148 HORSEMANSHIP FOR WOMEN. 



the horse, and stating that he is sound, kind, goes well 

 under the saddle and in single or double harness, and is 

 afraid of nothing. 



The vices which in the eye of the law make a horse 

 returnable are Biting, Cribbing, Kicking, Rearing when 

 dangerous, and Shying when dangerous. 



In estimating the height of a horse it is convenient 

 to remember that fifteen hands make exactly five feet 

 — a " hand " being four inches, or a third of a foot. 



To aid the inexperienced we give a cut showing a 

 horse, originally of high spirit but faulty organization, 

 broken down by ill usage, and also append a list of the 

 various defects and ailments which every horse-owner 

 ought to know something about. 



LIST OF DISEASES AND DEFECTS. 



[Those printed in small capitals constitute Unsoundness in the eye of the law.] 



Acclimation. — Horses removed from one part of the country to 

 another have usually a period of indisposition, often of severe ill- 

 ness, and always for some time require more than ordinary care. It 

 is well, therefore, not to buy a Western horse in the Atlantic States 

 until he has been at least a month in his new surroundings. 



Apoplexy. — Sometimes called "sleepy staggers." Begins with 

 drowsiness, passing into insensibility, with snoring respiration, and 

 ending in death. 



Blindness. — Often comes on gradually. Eyes of a bluish-black 

 are thought suspicious, as is inflammation of ball or lid, or cloudi- 

 ness of pupil. 



Blind Staggers. — See "Megrims "and "Staggers." 



Bog-spavin. — A soft swelling on the inner side of the hock-joint 

 towards the front. It is caused by the formation of a sac contain- 



