SHOEING. 83 



strong ; the hind legs flat, smooth, bony, and M oi 

 sinew, clear of knots, and rather crooked in the hock 

 than straight ; the pasterns of moderate length, small 

 and rather straight than otherwise. The horse should 

 be neither knock-kneed or bow-legged, or his feet 

 turned in or out; as a horse thus shaped, moves ugly, 

 and never can be sure footed. 



SHOEING. 



DISEASES are sometimes produced in the feet, ii orn 

 which a horse is never again free during his life ; it is 

 therefore important that a valuable horse should not be 

 placed in the hands of every blockhead who pleases to 

 call himself a horse shoer, but entrusted only to persons 

 of known skill. For a horse to be well shod, the hoof 

 should be pared with a buttress, (instead of giving in 

 to the cruel and injurious practice of burning the foot 

 with a red hot shoe until it fits,) smooth and level, to 

 a reasonable size; the frog should be nicely trimmed, 

 in shape a little convex, rather lower than the foot ; 

 the shoes should be made of good and tough iron, and 

 precisely the shape of the hoof after being trimmed, 

 not so wide between the heels as to show on the out- 

 side, or so narrow as to cramp the foot, and produce 

 narrow heels, (which is a very troublesome disease.) 

 The nails should be made of old horseshoes, or some 

 other tough iron, with small heads, and drove regular, 

 smooth, and even; not high enough to reach the 



