HORSESHOEING. 117 



enough to support the bulbs of the heels. On the contrary, 

 horses used at a trot or gallop, as coach- and saddle-horses, 

 require shorter shoes (see Eig. 124). 



The iveight of the shoe should be so adjusted to the demands 

 of the horse's work, the condition of tlie legs (whether used up 

 with work or not), and the nature of the ground that the shoeing 

 will last at least a month. Hard roads and a heavy, clumsy 

 gait require strong, durable shoes, which, under some con- 

 ditions, are to be rendered still more durable by welding in 

 steel. For moderate service upon soft roads we should use 

 light shoes. Running horses require unusually thin and narrow 

 shoes of steel (see Figs. 125-128). 



H. Shaping and Fitting Shoes. General Considerations. 



This is one of the most important parts of horseshoeing. 

 Its object is to so fashion or shape the shoe which has been 

 chosen for a particular hoof that its circumference will exactly 

 correspond to the lower circumference of the previously pre- 

 pared hoof, and its bearing-surface will fit air-tight to the bear- 

 ing-surface of the hoof. At this time all defects in the surfaces 

 of hoof and shoe and in the nail-holes must be remedied, the 

 clips dra^vn up, and the shoe made to fit perfectly. The bear- 

 ing-surface of the shoe, especially at the ends of the branches, 

 must be kept horizontal* and 'smooth, and its width regulated 

 by the width of the bearing surface of the hoof (see page 99). 

 Perfectly uniform heating is absolutely indispensable in shap- 

 ing the shoe, because an irregularly heated shoe twists or 

 becomes distorted at the warm places. Every shoe should be 

 straight, and when held before the eye one branch should exactly 

 cover the other. A flat shoe laid upon a level surface should 

 touch at all parts of its ground-surface; the only exception to 



* The horizontal bearing-surface is in accordance with nature, 

 because the changes of form of the hoof which take place at the 

 plantar border of the wall, on burdening and unburdening the foot, 

 should not be interfered with. A horizontal bearing-surface bast fulfils 

 this requirement. 



