74 THE HORSE. 



posed to allow the sole to be pared very thin at the 

 time of shoeing. So far from that, I think a thin sole 

 is a most serious defect. It will render the horse very 

 tender in passing over broken stones — so mnch so, that 

 he will probably come off with a pair of broken knees. 

 The sole should be pared a little lower than the 

 crust, but it certainly shoidd not be made very thin. 

 If it is thought necessary to lower it at the seat of 

 corns, the operation ought to be done carefully with a 

 small insti-ument, so that neither the crust nor the bars 

 may be in the slightest degi'ee weakened. If they are 

 weakened, the pressure on the corns will become the 

 greater, and the disease, in place of being cm-ed, will 

 be increased. 



GROWTH OF THE FEET. 



If young horses were to receive the attention they de- 

 seiwe from the time of theii' weaning, they would have 

 much better shaped and sounder feet than they have 

 under the present system of management. In place of 

 expecting a large number of well-formed feet, we 

 should rather be surprised to see one at all, when we 

 reflect upon the manner in which the poor animals are 

 generally reared. Young horses are often kept stand- 

 ing in moisture and filth, till their feet are ruined by 

 the ravages of thrushes, and their hoofs are seldom 

 di'essed before they have gi'own to such an extent, that 

 the unfortunate creatures are obliged to walk almost on 



