HORSES 381 



thousand one hundred and fifty pounds, and their height 

 from 14-3 to 16 hands. 



Saddle horses. Saddle horses are built for ease of 

 action, strength and sureness of foot. They are also re- 

 quired to have mettle, coupled with a good disposition and 

 intelligence. The withers are high and thin, and the shoul- 

 ders oblique. The back must be short, well muscled, and 

 strongly coupled, and the gait easy. The height runs from 

 fourteen hands for polo ponies to sixteen hands for hunters 

 or cavalry horses. The weight may vary from eight hun- 

 dred and fifty to twelve hundred and fifty pounds. 



Ponies. Ponies are chiefly used for children, and 

 must therefore first of all have good dispositions. To be 

 in the pony class, the height must be under fourteen hands. 

 The body is deep and well rounded, the legs and neck are 

 short, the croup is level, and the quarters are strong and well 

 developed. 



These different classes of horses often merge into one 

 another so that it is difficult to tell in which of two classes a 

 certain animal belongs. For market purposes it pays to 

 breed for well marked classes, as these always bring higher 

 prices than mixed stock. 



1. Study each horse on your home farm, and decide 

 the class to which it belongs. If the type is not clearly 

 marked in any case, decide what two classes it resembles. 



2. Also grade each horse as choice, good, medium, com- 

 mon, or inferior in its class. Remember that to be "choice" 

 the animal must be entirely sound, in good condition, and 

 possess in the highest degree the ideal qualities of its class. 

 The "inferior" grade is the very worst of its class. The 

 other grades lie in between these two extremes. 



3. Breeds of Horses 



While the breed to which a horse belongs has little 

 bearing on its market value if the class marks are strong 



