48 NICKINQ. 



NICKING. 



Nicking a horse has been generally believed to be 

 attended with much difficulty, and to require great in- 

 genuity and art to perform the operation. The nicking 

 alone, is by far t*he easiest part, as the curing and 

 pullying requires considerable attention and trouble. 

 Nicking is an operation })erformed for the purpose of 

 making a horse carry an elegant artificial tail, which 

 adds much to his beauty and value. A horse may be 

 finely shaped, even without fault, except carrying a 

 bad tail, and he will not command a larger sum than 

 one of very loose and ordinary shape elegantly nicked. 

 One thus operated on, will have an appearance of 

 gaiety, sprightliness, and life, which cannot be given 

 by art in any other way ; indeed, it very Irequently 

 happens the tail sells for one fourth the value of the 

 horse, which argues strongly in favour of the opera- 

 tion being performed on every tolerable likely horse, 

 that is naturally deficient in that respect. 



Some are of opinion, and particularly our plain, 

 good old farmers, who are in the habit of raising fine 

 horses, that nicking is injurious, weakening the back, 

 unstringing the tendons, relaxing the muscles about the 

 hind parts, causing a horse frequently to fall and some- 

 times to catch upoji their ancles behind, almost 

 breaking the rider's back; in all of which they are 

 entirely mistaken, and would readily be convinced of 

 the fact, if they were to study the anatomy of the 

 horse. Every tendon, muscle, nerve, artery, &c. that 

 is separated in nicking, is always cut in docking; 

 and we do not find it the result of experiment, that a 

 horse with a long tail is more durable, stronger, ree 



