555 



even this pretext, tlie whole surface of the foot is subjected to its relent- 

 less touch. No procedure could well be devised vdiicli would bo more 

 luirtf ul to the foot. In its natural state the entire hoof, from the coronet 

 to the sole level, is covered by a fine coating of natural varnish, tliickest 

 at the upper margin and gradually becoming thinner as it descends. 

 Ujider cover of this beneficent curtain the iiew horn is secreted and 

 protected until it has attained maturity. The moisture secreted by 

 the animal economy necessary to the perfection of the horn is retained 

 vdthin it, and the prejudicial influences of alternating drought and 

 moisture are set at defiance. In a very dry atmosphere like ours it is 

 of paramount importance that this beautiful shield should be pre- 

 served and fostered, and no name is bad enough for a senseless cus- 

 tom which, to serve no good purpose, robs the foot of a necessary 

 protection which it is beyond the power of art 1o imitate or replace. 



IVINTER SHOEING. 



The subject of winter shoeing presents, in many sections of the 

 country, fresh difficulties, for now the shoe is required, in the case 

 of all classes of horses, to discharge a double duty; to afford foothold 

 as well as guard against undue wear. Various patterns of shoes have 

 from time to time been invented to meet this dual requirement, but 

 the commonest of all, fashioned with shoe and heel calks or calkins, 

 is, faulty though it be, probably, all things considered, the one which 

 best suits the requirements of the case. It should, liowever, never be 

 lost sight of that the shorter, the sharper, and the smaller the calkins 

 are, so long as they answer the purpose which called them into exist- 

 ence, so much the better for the foot that wears them. High calkins, 

 while they confer no firmer foothold, are potent means of inflicting 

 injury both on the foot itself and the superincumbent limb at large! 

 It is only from that portion of the catch which enters the ground sur- 

 face that the horse derives any benefit in the shape of foothold, and 

 It must be apparent to the meanest capacity that long calkings, which 

 do not penetrate the hard, uneven ground, are so many leavers put 

 into the animal's possession to enable if not compel him to wring his 

 feet, rack his limbs, and inflict untold tortures on himself. I have 

 laid particular stress on this subject, as I am of opinion that the pres- 

 ence of navicular disease, a dire malady from which horses used for 

 agricultural lal)or should enjoy a practical immunity, is traceable 

 largely to the habitual use, during our long winter months, of need- 

 lessly large calkins, only fractional parts of which find lodgment in 

 the earth or ice during progression. I will explain what' I mean 

 A\ hen a horse is shod with the exaggerated calkins to which I have 

 alluded, the toe and heel calks are, or ought to be, tlie same height 

 to start with, at all events. Very often, hoM^ever, they are not, and 

 even when they are, the toe calk wears down on animals used for 

 draft purposes far more rapidly than its fellows at tlie heel The 



