The Horse's Feet and Their Care 175 



is not a success in any part of our state, the land being too stony 

 and hilly. I have seen a number of good colts ruined by running 

 in stony and hilly pastures. They would wear off the heel to 

 such an extent that it caused them to become ankle cocked, and 

 it also elfected the coffin joint on the hind foot. I have in my 

 time shod a number of two-year-olds that became lame from their 

 feet wearing off in the pasture. 



IMPROVING shoeing 



Since it is an absolute necessity to shoe horses in this part of 

 the country, let us see if we cannot make some improvement on 

 the manner in which it is being done by most of my fellow crafts- 

 men, especially by those that are shoeing our farmers' horses. 



In my observation during the last twenty-five years while travel- 

 ing in this and other states, I have given particular attention to 

 the appearance of horses' feet on the streets of our cities as well 

 as on our country roads. I can safely say without successful con- 

 tradiction that 75 per cent of the horses are improperly shod, and 

 that 50 per cent of the horses in our state have their days 

 shortened 25 per cent by improper cutting and haggling of their 

 feet by incompetent persons, who nail iron to their feet — I can- 

 not call it shoeing in any sense. 



At this point I should like to call attention to the fact that I 

 do not claim to be an expert in shoeing trotting horses. My time 

 is entirely taken up with the study and shoeing of road and draft 

 horses and general purpose horses that are used in our agricul- 

 tural districts. 



Duty and justice require that as the horse increases in powers 

 of usefulness for all purposes of life, he deserves wiser and better 

 protection than is given him by those who doom him to a life of 

 painful labor or constant lameness. 



Since a large proportion of the defects in horses' feet originate 

 and are developed by bad methods of farriery, it surely must be 

 of sufficient impo-rtance to every man who values his horse to de- 

 mand better service in the shoeing. At the same time he should 

 be willing to pay a fair price for good work if it is in his power 

 to get it done. Though he may be put to some inconvenience, it 

 will amply pay in the long run. 



