126 THE PRACTICAL HORSE KEEPER. 



accident usually happens to horses that have long sloping 

 shoulders and fine withers ; it may be prevented, or at least 

 the liability may be diminished, by having the collar " piped " 

 that is, hollowed out at its lower end where it may come 

 into opposition with the windpipe, as that tube enters the 

 chest. It is prudent to work horses prone to choke by the 

 collar in chains rather than shaft-gears." 



The collar should so fit that, when the horse is pulling, the 

 weight of the load should be distributed over the front of the 

 shoulders, at their junction with the neck, leaving the wind- 

 pipe entirely free, instead of bearing only on certain points, or 

 playing injuriously up and down. The collar should be made 

 to fit the neck and shoulders, for as these differ more or less in 

 nearly every horse, so there can be no universally-fitting collar. 

 And when fitting it, the horse should be put into draught at a 

 good pace, as the shape of the neck and shoulders is then 

 different to what it is when the horse is not in motion so 

 much so, indeed, that a collar which appears to fit well when 

 the animal is standing still will often be found much too short 

 when drawing at a trot. 



The lining of the collar should be of some soft, smooth, 

 non-absorbent substance; possibly the best is leather. This 

 should be kept clean and free from dirt and the products of 

 perspiration. 



The collar is usually pushed over the head, the wider part 

 uppermost, and turned on the narrowest portion of the neck. 

 This manoeuvre many horses have a decided objection to, and 

 especially when they have been frightened by it in their 

 youth, or the coachman or groom are rough and violent. With 

 such horses, a collar opening at the top is the best, and indeed 

 for all horses it is the most easily put on, as the head is then 

 not at all interfered with. 



The point of attachment of the traces to the hames is also 

 of some moment, as if too high or too low the horse draws at a 



