ARTISTIC HORSESHOEING. l3 



CHAPTER II. 



ANATOMY OF THE FOOT. 



If shoeing" is not properly done it produces many diseases 

 of the foot. 



It is easilj^ possible to ruin a good horse in a very short 

 time by bad shoeing. It is also possible when a horse is 

 lame from any cause to, in a measure, remove this lameness, 

 and sometimes to entirely cure it by proper shoeing. No 

 man can shoe a horse properly who does not understand 

 all about the anatomical construction of his feet and legs. 

 He must know how many bones there are in the foot, exact- 

 ly where they are located, and what their uses are. 



How many blacksmiths or horse-shoers are sufficiently 

 familiar with the foot of a horse to describe the location of 

 the different bones and give their technical names ? It is 

 safe to predict that only a small percentag-e could accom- 

 plish this feat, simple as it is. 



We frequently hear horse-shoers claiming" to understand 

 the art in all its bearings, who could not even describe the 

 shape of the coffin-bone, or tell where it was located. The 

 author does not propose in this treatise to go into an ex- 

 tensive explanation of the anatomy of the foot, his object 

 simply being to describe the different bones and tendons in 

 such a way that the whole matter may be easily compre- 

 hended by anybody. 



