186 HORSE-SHOEING. 



it is strong enough not to twist or bend. The present form of 

 shoe is not objectionable. 



For hunters, hacks, and harness horses, a shoe of the modified 

 pattern I have described is well adapted; even the ordinary 

 hunting pattern, but without the calkin on the hind-shoe, 

 is infinitely preferable to that used for hacks and harness 

 horses. 



Another excellent form of shoe, introduced by Staff Veterinary 

 Surgeon Thacker, and which has been in use for some time in 

 Woolwich on riding and harness horses, deserves to be men- 

 tioned here. It is broader in the cover at the toe than the heels 

 (Fig. 17) ; at the toe it is slightly curved upward, to remove it 

 from the greater amount of wear occuring at this part, and also 

 as a safeguard against horses stumbling. This curve also acts as 

 .a clip to prevent the shoe moving backward. The foot-surface is 



Fig. 17. 



•quite flat, and rests on the sole and wall (Fig. 17). The ground- 

 surface (Fig. 18) is beveled somewhat like the hunting or modi- 

 fied shoe I have described, with the intention of protecting the 

 heads of the nails from too much wear, and offering no line or 

 cavity whereby a stone can lodge or become wedged. The 

 cover or " web " of the shoe is gradually brought very narrow 

 .at the heels, its outer rim corresponding exactly with the 



