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The weight of the shoes must be regulated to the size 

 and weight of the liorses, and to guard against the h'a- 

 bility of over-reaching on soft ground, the front feet 

 shoes should be short, and should slope well towards 

 the ground at the heels. Racing plates, of course, are 

 put upon racehorses, lightness being the chief require- 

 ment. For horses with confined action that brush 

 and cut their pastern joints a very simple remedy is 

 effected in the shoeing, as already described in a 

 former chapter. Horses with flat, brittle feet or con- 

 tracted hoofs must be carefully shod, but it is im- 

 possible to lay down hard and fast regulations in the 

 matter, as individual peculiarities must be treated as 

 governing circumstances demand. 



Horses should not be allowed to go without a shoe 

 when one is accidentally cast off, as the hoof soon 

 becomes split and broken to such an extent that the 

 shoe can scarcely be replaced. Shoes should be 

 removed, or renewed, at least once a month, a good 

 deal, of course, depending on the extent and nature of 

 the work that horses are doing. When shoes are 

 allowed to remain too long on the feet, corns and 

 other forms of disease generally follow — hence the 

 necessity of frequent and regular removal. 



SHARPENING. 



Everyone who has any sympathy with horses will 

 recognise the necessity of maintaining their shoes in 

 proper condition for travelling over icebound high- 

 ways. There are several methods of sharpening in 



