HARNESS HINTS. 



55 



An unnecessarily cruel thing about a harness is a tight 

 throat strap. Don't leave it so loose that the bridle can be 

 rubbed otT during fly-time, but see that it does not press the 

 throat when the head is up, thus cutting off the breath, stop- 

 ping the blood and causing a swelling of the throat glands. 



It is cioiel to make a horse work in a hard, ill-fitting 

 collar. How do you like a shoe that causes blisters, corns 

 and bunions on your feet ? 



In the name of all that is humane, dispense with the old 

 flapping blinders that have long ago lost shape and straps to 

 keep them in place. They endanger the sight and are a 

 source of discomfort to the poor beast obliged to submit to 

 such cruelty. Take your jackknife and cut them off. 



The only horse that should have the overdraw check rein 

 is the one that is hard-mouthed and pulls on the lines, or the 

 one that continually jerks on the lines to loosen them. 

 Such horses are greatly improved by this rein. 



Take the fasteners from an old overshoe and sew or rivet 

 a five-inch strip of leather to the same, and use for horse- 

 tail tie. 



In fly-time, put a big crupper pad under the tail of the 

 horse, big enough to raise it up so the animal cannot hug it 

 when it switches over the reins. This is a simple contrivance 

 and a safe one. Put buckles on this big pad and buckle it 

 under the back strap, the same as 

 the regular one. When under 

 the tail, the horse cannot hold 

 the rein. 



Here is shown the way that 

 shy bronchos are led behind a 

 wagon in the far West. Take a 

 half-inch rope, lay the two ends 

 together and tie a knot about five feet from the other end 



