12 ESSAYS ON HORSE SUBJECTS 



nesses. The list included navicular disease, ring- 

 bone, spavin, sidebone, periodic ophthalmia or 

 moonblindness, and roaring. It will be observed 

 that knee-sprung was not included. In order 

 not to complicate matters they made the list as 

 short as possible, and only included the most 

 serious forms of unsoundness or those that are 

 very obstinate in yielding to treatment or are in- 

 curable. Unsoundnesses such as knee-sprung, 

 curb or splint, though the tendency to them is un- 

 doubtedly hereditary, were not included. This was 

 because these conditions seldom permanently in- 

 terfere with a horse's practical soundness. Ahorse 

 is what is called "tied in" below the knee when the 

 leg immediately below that joint is narrower 

 from before backwards, than it is just above the 

 fetlock. In this condition the tendons behind the 

 knee are not well developed, and are placed too 

 close to the shank-bone at this point. This im- 

 perfect tendonous development in a front leg is 

 not usually confined to the tendons behind the 

 leg, called the flexor tendons, as an imperfect 

 development of these tendons is usually associat- 

 ed with an impaired development of the tendons 

 running down the front of the leg called the ex- 

 tensor tendons. Such a condition frequently re- 

 sults in shaky knees, and if the subject experi- 

 ences hard work, he is likely to become progress- 

 ively worse. In some cases the flexor tendons 



