96 THE HORSE : ITS KEEP AND MANAGEMENT. 



animal comes to any rough or sharp stones it will often 

 become lame through stepping upon one, as well 

 as getting fever in the feet from a bruise by so doing, 

 and in some cases where the feet are tender they 

 go down. As regards what sort of shoe should be 

 used for certain horses that is difficult to tell, as most 

 people should know what work they are going to put the 

 animal to, and be able to judge what kind of shoe is 

 required according to the amount of work to be done. 

 For instance, a horse which runs a good deal should 

 not have the shoes too short in the front, if so, it causes 

 weakness in the fore leg. 



With a horse which goes hunting, it is a different 

 matter : the fore shoes must be rather short, if not the 

 animal pulls them off with its hind feet when it goes to 

 jump, but most gentlemen who use horses for this purpose 

 are well aware of this fact, and have their animals seen 

 to properly in this respect. I might mention, when it is 

 sharp frosty weather it is a wise plan to have the horses' 

 shoes made so that screws can be put in by the owners 

 themselves, as it saves a great deal of the animal's time. 

 Sometimes when it is very slippery I have known horses 

 have to wait at the farrier's from two to six hours : this is 

 a great waste of time. Then again, it is very convenient 

 to be able to put the screws in oneself, as they are no 

 trouble at all ; they can be put in with a little screw 

 hammer or pair of pincers, and taken out when the 

 horse comes home. No matter whether they are cart or 

 nag horses they can be served just the same This 



