SHOEING. 665 



quick, which will be known by the horse's flinching, it should be 

 pulled out at once; or should a horse show soreness, after being 

 taken out of the shop, the foot should be examined carefully by 

 tapping over the part, and the nail at the point of soreness pulled 

 out. (For more details, see treatment for Pricking, Rucking, etc., 

 in latter part of this chapter.) 



CLENCHING DOWN THE NAILS. 



When the nail is twisted off, the end should be filed down to 

 the proper length, and, with the corner of the rasp or little punch, 

 cut out the pith or raised part under the clench, and turn down 

 lightly but firmly. The common custom is to make a deep notch 

 with the corner of the rasp, which extends across the face of the 

 hoof from one nail to the other. 



This is so injurious that it should not be permitted even to the 

 smallest degree. No rasping of the outer surface of the wall 

 should be allowed, excepting to touch or smooth any roughness of 

 the clenches, and to round off the edge of the wall down near the 

 shoe. It has been explained under the proper head, that the inner 

 surface of the wall is soft and spongy, and that as it approaches 

 the outer surface, it becomes hard and bony, and the fibers closer 

 and denser, and that over the surface is a sort of skin or thin 

 covering of enamel, that prevents too rapid evaporation of moist- 

 ure ; and it is necessary to retain intact this strong, fibrous horn, 

 as well as that of its outer covering, so as to hold the nails firmly, 

 as well as to prevent the excessive evaporation of moisture which 

 would follow. 



Should the shoe be too short, which is liable to happen, to 

 remedy the difficulty it is the common custom to set it back under 

 the wall, and rasp the thick, strong wall, extending out over the 

 shoe, down to it; or, should the shoe be too straight or narrow 

 for the foot across the points of nailing, to drive the nails so deeply 

 as to not only endanger pricking, but to greatly weaken the wall. 



The excessive rasping not only destroys the strongest part of 

 the wall, that best able to retain the nail-holes and support con- 

 cussion, but causes a serious internal disease not usually under- 

 stood, which shows its effect in an absorption of the coffin bone 

 and other parts beneath. Fig. 486 is a good illustration of this. 



