PROPORTIONS OV CART HORSE SHOES. 247 



7. CART HORSES. 



Owing to the position assumed in hauling heavy weights, the 

 cart horse wears most heavily at the toe and outer quarter. 

 These points must, therefore, be strengthened to the utmost 

 without unduly increasing weight, whilst the less worn parts 

 must be of a strength corresponding to the degree of attrition. 

 A careful examination of the old shoe will soon show what 

 parts require to be strengthened. 



The front shoe is generally of equal thickness throughout. 

 The cover is [greatest at the toe and diminishes towards the 

 heels. There are seven to eight nail holes, those on the outer 

 rather more widely spaced than those on the inner side. To 

 increase the soliditv and wear of the shoe nail holes are some- 

 times omitted from the parts where friction is greatest. The 

 toe-clip is, if anything, somewhat towards the outer side of the 

 toe. 



The hoof surface presents a plain rim sufficiently wide to 

 cover the wall and about ^ of an inch of the outer margin of 

 the sole. The seating terminates 1 to 1^ inches from the heel, 

 which is well rounded and which sliould project -^ to f of an 

 inch beyond tliat of the foot when the shoe is affixed. Although 

 in London the front shoe is usually flat it is customary in many 

 parts of the country, especially in Newcastle, Liverpool, and 

 Scotland, and on the continent, to raise the heels by the use of 

 low calkins or, short of this, to considerably increase the thick- 

 ness of the heel itself. This will be referred to in the succeed- 

 ing pages. 



The hind shoe is thickest and broadest at the toe ; the inner 

 branch is narrower than the outer, is fitted close to the foot, 

 and the inside nail holes extend back to a less distance than 

 the outer ; there are two calkins of equal height, the inner 

 somewhat narrower than the outer, and two clips, one at the 

 toe and one at the outer quarter. The calkins should not 

 much exceed in lieioht double the thickness of the shoe at the 

 quarter. Horses which ' tread ' the opposite coronet may be 

 shod with an inside wedge heel. Calkins favour the muscular 

 action of the limb and greatly assist the animal in descending 

 hills. To help the animal in starting, Fader suggested placing 



