92 TRAINING YOUNG 



the fore-legs one-third of an inch thick, and 

 covered over with wet cold-water linen band- 

 ages, which can be left on for twenty-four hours 

 with the bandages kept wet. 

 I had a bad case of sprained suspensory liga- 

 ment that was treated with applications of wet 

 clay throughout the summer. It was kept on 

 permanently wet for three months. The horse's 

 legs came out in the autumn like a two-year- 

 old's, and he was never troubled again in that 

 way. 



DISTRIBUTION OF THE 

 HORSE'S WEIGHT 



The fact that horses wear out their fore-legs, 

 whilst the hind-legs are generally as good in 

 an old horse as they were when he was six 

 years old, is easily explained. When the fore- 

 legs are put on the ground the limbs are 

 straight the whole way down, whereas there 

 is bending and unbending of the hock in the 

 case of the hind-limbs. The excessive strain 

 on the leading fore-leg at the gallop, as shown 

 in the previous diagram, also accounts for 

 lameness. Finally, in the average young horse 

 the fore-legs take more than one-half, about 

 three-fifths, of the total body weight. From 

 J 4 to 28 lb. is taken off the weight on the 



