface. In Fig. 21, we see 

 the result of over-lowering the heels, and in Fig. 30, of 

 leaving them too high. It may also be noticed that 

 these conditions affect other parts of the foot; in fact, not 

 only otiier parts, but the whole foot, and even the rela- 

 tive position of the foot to the leg. If we compare the 

 proportionate foot. Fig. 19, with the diagram Fig. 21, it 

 will be seen that by over-lowering the heels, the slope of 

 the front of the foot is increased, that the bearing sur- 

 face from heel to toe is slightly increased in length, and 

 that if the dotted perpendicular line be accepted as 

 showing the direction through which the weight of the 

 body passes, lowering the heels tends to put an increased 

 proportion of weight on the back parts of the foot. If 



