110 TRIMMING THE LEGS. 



thorns, bangs, cuts, &c. ; but how the hair on the 

 horse's legs can have the power of warding off either 

 the one or the other, I have yet to learn. 



One thing it certainly does very effectually ward off, 

 viz., that of the groom being unable to discover thorns, 

 stubs, or cuts, which when hidden beneath the mass of 

 wet, matted, and coarse hair, are impossible to feel ; so 

 that the poor beast can only be rid of these extraneous 

 and painful substances by means of the tedious and 

 irritating medium of inflammation and suppuration ; and 

 further, if his heels crack, all healing applications will 

 be useless, so long as the f cracks ' are continally irrita- 

 ted and ( kept open ' by the presence of long hairs. 



That there is much art in removing the hair from 

 the leg, I must admit ; but with care, any one can do 

 it. The only point of importance is the long tuft 

 or lock of hair at the posterior part of the fetlock joint. 

 On no account must the scissors be suffered to interfere 

 with this. Above and below, it may do its work ; but 

 every hair in this tuft must either be ( pulled ' or suf- 

 fered to remain according to its dimensions, for it is 

 this tuft that presents the desired formation and flat- 

 ness of the cannon bone and fetlock joint, and if cut 

 off, the whole symmetry of the fore leg is destroyed. 



In cutting tails, all should depend on the style of 

 horse to be operated on. Short, thick, and rather 

 high horses, should have their tails cut up just so short 

 as that they can carry them ' with afalV If they do 

 not carry them thus, but hold them out straight, with an 

 ungraceful stiffness, they will require docking. But on 



