65 



angle of inclination of the wall of the hoof. As already said, it 

 must not be applied too hot — ^just hot enough to make itself a firm 

 bed ; neither must it be nailed to fit, as this tears the hoof. 



183. Nails and Nail-holes. — The fewer nails there are in the 

 shoe the better; but as a rule, four nails are put on the outside, and 

 three on the inside — more are used at times, but if the shoe is efficiently 

 fitted, even a less number may be sufficient. The nail-holes, whether 

 punched through the racing or fullering, or stamped, are, as a rule, made 

 so that the nails when driven, have a decided inward bearing [see Plate 

 XIV., Nos. 7, 2, and j), particularly at the toe, so as to keep in line with 

 the angle of the hoof, while the quarter and heel nails are more nearly 

 vertical. When the holes are made too obliquely, the nails are apt to 

 break off at the neck. Some feet, however, are so constituted that 

 the shoe has to be nailed round the toe, instead of the quarter. In 

 driving the nail, care should be taken not to get into the sensitive 

 parts, nor to get so near as to press on them. This shows how 

 necessary it is to fit the shoe properly, and, also, to make the nail- 

 holes at proper angles. After the shoe has been attached, in dressing 

 the hoof, some smiths persist in rasping the walls — " to make them 

 look nice," they say. To my eye, nothing looks worse than a rasped 

 hoof. By the use of the rasp, not only is the outer covering, Periop/e, 

 or varnish-like structure of the hoof destroyed, but some hundreds of the 

 little fibrous tubes which are seen running from the top to the bottom 

 of the hoof, are wounded and left exposed to the action of the 

 atmosphere, which makes the hoof turn hard and brittle, breaking off 

 where the nails are turned down or clinched. I thus, strongly say, 

 that the knife and rasp ought to be used sparingly, and with great 

 caution. The hoof must not be rasped above the clinches on any account. 



184. Stopping for the Feet. — Numerous authorities do not favour 

 stopping the feet with articles of a moist nature. I was my own 

 groom for over 20 years, and as I did all my work on the saddle, I 

 felt the full benefit of stopping the feet when the roads were hard and 

 dry, for if the practice was omitted the want was readily noticed on 

 mounting next morning. Therefore, in long -continued frosts, or during 



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