142 



side will cause him to shy violently to right and 

 left, and not infrequently the object which appears 

 to frighten him is quite chimerical. Herein lies the 

 great danger of being taken unawares for he will 

 often shy with great rapidity, when, to the eyes of 

 his rider, no frightful object is apparent, which clearly 

 proves that the fear of the horse is due to an optical 

 delusion. 



THE CONSTRUCTION OF STABLES. 



Stables should be commodious and warm with 

 wide, level stalls. Draughts are very conducive to 

 colds, and stalls placed on an incline are a continu- 

 ous discomfort as horses either standing or lying are 

 never at ease. They should be constructed without 

 lofting, and should be well lighted and ventilated. 

 Lofts are rarely put into new stables nowadays for 

 three very sufficient reasons: — first, they are very 

 unsuitable for the storage of hay in any quantity, 

 because the vitiated air emitted from the horses per- 

 meates it and renders it very unfit for fodder by 

 becoming musty, which is productive of coughs and 

 defective wind ; second, lofts prevent the entrance 

 of light from the roof, which is recognised as the 

 best source from which to obtain it, because with 

 cross-lights from the roof the light will penetrate 

 into every corner of the stable ; and third, proper 

 ventilation is simply impossible with lofting. Thus 

 dark ill -ventilated stables are conducive to shying 

 in horses, and the best preventive is a liberal admis- 



