68 THE CARE OF HORSES 



so I take it that many a good horse is spoilt and 

 rendered vicious by ignorant and timid people. 

 Have confidence in yourself and use common- 

 sense, and your horse will have confidence in you. 

 Never go out of your way to meet trouble half-way ; 

 it comes quite soon enough. 



There is a very simple method, which I have tried 

 myself successfully, by which horses who shy at 

 pieces of paper lying about in the road can be cured. 

 I must refer you to the picture of the interior of my 

 stables (p. 23), and you will notice running along out- 

 side the boxes a plain, broad strip of flooring. This 

 I had pipe-clayed, together with the stone step out- 

 side the stable-door as well as inside. The horses 

 did not like it at all at first, but gradually got used 

 to it. Then white rubbers were purposely dropped 

 about, either as the horses left or entered the stable, 

 and dropped in the yard on windy days, and now 

 I have not one horse who minds paper, etc., even if 

 it should blow up under his head or across the road. 

 It is also a very good plan to encourage pigeons 

 about a stable, and always to have a cat, whose 

 noiseless gliding in and out is a great help in 

 accustoming horses to ' sudden appearances.' 



Ill-mannered dogs flying out and barking at horses 

 are a very real danger ; but here, again, it can be 

 greatly lessened. With patience I have got all my 

 horses used to them by playing with dogs near the 

 horses and making them friends ; and now when 

 mounted they will allow me to call my dogs, and let 

 them jump up to the saddle, touching either that or 

 the horse's side as they try to reach my hand to be 

 caressed. ' Familiarity breeds contempt,' and they 

 now scorn the yapping cur, and pass all such little 

 terrors without taking the slightest notice. 



All animals love a game, and horses can enter into 

 one as heartily as any schoolboy; so, please, in the 



