126 



HORSESHOEING. 



which, without being clearly diseased, have been injured by 

 shoeing. The entire operation requires more circumspection, 

 because it is more difficult. In many cases one will find that 

 the width that has been advised for the outer branch of the 

 shoe at the quarter is not sufficient. Indeed, if a horse has wry 

 feet, and there is unequal distribution of weight within the 

 hoof, and we attempt in shoeing it to follow to the letter the 

 directions given on preceding pages, we would be apt to favor 

 the perpetuation of the defect. In such cases the slant of 

 the wall at the quarters is of the great- 

 est practical value to us in estimating 

 the proper width for the shoe at this 

 point. 



When uniform setting down of the 

 hoof and uniform wear of the shoe are 

 desired, every point in the coronary 

 band in the posterior half of the foot 

 must receive support by the shoe. This 

 applies particularly to the outer halves 

 of hoofs that are extremely base-nar- 

 row. If, for example, the coronet of 

 the outer quarter projects beyond the 

 plantar border of the quarter, the outer 

 branch of the shoe from the last 

 nail-hole back must be kept so wide 

 (full) that an imaginary perpendicular line dropped from 

 the coronary band will just touch the outer border of 

 the shoe. The inner branch, on the contrary, should follow 

 the edge of the wall a's closely as possible. Eurthermore, the 

 new shoe should be given more curve, — ^that is, made wider and 

 fitted more full where the old shoe shows greatest wear. The 

 principal thought should he to set the shoe, which should always 

 he regarded as the hase of support of the hoof, farther towards 

 the more strongly worn side. Such a practice renders super- 

 fluous the wide-spread and popular custom of bending outward 



Left hind shoe with a broad, 

 base-wide outer branch for 

 draft-horses that stand markedly 

 base-narrow (close behind). 



