322 MISCELLANEOUS HABITS. 



a line with the top of the head, the tacks cut the jaw a 

 little below the junction of the head with the neck. If 

 this is kept on a few days or weeks, and then taken off 

 and again adjusted carelessly, there is likely to be a failure ; 

 for if the horse finds he can crib once with this on without 

 hurting himself, he will be encouraged to repeat the effort, 

 and will punish himself severely to do so. But if punished 

 at first, and this is kept where it will hurt keenly at the 

 least attempt to crib, and is left on a few weeks, it ought 

 to be successful. It will not do to buckle a strap around 

 the neck. The adjustment must be made to the strap of 

 the halter, and the halter must fit nicely to the head. It 

 must be made like a bridle, with brow-piece, so that it will 

 not shift or move on the head. A boy broke five horses of 

 this habit a few years ago; but he became careless, and 

 failed on the sixth. There is, once in a while, an old horse 

 of determined character that will crib in defiance of this or 

 any other means. Such cases are, however, rare. A 

 young, nervous-tempered horse will yield readily to the 

 treatment, and but few horses will attempt to crib while 

 wearing a muzzle. 



If a strap be buckled rather tightly around the neck, a 

 horse will not crib while it is on. This is, however, but a 

 simple preventive. There is also the objection that grad- 

 ually the horse may learn to resist, to overcome which, the 

 strap has to be buckled tighter, which of course obstructs 

 the circulation, and causes inflammation, thus producing se- 

 rious and permanent injury. If a strap is used for this 

 purpose it should be fully three inches wide, and buckled 

 just tight enough to prevent the inclination to crib. A 

 wide strap works a great deal better than a narrow one, 

 and is less liable to do harm. 



