Horses and Horsemastership, 



The affected fcot feels abnormally hot, and the horse 

 invariably- stands with it pointing cut. as it were, the 

 heel being raised, and his weight borne by the other 

 three legs. If both feet are affected he "points'' them 

 in turn and at frequent intervals. 



He will trot short, favouring the heels as much as 

 possible, and the shoes will bear evidence of the fact by 

 the unduly worn appearance they present at the toes. 

 If ridden he will stumble a great deal, and it is with a 

 weight on his back that the lameness is most apparent. 

 Going down a hill, when, of course, he can't favour his 

 heels, is as purgatory to the poor beast. 



The disease is more serious than laminitis, and as it 

 is one for which the operation called neurotomy (i.e., 

 unnerving), by which the foot is deprived of sensation, 

 is practically the only means of enabling the horse to 

 go sound, it is as well, when purchasing a horse without 

 a V.S.'s opinion (a thing the novice should never do), 

 to make sure that the animal has not been so treated, 

 which can be done by, for instance, a slight pin-prick 

 above the coronet. 



LAMINITIS, which is commonly known as " foot 

 fever." is an extremely painful disease of the sensitive 

 laminae, the most frequent cause of which is, as in 

 navicular disease, excessive work on hard ground, 

 although it may also arise from improper feeding, want 

 of regular exercise, etc. In this disease the horse, when 



