LJFOSSE ON DEFECTirE SHOEING. 483 



they prevent slipping ; the roads being hard, three nails 

 are required — two in the outer branch, and one in the inner.' 

 Reverting to the defective shoeing of his time, he 

 endeavours to demonstrate, that by removing the horn of 

 the frog and points of the heels from the ground, the 

 animal's footing on paved roads is much less secure. 

 ' The draught-horse first places his weight on the toe, 

 then on the two sides of the hoof, and afterwards the 

 heels are lowered to meet the heel of the shoe. The 

 saddle-horse rests more lightly on the toe. The cannon (or 

 shank bone) presses on the pastern-bone, this on the coro- 

 nary, and this again on the coffin and navicular bones. 

 From this disposition, we should note two important points 

 which throw light on the defects of the present method, 

 and indicate how to remedy them ; one is, that the strain of 

 the weight is neither fixed on the toe nor heel, but between 

 the two ; the other, that the more the frog is removed from 

 the ground or from any point of support, the more the 

 pressure of the coronary on the navicular bone fatigues the 

 tendon on which it rests, in consequence of the excessive 

 extension it experiences at each step the horse takes. 

 The frog ought therefore to rest on the ground, as much 

 for the facility as for the surety of the horse's movements ; 

 as the larger the frog is, so the less do the heels meet the 

 ground ; and the more the heels are relieved, the greater 

 ease does the horse experience in progression. The only 

 way to insure this is to shoe him according to the method 

 I have indicated, as this causes him to walk on his frog, 

 which is the natural prop or basis {point crappui) for the 

 flexor tendon.' 



The vs'hole aim of Lafosse's teaching appears to have 



31 * 



